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The Witch Ways #1
Crooked Daylight
'a highly original talent' - Beryl Bainbridge
The Way sisters, Anna, Charlie and Emz, were raised in two worlds. Their mother’s realm of reason, measurement and logic, and the world inhabited by their spectacularly unconventional grandmother, Hettie.
While their mother worked, the sisters ran wild at Hettie’s Cob Cottage, discovering forbidden Pike Lake, unknowable Havoc Wood, and what their grandmother referred to only as ‘The Strengths’.
But time passed, the sisters grew up, work and relationships and their mother’s world won them over, and The Strengths lay forgotten…
That is until Hettie passes away suddenly, leaving behind Cob Cottage and a whole lot of questions.
Anna is busy trying very hard not to cry as she caters yet another wedding, Charlie is spending more time at the job she loves than with the boyfriend she’s not quite sure about and Emz is dreaming up new ways to avoid school and the drama that comes with it, but can they deal with strange guests, unexpected danger and some long-forgotten memories?
'a born writer... the ultimate needle in a haystack' - Susan Hill, author of The Woman in Black
"The magical life the Way sisters lead is an interesting read." - Julie, NetGalley Reviewer
"When is the next one and I want to read it!" - Nigel, NetGalley Reviewer
The Way sisters, Anna, Charlie and Emz, were raised in two worlds. Their mother’s realm of reason, measurement and logic, and the world inhabited by their spectacularly unconventional grandmother, Hettie.
While their mother worked, the sisters ran wild at Hettie’s Cob Cottage, discovering forbidden Pike Lake, unknowable Havoc Wood, and what their grandmother referred to only as ‘The Strengths’.
But time passed, the sisters grew up, work and relationships and their mother’s world won them over, and The Strengths lay forgotten…
That is until Hettie passes away suddenly, leaving behind Cob Cottage and a whole lot of questions.
Anna is busy trying very hard not to cry as she caters yet another wedding, Charlie is spending more time at the job she loves than with the boyfriend she’s not quite sure about and Emz is dreaming up new ways to avoid school and the drama that comes with it, but can they deal with strange guests, unexpected danger and some long-forgotten memories?
'a born writer... the ultimate needle in a haystack' - Susan Hill, author of The Woman in Black
"The magical life the Way sisters lead is an interesting read." - Julie, NetGalley Reviewer
"When is the next one and I want to read it!" - Nigel, NetGalley Reviewer
- GenresFantasy
270 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 29, 2016
27 people are currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
Helen Slavin
25 books21 followersHelen Slavin was born in Heywood in Lancashire in 1966. She was raised by eccentric parents on a diet of Laurel and Hardy, William Shakespeare and the Blackpool Illuminations. Educated at her local comp her favourite subjects at school were English and Going Home.
After The University of Warwick she worked in many jobs including, plant and access hire, a local government Education department typing pool, and a vasectomy clinic. A job as a television scriptwriter gave her the opportunity to spend all day drinking tea, living in a made-up fantasy world and getting paid for it (sometimes).
Helen has been a professional writer for fifteen years. Her first novel The Extra Large Medium was chosen as the winner in the Long Barn Books competition run by Susan Hill.
A paragliding Welsh husband and two children distract her and give her ample opportunity to spend all day drinking tea, nagging about homework and washing pants for England. In the wee small hours she still keeps a bijou flat in that fantasy world of writing.When not working with animals and striving for world peace, Helen enjoys the music of Elbow and baking bread. Her favourite colour is purple and if she had to be stranded on a desert island with someone it would be Ray Mears ( alright, George Clooney is very good looking but can he make fire with a stick? No. See?)
She now lives, with her family, in Trowbridge, Wiltshire where, when she’s not writing, she’s asleep. Or in Tescos.
After The University of Warwick she worked in many jobs including, plant and access hire, a local government Education department typing pool, and a vasectomy clinic. A job as a television scriptwriter gave her the opportunity to spend all day drinking tea, living in a made-up fantasy world and getting paid for it (sometimes).
Helen has been a professional writer for fifteen years. Her first novel The Extra Large Medium was chosen as the winner in the Long Barn Books competition run by Susan Hill.
