Oh my god, this was fantastic. I don't usually like reading anthologies at all. I usually find that the stories are just too varied in quality and only one or two work for me. I also think a lot of writers struggle with writing a true short story; so much of the time the stories end too abruptly and feel like a first chapter. So I was apprehensive when I picked this up. But it actually blew me away! I don't know if it was just the subject matter that pulled me in immediately, or if this really is the best YA anthology ever, but this was so, so great. It blew me away.

Starsong by Tehlor Kay Mejia: This was the perfect start to the collection. I knew after reading this that Toil & Trouble was going to be such a good reading experience. Starsong has the perfect blend of magic and spirituality with technology and modern teenage-ness. The texting and flirting were adorable; I shipped the two girls big time and would have gladly read an entire novel about Luna. I can't wait to read Mejia's debut!

Afterbirth by Andrea Cremer: Not gonna lie, this was pretty gross at first. The descriptions were, well, descriptive. I loved the format; it reminded me of reading a play, especially The Crucible. This story definitely served to make me angry about the Salem witch trials all over again. And even though it was bittersweet, I really, really liked the ending.

The Heart in Her Hands by Tess Sharpe: This was really good! There was so much world packed into such a short little story. I always loved stories about girls forging their own paths and Bette was a trailblazer for sure. I do wish we got to see more of her magic, though. There was one scene where a witch was using a skillet as a wand, which REALLY pulled me out of the story. It was just so endlessly silly.

Death in the Sawtooths by Lindsay Smith: This was not my thing. If it had been a full-length novel, I probably would have picked it up, but as it stands, there just wasn't enough time to establish the world and the history between the two main characters. We didn't even know the villain, so his impact was entirely diminished. And he gave one of those long, ridiculous monologues.

The Truth About Queenie by Brandy Colbert: I really loved the voice of this one and it makes me want to pick up the rest of Colbert's work. That said, I didn't love this as a whole. I wish there was a bit more magic. I also felt the ending was very rushed; there simply wasn't enough time for Queenie to naturally come around and find herself on her own. I really, really liked the best friendship though.

Moonapple Menagerie by Shveta Thakrar: This was a total case of "it's not you, it's me." I just don't click well with stories when I know there's going to be a heavy-handed lesson to learn by the end. Plus, the story itself was just plain weird and I couldn't get a handle on the setting at all. What I did love was seeing all these creatures and gods and goddesses from a culture I know nothing about; there was a lot of further reading on my end once the story finished.

Stone Mary by Robin Talley: This story had such a strong sense of voice, which pulled me in right away. Plus, a story about small-town legends, family secrets, and bloodlines is sure to be my kind of thing. I do think it went a bit off the rails with the whole witch-hunter thing, and the story would have been just fine without it, but it was still really good.

The One Who Stayed by Nova Ren Suma: Right off the bat I have to say, content warning for rape. It's not graphic or described at all, really, but it's there. That being said, this was still fantastic. I always love Suma's writing and the worlds she creates right inside our very own, very familiar world. I do wish it was longer; the story was just getting started.

Divine are the Stars by Zoraida Cordova: So good. I liked the main character, Marimar, a lot, and her relationship with her cousin Chuy. Cordova packed so much love and history into one small story. I found the magic to be absolutely beautiful, just the kind of magic I love to read about. Another one that started and ended well, but I would have gladly read 300 more pages.

Daughters of Baba Yaga by Brenna Yovanoff: This was also really good! I'm not at all used to this type of magic or this culture. I really, really enjoyed the writing and the revenge. I do think it lacked focus a little bit, and there should have been more time devoted to developing the friendship between the two girls. But still a very solid, fun read.

The Well Witch by Kate Hart: I wanted to like this, but it really wasn't for me. While I enjoyed Elsa, I didn't really love anything else. I didn't believe the romance at all. While the ending was kind of sad, I just found the whole story altogether pointless.

