I devoured this book! I was drawn in by the description of "Practical Magic meets Gone Girl" and having just finished it I see the connections. It was a suspenseful, intriguing read that I will recommend to others!

Looking for a book with a family of witches, an escape from an abusive husband, and a sweet dog? The Bane Witch by Ava Morgyn has all of the above (and more)!
This book had a phenomenal start, an addictive middle, and a slightly disappointing ending. We follow Piers as she fakes her own death to escape an abusive husband, and travels from Charleston to upstate New York to live with a great-aunt she met once as a child. There’s action, suspense, and careful plotting, providing the book’s Gone Girl similarities. Once Piers meets her great-aunt, Myrtle, the storyline shifts to a more Practical Magic (but make it even more sinister) vibe.
I really enjoyed the plot twists, pacing, and character development of the book. I also loved the Adirondacks setting (if you’re new here, I grew up in upstate New York and love a surprisingly familiar location). Piers and Myrtle were great main characters, and I was fully invested in their hunt for the serial killer tormenting the locals. Unfortunately, the final climax didn’t have as much oomph as I was expecting, and I ended the book feeling a little disappointed in the last 10%.
If any of this book's weirdly specific traits caught your eye, you should definitely give it a shot! I’d also recommend it if you’re into female-led stories of witchy revenge!
Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

The Bane Witch was dark, atmospheric, and really had me hooked from the very beginning.

Piers is stuck in an abusive marriage when she runs away to live with her aunt, only to find out that she is part of the Bane Witches. Morgyn writes so beautifully about a lot of really difficult things. She intertwines the problems of the American justice system with poisonous plants and witchy sisterhood. The Bane Witch is doing a lot of things all at the same time and it's doing them all very well. I highly recommend this title.

Thank you to St Martin's Press and to NetGalley for allowing me early access to a digital copy of this novel for reviewing purposes.

"A very little poison can do a world of good."

This author is new to me, and I'm so intrigued to take a dive into some of her other works after this one. Please, however, be sure to take a look at trigger warnings as this book does deal with heavy subject matter (intimate partner violence, murder, various abuses, etc).

The story is described as a bit of a mix of Practical Magic meets Gone Girl. That's really all I needed to know to sell me on it, and it absolutely delivered. There was such an eerie vibe throughout the story that I really loved. We start off diving right into the story, and while the pace slows down throughout the middle to accommodate for knowledge building and self discovery of our main character, I found myself really pulled in throughout the entire thing.

I found the magic system to be so unique, and loved this modern take on witches and their powers. The focus on the failures of the American justice system in regards to how they handle abuse, assault, etc was unfortunately all too relevant, and it was very cool to see Ava's take on these alternative methods to handling these things, and how each of the characters has a slightly different power that they use to their advantage.

This was much darker in tone than I would initially suspect based on the cover, and I really enjoyed that aspect. There was an almost true crime feeling to this, and an edge of horror. I highly recommend this if those sound like your vibes, but I can see why some folks would want to stay away from it.

This book definitely hits on all of your emotions. It’s dark, a little twisted, a little bit of karma as revenge is sought and power is taken back.

I don’t recommend this book to those who are triggered by domestic violence or sexual assault.

As per usual, I requested this book because of the cover and the fact that it was in the fantasy genre. I had no idea what I was getting into but wow I absolutely loved this. It was definitely more of a thriller with a fantasy twist, full of powerful women and feminine rage. I absolutely could not put this book down - I started it after dinner and finished it the next morning before work. I thought the writing was great and kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time.

I also always enjoy a book that takes place in upstate NY/the Adirondacks, which just added to my love for it.

If you enjoy thrillers and fantasy, definitely give this one a read!

Thank you to SMP for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This book was SO GOOD! It has witches, serial killers, new beginnings, long lost family, empowerment… What more could you want in a book? Seriously, I binged this book because once I started there was no way I could stop, so if you pick this one up be prepared to fully commit yourself to finishing it in one sitting!

This book was such a pleasant surprise. I loved it! The premise was so unique. I really liked the idea of a secret society of female witches that kill bad men. And by utilizing poisonous plants they themselves are immune to. Such a creative concept. Morgyn manages to spin an in depth and engaging tale that I didn't want to put down. She does an excellent job of fleshing out the story line and providing a history of the venery. As well, she provides a unique cast of strong women characters. I enjoyed that each one had their own individual specialty and poison of choice. The book is a great crossover between fantasy, mystery and thriller.

TW: murder, strangulation, abuse, rape ( off page), child sexual assault (off page), mercy killing, "suicide", attempted sexual assault.

Thank you to NetGalley, St Martins, and the author for my advanced copy in return for an honest review.

Ah, this story was incredible. Badass witches coming together to help one in need. And they eat poisonous plants as their defense mechanism! Ugh, I love these characters.

Thank you to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC. Honestly this book was nothing like I expected and I loved going into it sort of blind. It felt like a true crime thriller but also had some magical realism that I loved. Piers and the whole cast of characters really stole my heart. I loved watching her get comfortable in her own skin and her new found powers. I honestly wish we got a little more of the hunt aspect within this book. I feel like that would’ve elevated it for me. I also didn’t love her relationship with Reyes. All that to be said though, I still found this book captivating!

Piers has a memory of eating berries in her backyard and a dead man. Her mother takes her to a specialist and they diagnose her with Pica. She also remembers an Aunt who tells her about a place called Crow Lake. Piers has always had weird cravings for poisonous berries. Now she's married to a controlling abusive man. She believes he's going to kill her. So she decides to do something about it.