A paragliding Welsh husband and two children distract her and give her ample opportunity to spend all day drinking tea, nagging about homework and washing pants for England. In the wee small hours she still keeps a bijou flat in that fantasy world of writing.When not working with animals and striving for world peace, Helen enjoys the music of Elbow and baking bread. Her favourite colour is purple and if she had to be stranded on a desert island with someone it would be Ray Mears ( alright, George Clooney is very good looking but can he make fire with a stick? No. See?)
She now lives, with her family, in Trowbridge, Wiltshire where, when she’s not writing, she’s asleep. Or in Tescos.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 10, 2017
In short - Damn... Very good writing. The first half was maybe a bit slow. The second half made up for it for me. The ending is very unfair :-) - when is book two out!
In full
I confess I wasn't really sure what to expect from this book when I got it. We have the Way sisters, Anna, Charlie and Emz, who wish to deal with Grandma Hettie's funeral in their own rather different way. Grandma Hettie, it should be explained, lived in a cottage, Cob Cottage, in a very old wood, Havoc Wood, beside a lake, Pike Lake. Now we really shouldn't jump to conclusions about old ladies, living in old cottages in woods should we…
Initially I felt that the story, not very explicit, gentled rambled around the sisters lives, the old cottage and the local area. There is some humour which is often rather wry. It was whimsical, interesting and maybe a little mystical feel at times. At least two of the sisters seem to have had problems in their lives and they all miss Grandma Hattie. They decide to let Con Cottage as a holiday property for a while although that can't be said to go very well. That is until the arrival of Seren Lake who stays there and goes from being rather odd to interesting in a fairly short time.
I guess the book could be described as fairly slow until about halfway through enjoyable nonetheless. However that does change - the Way sisters start to discover their "Strengths". Grandma has introduced the idea to the girls when they were very young - how much can they remember when they need to? Havoc Wood (and other areas of old trees) become characters and are remarkably vivid. Equally Pike Lake - described by Grandma as "black-deep, blue-cold" - has a real presence. The sisters are told not to swim in it by Seren Lake seems to be happy in it.
The second half I found very hard to put down. Good tension and by then good pace and the whole book comes alive. There are good characters here and some very good writing. The ending had me shouting out loud - very unfair, when is the next one and I want to read it!
Note - I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review
http://viewson.org.uk/fiction/crooked...
In full
I confess I wasn't really sure what to expect from this book when I got it. We have the Way sisters, Anna, Charlie and Emz, who wish to deal with Grandma Hettie's funeral in their own rather different way. Grandma Hettie, it should be explained, lived in a cottage, Cob Cottage, in a very old wood, Havoc Wood, beside a lake, Pike Lake. Now we really shouldn't jump to conclusions about old ladies, living in old cottages in woods should we…
Initially I felt that the story, not very explicit, gentled rambled around the sisters lives, the old cottage and the local area. There is some humour which is often rather wry. It was whimsical, interesting and maybe a little mystical feel at times. At least two of the sisters seem to have had problems in their lives and they all miss Grandma Hattie. They decide to let Con Cottage as a holiday property for a while although that can't be said to go very well. That is until the arrival of Seren Lake who stays there and goes from being rather odd to interesting in a fairly short time.
I guess the book could be described as fairly slow until about halfway through enjoyable nonetheless. However that does change - the Way sisters start to discover their "Strengths". Grandma has introduced the idea to the girls when they were very young - how much can they remember when they need to? Havoc Wood (and other areas of old trees) become characters and are remarkably vivid. Equally Pike Lake - described by Grandma as "black-deep, blue-cold" - has a real presence. The sisters are told not to swim in it by Seren Lake seems to be happy in it.
The second half I found very hard to put down. Good tension and by then good pace and the whole book comes alive. There are good characters here and some very good writing. The ending had me shouting out loud - very unfair, when is the next one and I want to read it!
Note - I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review
http://viewson.org.uk/fiction/crooked...
October 29, 2018
As first books in a series go, this one certainly grabs your attention from the very first page, as the Way sisters make a break from their much loved grandmother’s funeral, with the coffin!
The bond between the three sisters is instantly apparent, and despite their obvious differences, their closeness remains clear throughout the book. With their wildly different personalities, I think every reader will find at least one Way that they can relate to.
