The Once and Future Witches
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
“Witching and women’s rights. Suffrage and spells. They’re both…” She gestures in midair again. “They’re both a kind of power, aren’t they? The kind we aren’t allowed to have.”
Alix E. Harrow has written an alternate history of the south around the time of the suffrage movement. We’re introduced to a world where magic was once real, but was driven out during the witch-hunts of old. Instead we’re left with a world where (mostly white) women are fighting for the right to vote and the city doesn’t see race… because it’s pushed all of its black residents to live in a separate quarter. Old aunties and grandmothers pass down whispers of spells that may or may not work, but the punishment for being caught knowing magic far outweighs the benefits.
Harrow’s prose is absolutely beautiful and magnifies the power of the rage simmering just under the surface. The plot is character driven, following the lives of three estranged sisters as they are unexpectedly pulled back together. Bella is the oldest and has hidden from an unjust world by taking a job at a library and researching old fairy tales from when there was magic. Her life is just fine - as long as she doesn’t look up from her books or admit the crush she has on a beautiful and mysterious journalist. Agnes is the middle sister and a fighter. She has had her heart broken one too many times and is determined to look out only for herself - until she realizes she’s pregnant. Her fury is banked but smoldering. Juniper is the youngest. If Agnes is a fighter, Juniper is feral. Her rage is that of the quick moving wildfire, and the question at the beginning of the book is if her anger will burn clean and bring restoration, or if it will be a lightning strike hurting only herself and those around her.
Gender, race, and the politics of socioeconomic status intertwine to make the women’s lives increasingly difficult. They accidentally catch the eye of Gideon Hill, an up and coming politician who serves as the book’s antagonist. We all know the type. He says all the right things about tradition and family values. He’s polite and professional and has a beautiful family. It’s not that he doesn’t want women to vote, really. He just doesn’t think their protests should be so disruptive. And most importantly, he radiates a quietly predatory vibe to those he considers ‘below’ him that can never be pinned down well enough to explain to those he treats right. The three sisters have to figure out how to push back against him while staying well enough within society’s expected bounds that they don’t get arrested for indecency or witchcraft. If every aspect of society expectations are working for Gideon Hill, they are the current running against the sisters and their attempts to gain external allies.
I really enjoyed The Once and Future Witches both as a fantastical adventure and as societal commentary. The arc of the book was satisfying enough on its own that I don’t need a sequel (I believe this is a one-off), but I do want to read more books by Alix E. Harrow. If you want an intricate and often unexpected fantasy one off with incredible characters and a constant underlying pull of fate, this is the book for you. If you want the cathartic experience of reading women’s rage and the many different ways it can be expressed and allies found, this is the book for you. And if you want a bookclub or discussion book that gives opportunities to talk about intersectionality and the complexity of just trying to exist in society, this is the book for you.
Without any real evidence I decided that most of this book was centered in Boston. After discussing with a friend we’ve both decided I made that up, but I can’t seem to shake the connection loose in my brain. So I still paired it with the oldest Boston cocktail I could find. The Ward Eight had mixed reviews online, but the recipe I found below was much better than a whiskey and grenadine combo have any right to be. This is a great ‘beginner’ whiskey cocktail for those of us who want to like whiskey but just don’t. Enjoy!
Ward Eight
2 ounces rye whiskey
1/2 ounce lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1/2 ounce orange juice, freshly squeezed
2 teaspoons grenadine
Garnish: 2 or 3 cherries
Steps:
Add the rye whiskey, lemon and orange juices and grenadine to a shaker with ice and shake until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with speared cherries.
