The Crow Witch and Other Conjurings by Catherine Cavendish

I would like to thank the author and Weird House Press for an advance copy of this collection in exchange for a fair and honest review

Publisher – Weird House Press

Published – Out Now

Price – £4.93 Kindle eBook £16.68 paperback

As the nights draw in and the temperature plummets, beware the witch’s curse. And stay out of the shadows. More lurks within these cursed pages than you could ever imagine…
Two witches, burned for their evil centuries earlier, now hell bent on revenge.
A woman who seems to step out of an old Hollywood movie, and a castle with a murderous past.
A seer whose deadly prediction was hidden away for a future generation.
A mysterious portrait that is far more sinister than mere paint and canvas.
An old woman only the foolish would ridicule, for she knows the secrets of the land and how to harness its power.
All these and more conjurings abound, and you would do well to remember, my dear reader…
When the seeds of revenge are sown, beware the harvest!

For the season of Halloween. we cannot ignore the witch and while we know that term is heavily loaded and has a lot to say about how we have mistreated women for centuries the figure of the witch is still a powerful symbol in horror. From Macbeth to various fairy tales, she has a role in horror. In Catherine Cavendish’s highly enjoyable short story collection we get seven tales of withes you will try to avid crossing on the street or face more than a little bad luck.

After a haunting explanation of a mythical figure of The Crow Witch which is a delightful playing with myth and highly atmospheric Cavendish gives us many enjoyable tales

Sour Grapes – Charlotte is a 95-year-old pensioner in sheltered accommodation troubled by her disturbing neighbour Jacqueline Stamford. Initially this seems a light-hearted tale to start the collection of two old ladies not liking each other. But Cavendish steadily darkens the tale not also showing us the cruel nature and indignity of getting old but wrapping in an ancient tale of family secrets and bitter and indeed horrible revenge. Brilliant if dark storytelling.

The Oubliette of Elie Loyd – A woman on a weekend holiday ends her relationship with her tiresome boyfriend and suddenly befriends a local stranger who has her own family history to share. A fast-paced tale where the reader knows something is going to go wrong and it does…horribly. A classic style tale of demonic pacts and tricks. Very enjoyable despite a dark ending.

Euphamia Christie – A young student passes into a English village and finds a gravestone inscription making her curious to know more. But she uncovers a 100-year-old secrets tragedy the locals are still afraid of. Highly enjoyed unpiecing this mystery and we like our narrator arrive at the conclusion a little too late for justice to be served.

The Lost Prophecy of Ursula Sontheil – Here Cavendish uses a classic figure of history Ursula or as we may better know her Mother Shipton is a prophetess, but this tale is of the one foretelling she has never revealed. Cavendish uses the 16th century setting to give us a deliciously malevolent and spectral night in Ursula’s life that will have repercussions for the future. Strange, eerie and has a spot-on unnerving ending. A highpoint!

Daft Old Bat – Miss Constantine and her cat take their usual day and end up in the park visiting her favourite willow tree; but a local terror thinks its all too funny and wants to play a trick. This could easily have been a simple tale but again Cavendish gives it layers as we understand what kind of a person this young man is. We actually soon feel his fate is richly deserved and it is indeed a horrible one!

Marzana’s Hut – A tale of two young teenagers in the 60s who make a terrible mistake. It’s a play on the cursed object story but Cavendish really captures the atmosphere of people caught up in a mystery that changes their lives. The ending is a cold shower to remind us that not everyone easily escapes horror. Very impressive.

The Malan Witch – Finishing the collection is this longer tale of Robyn a young widow arriving in a picturesque Cornish village for some much-needed recovery. However, the legends of two evil witches haunt her and soon Robyn finds herself trying to save her own family and herself. A really enjoyable tale throwing in magic, cursed object., battle of witches and local legends to give us a very satisfying tale with many highs and lows that the outcome feels unpredictable. I really enjoyed this story and Cavendish makes us really care about Robyn with the stakes getting ever higher.

This collection is perfect for an evening as you await the witching hour or a banging on your door. Full of tricks but in itself a treat of good supernatural horror. Highly recommended for the season of the witch!