Review
MAGICLESS IN NEVERMORE by Violet Merriweather
The First Witches of Nevermore Book
Nevermore is a world of magic and witchcraft, protected from mortals,
and the home of Cassandra Holly and her family. Cassie is getting
desperate. She's almost 21 and has yet to come into her magic powers.
Without magic she'll be forced to leave her friends and family and the
town of Nevermore itself. Desperate times call for desperate measures
and with the help of her best friend Willow, Cassie tries her hand at a
major spell to find her magic. Forces combine and the unexpected
happens. While Cassie finds her magic, she can't quite figure out what
it is. Not only that, Willow's aunt, a not quite willing aspect of the
spell, is found dead-and her not quite dead spirit demands that Cassie
finds out who killed her! Cassie has to deal with her new found powers, a
cantankerous ghost, her family, and mean girls. Will Cassie make sense
of it all before Nevermore itself is destroyed?
When creating a new world, such as Nevermore, parameters must be laid out. The rules of the world must be explained, which can lead to a certain complexity. Such is the case in MAGICLESS IN NEVERMORE. The book had a slow start as I had to adjust to how Nevermore, and its inhabitants, worked. The power structure, responsibilities, and what people were actually capable of had to be laid out by the author and understood by the reader. Once I developed a clearer understanding of the world I began to enjoy the characters as well as their interactions. Maud, who we meet as a disdainful cat (well, witch in cat form) becomes a cantankerous ghost who, although not exactly dead, demands her killer be found! I found this crotchety specter great fun. Cassie personifies the part of us that wants to fit in, be appreciated and useful, yet finds herself with egg in her face as she try to succeed. In other words, the perfect person to root for. Honest family dynamics, friendship and its antithesis, and privilege and entitlement align to create a paranormal world which perfectly reflects our own reality.
Spend time getting to know Nevermore. Once there you'll be charmed and enjoy this brave new world.
When creating a new world, such as Nevermore, parameters must be laid out. The rules of the world must be explained, which can lead to a certain complexity. Such is the case in MAGICLESS IN NEVERMORE. The book had a slow start as I had to adjust to how Nevermore, and its inhabitants, worked. The power structure, responsibilities, and what people were actually capable of had to be laid out by the author and understood by the reader. Once I developed a clearer understanding of the world I began to enjoy the characters as well as their interactions. Maud, who we meet as a disdainful cat (well, witch in cat form) becomes a cantankerous ghost who, although not exactly dead, demands her killer be found! I found this crotchety specter great fun. Cassie personifies the part of us that wants to fit in, be appreciated and useful, yet finds herself with egg in her face as she try to succeed. In other words, the perfect person to root for. Honest family dynamics, friendship and its antithesis, and privilege and entitlement align to create a paranormal world which perfectly reflects our own reality.
Spend time getting to know Nevermore. Once there you'll be charmed and enjoy this brave new world.
