Series: The Hollows #7
Published by Eos on 24 February 2009
Genres: Adult, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Pages: 504
Format: eBook
Source: Kindle Purchase
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After the counsil of Witches realized Rachel had summoned demons, and that she may or may not have been using black magic, she is shunned. This means things are even more difficult for her than usual, because noone will sell her any charms, and in her favorite coffee place, she is forbidden from entry. Because spending time with a shunned witch will also make the witches with him or her will be shunned as well, her relationships aren't what they could be.
Rachel also has the biggest mystery yet to deal with, trying to get through the 'forget' charm Jenks put on her to find a killer - and it's the one killer she wants more than any other.
White Witch Black Curse – the title really does say it all! Rachel is doing all the wrong things for all the right reasons, and I love how she is justifying her actions to herself. I also think that the more she does things she thought she’d never do, the stronger her moral compass gets, and that’s part of the awesomeness that is The Hollows!
There also is a new supernatural creature in White Witch Black Curse, and the way she is weaved into the story and the plot of this installment is really good! On top of that, she fits into the overall plot as well, and I realized this because of something that happened in Dead Witch Walking. I think this is part of why I love this series so much, it shines true in each book that the author is on top of her story, her plot-lines and her characters, and it’s always like looking at one of those Salvador Dali paintings, where at first you see one thing, then, when you look a little closer you see something else.
Can you see both the man and the woman in this painting? That’s how I feel sometimes while reading about Rachel. In one book, I’m pretty sure I have things figured out, and then, a book or two later, the whole picture has changed, and it’s impossible to unsee the new information. And it’s so cleverly done I don’t see what will happen in the future books at all.
So yeah, I hope it’s OK to compare a book to a painting, because I didn’t have the exact words I needed to explain this whole immediate, intermediate and long-term plot-lines the way I wanted to.
Anyway, back to White Witch Black Curse, Rachel actually has more than the usual drama to deal with, as some family secrets come to light in a pretty bad way, and she is upset with both her mom and her brother because they have both kept her in the dark.
As you can imagine, with the loose threads from prior books, a new character, a difficult murder investigation and Rachel’s shunning, White Witch Black Curse is certainly fast-paced. But never so much that I felt out of breath – even when Rachel was. And I was very happy with the new reveals, as well as the way Rachel handled everything that arrived on her plate, on her doorstep, in her mail-box and everywhere else stuff could just show up like that.
The fact that all the characters continue to be well fleshed out, even the secondary and further characters like Glenn, Edden and Marshall makes for excellent reading. And the fact that Rachel always second-guesses things because she wants to make sure she is morally sound is another thing that I admire her for (and yes, I actually do know Rachel is a character in a book… but if she was real, I’d want to be her friend!) The way both Jenks and Ivy grow, too, and how even Trent is showing some slight kind of change, keeps making me come back for even more.
“Remember that book you gave me for the winter solstice?” I asked. “No.” My eyes came up, but he wouldn’t meet them. His jaw was clenched, making his long face appear longer. “The one I used to bring-” I started. “No.” It was forceful, and my lips parted when I realized he meant no as in “I’m not telling,” not “I don’t know.”
“Ceri sent them,” I said when I saw her absolutely tiny handwriting. “Trent probably doesn’t even know she put his name on the card.” Jenks landed on my knee. “I bet he does,” he said with a guffaw […]
The girl with the red pajamas smiled like Ceri, wise and fragile. “You’re not bad inside,” she said, petting my wrist. “Just hurt.”
If you haven’t started The Hollows series yet, please do yourself a favor and just get it! I am so happy to be obsessed by Rachel, Ivy, Jenks and the rest, and I would love to have even more people to chat about them with;)
Thanks for stopping by. Have an excellent day, and happy reading.
yay! really need to read this one! I even have it
I hope you’ll love it, too, Melliane 🙂
LOOVE this series, I know what you mean about the painting, you think you know what’s going on, then you see it from a different angle and it changes everything! Unfortunately, I’ve not had the chance to read the last two, but I really want to!
Jenks is so funny!
Great review! 😀
Oh, I hope you’ll be able to read the last two before the next comes out in October Tilly! I agree, Jenks is the best 🙂
Thanks for stopping by.
Wow, 4 stars this far into a series means it has to be pretty good! I still haven’t read Kim Harrison yet, but I want to–so many of my friends rave about her. Fast-paced, well-rounded characters, and cool supes sounds great to me. 🙂
It is really good, Wendy! I just started this series this summer, thanks to some very insistent blogger friends 😉 You won’t be sorry when you pick it up, just make sure you have the next book lined up.
The characters are so well done I think they’re real sometimes.
Thanks for stopping by!
I’d want to be Rachel’s friend too, Lexxie! Gosh, you do such a fabulous job of relaying every wonderful thing about this series, Lexxie. And like The Hollows, your review kept getting better as I read. 😉 I loved your opening paragraph because you summed up Rachel so succinctly. And then you compared the painting to the series – and that is so ‘right on’. Anyway, I love this review. 😉 I’m so very happy you decided to read this series and have loved it so much! *hugs*
*blushes* thank you so much, Brandee. I’m glad I can do The Hollows justice! I am very happy I started reading this series as well, it’s so great to have bookish friends who recommend good reads to me 🙂
Thanks so much for stopping by! *hugs*
I am glad that you enjoyed this one. While I have not yet started this series, I plan too and it is good to know that it remains a promising series through number seven.
Belle, I have already read nine books, and they’re all four or five stars in my opinion. I hope you’ll enjoy them as much as I did when you take the plunge!
Hey, thank you. That is really good to know. Maybe I can get to the first one this fall.