The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel: A Story of Sleepy Hollow in Around the Year in 52 Books

Jul 16, 2018 Jacqie rated it liked it

Shelves: netgalley, didnt-finish

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book for review.

Here's a weakness of mine: a historical fantasy/fiction/romance/mystery based on mythology/legend/classic tale. There was no chance I wouldn't give this one a try.

I'ts been so long since I've read The Legend of Sleepy Hollow that I might as well have not read it at all. It probably says something about my age that I pictured Christina Ricci from the Johnny Depp movie as Katrina, even though Ichabod Crane was clearly modeled after Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book for review.

Here's a weakness of mine: a historical fantasy/fiction/romance/mystery based on mythology/legend/classic tale. There was no chance I wouldn't give this one a try.

I'ts been so long since I've read The Legend of Sleepy Hollow that I might as well have not read it at all. It probably says something about my age that I pictured Christina Ricci from the Johnny Depp movie as Katrina, even though Ichabod Crane was clearly modeled after the sadly-departed TV series.

All in all, this book left me unimpressed. There were some things I enjoyed- Katrina's love of books, the bit of spellcraft. Most of all, the author's skill in bringing to life the setting of Sleepy Hollow. In her dedication, the author mentions discovering the history of her country again, and she did a great job in allowing me to look back upon our infant nation and its beauty, instead of worrying about its flaws. Escapist? You bet, and escapism should be your goal if you read this book.

Because plot-wise, there aren't a lot of surprises- it hits most of the beats of your standard morality play. And this threw me out of the book. Katrina seems very aware of her role; she must marry well and with an eye to her status in the community. She's also characterized as being extremely intelligent. Of course, being the heroine of a romance, she must fall in love with an "unsuitable" man, but after all her thoughts about what her father expects of her she concocts the most ham-handed plot to allow her to marry her guy that I've ever seen. She also gets pregnant, knowing that she'll be "spoiled" and that her father will have to marry her off quickly, even with a friend who can and does provide her with birth control. Much of the book felt very YA because of its heroine's naivete, but there are enough graphic sex scenes that it surprised me, if YA this is.

The rather grim ending also keeps the book from feeling YA. Katrina does not exactly get a happily-ever after. I've spoiler-warninged this review, because I wanted to talk a bit about this. Katrina ends up marrying the bull-headed Brom, and essentially enters into a marriage where she is raped repeatedly. This was apparently the only way she could find to escape her "ruined" plight, and it was about the worst choice she could have made-another way in which she does not live up to her characterization as intelligent. This is a horror story in the end, not a romance, and the cover is deceptive. ...more

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Sep 30, 2022 Ketutar Jensen rated it it was ok

Ok... so... I hated this Katrina. How do I hate thee? Let me count the ways...

Firstly, I suppose Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow is the culprit of these Ichabod-Katrina ships. I don't see why we should ship them. Why we should see Ichabod as this romantic hero and Brom as a macho bully?
Nevertheless, because Alyssa decided to take this road, we end up with instalove. They are not only "unconditionally and irrevocably in love with" each other, but they consummate the relationship also very quickly. I ...more

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Jan 15, 2023 Amanda rated it really liked it

Shelves: aty52-2023, booknerds, popsugar-2023

Popsugar Reading Challenge 2023 Prompt: a modern retelling of a classic (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving)

Around the Year in 52 Books 2023 Prompt: a book set in a location that begins with A, T, or Y (Tarrytown, NY was the inspiration for Irvington’s Town of Sleepy Hollow and the Van Tassel family lived on Albany Post Road)

This was our October 2022 book club pick, but my personal life was just too overwhelming to get it read in time for our meeting. Now that I’ve read it, oh how ...more

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Oct 19, 2022 Erin rated it really liked it

Shelves: book-nerds

Oh I feel like I picked a good one for October book club! This was such a great retelling for all those Sleepy Hollow fans!

LIKES:
1) It’s freaking Sleepy Hollow! I love all things from that story, the movie, the tv show. I just find it such an interesting tale.
2) Katrina really gets to tell her story. It’s nice to know the ins and outs of her spell book.
3) Charlotte. I’m coming to find that anyone named Charlotte is a pretty great person.
4) The Ending! It’s everything!!

DISLIKES:
Bram Bones…. ...more

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Nov 12, 2024 Cait added it

Not terrible as an AO3 style retelling, but would really have benefited from a more judicious editor.

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Oct 02, 2018 Nikki marked it as to-read

Shelves: netgalley, ebook, own-kindle, own-but-unread-kindle, arcs-unread

Disclosure: ARC received from Netgalley & publisher in exchange for an honest review. (They may regret this.) Any and all quotes were taken from an advanced edition subject to change in the final edition.

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