By Ruth Warburton
Late 19th century London, in the poor East End, Luke Lexton has been able to identify witches ever since his parents were brutally murdered when he was little. After being initiated into a secret society of witch-finders, he is tasked with choosing the name of the witch he is to kill. He chooses Rosa Greenwood, a young woman of the upper class.
Not gonna lie. This was mostly a cover purchase. You can't quite tell from this picture, but the woman on the cover is a much more golden colour. Perfectly striking against the sky blue.
Pleasant surprise. Yes. Totally engrossing, somewhat predictable, and yet, ultimately satisfying.
Luke struggles (as expected) with killing a young woman. Not only that, she's kind and lovely. No wonder he's torn. Also, no big surprise, he totally likes her. Typical, yes.
Rosa is a more complex character. You'd think her to be boring - there are glimmers of a girl with her own agenda. She's unfortunately trapped by society, having to marry for money so her family won't fall into misfortune. Her mother thinks only of money, her brother is terrible, spoiled and useless, and abuses Rosa. The man he decides to marry Rosa to is his best friend - equally cruel and terrible. Though, not useless. Actually intelligent.
Don't skip out on this because of the obvious romance. There's underpinning commentary on social constructs in this time period. We find that even if you have money, life can be a cage. There's a FANTASTIC chunk of the book that explores a match factory and working conditions of the time. Horrible. Fascinating.
I was utterly engrossed in this tale. The ending was laughable and cheezy. At the end of my edition, there was a preview to the next book. I felt that made a much stronger ending than the one that was written.
Will I go on? Sure. Why not.
4/5 STARS
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