Beware the Girls with Crooked Mouths by Jessica Spotswood: This is the story I'm most bitter about. It had so much wonderful potential, but it felt like I was thrown in halfway through a book, and the ending was just as abrupt as the start. For a historical story with an arranged marriage between two women, a trio of magical sisters, betrayal, heartbreak, and poison, I was left cold at the end. How pointless and unresolved! This absolutely should have been an entire book, with enough time to flesh out the characters and the relationships. Short fiction was just not the right medium for the story.

The Gherin Girls by Emery Lord: So this one is a bit slice-of-lifey, which isn't my favorite thing, but I still ended up enjoying it. I loved the relationship between the two sisters, and their bond and the way they supported one another made me a bit teary at one point. That said, I really wish it had been more witchy.

Why They Watch Us Burn by Elizabeth May: This is one I really wanted to love but it felt like there was a wall between me and the story. I couldn't get a handle on time and place at all. At one point it seemed like the girls weren't actually witches at all, but just punished for being women, which is fine with me, but then everything changed and they were performing magic later on. I like the sentiment, but the elements all together as one just didn't come together for me.

So while I wouldn't say Toil & Trouble is the perfect short story collection, it comes damn close. Not every story was magical for me, but they all came together to form one wondrous whole. This was perfectly witchy, amazingly queer, with almost every story featuring an f/f romance along with other wlw side characters. I absolutely loved reading this and was so sad when the ending came; I want to read witchy little stories for the rest of my life, please.

This collection includes delightfully spooky stories, each of which will leave you wondering at the end. Each author has a totally different writing style, and the editors have done a wonderful job of weaving the individual stories into a cohesive work.

This is is an engaging and entertaining read for anyone who enjoys spooky stories of magic.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received a free digital review copy of this title from Net Galley.


#ToilandTrouble#NetGalley

I really enjoyed most of these stories. 

Toil & Trouble is a female-centric collection of short stories about women with magical abilities -- in all their wondrous varieties. These are also tales about women and their relationships primarily with each other, mothers and daughters, grandmothers, sisters and a number of female-female romances. While some are spooky, I did not find any scary.

As with any short story collection, there were some I liked more than others. Stories such as "The Gherin Girls" (Emery Lord), "Heart in her Hands" (Tessa Sharpe), "Death in the Sawtooths" (Lindsay Smith) and "Well Witch" (Kate Hart) were my favourites. While the last line of "Why They Watch Us Burn" (Elizabeth May) sent chills down my spine. 

I discovered a few new authors and a couple more got bumped up my TBR.

Originally posted on Forever Young Adult on 2018 August 21

BOOK REPORT for Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women and Witchcraft by various authors, edited by Tess Sharpe and Jessica Spotswood

Cover Story: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
The Charmed: “Starsong” by Tehlor Kay Mejia,“The Heart in Her Hands” by Tess Sharpe,“The Truth About Queenie” by Brandy Colbert, “Daughters of Baba Yaga” by Brenna Yovanoff, “Beware of Girls With Crooked Mouths” by Jessica Spotswood,“The Gherin Girls” by Emery Lord
The Spellbinding: “The One Who Stayed” by Nova Ren Suma, “Love Spell” by Anna-Marie McLemore, “Why They Watch Us Burn” by Elizabeth May
The Spooky: “Afterbirth” by Andrea Cremer, “Death in the Sawtooths” by Lindsay Smith, “The Legend of Stone Mary” by Robin Talley
The Cursed: “The Moonapple Menagerie” by Shveta Thakrar,“The Well Witch” by Kate Hart
Bonus Factors: Diversity x15,Witches
Factor: Trigger Warnings
Break Glass In Case Of: Misandry and Mischief

Cover Story: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

This cover is cute, and fun, and contains pretty much everything we’ve been taught to associate with witches. I personally felt the stories inside were a bit darker and more nuanced than the cover suggests, but it’s pleasing to the eye none the less.

The Deal:

“Eve was the original witch, a woman whose curiosity changed her entire world. And you would have burned her for it.” – Elizabeth May, “Why They Watch Us Burn”

As long as women have existed, so have stories of witches and witchcraft. The 15 stories in Toil & Trouble explore witchcraft through the ages. From the dark, violent histories we’re taught in school to modern day incarnations of spells and magic—there’s a story for everyone.

