October officially marks the “witching season!” Enjoy these nonfiction and fiction selections featuring witches.
The Witches by Stacy Schiff
Discover the mystery of the Salem Witch Trials and travel back in time to 1692 with this historical nonfiction read.
The Witching Hour by Anne Rice
Anne Rice is a master storyteller. In this novel you’ll meet four centuries of witches that make up the Mayfair family. These four centuries of witches have embraced poetry but fell to incest, enjoyed philosophy but experienced murder, and have been haunted throughout the generations by a powerful beast. As you begin this journey, you’ll travel in time from modern day Louisiana and back in time to the reign of Louis XIV.
A Secret History of Witches Louisa Morgan
Five generations of mothers and daughters, begin their tale in 1821, Brittany. Where their magical inheritance is both a wonderful gift and also a dangerous threat.
The Witches of New York by Ami Mckay
It’s spring in 1880 New York City. In this version of New York, seances are the preferred entertainment in certain social circles, allowing some gifted women, such as tea shop owners Adelaide Thom and Eleanor St. Clair, to find work as mediums.
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
A tale of both magic and of suspense, Diana Bishop is a descendant of witches. She discovers a lost manuscript, whose appearance summons an underworld she must navigate with her vampire geneticist friend, Matthew Clairmont.
Dark Witch by Nora Roberts
Iona arrives in Ireland looking for a place of devotion and acceptance. It is here where she discovers the land of her ancestors- a place where magic has been passed on through generations.
The Witch’s Daughter by Paula Brackston
Elizabeth is 384 years old, and the Witchhunter of Wessex knows that this time he has found a true witch. Bess, watches her mother hang from the tree following her trial and knows that there isn’t much that she could do to prevent herself from also falling victim to the same fate. Bess approaches the Warlock Gideon Masters and his Book of Shadows for help, which leads her on a journey across time, hiding from the Warlock who wants repayment for saving her life.
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
The Owen sisters have been blamed for everything and anything that has gone wrong in the tiny Massachusetts town for well over a couple hundred years. Always outsiders and prone to being teased, Gillian and Sandy want to escape the rumors of witchcraft that has plagued their family. One sister escapes by marriage and the other by running away, but they always find their way back to each other as if by magic.
Toil and Trouble Augusten Burroghs
Augusten Burroghs has a lot of things that he doesn’t believe in. He doesn’t believe in the devil, heaven, hell, bigfoot, or vampire. However, he does believe in witches because he is one. With a family tree full of witches, Augusten inherited the gift for magic and this memoir explores that journey.
The Crucible by Arthur Miller
If we’re talking about witch themed literature this classic play is a must. The Crucible follows the story of the Salem Witch Trials.
Hocus Pocus & The All New Sequel by A.W. Jantha
It’s not fall without the Sanderson sisters. If you adore Hocus Pocus the movie you will LOVE this book and the sequel which was just published within the past couple years.
-Jessica, Adult Services & Acquisitions Librarian