Witch

by Katina Alexis

Handsome young Chris Dixon's gospel of pain and redemption has an irresistible appeal for the well-bred ladies in the small Georgia town of Congreve. They come to him by day, and call to him by night. And one by one, they are dying - their bodies hideously marked, their faces twisted with ecstasy. There are only two women who can resist Chris Dixon's power. One awaits him nightly in the crypt where she lies, silent and strangely preserved. The other is trying, alone and desperate, to awaken the town to the terror in its midst. She knows, because she too has been inside the devil's pentacle; she too has gazed into the grisly doorway of Hell.

Genres: Horror, Fiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Pseudonym of Bruce Strauch and his wife Katina Strauch, who also wrote under the name Athena Alexis.

Reviews

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

While Witch starts off rather 'traditionally' with a Black Sabbath prologue involving a witch, Alexis manages to turn this story into something new and quite different. This starts off a bit slow, with Alexis introducing many characters who all play a role, at first the only uniting thread seems to be they were all classmates twenty years or so ago in a junior college located in Congreve, Georgia; a sleepy old southern town on the coast and/or bluebloods of the town itself. Recently, a new minister arrived in town, Chris Dixon, who leads the congregation at the leading Anglican church, where the 'elite' go on Sundays. We know pretty quickly that he participated in the prologue's Sabbath, but there are many levels in this story...

What is really unique in Witch is how Alexis keeps the reader guessing throughout the novel regarding what exactly witchcraft is. From the prologue, it seems to mean some sort of pact with Satan, but several of the characters are interested in/involved with 'traditional' medicine and have studied 'witches' in the mountain towns and even California. Our lead, Morgana Stone, is a parapsychologist, who studies cults and and the occult; she is back in Congreve, taking a leave of absence from her tenured post at Columbia, to take care of her ailing mother, who suffered a stroke. Morgana believes in the ability of some to tap into the unused part of their brain to perform various ESP phenomena; after all, what is magic but things science cannot explain yet.

So, does the power of a witch reside in some sort of evil pact with Satan? Or does it simply imply the power of suggestion of one 'strong' mind? What about the various plants/herbs utilized in traditional medicine? Is there a 'right-hand path' and a 'left-hand path' of witchcraft? Alexis keeps you guessing throughout the novel and that is a real plus, at least for me! Add this mystery to some rather vile gospel of pain and redemption spouted (and acted upon) by the new minster, several horrible deaths, some intriguing characters and small town drama, and we have Witch. Recommended for horror fans if you can find a copy of this. 4 complex stars!

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first started reading this, I thought it was cheesy and hokey. Very over-the-top kind of violence and occult-doings. And though it continued to be ridiculous and over-the-top, I found it hard to put down!

One of the main reasons I gave this four stars is for the ending. I'm not going to give spoilers, but I liked the end; that's all I will say.

One star off for general cheesiness and a villain so deeply evil that he could give Ted Bundy a run for his money! (Not giving anything away that isn't on the back cover here.) Entertaining as a fictional villain, but not believable as a real person.

As for the other characters, they were...okay. Since many of them seemed to belong to a very elite "upper" class, I had a hard time figuring out if these were thinly-disguised real people the authors knew and despised, or if they were simply common caricatures of the obnoxiously rich; halfway through the book, there is a lull that feels much more like watching a cheesy soap opera, and a lot less like a horror novel. But, the last act makes it well worth the wait!

Sadly, the end doesn't explicitly answer *all* questions...but it does very intently hint at them in a satisfying way.

All in all, I'd definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys cheesy, non-realistic witchcraft fiction. (Though I would warn you to not look for anything even remotely resembling real, modern-day witchcraft. It's definitely off the beaten path, as they say.)

[Dorothy]

The story reminded me of a old B horror movie. I figured out the plot line early in the book but still it was a enjoyable read. Kind of like a good bad movie.