The Charmed: “Starsong” by Tehlor Kay Mejia,“The Heart in Her Hands” by Tess Sharpe,“The Truth About Queenie” by Brandy Colbert, “Daughters of Baba Yaga” by Brenna Yovanoff, “Beware of Girls With Crooked Mouths” by Jessica Spotswood,“The Gherin Girls” by Emery Lord

Tehlor Kay Mejia’s “Starsong” is a delightful, #ownvoices tale about Luna, a bruja I found so relatable as she obsessed over makeup and skincare while staying up late at night reading people’s star charts. The way Luna finds connections with people via her social media following while she recovers from substance abuse added just the right amount of weight to this story.

“The Heart in Her Hands” by Tess Sharpe had everything my witchy heart desired: magical kitchen and garden witches, soulmates, family connections, tea!, plus a sweet f/f romance.

Colbert’s “The Truth About Queenie” felt more like a love story than a story about magic, but it was charming none the less.

The Craft fans will love Brenna Yovanoff’s “Daughters of Baba Yaga,” a story about three sisters who are ready to make some changes, written in Yovanoff’s signature wry style—the same one I fell in love with in Places No One Knows. (Just beware of some graphic animal corpse descriptions.)

Jessica Spotswood’s Cahill Witch Chronicles is one of my all-time favorite witchy sister series. Her story “Beware of Girls With Crooked Mouths” features a new trio of witchy sisters attempting to outsmart a deathly prophecy. No doubt about it: I was HERE FOR IT.

Real talk: I stan Emery Lord’s writing, and “The Gherin Girls” is no exception. The voice is haunting and beautiful, and follows a trio of sisters whose powers are less magic and more like…special talents. But even the lack of overt witchiness didn’t stop me from loving everything about this story. (Bonus points for an MC who shares my unusual name!)

The Spellbinding: “The One Who Stayed” by Nova Ren Suma, “Love Spell” by Anna-Marie McLemore, “Why They Watch Us Burn” by Elizabeth May

Some stories are too intense to be considered “charming” and three of the tales in this collection fall under that category. Haunting and powerful, Suma’s “The One Who Stayed” cranks the tension and dread up to 100 with a group of women who lean on one another for survival. It’s empowering, to be sure, but you’ll need to walk it off when you finish.

A Latinx story about a bruja learning magic from her tia, Anna-Marie McLemore’s “Love Spell” explores the bypassing of witchcraft and religion, and features a love story with a trans character that will make you feel all the love and heartbreak at once.

I’m dubbing Elizabeth May’s “Why They Watch Us Burn” as the official story of the #MeToo movement—a tale of women who are blamed and punished for the actions of men. It was the perfect ending to this anthology.

The Spooky: “Afterbirth” by Andrea Cremer, “Death in the Sawtooths” by Lindsay Smith, “The Legend of Stone Mary” by Robin Talley

Toil and Trouble wouldn’t be a witch anthology if it didn’t contain at least a handful of spooky stories. Cremer, Smith and Talley excel at weaving tales that are a bit chilling and spine-tingling and perfect for Halloween bonfires.

The Cursed: “The Moonapple Menagerie” by Shveta Thakrar,“The Well Witch” by Kate Hart

I use “cursed” in the loosest sense of the word here—both of these stories had merit, but of the 15 tales in this anthology these two left me wanting.

Bonus Factor: Diversity x15

Truly, this book is about as diverse as it gets in every sense of the word. The sexual, racial, socioeconomic, geographic, and religious representation within these pages is second to none.

Bonus Factor: Witches

I know this bonus factor should come with a big, fat “NO DUH” attached to it, but seriously, I really love stories about witches, and now I have 15 of them bound together in a single book. I’m especially fond of witchy sisters and generational magic stories, and Toil & Trouble delivers on all accounts.

Factor: Trigger Warnings

Many, heck, most of the stories require a trigger warning of some sort. As you dig into this book, know that you’ll be reading about physical and mental abuse, sexual assault, molestation, drug use, death, bullying. These stories do not gloss over the hard topics. It’s hard out there for a witch, y’all.

