Bitten by Books
The Witches of Echo Park, first in an intriguing new series, grabs the reader’s attention with its first sentence. Lyse MacCallister does not react well to the news that her great-aunt, Eleanora, has terminal cancer. The shock results in an evening of drinking, and the snap decision to buy a plane ticket from her home in Athens, Georgia to Echo Park, California, in the Los Angeles area. Once her plane lands, Lyse feels pleasantly surprised to find Eleanora waiting for her at the airport, especially as she had not told her great-aunt she was coming at that time.
Lyse finds Echo Park somewhat different than it was when she left several years earlier. Eleanora has a new circle of friends who have varying reactions to Lyse’s sudden appearance in their lives, but for the most part welcome her. Almost immediately, Lyse experiences the same vivid nightmare she had for years while living in Echo Park, and she senses other odd events beneath the surface of daily life in her former home. What Lyse does not know: Eleanora and her band of friends form a coven with a very specific set of tasks.
Benson deftly employs the technique of alternating perspectives to tell Lyse’s story, a style that allows secondary characters to shine in their own right, demonstrating their place in the story and in the slightly unusual town of Echo Park. Lyse proves a likeable protagonist, and her attempts to figure out her place in the world feel believable. The premise underlying the book, the witches’ purpose, melds nicely with the depiction of the bonds between the women, though the latter may not always be characterized as smooth sailing.
Readers should not come to this engrossing new novel expecting the humorous approach taken in the Calliope Reaper Jones series. Benson earns extra points for pulling off the darker tone so effectively, which adds layers of depth and realism to the narrative. In the case of The Witches of Echo Park, “darker” does not mean bleak nor devoid of hope, but the thread of sinister suspense running throughout the narrative provides a different type of entertainment than the author’s previous series. Urban fantasy fans will find much to enjoy here, and this reviewer very much looks forward to what happens next for Lyse and her blood sisters.
Book Stats:
- Paperback: 304 pages
- Publisher: Ace Trade (January 6, 2015)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0425268675
- ISBN-13: 978-0425268674
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Books in the Witches of Echo Park series in the order they should be read:
The Witches of Echo Park
Review Overview
Overall Rating
Total
Summary : Readers should not come to this engrossing new novel expecting the humorous approach taken in the Calliope Reaper Jones series. Benson earns extra points for pulling off the darker tone so effectively, which adds layers of depth and realism to the narrative. In the case of The Witches of Echo Park, “darker” does not mean bleak nor devoid of hope, but the thread of sinister suspense running throughout the narrative provides a different type of entertainment than the author’s previous series.
