This was way too drawn out for me, it took ages to get to the creeps, so my interest started waning quite early on. It was definitely atmospheric, but there were a lot of unnecessary details. I just wanted to get to the spooky parts, when they did arrive it was enjoyable but fleeting.

Witch Bottle
Daniel is a milkman in Cumbria. He left his wife and child and is trying to be a writer, but this part of his life has stalled.
In great (and rather beautiful) detail we are given a ride along with Daniel as he delivers milk and other groceries to remote farms and hamlets around Cumbria.
Although this doesn’t exactly sound like one of the most fast-moving ideas for a book, it’s actually my favourite part of this novel.
Because the mundanity of a delivery route suddenly melds into a much darker, slightly sinister and totally bonkers story.
We meet Daniel’s co-workers, his customers, other delivery drivers and his new girlfriend Kathryn.
Those other delivery drivers? The ‘Fallen Stock’ company who drive round in a bizarre ‘Lord of the Manor’ style of clothing picking up dead animals from the farms. Not only are they bullying drivers but it turns out that will be integral to this story.
And Kathryn runs the La’al Tattie Shop but also sells Witch Bottles as a side business. Not the kind you might find on Etsy which look all cute and cottage-core. These actually work because Kathryn is a Witch. And her business has taken a sudden upswing with more and more of the farmers and rural dwellers being plagued by unwanted Ghosts.
Daniel has the need for his own Witch Bottle and in return for one, the deal is that he’ll deliver Kathryn’s goods to the customers on his milk round.
As the book progresses we find out more about Daniel’s past, including the reasons he left his wife and child. It’s clear Daniel is battling with his own inner demons - but are they inner or more tangible than he (or we, as the readers) can guess.
With a totally bonkers childhood Fairy Tale (in the full-on terrifying Grimm mould) ending, I was left with a feeling of not knowing how to process what I had just read. Hopefully, the five stars I’ve given this shows how it worked out for me!

Beautifully written with an intriguing lead character and a wonderfully atmospheric setting. I was however expecting a more straight forward horror story and found this a little slow to start, but it' was well worth persevering.

Witch Bottle is a story that will constantly have your guard up. Fear surrounds this small hamlet-like fog clinging to the mountainside. It envelops around you, constricting you, breathing becomes more difficult, your sight becomes hazy, it’s an all-sense assault. This novel surprised me by the sheer force of its raw veracity and its human emotion. It leaves you feeling deeply unsettled with its supernatural element complemented perfectly with the decline of mental health and broken relationships. Cumbria has never felt so unearthly in this modern gothic thriller.

Daniel is on his own, after leaving his wife and baby daughter he has moved to Cumbria to become a milkman. He is renting his uncle’s house for a pittance as a favour to his mother. A very desolate figure that has suffered incredible loss. Being a milkman might not be for everyone, but Daniel sees it as very freeing, he enjoys driving and being out in the countryside. He doesn’t much like his colleague, Ryan.

Throughout the story, we get snippets from Daniel’s past. We see the experience of his wife’s pregnancy and childbirth through his eyes. I found these to be some of the most dramatic and nightmare-inducing scenes I’ve ever read in a book. He’s experienced a lot of trauma and pain in his life, it’s harrowing.

Dark and twisted. Witch Bottle was a story that went blind into, this did end up tripping me up a few times leaving me with a busted ankle with no way out. I genuinely believe that the author didn’t use these topics for shock value only no, it was used to examine just how mental illness and trauma can leave you wanting to isolate from the rest of the world. There are parts that are difficult to read but I believe that only strengthened the connection between plot, characters, and reader.

During his milk rounds, Daniel often pops into the La’al Tattie Shop. A local shop owned and run by Kathryn. He has a growing attraction to her but after feeling burned by his last relationship he is hesitant to take it further. The only thing is he has an unwelcome visitor and Kathryn is revealed to be a witch and can make him a trinket that will keep it away. Others in the hamlet seem to be having the same problem so she makes witch bottles for his customers and he delivers them during his rounds.

The writing was dramatic and it’s the kind of story that immediately pulls you in with its sense of foreboding. The backdrop to the story just added another layer to the feeling of dread, it reminded me of becoming lost on the fells as dusk approached – you knew it wasn’t going to be good but just how bad was at the mercy of the imagination.

Witch Bottle is an exquisite puzzle box. It’s off the wall, buckle up because Fletcher takes you on a rollercoaster ride that will have your mouth and stomach swapping places!

I have found it hard to review this book it was a well written book but it just wasn't for me. I think I went into this expecting a witchy book and this just is not that at all,

*Copy provided by netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

The moment I started reading this book, I had the immediate thought I was reading something different, and yet very familiar.
Set in the magical realism world of our main character, and with heavy influences from Murakami's writing style, we follow a man in a spiritual and horrible journey of grief, madness and, ultimatly, confrontation with his worst self.