Break Glass In Case Of: Misandry and Mischief

Whether you’re feeling one with nature, hating men, or just need a little magic in your life, there’s a story for you in this anthology. It’s at times empowering and feminist, scary and sad—some of its stories are sweet and others are gut-wrenching. But they all have one thing in common: bad ass girls and women, which I’m always in the mood for.

Amazing female protagonist led book perfect for Halloween with multiple stories that are built to scare, shatter the stereotypical witch prototype and even make you laugh while you scream in the dark. I truly loved everyone of these unique stories, each for their own reasons. I will definitely reread again and utilize some of my favorites on my blog leading up to and just after Halloween! BOO!

Also, much like a great mix tape and unlike a lot of great compilations this book is put together well in how the stories are ordered. Well edited, well done!

Stories about witches have always fascinated me. The Salem Witch Trials were ushered in because of fear. Fear of the power of women and fear of anyone who was different. The stories in Toil and Trouble embrace this reality and presents a collection of stories that offer both a feminist slant and focus on sisterhood among women in general.

The stories contained within the anthology are as diverse the authors included. There are many different representations found within these pages. They range from sexuality, race, social status, and religion. This stood out while I was reading and I honestly feel it made the collection more well rounded as whole. All of the stories combine the themes of witches and women in power. They fluctuate between being lighter in tone to some darker, more thought provoking stories. All of this ensures that the reading experience is varied, and engaging.

I enjoyed most of the stories over all, but like any anthology there were some that left a more lasting impression on me while I was reading. I feel that in a collection this varied that this is subjective. What impacted me will inevitably be different from the next person who reads it.

The Gherin Girls by Emery Lord was, unsurprisingly, the story I immediately wished was a full novel. The relationship between this group of sibling witches is the primary focus. This is a story that highlights the bonds between women and the sisterhood that exists between them. It's filled with the undeniable charm that makes an Emery Lord novel shine. I instantly fell in love with all there of the sisters and their stories and the ways in each they were both different but also so similar.

Why They Watch Us Burn by Elizabeth May was a powerful story of women bonding together and being stronger for it. It advocates helping each other and supporting each other in so many ways. It shouts about how much more powerful we are if we do and the limitless possibilities of what could be accomplished as a result.

Beware Of Girls With Crooked Mouths by Jessica Spotswoods offers up a darker look sisterhood and the fierceness in which siblings protect each other. It's a story with a darker tone and one that I would have loved to have seen fleshed out more because I fell into the character's and the world Jessica created

Love Spell was a surprising read that didn't quite take the turn I expected it to. It's a love story that was filled with a little bit of extra magic. It also tackles differences in people and what love is capable of overcoming.

Starsong by Tehlor Kay Mejia offers a more contemporary feeling story that also hints at the possibilities of new love and the kind of magic that holds. It's a great way to start off the anthology and has piqued my interest in anything else this author writes.

This is ultimately a fun read for the Halloween season. It's a great way to incorporate some themed stories into your fall reading and ensures that there is a little something for everyone. If short story collections are something you enjoy I recommend checking this one out.

I was drawn to this book through the description and the cover. I love stories about magic and witches so this was right up my alley. With that said I did not enjoy all of the stories but there was enough here to get me through until the end. There were some that I wish were longer and others that were not all that fleshed out. There is a great amount of representation in the stories as well.

This is a great collection of stories about witches, and not just the usual old-white-lady-doing-evil-deeds kind. The witches in Toil and Trouble are children, widows, teenagers, students, skateboarders, artists, city-dwellers, priestesses, farmers, and more, and their magics are as unique and interesting and fresh as they are. I loved this and am recommending it to anyone ages about 8 and up.

The really cool thing about this short story collection was the amazing diversity found among this topic! We have happy stories, we have sad stories, we have spooky stories, we have uplifting stories- all with the common theme of witches. But yet again, it was so cool how the idea of a witch can be seen in so many ways, from spiritual, to magical, to just different. I had no idea that there could be so many version and I love how the authors just did their own thing. My one complaint is that so many of the stories left me wanting more since the ideas were so unique and a few pages was not enough to satisfy me. I generally struggle with short stories for this exact reason, but I think these were a perfect snack of a story for those who just want a taste. You can pick this book up and quickly read a story and move on.
** For more reviews visit me at https://smadasbooksmack.blogspot.com/ **

Toil and Trouble is an enchanting collection of witchy tales, ranging from the contemporary to the classic, from explicit magic to powerful inner strength, and everything in between. I'll get a little more specifically into my favorites, but overall, this collection has something for everyone, especially with Halloween right around the corner.

