The Book of Witching

By: C. J. Cooke

Narrated by: Paula Masterton

A mother must fight for her daughter’s life in this fierce and haunting tale of witchcraft and revenge from the author of A Haunting in the Arctic.

Clem gets a call that is every mother’s worst nightmare. Her nineteen-year-old daughter Erin is unconscious in the hospital after a hiking trip with her friends on the remote Orkney Islands that met a horrifying end, leaving her boyfriend dead and her best friend missing. When Erin wakes, she doesn’t recognize her mother. And she doesn’t answer to her name, but insists she is someone named Nyx.

Clem travels the site of her daughter’s accident, determined to find out what happened to her. The answer may lie in a dark secret in the history of the Orkneys: a woman wrongly accused of witchcraft and murder four centuries ago. Clem begins to wonder if Erin’s strange behavior is a symptom of a broken mind, or the effects of an ancient curse?

©2024 C. J. Cooke (P)2024 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Chilling and beautifully written, The Book of Witching gripped me from the very first sentence: I read it in one sitting. A haunting recreation of a real Scottish witch trial, this is CJ Cooke's finest novel yet." - Emilia Hart, New York Times bestselling author of Weyward

“A good pick for readers interested in witch trials throughout history, as Cooke melds elements of horror, historical fiction, family drama, and a police procedural into this witchy novel." - Library Journal

Interesting premise, missing something

Interesting premise, compelling idea, but felt like it was missing something. A little more about the titular book maybe. Something that ties it all together better. The soul slipping idea is fascinating but then left hanging and not resolved.

Flawlessly read.

Well-Written Historical Fiction

The audio is not the same as the e-book text, but it does not fully detract from the experience.
It is a well-written historical fiction about Orkney witch trials, but I did not care for the 2024 timeline, which had too many plot holes for my liking.

Missing parts

I read and listen at the same time and there are quite a few missing pieces in the audio. As I’m reading along, I find more and more full sentences missing. Skip this audio if you want the actual, full story. What a waste of a great book, Audible.

Not scary

The Book of Witching ⭐️⭐️⭐️.73 : chose to listen to this one since its witching season 🧙🏻‍♀️🧟‍♀️🧙🏻‍♀️ Scottish witches so such a fun narration 🎧💗🎧 not scary 🫣 it’s more on the side of a witch hunt and what might happen it you really did find a condemned witch….. the author did do her research 💕💕⭐️

Another Good Book From Cooke

Another good read from CJ Cooke. I loved the Lighthouse Witches and this was another good one.

This book is epic

I loved this book! The story had me from page one. My only critique is that the editors could have done the author and reader more justice by properly editing some of the odd pauses, the readers breathing that was not part of the story and the repeated praise where clearly she had started rereading. Like come on guys the reader and the author were spot on. Don’t shoot their work down by not cleaning up the performance and making them shine! Please write more books like this!

Engaging

This was a very good and interestingly presented book about witch trails in Scotland. I loved the modern story told side by side with the historical, it kept the story moving in an interesting way.

Incredible book

This was exquisitely written, smooth and eloquent and I was absolutely enthralled. The author did extensive research, pulling the reader into that world, time transitions were smooth and never jolting or disorienting. Best book I've had in a long time. Throughly enjoyed it and it was hard to put down. Narration was just as eloquent and smooth.

Amazing!

Wonderfully written, researched and narrated! This was one of the best books I’ve listened to on audible! Cannot wait to listen to more books from CJ Cooke!

Bewitched by the story

I am all for stories that interlace different timelines and characters into one story. C.J. Cooke wrapped many of my favorite topics into one. It was thrilling and had me emotionally invested in the characters. Thank you for sharing!