And enjoyable read in every way of the word, and for sure recommended to magical realism readers that wish for a little bit more creepiness in their lives.

A perfect read for the time of year. Atmospheric and chilling. A perfect purchase as a Christmas gift.

Daniel is a milkman who’s split up from his partner and young child. He lives and works in a remote rural area and does his rounds and has little in the way of any social life. The village and surrounding areas are full of eccentric characters and his work colleagues aren’t all particularly collegiate or nice.

It’s when people begin to have nightmares that the real troubles begins. And the Fallen Stock drivers (Fallen Stock being the people who collect dead animals up from farms) keep running people off the road. When Daniel meets Kathryn, a witch who makes witch bottles which stop the nightmares, and gets Daniel to distribute them to those afflicted, he soon begins to attract thew wrong attention.

This is a sinister and chilling novel which is expertly written and well worth a read. Highly recommended.

A milkman is living a mundane life. He isn't happy, and things have never really gone well for him. One day, he encounters a strange man, collecting dead animals off the road. Things begin to get stranger, until an encounter with a witch could potentially save everyone.

Wow. I don't know what I expected from Witch Bottle, but I didn't realise I would be reading one of my favourite books of the year. Fletcher can really write! From the first chapter, I was hooked in by the writing of Witch Bottle.
It's a bit of a slow-burn, but from the offset, it's clear that something isn't right. In many ways, it's similar to The Loney, but I'd say Fletcher surpasses that here.

Very rarely have I wanted to get to the end of a book (in a good way) to see what was in store. Witch Bottle is a gem. I can't wait to read more from Tom Fletcher.

Thanks to Tom Fletcher, NetGalley and Jo Fletcher Books for this copy.

Tom Fletcher's dark literary fantasy is fast, creepy, gruesome and grotesque. It is dark and disturbing but also touching and emotive.
There's a great sense of place: the beautiful villages of Cumbria and the Lake District but as the author unleashes shock after shock a darkness permeates every page.
The story touches on subjects such as survivor guilt, politics, selective memory and the world in which we live but it's brilliance is in its originality and horrific realism.

Sadly I couldn't get into this book, it held no interest for and I didn't enjoy the writing style of the author .

Set in the remote northwest of England, Witch Bottle tells the story of Daniel, a damaged man with a troubled past now working in a minimum wage job delivering milk around the local area. He is physically and emotionally isolated. Existing. Now Daniel has started having hallucinations and nightmares of dark hooded figures and emaciated giants, driving him to seek help from the local ‘witch’. Soon it transpires that he is far from the only person experiencing strange sightings…

Although labelled as a horror tale, Witch Bottle is very much an atmospheric book, rather than the gore-fest perhaps more typical of the genre. The strength of the novel lies in the unsettling and immersive atmosphere created by the author. This is a menacing, slow-burn of a tale with an intriguing central character that has stayed with me beyond the final page.

Thank you to NetGalley and Jo Fletcher Books for an ARC exchange for an honest review.

This is not my usual type of read but I enjoy thrillers so I thought I would give it a go.

The book is definitely a slow burner however it is well written and immersive so I found myself caught up on it and enjoyed it over three sittings.

The range of characters are fantastic and you felt like you were on the milk round with Daniel encountering them.

I had an issue with the jumping about with pov, it wasn't clear who's pov it was with some chapters and I felt quite confused.

Overall I enjoyed it.

Disclosure: Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly this story was just not for me. I couldn't get into it or feel anything towards the main character. The premise sounded very interesting, which is why I requested the book, but right from the beginning small things bothered me. The writing started out a little disappointing when describing the giant, as the same word was used to describe him around 6 times on just one page. Apart from that the descriptions were stomach churning, so if that was the author's intention, he succeeded! When not describing nightmares, things were pretty dull and I found myself zoning out. I'm sure someone will enjoy this, but sadly it was not my cup of tea

This book is about Daniel, a loner, who is a delivery driver. He’s had unhappy childhood, his baby brother died from SIDS, and he’s been married previously, however he’s walked out on his wife and baby daughter.
We meet him when he delivers milk and other groceries to his customers in northern England. He fancies a woman, Kathryn, who runs a local cafe, and soon they start seeing each other. At that point, Daniel sees a figure, an apparition. Kathryn makes him a witch bottle (she informs him she is a witch) and in return, he needs to deliver her witch bottles to his customers with their milk orders. Soon demand for the witch bottles grow, Daniel notices an overlap between Kathryn’s customers and the Fallen Stock (company that picks up dead stock from farmyards) customers…
I expected a lot from this book, however I was left a little bit disappointed. Sometimes the narrative was a bit windy and could have been reduced in places.

This was a good story with a gothic creepy feel, the story was interesting, the setting and front cover added to the creepy atmosphere and the characters were good. I enjoyed it