Families can be tricky, especially in small insular villages.
There is a tendency to lean on tradition and established rules even when times are clearly changing.
This is part of the narrative from A.G Slatter’s The Briar Book of the Dead, which feels partly coming-of-age tale, part witchcraft fantasy.
We follow young Ellie Briar, born into a family of witches but appearing to be the black sheep of the family without any witchcraft in sight.
After incidents rock the Briar family and cause Ellie to ascend up the chain of command, she discovers she has a different kind of ability – speaking to the dead.
This starts a chain of events that will reveal secrets of the village of Silverton, plus show Ellie her true purpose in this world.
Slatter does some excellent world-building here and really gives us plenty to focus on with Ellie as our central protagonist.
At nigh on 400 pages, The Briar Book of the Dead sets a decent pace and really immerses the reader into the town of Silverton and its weird and wonderful characters.
Fantasy fans will lap this up, but also some YA enthusiasts will find something to love here.
The Briar Book of the Dead by A.G Slatter is available now from Titan Books.
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