Slavin creates a wonderful supporting cast in the form of the townspeople, a warm community reminiscent of old village life, making Woodcastle feel like the kind of place that I would like to live – I particularly enjoyed meeting the ladies of the WI, and the curious Craft Club.
As soon as I finished this book, I knew that I would be moving swiftly on to the second book in the series to find out what happens next to the Witch Ways.
The bond between the three sisters is instantly apparent, and despite their obvious differences, their closeness remains clear throughout the book. With their wildly different personalities, I think every reader will find at least one Way that they can relate to.
Slavin creates a wonderful supporting cast in the form of the townspeople, a warm community reminiscent of old village life, making Woodcastle feel like the kind of place that I would like to live – I particularly enjoyed meeting the ladies of the WI, and the curious Craft Club.
As soon as I finished this book, I knew that I would be moving swiftly on to the second book in the series to find out what happens next to the Witch Ways.
August 31, 2018
Initially I wasn’t certain what to expect, and although the first half was very slow in feel, It sounded intriguing and isn’t a long book, so I kept going.
I have to say, I’m glad I stuck with it! Roughly half way through the story really picks up, and the Authors talent starts to shine.
The tale was fun and different, with a variety of angles to consider. The more we learn about each of the sisters, the more we start to realise that a couple of them have had some very difficult situations to overcome.
I don’t want to say too much about what I enjoyed, because it would ruin the build of the story! But so many reasons I loved it, the Characters themselves being one.
I did have several points at the start where I didn’t entirely understand what was going on, and found it a bit tricky to keep the three sisters straight in my head, but it didn’t take long to catch up, and once I had I was devouring pages to see what would come next.
Once the story gets going it has an individual story line, and I found myself wanting to know what would happen! The ending leaves the reader needing to get a hold of the next book, and despite the slow start I’m certainly no exception! I can’t wait to see what happens next!
If you enjoy The Genre, Definitely give it a go! Don’t give up on it, It’s worth the wait!
I have to say, I’m glad I stuck with it! Roughly half way through the story really picks up, and the Authors talent starts to shine.
The tale was fun and different, with a variety of angles to consider. The more we learn about each of the sisters, the more we start to realise that a couple of them have had some very difficult situations to overcome.
I don’t want to say too much about what I enjoyed, because it would ruin the build of the story! But so many reasons I loved it, the Characters themselves being one.
I did have several points at the start where I didn’t entirely understand what was going on, and found it a bit tricky to keep the three sisters straight in my head, but it didn’t take long to catch up, and once I had I was devouring pages to see what would come next.
Once the story gets going it has an individual story line, and I found myself wanting to know what would happen! The ending leaves the reader needing to get a hold of the next book, and despite the slow start I’m certainly no exception! I can’t wait to see what happens next!
If you enjoy The Genre, Definitely give it a go! Don’t give up on it, It’s worth the wait!
November 4, 2017
I wanted to like this book but found that I couldn't, not for want of trying. There's no real indication where the story takes place: it doesn't feel like Britain, despite the presence of a castle, but has an unworldly feeling, a bit like small town America, with unconvincing characters. I struggled with nothing happening until half way through the book, but the drama was soon over and the plot drifted again until a startling but unresolved ending. I'm not sure I'm curious enough to read the next book to find out what happens.
September 12, 2019
What an odd book. What I liked: the characters and the vivid environment. What I didn’t like: the slow development of the plot; how it felt there was more that would unfold or be explained; the “to be continued” ending.
August 15, 2020
This book received such raving reviews that I just had to read the book. I struggled to become interested in the story. However, after about one hundred pages the story became somewhat engaging. This book is not in my comfort zone.
April 28, 2018
I absolutely loved this book, please tell me there is more to come.
September 13, 2019
This book was given to me by Helen Slavin. It was a great read. I do love a little magic. This came with suspense and a bit of mystery, too.
October 1, 2023
A book for those times when you need to escape, to open the covers and wander off into somewhere not unlike home and with a story to follow after. Warm, funny and magical.
July 3, 2020
Loved it! A touch of folk horror, but gentler.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews