I loved the concept of this book. It reminded me a bit of Practical Magic, but much darker with a lot of creepy supernatural elements and a lot of gore. Don't let the whimsical cover fool you, this story is anything but.

There were some side plots that kind of slowed down the storyline and probably could have been left out but overall I really enjoyed this one. I felt the romance to be a little cringey and the villain to be totally predictable but I became so involved with wanting to know more about the Bones that those things were easily overlooked.

If you were a fan of Practical Magic, but wished it had more edge, you should check this one out.

This book is an excellent lesson in "Don't judge a book by its cover." I thought I was getting into a campy witchy eom com, but instead it turned out to be a Gothic horror novel that was dark, macabre and filled with blood.... and I was all in for it. This book is terrifying, I was thrilled and scared. It is a perfect book for a rainy October afternoon. This book also had strong women, a loving sisterly bond, and some of that campy romance I originally planned for. Besides making me cringe, it also made me laugh.

I have it 4 stars because there was a brutal animal death scene. It made sense with the story and was needed, but I had a hard time stomaching it.

Thank you to the author, Ava Morgyn, the publisher St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC.

This is was a fun witchy book to kick off October! Overall I enjoyed the story but felt it dragged a bit

Book Review
The Witches of Bone Hill by Ava Morgyn

Whats its Got
✅Family secrets
✅Twins
✅Animals
✅Spooky okd Victorian home
✅A curse
✅ Witches
✅ dead relatives
✅ mafia goons

Characters
Eustace- the older Bone sister, pot grower, business minded
Cordelia- house flipper, wife, interior designer
Gordon- sexy tattooed retired rock star turned groundskeeper
Marvel- a fox
The White Lady aka Augusta- a formidable woman alive or dead
The Toger family- the gatekeepers, protectors

Thoughts
The house, estate and legacy represent an opportunity for new beginnings. A curse that needs to be lifted, wrongs to be righted. Family history to learn. This aspect of the book was done well, very atmospheric, perfect for spooky season and lovers of Practical Magic but……..
The only part of the story line I didnt love was the whole mafia, fraud, asshat cheating husband . I get how it creates urgency and the reason “why” Cordy needs her inheritance buuuttttt it just didnt feel right- like a shoe a half size too small- it doesnt fit the ambience of the story

Still, a highly enjoyable read!!

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for my digital ARC in return for an honest review. Opinions expressed are my own.

I have mixed thoughts on this one. It was a great setting and I loved the set up of the book, but I got lost several times during it and felt a bit bored and that the pacing was off. Overall I’m glad I read it and think there will be lots of people will absolutely love it! Something just didn’t click for me personally.

This book has so many great elements.
An old haunted Mansion.
Family secrets to uncover.
Discovering that family bonds can run deep, and sometimes you can't escape them.
An inheritance that comes with stipulations.
Cordelia, the main character struggles with her newfound powers and how to harness them.
Eustace, her sister. A side character but even so a strong one.
Ghosts.
An origin story of how the Bone family came to be and their powers.
Forgiveness.
A second chance at life.
Familiars.

All of the above make this book, well magical. Cordelia has run all her life. Her mom had her and her sister constantly moving and running from... something. When she has the chance to build a "normal" life with her husband, she dives in head first. She builds a successful business. Basically has the white picket fence. Along with her husband's mistress, that is. He takes off with the mistress, all of their funds, and even clients from the business. Cordelia is left with his debt, and the mob on her tail for something her soon-to-be ex did. She is the main character. Desperate to get out from under debt and the mob that wants payment- in some form or another she receives a call from her estranged sister saying that they have just inherited a family home. From the family that they never met. Family their mom never wanted them to meet. No matter, Cordelia hops on a plane so she can quickly put whatever house is waiting on the other end of the line up for sale to start to get her life back in order.
The house of course is a masion. Cordelia sees dollar signs. The lawyer who has managed the family trust lays out the stipulations that must be met before the sisters can inherit the mansion and the fortune.
The story is suspenseful in a creepy, not jump-out-of-your-seat scary way. It is exciting and interesting. Though a slow burn.
What I didn't like were all the other elements that just bogged down the story. The mob. Like Cordelia's life wasn't already in shambles. The mob side story didn't even interest me. It was just more to sort through to get to the real story. The "sexy, tattooed groundskeeper with a shrouded past". This part of the story just wasn't really believable, the characters were not believable. The groundskeeper did about as much as the mob did for me as far as adding depth and interest to the story.
Still, this was an entertaining read. The author Ava Morgyn wove so many magical elements together beautifully.

