Hag - Kathleen Kaufman

Summary: At this, the Cailleach would release a single drop of indigo dye onto the topmost layer. See, she would tell her daughter. See? It bleeds through the topmost path and onto the next. In this way, so many things from the next world touch ours, and our world touches the layer beneath.

High above the sea, hidden in the rocky Scottish cliffs, something stirs. An ancient matriarchial power has set the wheels in motion for a long line of descendants. But to what end?

Spanning centuries of human history, these daughters of the lowland hag, the Cailleach, must navigate a world filled with superstition, hatred, violence, pestilence, and death to find their purpose. With pasts half remembered and destinies denied, the daughters of Cailleach are women with uncanny, and often feared, abilities to heal, to see the future and to cause great destruction and pain when threatened. With each passing generation, the waves crash against the shore, and the Cailleach awaits a homecoming that will bring everything full circle. (Summary and pic from goodreads.com)

I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My Review: You guys! This book just came out yesterday! 

As with everyone else in the Known Universe, I love fall. You know how this goes, and everyone has been writing about it in All The Social Media Places so I’ll just take my comfy sweaters and pumpkin flavors and hot chocolate and move along.  I really love October, actually, because I think that Halloween is awesome and I love all the stuff that goes with it.  Being a book nerd, I LOVE indulging in some spooky literature during October. It seems like the perfect excuse to over-indulge in ghosts and witches and scary things. I read these things all year round, let’s be real, but they seem especially delicious and pertinent during October.

I’m excited to review this book for you because it’s new and just came out and if you’re into time jumps and witchy things and woman power, this is a book for you. It’s perfect for your Halloween season reading!

I felt a particular connection to this book because I am of Scottish descent, and my Granny actually emigrated from Scotland, so the connection to it is close and very real to me. My Granny spoke with a proper British accent, not a Scottish one, as she was from an aristocratic family and attended boarding school. However, I have the family tartan, family crest, etc. I have always felt a strong connection to Scotland and my Granny, so this book resonated with me. I don’t come from a family of witches (or maybe I do?!) but I love strong female characters and women with ancient powers and matriarchal lines.

And really, ancient powers and matriarchal lineage is the strength of this book. I loved how it was mostly about women, and these women were witches. They are powerful, they are from an ancient line of powers, and they are taking exactly NO CRAP from anyone, man or woman, who would stand in their way. I also loved the idea of an ancient matriarch who was lurking and orchestrating. It’s awesome. There’s also a matriarchal tattoo that was really cool.

And get this. The publisher told me that the picture on the cover is actually a picture of the author’s great great grandmother Charlotte. Which is awesome. The picture is captivating and actually one of the things that drew me to the book in the first place. Charlotte is obviously a woman with depth. You can see it on the cover. Although she is not specifically the character in this book, you can tell that Kaufman has a lineage of women to draw from who inspired her.

I really enjoyed this book. I found it to be really interesting and spooky, with a fun story and an interesting vibe. You should definitely check it out this Halloween season!

My Rating: 4 Stars

For the sensitive reader: There was some language and sexual inference but it was very tame and I would say it’s on the lighter side of the normal adult fiction genre.