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After reading this third novel set in the same world (the “Sourdough Universe”) by A.G. Slatter, I still love All the Murmuring Bones the best. This newest book is just particularly witchy, whereas Bones is more gothic and atmospheric.
For Halloween reading especially, The Briar Book of the Dead is a great pick.
The Briar women have been practicing magic for generations, and they trace it all back to their ancestor Gilly Briar, who came to the small town of Silverton years before and made it a relatively safe place for witches to live. The Briar women run Silverton and protect its inhabitants, and the citizens are perfectly content with the setup. They get a well-managed, fair place to live, and protection especially from the vampires whose domain is the next land over.
Ellie Briar is 19 and has been waiting for her magic to appear since she was a child. Her three cousins all came into their powers at a young age, but Ellie has none. She has, however, been very effective in her work training to be the steward, managing the affairs of Silverton and her family.
When her grandmother, the “main” witch of the family, a position referred to as the Briar Witch, dies unexpectedly, Ellie’s cousin Audra takes over. She’s the most gifted of their generation, and it’s been understood she would step up. It just wasn’t thought it would be quite so soon.
On the day of their grandmother’s funeral, all of a sudden, Ellie starts seeing ghosts. No one has seen ghosts for generations: it’s said that Gilly Briar ran them all out. But Ellie’s informed by them that she is a speaker for the dead, a particular power not many witches have. She now has to manage that “role” for a bunch of ghosts needing closure even as she navigates officially being the steward and her cousin Audra’s main support.
But strange things have been happening around Silverton, not connected to the changes that have been taking place. And they ratchet up in intensity as weeks go by. Audra doesn’t seem concerned, but Ellie certainly is. She doesn’t know what she can do, though. She doesn’t have any of the witchy powers that her cousins do; all she can do is talk with ghosts.
As events come to a boiling point, however, Ellie has to use any and all tools available to her to protect her family and the town from evil forces confronting them. She puts her resourcefulness to work to try to save everyone.
As I said, The Briar Book of the Dead is not my favorite of Slatter’s but it’s a solid read, particularly satisfying at witchy season.
Rated: High, though just over the line from moderate. Profanity includes 9 uses of strong language, 10 instances of moderate profanity, a few uses of mild language, and a few instances of British (bl-) profanity. Sexual content includes kissing, some mention of clothing removal, references to it happening/having happened, and one or two quick mentions of some specific activity. Violence involves a number of deaths, murders, references to sexual assault, and some blood and injuries, though not gory.
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