Trigger warning: death, murder, animal cruelty, suicide.


Description
Ava Morgyn's The Witches of Bone Hill is a spellbinding, romantic novel about family secrets and two young women who discover they're Nordic witches.

Cordelia Bone's meticulously crafted life and career in Dallas are crashing down around her thanks to a philandering husband with criminal debts. When her older, carefree sister, Eustace—a cannabis grower in Boulder—calls to inform her that the great aunt they never met has died and they must travel to a small town in Connecticut to deal with the estate, she sees an opportunity to unload the house and save herself.

But once there, the sisters learn they are getting much more than they bargained for. The Victorian mansion they stand to inherit is bound in a dynasty trust controlled by their late aunt's aging attorney, who insists they retain and inhabit the house but keeps them in the dark about the peculiar rituals of their ancestors. Not to mention a sexy, tattooed groundskeeper with a shrouded past who refuses to leave the carriage house and a crypt full of dead relatives looming at the property line.

As both women grapple with their current predicament, they come face to face with a haunting family secret, the truth of what happened to their mother, and the enemy that's been stalking them from the shadows for generations. In a twisting torrent of terror and blood, the sisters must uncover the power within them to heal their fractured relationship, reverse their mysteriously declining health, and claim the lineage they wanted to escape but now must embrace if they are to survive at Bone Hill.

I haven't read this one yet. I messed up and hit review.......................................................................................

A creepy, darker than expected story about estranged sisters reuniting, family secrets, and a little romance. If you don’t mind some gore, put this one on your spooky season tbr!

This is the perfect book for the start-up of spooky season. I enjoyed this book and the two sisters and their character development throughout the book. You will definitely enjoy if you like haunted eerie haunted house stories. The writing is beautiful and will definitely be reading this author again. Thank you for the copy of this e-arc
4 star

Big thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me read an ARC version of this book!

I really enjoyed this book, watching two sisters mend a broken relationship while learning about their family history is right up my alley. The book had the right amount of spooky for anyone who is not into horror.

I gave this book 4 stars because there were a few places where I felt confused. Mainly during Cordelia’s visions/dreams. I found myself having to reread those parts to follow along better

Would read another by this author!

This was unfortunately a pretty big miss for me.

All were things that should have ticked my boxes (and normally do!) :
-woman getting her life back after a major upheaval
-estranged family members
-a house that’s basically a character on its own.
-witchy powers
-a slight mystery
-a touch of romance

But it all just fell flat. The pacing was slow and then erratic, the main character was difficult to relate to or empathize with, the romance was too sudden, and all of the drama felt very brushed over. I feel like we sort of floated along the surface of the story when I desperately wanted to find the depths of it all.

Happy Spooky SZN, y’all!

Normally, I see a book tagged horror and run the other way as fast as I can. Whoops, didn’t see it and thought [b:Witches of Bone Hill|65214066] by [a:Ava Morgyn|16973182] was a witchy romance (which it was!) but be warned, this does get a little icky and very creepy.

Given that I am a wimp when it comes to horror, I was surprised at how much I did end up enjoying it. The romance didn’t do much for me, but he relationship between the two sisters and their discovery of their family’s legacy and their witchy inheritance was moving and fascinating. The lore Ava Morgyn creates (pulling in various historical myths and creating something that seems pretty original) was just the right amount of creepy and badass. And the ~vibes~ are excellent – she gets a TON of mileage out of the actually haunted house the two sisters inherit and where the majority of the story takes place.