I loved "Why They Watch Us Burn" by Elizabeth May, which was such a powerful way to acknowledge what women who either identified or were branded as witches went through and a phenomenal way to end the anthology.

"The One Who Stayed" by Nova Ren Suma made me want to go out and immediately devour her other books (which I embarrassingly have on my shelf and Kindle). The atmosphere was so spooky and perfect for some Halloween horror.

I'm a fan of stories which do something unique with social media and have softer stakes, so "Starsong" by Tehlor Kay Mejia hit the spot with her story. A skeptic and a witch crushing on each other via Instagram? Love it.

"Love Spell" by Anna-Marie McLemore had such addicted writing and I loved the way spells and lovesickness were used as a narrative device. The theme around not being the right kind of Christian, but ultimately having your heart in the correct place hit me a bit. Again, I really need to read the rest of her catalogue.

"The Truth About Queenie" by Brandy Colbert had a strong family focus and about growing up. The love triangle was a great way to show the main character's inner conflict. It was such a great use of that trope.

If you wanted Little Women to be a little more sinister, "Beware of Girls with Crooked Mouths" by Jessica Spotswood nailed that vibe. Sisters? Magical betrayal? Forced prophecies? So much goodness.

Look at that cover. How gorgeous is that?
Toil and Trouble is an anthology edited by Tess Sharpe and Jessica Spotswood. It is also probably one of my favourite books of all time. This book is everything I want in a book. It's magic and love and hope and acceptance. It's inclusion and growth and femininity. It's girl power on a completely different level. I adored this book. I obviously didn't love every story, because it's an anthology and that's bound to happen, but I enjoyed most of them, and the ones that I loved made the ones that I didn't care for not matter at all.

This book is 15 different short stories, all centred around witches and magic. Each story is incredibly unique, and each brings a different version of Magic. This book is incredibly diverse when it comes to sexuality and race and gender, and it does so in an effortless way that doesn't make it a point. There's lesbians and trans girls and black girls and Latinas and white girls and straight girls and they're all crammed together so beautifully, because it really captures what life is really like; diverse just because it is.

I also really enjoyed the different kinds of magic in here, from Brujas to voodoo magic to the kind of magic from the Salem witch trials. Each story is rich in history and you can tell each other researched each specific type of magic.

My favourite stories were "The Gherin Girls" by Emry Lord, "Why They Watch us Burn" by Elizabeth May, "Divine Are the Stars" by Zoraida Cordova, and "The Heart in Her Hands" by Tess Sharpe.

I'll be brief about these because I want you to read it for yourself, but "The Gherin Girls" had so much sister love and talked about heartbreak in such a beautiful way, "Why They Watch us Burn" had so many beautiful quotes like the one I put at the beginning and the friendship in it was amazing, "Divine Are the Stars" is a big family and I am a sucker for any big family story and I wish my big family had magic, and "The Heart in Her Hands" had an amazing lesbian romance that was just too sweet.

Overall, the emphasis on finding your self, doing things because it's for YOU, being proud of being a girl, and being proud of every aspect of you no matter what anyone else says- these things made this book really hit home, and truly made it magical.


I was sent this book as an advanced copy by the publisher via NetGalley for reviewing purposes, but all opinions are my own.

An incredibly beautiful and diverse anthology about witches, women, love and mischief. With stories that ranged from modern-day to historical to magical realism, there's a little something for everyone in Toil & Trouble.

Toil & Trouble had me at queer witches. Honestly. I was in a super witchy mood when I requested this one and I was not disappointed. I was so intrigued by the varying stories and I love so many authors that contributed to this anthology that I knew I had to have it.

Each story was different in its own right, each unique and stellar and magical. I, obviously, loved some more than others. But that's to be expected. You can't love everything, after all. And trust me, I've tried. I'm a Hufflepuff.

I don't want to go into details about each story--we'll just be here for days--but as a collection, Toil & Trouble accomplishes something so rarely seen that it's magical in its own right.

Each story, individually, has its own merits. Some are lyrical and imaginative, others are deep and personal, dark and wonderful at the same time. It's hard to review an anthology, to be honest, but it's an experience worth the admission price.

I'll be extra honest here--I've never been a fan of anthologies in the past. Oh, sure, I've tried. But it was so hard for me to get invested in a series of short stories, especially if I didn't know the authors going into it. But I took a chance on Toil & Trouble and I'm glad I did.

Grab this book, add it to your TBR list, especially now as we slowly enter Halloween season. It's the perfect book to sip a pumpkin spice latte or apple cider to while sitting all cozied up inside.

This was an amazing collection of 15 wonderfully crafted stories! It was funny, diverse, sexy, mysterious and powerful! Released just in time to get it ready for this Halloween season!!! This is just a perfect addition to YA literature and a fun read for anyone interested in witchy strong-females.

<i>You are a woman, you speak the truth, and the world makes you into a liar.</i>

These were really fun! A whole collection of stories about witches? Yes, please. I loved the different types of stories within this collection and the diversity within each of them. There were some stories that I was genuinely mad at when I got to the end because I wanted MORE. I want a whole novel. (Crooked Mouths and Gherin Girls, I'm looking at you!)

Favourite stories:

Afterbirth - Andrea Cremer
The Heart in Her Hands - Tess Sharpe
The One Who Stayed - Nova Ren Suma
Beware of Girls with Crooked Mouths -Jessica Spotswood (a fave-fave)
The Gherin Girls - Emery Lord (another fave-fave)
Why They Watch Us Burn - Elizabeth May

This book is an anthology of stories about powerful women. Themes of witchcraft, power, sisterhood, and love are woven together in many of these tales. There is a strong representation of LGBT themes in these stories as well.

Toil & Trouble contains fifteen short stories from some of today's best authors in young adult fiction. The variety of approaches the authors take to approaching the subject of women and witchcraft is what makes this book so much fun.

The first story, Starsong by Tehlor Kay Mejia, follows a young astrologer, Luna, who uses social media to connect to the people who are looking for their personalized star charts. However, she soon finds herself at the center of a NASA-obsessed teen who doesn't believe in astrology or magic. What's a girl to do? In Luna's case, she makes a friend who has the potential for more.

Another story I loved greatly was Afterbirth by Andrea Cremer. Set in Colonial America, two midwives find themselves under scrutiny after a difficult birth, with one of them being placed on trial for witchcraft. The reason I enjoyed this story so much is that it reminded me that this sort of thing actually happened to women. Not only did they die in childbirth, but those women who attempted to help others often paid a high price for that assistance because of ignorance. The historical details are great, and I especially liked the inclusion of excerpts from the trial. It just proves that multiple people can witness the same event and walk away with very different accounts.

I also liked The Truth About Queenie by Brandy Colbert. Queenie descends from a family of witches, but it isn't a subject they discuss with outsiders--or even among themselves! When her long-time best friend and secret crush, Webb, returns from a tour as a professional skateboarder with an unexpected companion, Queenie's world is rocked to the core. Can she find it within herself to believe in her abilities and help Webb when he needs her the most?

Not every story includes a romance. Death in the Sawtooths by Lindsay Smith deals with how we approach death and shows that how we face our final moments is just as important as how we live our lives. The Moonapple Menagerie by Shveta Thakrar also skips the romance but is a great story about overcoming obstacles and learning to believe in oneself.

Each story is unique, and offers a different view of women and witchcraft. The romances range from sweet to nonexistent with pairings that cover the range from heterosexual to homosexual, and all are treated with respect and without stereotypical influences. Heavier social themes are also present such as drug use and domestic violence. Again, these are treated respectfully; however, readers who are sensitive to such issues should be wary.

Overall, I found Toil & Trouble a great read and introduction to some authors I had not previously read. Also given the timing of its release, I thought the stories were a perfect way to usher in the first stirring of autumn.

