Currently featured on a folk horror display. Very easy to recommend to others. The author really creates an atmosphere. Look forward to reading more. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

After Clem gets a call that her daughter Erin is in hospital, she rushes to get to her side. What happened, and how?

The last Clem knew, Erin had just gone hiking with her boyfriend, Arlo, and best friend, Senna, in the remote area of the Orkney Islands, but there was nothing particularly dangerous about the trip; nothing out of the ordinary. But somehow, Erin's boyfriend is now dead, and Senna is nowhere to be found. Erin, in a medically-induced coma, has been severely burned and nothing but questions surround the circumstances that got her to that point.

Clem, at her wit's end, reaches out to her ex, Erin's father, Quinn, relaying to him what has happened. Even though his relationship with Erin is estranged, it's the right thing to do. He rushes to the hospital as well. As she awakens, Erin seems completely out of sorts. She doesn't recognize her parents and insists that her name is Nyx. This is when the creepiness sets in...

In addition to this modern narrative, we also get the perspective of Alyson, who was tried as a witch in the 1590s in Kirkwall, Orkney. We learn of her life and the events leading up to her trial. This historical perspective is based upon true events, which the author goes into further detail on in the Author's Note. Be sure to read that at the end. I feel like it brought wonderful context to this story and it impressed me the lengths Cooke went to with her research. An important moment in history to recognize and remember.

It has taken me way too long to pick up The Book of Witching, which released in October 2024. I am such a fan of Cooke's writing, and I loved the blend of Historical Horror with more modern-Thriller elements in this one. While I did feel some bits in the modern perspective got a little convoluted towards the end, that really didn't have much of an impact on my feelings on the story as a whole.

I felt like Clem was such a believable character. She was so devoted to Erin, and finding out what had happened to her, as well as to helping her heal in any way she could. She wasn't giving up on her daughter, no matter how challenging things got. I also enjoyed Clem and Quinn working together, putting aside past issues in order to help Erin. I felt their relationship was really well done.

I feel like the pace at which Cooke revealed what was going on with Erin, what she chose to reveal and when, gave this a healthy dose of creepy atmosphere, and I'm always down for that. Some of the scenes in the hospital, with Erin acting out of character, gave me chills.

Overall, I feel like this was a very well executed story. I think the author definitely succeeded in doing what she set out to do. I found it gripping, compelling and well balanced. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys Historical Horror, Atmospheric Thrillers, or Gothic feels. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Thank you to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. C.J. Cooke is an auto-read author for me, and this is a perfect example of why.

I'm sorry I waited so long to pick it up!

The Book of Witching" by C.J. Cooke is a mesmerizing blend of gothic horror, folklore, and deeply emotional storytelling. The atmospheric prose and richly developed characters create an immersive reading experience that lingers long after the final page. With its eerie twists and masterful weaving of history and magic, this novel is an absolute must-read for fans of dark, enchanting fiction.

THE BOOK OF WITCHING is a brilliantly conceived tale of witchcraft, persecution, revenge, and the unrelenting power of a mother’s love. Cooke seamlessly brought together the witch hunts of the 1590s with the present-day fascination with the occult while still threading in the honest emotions of all the characters within these pages.

In my humble opinion, Cooke did something special with this one. For as much as this was about the magic lore behind the black book and the history of those being put to trial for witchcraft, the characters and their experiences are what captivated this reader. I instantly was drawn to Clem, Erin, and Allison. Though generations apart, their connection is undeniable. These women and all the others entwined in their lives created candid and heartfelt moments needed in a story steeped with the supernatural. It grounded the narrative in reality.

Simply stated, I loved THE BOOK OF WITCHING. It is by far my favorite from Cooke. The levels of emotion combined with the play between the past and present made this a downright binge-able read. This one is a must-read for anyone who loves gothic suspense novels infused with the history of magical origins.