CW: Suicide, murder and attempted murder, killing of animals in gruesome ways, killing of people in gruesome ways, cancer (in the past, off page).

<i>Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.</i>

I enjoyed the characters but the plot was confusing. Maybe I'm just too stupid to understand it but a lot of it didn't make sense. I think it should have been multiple pov's, that would have helped tremendously. The romance was there but it was very underdeveloped, I wanted more from it.

I received an arc through netgalley.

An unfortunate miss for me.

The writing itself is fine.

The story is a lot of drama. Cordelia, who is a mess but not in an especially entertaining way, is our only POV character. I think we (readers) and the story would have benefited from having Eustace’s POV, as well.

The mansion would have been a fascinating place to explore, but we don’t do much of that.

When we get to the magic, it just sort of happens. No explanation or buildup. Like one day you wake up with powers, just shrug and say, “Cool.”

There’s a mob subplot that is ridiculous and pointless.

The “mystery” of everything happening is obvious from the start.

The “romance” is instalust.

And watch where you step, because plot holes…

Cordelia Bone is having some trouble -- she's getting divorced and there are lots of bills to pay. When she finds out she's inherited a large estate with her sister Eustace, that just might be her ticket out of her money troubles.

Only it isn't that simple. The sisters are forced to live in the Victorian mansion in Connecticut to fulfill the requirements of the will and in the process they learn all about their history. There's juicy secrets galore here. Witches as the title might suggest and all that comes with what witches do. And there's the yummy caretaker to add a little bit of romance to the mix.

The synopsis was certainly interesting and this is the time of year for some good scary stories. There's a bit of horror in this one too to make it extra creepy. I liked that about it, although I could have done without the animal cruelty.

I also enjoyed the mythology used in this story, along with the relationship between Cordelia and her sister. Although there were slow spots and most of the real action happened at the end, I thought the Witches of Bone Hill delivered a suspenseful story of witches with a dash of horror. It's a solid debut in adult fiction.

Slow to get into
I had a very hard time getting into this book. Cordelia is not the aware, self-assured woman who knows what she wants and has plans on getting there. Her character confused me, and I was about 30 percent in before I started understanding the story, and the characters. Once that happened, I did enjoy the book, so that if there is a second book dealing with the sister’s character, I will read it. Just know if you start reading, and seem to be struggling, keep going. The story gets better and the book is worth it. 5 stars for having a good story and satisfying finish.
I received an ARC through NetGalley, and this is my honest opinion.

In The Witches of Bone Hill, sisters Cordelia and Eustace Bone inherit their ancestral estate from their estranged aunt and soon learn that their family legacy is far more complicated than they ever knew. I went into this book thinking it was going to be a fun witchy family story, but I was so surprised by how dark and spooky it was. It gave me Haunting of Hill House vibes and definitely rode the line between fantasy and horror. The scaredy-cat in me had to put it down while reading at night. It was an atmospheric slow burn with a modern gothic, dark, and twisty plot. I was fascinated by the Scandinavian folklore and magic and loved how it was incorporated into the story. As someone who adores a family saga, I wish we could have gone even deeper into the family’s history and each of the ghost’s stories that we encounter because they were so interesting. I thought the main characters were brought to life beautifully, however; I thought the estrangement of the sisters was solved too easily and would have liked to have seen more strain and repairing done between them. The romance between Cordelia and Gordon had great tension and fire and they were an easy couple to root for. This mysterious story was full of surprising twists and turns with an ending that packs a punch and it is a perfect read for spooky season!

🧙‍♀️ The Witches of Bone Hill 🧙

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Potatoes and Paperbacks 3.5 ⭐️

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Thanks @netgalley for the arc!

