Months after the devastating battle between the Sons of St. Druon and the witches of Haxahaven, Frances has built a quiet, safe life for herself, teaching young witches and tending the garden within the walls of Haxahaven Academy. But one thing nags; her magic has begun to act strangely. When an opportunity to visit Paris arises, Frances jumps at the chance to go, longing for adventure and seeking answers about her own power.
Once she and her classmates Maxine and Lena reach the vibrant streets of France, Frances learns that the spell she used to speak to her dead brother has had terrible consequences—the veil between the living and the dead has been torn by her recklessness, and a group of magicians are using the rift for their own gain at a horrifying cost.
To right this wrong, and save lives and her own magical powers, Frances must hunt down answers in the parlors of Parisian secret societies, the halls of the Louvre, and the tunnels of the catacombs. Her only choice is to team up with the person she swore she’d never trust again, risking further betrayal and her own life in the process.
- Title: The Witch Hunt
- Author: Sasha Peyton Smith
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
- Publication Date: October 11, 2022
- Genre: Fantasy
- Source: Digital ARC via Netgalley & TurnThePage Tours
- Targeted Age Range: Young Adult
- Content Warnings: descriptions of blood, vomit, gun-violence, interpersonal violence, absentee parents (particularly grappling with an absentee father), an emotionally abusive/manipulative romantic relationship, a fade-to-black sex scene, drowning, contemplations of suicide, ritualistic murder/mutilation of corpses, underage drinking and smoking, and grief over a deceased sibling.
- Rating: ★★★★★
Set a little over a year after the events of The Witch Haven, The Witch Hunt follows Frances as she faces the consequences from the spell she used to speak with William, her dead brother. Ever since the spell, Frances’ magic has been unsteady — it doesn’t always work, or it doesn’t work the way she wants it to. When Maxine persuades Frances and Lena to join her in Paris, Frances is uneasy at the idea. Despite her closeness with her two best friends, she’s been harboring a secret: she received a letter from Finn, who is in Europe, with the promise of building something bigger for the two of them. It’s only until an accidental reunion between Finn and Frances that she realizes that his magic has also been finicky. With another uptick of murders around the city, Finn and Frances must reunite to once again to put an end to it, get their magic back, and resolve the ramifications of the spell.
I absolutely adored The Witch Haven — in fact, it’s probably in my top 10 of books I read last year, so it’s no surprise that The Witch Hunt was one of my most anticipated 2022 releases! And after that cliffhanger ending in The Witch Haven? How could I not be stoked? But as is the case with every sequel, I’m always a little apprehensive: What if it’s not as good as its predecessor? What if something happens to my beloved characters? What if? Needless to say, I shouldn’t have worried at all. The Witch Hunt not only held up to The Witch Haven, but I might even be as bold to say that I enjoyed it more than The Witch Haven.
One of my favorite things about The Witch Haven was how it explores grief and trauma, and how that can affect someone. In my initial review, I wrote that “Frances’ journey is particularly shaped by her grief, and her trauma. It’s a reminder that grief is something that doesn’t just go away, but something that we get used to, and something that is always in the back of our minds. Frances is snarky, she’s kind, she’s hurting, and she’s inquisitive.” I was relieved that in The Witch Hunt, Frances’ grief is still ever present and lingering in every action. It’s very much a reminder that we don’t “get over” our grief, but we grow around it. Frances is still every bit as snarky and inquisitive, just a little more grown up now. In the time since the ending of The Witch Haven, Frances has really settled into Haxahaven Academy, and made it a home. She’s living a quieter life, and is trying her best to keep her loved ones from worrying about her. Despite her secrecy, the root of Frances’ actions is always love. Grief and love go hand in hand, and it’s particularly evident in Frances and her relationships. Over the course of The Witch Hunt, we see Frances come to several realizations about herself, learn to let her loved ones in, and put her walls down.
Frances, Maxine and Lena’s friendship was just as sweet as I remembered it to be. I loved reading more about Maxine and Lena as individual characters, and having The Witch Hunt set in Maxine’s old stomping grounds allowed us to get to know her much better. Maxine is just so full of life, and we really saw her shine in The Witch Hunt. And it was so lovely to catch up with Lena and to see her flourish outside of Haxahaven. All three characters have really come into their own since The Witch Haven. Frances, Maxine and Lena are endlessly supportive of one another, and their mutual love simply seeps through the pages.
I’d previously said that the love between Frances, Maxine and Lena was stronger, and more powerful than any romance storyline in The Witch Haven, and while that remains to be true, I do love Oliver. As our love interest, Oliver is patient and gentle and good. Regardless of everything else going on, there is never a doubt in the reader’s mind that Oliver loves Frances, and simply wants the best for her. And while I hold a lot of fondness for Oliver, what I love most about him is how he loves Frances, and how he helps her heal.
The Witch Hunt is a tale of many things; it’s a tale of magic, of mystery, of identity, of grief, but most importantly, it’s a tale of love. It’s a reminder that you can’t do everything on your own, that you have to let people in to love you and help you, and most importantly, how healing love can be, wrapped up in a dark academia historical fiction fantasy. I absolutely adored The Witch Hunt, and couldn’t be more excited for its release this fall so I can read and reread it again and again.
Links for The Witch Hunt: Goodreads | TheStoryGraph | Bookshop | IndieBound
Check the rest of the tour stops here!
Up for grabs, Turn the Pages Tour has five (5) finished copies of this book available! Click here to enter!
Sasha Peyton Smith is the New York Times best selling author of The Witch Haven and The Witch Hunt. She’s passionate about well-curated road trip playlists, soup recipes, and stories about complicated girls. Originally from Utah, she now lives in Washington D.C. with her partner and collection of porcelain hands.