The official “spooky season” is over but it is always the season for a good book! The Book of Witching by C.J. Cooke was absolutely perfect for reading in October, but it’s a great, well researched, well written book that can and should be read any time.
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While I prefer witches who trade witty banter with their enemy/crush in fun romcoms, the plight of women who were accused of witchcraft and put on trial both fascinates and appalls me.
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This book had serious Salem Witch Trial vibes but took place much, much earlier in the late 1500’s Scotland. Told brilliantly in a dual timeline, the story wove folklore, magic, healing, murder, mystery, family, and history in a way that captivated me and kept me turning pages late into the night.
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Alison Balfour lives on a small Orkney island in Scotland where she uses her skills to help heal her friends and neighbors. In the 16th century that is enough to catch the attention of unscrupulous rulers who accuse her of witchcraft and attempted murder. Her story is brutal, sad, and made me want to break down walls on her behalf. Alison was a real woman whom Cooke based this story upon, one of 72 women who were put to trial, accused of witchcraft.
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The second timeline takes place in modern day. Clem has to drop everything and rush to the hospital when she gets a call that her 19 year old daughter, Erin, has been severely burned while on a hiking trip with friends in Orkney. What Clem uncovers at the hospital and as she delves into what actually happened on that island brilliantly weaves the two timelines together.
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The book is very atmospheric, detailed and engrossing. I always get even more interested when the story revolves around a real person. The author’s note is a great read after you finish the story, don’t skip it. I have read one of Cooke’s books before and enjoyed it, I will be looking for her next one now!

Witches, mystery, and mother and daughter bond! This is a great book not only for scary season, but anytime you are looking for a historical thriller.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me an advance reader copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great one to read in the fall in anticipation of Halloween! A very well written novel. CJ Cooke did a great job of incorporating the feel, climate, & dark, gloomy beauty of Scotland into the story! "Aye" will definitely be on the look out for more CJ Cooke novels since this was my first time reading one of their works.

Description
A mother must fight for her daughter’s life in this fierce and haunting tale of witchcraft and revenge from the author of A Haunting in the Arctic.

Clem gets a call that is every mother’s worst nightmare. Her nineteen-year-old daughter Erin is unconscious in the hospital after a hiking trip with her friends on the remote Orkney Islands that met a horrifying end, leaving her boyfriend dead and her best friend missing. When Erin wakes, she doesn’t recognize her mother. And she doesn’t answer to her name, but insists she is someone named Nyx.

Clem travels the site of her daughter’s accident, determined to find out what happened to her. The answer may lie in a dark secret in the history of the Orkneys: a woman wrongly accused of witchcraft and murder four centuries ago. Clem begins to wonder if Erin’s strange behavior is a symptom of a broken mind, or the effects of an ancient curse?

Five spooky heart wrenching stars!!!! This author has quickly become a must read for me she never disappoints.
Told in present time of 2024 and 1594.

Present time 2024- Erin has been found with first-degree burns on most of her body by a park ranger . One of her friends Arlo is found dead bound and burned, and her other friend Senna is missing. Her mother Clem is quickly notified, suffering from a heart condition she almost collapses after she sees her daughter. Erin who is 19, is also a young mother to daughter Freya. Erin is quickly put in a medical induced coma to try to save her.
Clem is determined to uncover what happened to her daughter, Was there an argument that went wrong on Erin’s camping trip with her friends on the Scotland's Orkney Islands? The police begin to wonder if Erin might be responsible for Arlo's death and possibly harmed Senna, who has not had any contact with her parents and she’s still missing.
Did someone do this to them? So many unanswered questions.
1594 we meet Alison Belford (mother of Beatrix and Edward, wife to William) she has been accused of witchcraft and consorting with the devil. Alison is known as a healer in her small community, using herbs and natural elements to heal the sick. Denying she’s a witch she is still put on trial, tortured for a crime she didn’t commit, and declared a witch.
The parallels to both times are connected when Erin awakens from her medically induced coma claiming her name is Nyx not Erin. What connects Erin and Alison? A charm, a powerful curse, or the "Book of Witches"? Continue reading to find out!
This book is amazing I wanted it to keep going I loved the characters and the whole story line.