Toil and Trouble is a series of short stories about women wielding magic. The stories range in time, setting, culture, and magical systems. It’s difficult to give a rating for the book as there are fifteen short stories held within it, however I would give this a 4/5. There are several short stories that fell short for me but the overall book was a magical journey! This book has something to offer everyone. Historical fiction, paranormal romance, rebellious teens, contemporary witchcraft, and so much more! This is a perfect read for anytime of the year but especially fall as Halloween draws near.

With story compilations, you really never quite know what you're getting into. I tend to stay away from them, but with a topic like witches, I couldn't help but jump at it. I want to read it!
What I liked most about Toil & Trouble was the diversity in the stories. One story was set in the present-day social media world, while the next was set in seventeenth-century New England; there were F/F romance stories (several actually), and stories of warlocks, demons, and did I mention gay witches? Yep! It really was refreshing to read each different authors' perspective, style, and representation of witchcraft. So fun and so beautiful!

As a thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced readers copy and the publisher I shall give an honest review of this book. Toil and Trouble 15 Tales of Women and Witchcraft edited by Jessica Spotswood and Tess Sharpe was the witchy anthology I needed to start September. It was filled with the power of womanhood told through the centuries-old metaphor of the witch and unlike the negative association that has followed it emerged with one that is positive and strong. Stories that stood out for me included “ Starsong” by Tehlor Kay Mejia, “ The Truth about Queenie” by Brandy Colbert, “ The Legend of Stone Mary” by Robin Talley, “ Divine are the stars” by Zoraida Cordova, and the anthology’s conclusion “Why they watch us burn” by Elizabeth May. These tales hold what makes the witch a powerful woman there is intrigue, excitement, enchantment, and above all else magic. Now it depends on how each character saw their magic and ultimately comes to the witch in question using their magic. Most of the stories were set in a contemporary setting albeit those set in the past, or more recent past in the 1970’s. These stories showed women standing together and believing in themselves in who they are as witches in different incarnations but ultimately a woman who chose to revel in the power of woman and sisterhood. I appreciated queer women being given representation as well as women of color. This anthology set included their stories and told their experiences especially. There are instances of verbal and physical abuse as well as a history of discord within family generations. Though these depictions are present within the stories they add to the complexity of its characters. If you are interested in short stories filled of mystery, intrigue, witchcraft and just the right amount of scare. These stories I feel hold what makes this anthology one to recommend to friends, family and more. The following are the number of stars I gave each individual story. Overall I give the anthology four out of five stars.


1. Starsong -5 Stars
2. Afterbirth – 4
3. The heart in her hands -3.5
4. Death in the sawtooths – 2
5. The Truth about Queenie – 5
6. The Moonapple Menagerie –3.5
7. The Legend of Stone Mary -4.5
8. The one who stayed – 2.5
9. Divine are the Stars – 4.5
10. Daughters of BabaYaga –4
11. The Well Witch – 4.5
12. Beware of Girls With Crooked Mouths – 4.5
13. Love Spell-5
14. The Gherin Girls-4
15. Why they watch us burn- 5

Toil & Trouble is a unique short story collection of imaginative tales about witches learning to believe in themselves and face their fears. Some of the stories are light, while others are more serious and moving. Nothing can stand in the way of a woman who believes in herself. The real history of witches inspire a modern conversation about past mistakes as an opportunity for change. With a cast of diverse characters, many tales had me hooked from the first paragraph to the end.

Toil & Trouble is a commendable compilation for fantasy fans, especially for those interested in witches, but is also a significant piece of today's conversation about feminism and diversity.

Some of my Favs:
"Afterbirth" by Andrea Cremer
"The Heart in Her Hands" by Tess Sharpe
"Death in The Sawtooths" by Lindsay Smith
"Love Spell" by Anna-Marie McLemore
"The Gherin Girls" by Emery Lord

My favourite: "Why They Watch Us Burn" by Elizabeth May

All of the stories are at least ⭐⭐⭐ for me, my only complaint being that I found some of the endings abrupt/incomplete.

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for the complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.