Format: Hardcover, 320 pages
Release Date: December 1, 2020
Publisher: Holiday House
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy / Contemporary
Every fifty years, a cult claims twelve men to
murder in a small Texas town. Can one girl end the cycle of violence -
and save the boy who broke her heart?
San
Solano, Texas, is a quaint town known for its charm, hospitality, and
history of murder. Twice now, twelve men have been brutally killed, and
no one knows who did it. A shadowy witch? A copycat killer? Or a
man-hating murderess?
Eighteen-year-old Natalie Colter is sure
that the rumors about her great-great-grandmother’s cult of wronged
women are just gossip, but that doesn’t stop the true-crime writers and
dark tourism bloggers from capitalizing on the town’s reputation. It’s
an urban legend that’s hard to ignore, and it gets harder when Nat
learns that the sisterhood is real. And magical. And they want her to join.
The
more Nat learns of the Wardens’ supernatural history, the more she
wonders about the real culprits behind the town’s ritualistic murders.
Are the Wardens protecting San Solano from even darker forces? There are
shadows in the woods, bones on the outskirts of town, and questions Nat
needs answered.
But everything becomes more urgent when people
start getting “marked” as new victims—including Levi Langford, the boy
whose kiss haunted Nat for a year. With Levi in danger, doing nothing
would be harder than fighting back.
Nat knows that no one is safe. Can she and the sisterhood stop the true evil from claiming their town?
Hannah West's The Bitterwine Oath is a mixture of murder + supernatural cult + romance + Southern vibes and sisterhood. In 1921, 4 young women living in of San Solano, Texas; Lillian Pickard, Malachi Rivers, Dorothy Hawkins, and Johanna Mead became known as the Pagans of the Pines. These women wanted to claim vengeance commensurate to their suffering at the hands of men. They instead created a curse which killed 12 men. 50 years later, a second massacre happened, and another 12 men were murdered. This story takes place during the semicentennial anniversary of the Malachian’s curse.
The story starts out one month from the Claiming and moves forward. 18-year old Natalie Colter is just trying to survive her last summer in town before she goes off to college in another state. She’s working part time jobs to save enough money to purchase an actually working vehicle. Then the curiosity starts to take place. Natalie notices Malachian marks in her driveway. To top it off, she’s a direct descendant of Malachi Rivers but never once thought about the fact that she may have magic of her own.
By the time Natalie learns she has magic and decides to take the oath, some crazy stuff happens that you really have to suspend a bit of reality in order to believe what you are reading. Example: The Wardens who you could very well call witches who watch for the evil to appear, claim to have magic but end up using a variety of weapons. Natalie ends up with a priceless firearm which she suddenly picks up like a pro.
Before Natalie learns of the Wardens, she notices Lindsey acting more reserved, covering up her arms with bandages, and hanging out with Vanessa who is also sporting bandages. After Natalie joins the Wardens, she learns that being a Warden is a 24/7 commitment. You don't have free time to hang out with friends and go on dates or do anything a normal teenager does. Then there is the love interest. Levi has always ignored Natalie until the previous summer when they kissed. Then he drove off to college and is back in town for the current summer. Even though both these characters have only exchanged a few sentences over the years, they are somehow madly in love with each other.
Natalie is actually not a bad character. She was kept in the
dark by her grandmother who was part of the Warden’s who fight against creatures
called Woodwalkers. She’s really not really a person who is going to accept
things at face value just because someone she’s been best friends with, or who
she babysits for, tells her that’s the way things are and if she doesn’t like
it, she’s out. Natalie’s mind believes there is another way to save those who
are chosen by the Woodwalkers. If she can figure out how to stop claiming in
its entirely, she might actually save the town from another disaster in the
making. I also believe that there is room for a sequel if the author gets
around to it. Natalie’s future could be one where she chases down evil in a
variety of settings, including, yes, Salem, Massachusetts.