Every year that I read a CJ Cooke book, that book ends up being in my top three favorite reads of the year, and this one is no exception. I actually think this may be her best one yet. One timeline is historical fiction, and the other is a present day, twisty mystery…and the way the two weave together at the end left me speechless. The other piece that left me in awe, like with nearly all her books, is the way she captures motherhood in her storytelling. No one else does it better than her and it is done so beautifully, honest and raw. This book is perfection and the amount of research that went into it is incredible.

This book is an atmospheric slow burn that weaves together two stories -- a nineteen year old girl suffers in a burn unit after a hiking trip with friends went horribly wrong and the a woman is accused of witchcraft four hundred years earlier. It took a while for me to get into this one and I definitely found the historical scenes more interesting than the contemporary ones even if I didn't know enough about the daily life of the Orkneys in the sixteenth century to fully understand what was going on. (The author's note at the end cleared a lot of things up for me.)

C.J. Cooke's writing always hooks me and this was no exception. Loved all the witchy details and the supernatural vibes it evoked.

4.5/5
Pretty much any book set in Scotland is immediately on my tbr!

The Book of Witching was one of those cases where I started reading the ARC and pre-ordered a physical copy. Dual timelines, mystery/suspense, and historical fiction? Yes, please!

I was able to visit Scotland last year and was so sad I didn't have enough time to visit Orkney. It is at the top of my list of places to visit! The history is just so fascinating! While I always love a bit of mystery in my books, the 16th-century timeline in this story had me in a chokehold! It is heartbreaking to read this and know women experienced these very real trials.

Read this if you like:
- Stories set in Scotland
- History of witch trials
- Supernatural mysteries

This was a great read for spooky season loved the characters and story telling. Would recommend, thank you for the advanced copy.

This book had me in a grip! I love a good dual timeline story and C.J. Cooke kept the tension high while transitioning between them. Both timelines feature strong women who are going through it! In the present, Clem’s daughter is in intensive care after a hike with her friends goes terribly wrong. Once she wakes up, she acts like a completely different person and won’t answer to anything but Nyx…which is not her name. Centuries before, we follow the story of Alison as she is wrongfully accused of witchcraft. (Or is she?) Alison is faced with ridicule, torture, and torture of her family as the courts try to tear free a confession.

How do these two stories intertwine? Well, I’m going to let you figure that out for yourself but let me tell you, it is shocking! The old school witchy vibes are vibing and there are even a few sprinkles of culty activities. This is another book that is perfect for your spooky season TBR!

DNF at 10%. I had a hard time getting into this one and following along with the storyline/worldbuilding. I also recently had a baby so books with missing children/children involved in horrible accidents (even as teens) are suddenly really hard for me to read so this could also just be a me problem!

3.5 stars

Two storylines—modern day, Clem finds out her daughter Erin is critical condition in the burn unit following a fire on Erin’s trip to the Orkney Islands. Erin’s boyfriend is dead and her other friend is missing. Orkney, 1594, Alison is accused of witchcraft and is imprisoned despite her innocence.

The two stories intertwine as Clem investigates what really happened to her daughter and Alison grows closer to her inevitable fate.

I liked the Orkney Islands setting & always enjoy a nice book about witchcraft. The book is missing a little something but it was still interesting.

Thanks to Berkley Publishing Group and Netgalley for a copy of this book.

The following review was published or updated in several Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia newspapers and magazines in November and December 2024:

Booking a full year of reading

Review by Tom Mayer

If only us readers could just spend our days … reading. What would a year look like? Here, the editors of Home for the Holidays present their yearlong list of books, culled from the past 12 months of reading and reviewing. A few of the titles you’ll immediately recognize, and you’ll likely have more than few in your own library. But just in case you missed a title or two, we’re showcasing the whole year’s worth of books that we’ve read and reviewed, month by month.

Except for the first title, the list is simply a list. To find the reviews of many of these titles, visit our newspaper parent, The (Athens) News Courier at enewscourier.com — with a slight caveat. Our newspaper webmasters are currently working overtime to improve our content management system, the foundation of any website, and while many of our archives are now found there, it may be a few weeks before everything is fully re-uploaded — including the most recent editions of Limestone Life and Home for the Holidays. For now, though, enjoy our literary stroll through 2024.

And about that first title: Not every college professor can make statistical analysis approachable, let along interesting to their students and the general population, but Athens State University emeritus professor of psychology Mark Durm is not every college professor. After spending nearly five decades teaching thousands of students, the “ol’ psychology professor” decided that he’d best get around to writing the one book out of his nearly 100 published pieces that’s he always wanted to write. Call it a legacy piece, but what it really is is a “best of” Durm’s peer-reviewed, book reviews, non-peer reviewed and magazine articles from his 47 years in higher education.

The result is “Professional Publications of an Ol’ Psychology Professor” (Dorrance) with full previously published articles ranging from studies on the effects of glasses on a child’s self-esteem to his ever-popular parapsychology pieces, Durm presents his internationally recognized efforts with a twist.

“It’s a different kind of book because it doesn’t talk about the research, it presents the research,” the professor says from his second-career office at Durm Properties in Athens, about a half-mile from where he first presented that research in person. “I’ve spent hours on all of these articles, especially in the peer-reviewed journal articles.”

And so, articles on divorce, sex, religion and other topics now populate the pages of Durm’s most recent book in an effort to both continue his teaching and satisfy what has been a lifelong wonderment.

“You know, most people don’t understand statistics, so it’s all in there,” Durm said. “What I’m trying to do is a more critical approach to ‘just don’t believe everything you’re told.’ … It’s things that were in my life that I wanted to see if they were so, by using a psychological analysis.”

And like any good professor, Durm didn’t do that research on his own — or take all of the credit. Among the co-authors of many of his articles in the book were students — many of who he’s lost touch with, but all of whom who he credits by name in his acknowledgements and for each of who, if they look up their ol’ mentor, he has a signed book ready to hand over. For the rest of us, you can find the book at any online bookseller — just as you can with the remainder of our list, presented by the month in which the book was published, read and reviewed.

JANUARY

Unbound (Blackstone) by Christy Healy NG/F

The Devil’s Daughter by Gordon Greisman NG/ARC

FEBRUARY

Almost Surely Dead (Mindy’s Book Studio) by Amina Akhtar NG

The Chaos Agent (Gray Man 13) (Berkley) by Mark Greaney NG

The Lady in Glass and Other Stories (Ace) by Anne Bishop ARC

A Haunting in the Arctic (Berkley paperback) by C.J. Cooke NG

Ghost Island (Berkley) by Max Seeck

MARCH

Hello, Alabama (Arcadia) by Martha Day Zschock

The Unquiet Bones (Montlake) by Loreth Anne White

I am Rome: A novel of Julius Caesar (Ballantine Books by Santiago PosteguilloMarch 5: Murder Road (Berkley) by Simone St. James

The Luminous Life of Lucy Landry (Holiday House) by Anna Rose Johnson

Ferris (Candlewick) by Kate DiCamillo

After Annie (Random House, Feb. 27) by Anna Quindlen

Crocodile Tears Didn't Cause the Flood (Montag Press) by Bradley Sides The #1 Lawyer (Little, Brown and Company) by James Patterson, Nancy Allen

Lilith (Blackstone) by Eric Rickstad

Life: My Story Through History (Harper One) by Pope Francis

APRIL

Matterhorn (Thomas & Mercer) by Christopher Reich

Friends in Napa (Mindy’s Book Studio) by Sheila Yasmin Marikar

City in Ruins (William Morrow) by Don Winslow

The House on Biscayne Bay (Berkley) by Chanel Cleeton

Two Friends, One Dog, and a Very Unusual Week (Peachtree) by Sarah L. Thomson

For Worse (Blackstone) by L.K. Bowen

A Killing on the Hill (Thomas & Mercer) by Robert Dugoini

The Clock Struck Murder (Poisoned Pen Press) by Betty Webb

The Book That Broke the World (Ace) by Mark Lawrence

The Forgetters (Heyday Books) by Greg Sarris

Lost to Dune Road (Thomas & Mercer) by Kara Thomas

Warrior on the Mound (Holiday House/Peachtree) by Sandra Headed

Pictures of Time (Silver Street Media) by David AlexanderBare Knuckle (Blackstone Publishing) by Stayton Bonner