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With her marriage falling apart, and her husband leaving her penniless, Cordelia finds out that an aunt has died, leaving her and her sister the family estate. Estranged from their mother’s family, the sisters travel to Bone Hill and find a mysterious and spooky old mansion, as well as long buried family secrets involving magic, ghosts, and danger from unlikely places…

.

💭 Thoughts 💭

This was a great read to kick off spooky season. Witches, ghosts, gruesome and creepy situations abound. I could definitely see this as a spooky movie. However, the whole book felt a bit long and dragged out, I definitely wish it wrapped up faster.

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⌛️ Favorite Moment ⌛️

Bone Manor was a character in itself. When Cordelia tried to sell off some heirlooms to pay off her husbands debts, the house made its will known in quite an obvious way…

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THE WITCHES OF BONES HILL by Ava Morgyn is a contemporary, adult, paranormal, murder/mystery thriller focusing on the Bone sisters Cordelia and Eustace.

Told from omniscient third person (Cordelia) THE WITCHES OF BONE HILL follow sisters Cordelia and Eustace Bone as they struggle with the direction of their lives. Estranged for five years, the death of their distant great aunt Augusta would bring the sisters together, in an effort to claim their rightful past. For years, the Bone sisters had heard the rumors of witches and magic but their arrival at the Victorian mansion, once owned by Augusta and centuries of heirs, would elicit a well of magic within Cordelia and Eustace, magic that placed a target on the sisters’ lives. Meeting groundskeeper Gordon Jablonski, revealed a familial connection to the house on Bone Hill but a connection that was dark and dangerous for everyone concerned. Dealing with the locals was going to be difficult but dealing with their great aunt’s attorney would prove deadly and wrong.

THE WTICHES OF BONE HILL is a slow building story of family and secrets, power and lies, magic and witchcraft, greed and murder. Cordelia and Eustace Bone would discover a family history of clairvoyance and necromancers, beast riding and magic, obsession and murder; and an oath that would require bone for bone, blood for blood. The premise is suspenseful, intriguing and thrilling-bordering on horror; there is a slight romance developing between Cordelia and Gordon; the sisters are determined and desperate; the secondary and supporting characters are questionable and powerful.


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Cordelia Bone's life is falling apart when her estranged sister calls to tell her their great-aunt (who they didn't know) has died and they must go to Connecticut to collect the inheritance. Cordelia thinks is the answer to her problems or at least a light in the very dark tunnel her life has become. But she may find more than she was bargaining for.

I wasn't sure what exactly I was going to get with this novel. I was drawn to the family drama and the two sisters searching for answers to their past. I was hoping with "witches" in the title I wasn't picking up a horror novel. While it has all the creepiness of a Gothic novel, it didn't give me nightmares.

I liked Cordelia immediately. My heart went out to her. Her life is crumbling around her and she's not sure how to pick up the pieces. She just wanted to fit in - have a normal suburban life after the rocky childhood of constantly moving around.

I didn't warm up to her sister Eustace as quickly. We don't get to know as much about her and she takes a backseat to her sister in the story. Even though Eustace is the older sister. I think I would have liked the story to have been equally focused on the sisters.

I typically prefer a more character-driven story, but this one is all about the plot. And it is a great plot. I like reading fantasy where at least one character is as much on the outside as I am (think Harry Potter being introduced to the magic world). The sisters have no idea about their family history and are just as unsure as the reader as to what is going on. The story is quite intense at times.

In a story like this, an author has two choices in how to break up the creepy scenes. One option is to use humor and the other option is to use romance. Morgyn chose lust.

I say lust instead of romance because the relationship didn't feel romantic. I wondered at times if their attraction was the result of a spell rather than a result of free will. The lack of chemistry between the characters might be because this is a plot-driven story instead of a character-driven one. In other words, the "romance" was needed to move the plot forward.

The book has everything you need for a great Halloween read - creepy characters, a haunted house, unexplained happenings.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Saturday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2023/09/the-witches-of-bone-hill-by-ava-morgyn.html