I went into this book blind. I saw the witch in the title and was instantly intrigued. Boy, did this book capture me right away. I had a hard time putting it down in the beginning. It lost me a bit in the middle and redeemed itself at the end. A witchy murdery book. A fantastic read.

The Bane Witch by Ava Morgyn is a darkly satisfying blend of revenge thriller, magical realism, and feminine empowerment. From the first chapter, I was hooked by Piers Corbin—a woman whose lifelong fascination with poison is more than a morbid quirk; it's her family legacy. After fleeing a violent marriage, Piers finds refuge with her estranged aunt in a secluded mountain town. Her discovery that she’s part of a line of Bane Witches—women who consume poison to rid the world of dangerous men—was both chilling and oddly empowering. Watching Piers embrace her power felt deeply satisfying, especially as she faced off against a local serial killer. Each twist kept me on edge, and I couldn’t stop reading until I knew how it would end.

Morgyn’s writing feels almost hypnotic, weaving eerie descriptions of poisonous plants with themes of justice and resilience. What stuck with me most was how this book balances darkness with moments of hope. The story doesn’t vilify all men—instead, it highlights the strength of good ones while giving space for Piers' hard-earned vengeance. The ending left me breathless, and I’m still thinking about it days later. If you’re drawn to stories that explore strength, survival, and justice, this book will linger with you long after you’ve turned the final page.

“We don’t fear men in this house, men fear us”

Hooked from the very beginning and could not put The Bane Witch down. Don’t let the cover fool you, this is a dark mystery thriller.

The concept for the plot is unique. Piers is a witch but doesn’t know it. What’s more is that she is a Bane Witch who can eat poisonous plants that regular people would die from. She doesn’t discover this until she escapes from her abusive husband to go find her aunt. From there Piers learns just who she really is and what she is capable of.

There are a ton of dark topics in The Bane Witch that are not limited to domestic violence, SA, choking, rape, and more.

As a survivor of domestic violence strangulation, I felt empowered by Piers and it connected me even more while reading.

The Bane Witch is definitely one of my favorite reads of 2025!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC. This is an honest review and the thoughts are my own.

Overall I enjoyed the magical realism and Piers escape from her husband, but the pacing was a bit distracting at times and felt off. I enjoyed this while I was reading it, but wasn’t actively reaching for it when I paused.

Not going to lie, I thoroughly devoured this book, but it didn't hit for me until AFTER the first couple of chapters. The start of this book is a tad rough. Mostly because there are a few little things that aren't explained until later, or not explained very well, so it makes it seem like there might be a tiny plot hole or two.

Push through!

Once I got into the story, I realized that I probably would understand the "little things" if I went back and did a reread with context, or if I didn't bother, the "little things" wouldn't matter all that much, because the overall plot swept me away. This feels like a cult classic. A certain kind of perfection in the imperfection. It's suspenseful, easy to read and action packed. Witches meets Serial Killers! I want to obtain a physical copy of this when it comes out. I loved it so much.

The pacing of this book was absolutely perfect; impossible to put down. Piers was such a compelling character and I thoroughly enjoyed her development throughout the novel

This book deals with dark themes including domestic violence, murder, and more.

I found that the beginning 2/3 of the book were very engaging and I really was rooting for the main character to get away from her abusive husband. I think the introduction of the magic and the secret society of women witches managed to lose me. I found that the character arc from the beginning right up to that point was believable and empathetic but I found some of the mistakes made by Piers to be really annoying and the character turn a bit difficult to enjoy. Some of the point of view switching also made it difficult to follow.

Solid read but lost steam near the end.

Mixing magical realism with thriller is one of my favorite combos so when I tell you I was jumping up and down after reading the synopsis of this book, that's an understatement. That combined with the incredible cover... I was all in.

Now that I've finished there are some things that I absolutely loved and some things I'm a bit disappointed by. This book really started with a bang! I was sucked in by that cunning that Pier's showed when it came to escaping her abusive relationship and intrigued by the unraveling of past as she begins to discover her family history and true life calling. The story did take a bit of a turn at the halfway point though where I felt like Pier's personality changed. After being given a purpose and support system for seemingly the first time in her life, Piers met that with truly questionable choices that put the people she loved at risked in a way that was childish and selfish and hard for me to continue to like her as a character.

Overall though I enjoyed the story and it was a unique and exciting read. It'll be a fabulous spooky season read that I won't hesitate to recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. I am Currently still reading but I am halfway and will review what I had read thus far.
This read has been very grippiling from the very beginning. Piers's life is a golden housewife life, until she can no longer cannot take it anymore from her demanding husband and his lifestyle. So she starts off by planning her own death to the extreme. Of course plans don't always go as they are planned. She eventually gets to where she needs to be, and shows up at her long lost Aunt doorstep. While there she is currently understanding where she came from and her families history, that brings back a lot of memories from her childhood that shes forgotten about or was never told about from her mother, who kept this side of her life closed and never shared much about it to Aracadia (Piers new name).
I will update my review once done. Will say this is very triggering for some who may have dealt with DA in there past relationships.

I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC version of this book.

I really enjoyed this story about vigilante witches and the story behind Piers. Piers has a dark childhood and is an abusive marriage - she chooses to 'gone girl' herself and run away to a long lost Aunt that she knows about. Here she begin to learn her true heritage and the realities of being a bane witch. Story flowed nicely without being drawn out and was darker than I was anticipating (which I enjoyed) - I would recommend to anyone interested in a crossover of Fantasy and True Crime.