Murder on Demand (Blackstone Publishing) by Al Roker

Home is Where the Bodies Are (Blackstone) by Jeneva Rose

MAY

Matterhorn by Christopher Reich

The Hunter's Daughter (Berkley) by Nicola Solvinic

The House That Horror Built (Berkley) by Christina Henry

In our stars (Berkley) by Jack Campbell

Freeset (book 2) (Blackstone) by Sarina Dahlan

Southern Man (William Morrow) by Greg Iles

Camino Ghosts (Doubleday) by John Grisham

JUNE

Specter of Betrayal by Rick DeStefanis

Lake County (Thomas & Mercer) by Lori Roy

Serendipity (Dutton) by Becky Chalsen

Shelterwood (Ballantine) by Lisa Wingate

The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra’s Needle (Holiday House) by Dan Gutman

Jackpot (Penguin) by Elysa Friedland

The Helper (Blackstone) by M.M. Dewil

Winter Lost (Ace) by Patricia Briggs

Shadow Heart (Blackstone) by Meg Gardiner

Lake Country (Thomas & Mercer) by Lori Roy

The Out-of-Town Lawyer (Blackstone) by Robert Rotten

Love Letter to a Serial Killer (Berkley) by Tasha Coryell

Sentinel Berkley) by Mark Greaney

JULY

Three Kings: Race, Class, and the Barrier-Breaking Rivals Who Redefined Sports and Launched the Modern Olympic Age (Blackstone) by Todd Balf

The Night Ends with Fire (Berkley) by K.X. Song

Echo Road (Montlake) by Melinda Leigh

It’s Elementary (Berkley) by Elise Bryant

You Shouldn’t Be Here (Thomas & Mercer) by Lauren Thoman

Back In Black (Blackstone) edited by Don Bruns

The Recruiter (Blackstone) by Gregg Podolski

AUGUST

You Shouldn’t Be Here (Thomas & Mercer) by Lauren Thoman ARC

Not What She Seems (Thomas & Mercer) by Yasmin Angoe NG

Fatal Intrusion by Jeff Deaver/Isabella Maldonado

Death at Morning House (HARPERTeen) by Maureen Johnson

Fire and Bones (Scribner) by Kathy Reichs

Some Nightmares Are Real (University of Alabama Press) by Kelly Kazoo

The Brothers Kenny (Blackstone) by Adam Mitzner

Blind to Midnight (Blackstone) by Reed Farrel Coleman

The Wayside (Blackstone) by Carolina Wolff

Enemy of the State (Blackstone) by Robert Smartwood

You Will Never Be Me (Berkley) by Jesse Q. Sutanto

On Settler Colonialism: Ideology, Violence, and Justice (W.W. Norton) by Adam Kirsch

We Love the Nightlife (Berkley) by Rachel Koller Croft

Talking To Strangers (Berkley) by Fiona Barton

An Honorable Assassin (Blackstone) by Steve Hamilton possible interview see email

Dungeon Crawler Carl (1 of 6 but see next two months) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

SEPTEMBER

Fatal Intrusion (Thomas & Mercer) by Jeffrey Deaver and Isabella Maldonado

When They Last Saw Her (Penguin) by Marcie Rendon

American Ghoul (Blackstone) by Michelle McGill-Vargas

First Do No Harm (Blackstone) by Steve Hamilton

A Quiet Life: A Novel (Arcade) by William Cooper and Michael McKinley

One More From the Top (Mariner) by Emily Layden

No Address (Forefront Books) by Ken Abraham.

Tiger’s Tale (Blackstone) by Colleen Houck

An Academy for Liars (Ace) by Alexis Henderson

Rewitched (Berkley) by Lucy Jane Wood

Gaslight (Blackstone) by Sara Shepard and Miles Joris-Peyrafitte

Counting Miracles (Random House) by Nicholas Sparks

The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society (Ace) by C.M. Waggoner

The Hitchcock Hotel (Berkley) by Stephanie Wrobel

In the Garden of Monsters by Crystal King

Carl’s Doomsday Scenario (2 of 6 see next month also) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

OCTOBER

The Hushed (Blackstone) by K.R. Blair NG

A Grim Reaper’s Guide to Catching a Killer (Berkley) by Maxie Dara

On Settler Colonialism: Ideology, Violence, and Justice (Norton) by WSJ Weekend review editor Adam Kirsch

Framed (Doubleday) by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey

This Cursed House (Penguin) by Del Sandeen

The Puzzle Box (Random House) by Danielle Trussoni

Two Good Men (Blackstone) by S.E. Redfearn

Dark Space (Blackstone) by Rob Hart and Alex Segura

This Cursed House (Berkley’s open submission)by Del Sandeen

Vindicating Trump (Regnery) by Dinesh D’Souza

The Book of Witching (Berkley) by C.J. Cooke

The World Walk (Skyhorse) by Tom Turcich

The Waiting Game by Michael Connelly  ARC, possible interview see email

Beyond Reasonable Doubt (Thomas & Mercer) by Robert Dugoni

Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook (3 of 6, with bonus material) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

Frozen Lives (Blackstone) by Jennifer Graeser Fronbush NG

Vincent, Starry Starry Night (Meteor 17 Books) intro by Don McLean

Paris in Winter: An Illustrated Memoir (PowerHouse Books) by David Coggins

NOVEMBER

The Waiting (Little, Brown) by Michael Connelly

The Teller of Small Fortunes (Penguin) by Julie Long

Shadow Lab (Blackstone) by Brendan Deneen

Trial by Ambush (Thomas & Mercer) by Marcia Clark

Devil Take It (Heresy Press) by Daniel Debs Nossiter

SerVant of Earth (Ace) by Sarah Hawley

All the other me (Blackstone) by Jody Holford

The Perfect Marriage (Blackstone reissue re-edit) by Jenny Rose

DECEMBER

Trial By Ambush (Thomas & Mercer) by Marcia Clark

The Close-Up (Gallery Books) by Pip Drysdale

The Silent Watcher (Thomas & Mercer) by Victor Methos

Leviathan (Lividian Trade HC) by Robert McCammon

The Silent Watcher (Thomas & Mercer) by Victor Method

Assume Nothing (Thomas & Mercer) by Joshua Corin

One example link:
https://enewscourier.com/2024/11/29/in-review-booking-a-full-year-of-reading/

Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group and C.J. Cooke for the opportunity to read an ARC for the Book of Witching, This is my honest and unpaid review of the book. This was the second book I've read by this author and I really enjoyed it. It had the right amount of eerie suspense and historical happenings that I was hooked from the start. I loved the way the stories from the past intertwined and complimented the storyline of the characters from the present. I hadn't read a book about witches in Scotland so it was great to learn some new things.

This was intense but fantastically written. There are heart in throat moments, particularly in the historical time frame, and the intensity of a mother's love rages through. There is a good balance of the horror and witchy parts with the more mystery type story line, and both Clem and Allison are excellent characters to carry the story.

The kind of book I read in one sitting, staying up until 3am. This tells the stories of women 400 years apart. In the past, Alyson is imprisoned, wrongly accused of witchcraft. In present time, Clem gets the call that her 19y/o daughter Erin is in the ICU with severe burns & her boyfriend is dead after they were away on a hiking trip. When she wakes up, she doesn’t remember who she is. Somehow, a mysterious book and visions of the past and present haunt both timelines. The ties that bind them could be a coincidence - or something more sinister.
I couldn’t stop reading this book and was immediately drawn to both storylines, anxious to find out what would come next. This is a beautifully haunting story blending folklore, fantasy, and mystery. Can’t wait to check out the rest of this author’s works.
Thank you to Berkley Publishing for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.