the Witchstone

The Witchstone by Henry. H .Neff is a dark, urban fantasy revolving around a monstrous curse, demons, and a globe-trotting adventure.

     The Witchstone hits the right level of dark fantasy I really enjoy, with the presence of darker elements, the gothic, and sometimes grotesque, aesthetic, and some themes that are just north of horror, sometimes fully crossing over into body horror for the Drakeford curse. But, these darker elements help sell the story being told, allowing for the moments of desperation or despair, the long suffering, and glimmers of hope to feel real for the various characters. The Drakeford curse is so horrible, and genuinely unfair, to our human protagonists that it’s easy to invest in their quest. However, as dark as the book can be at times, it never goes so far as to punish the reader for caring, and there’s almost always some bit of cheeky or clever humor to help lighten and make fun what would otherwise be a rather grim story.

    The  primary characters, and several secondary, are well written. Lazlo hits a perfect note of slimy, bureaucratic, used car salesman held together with comedy and a quiet sense that yes, as the book states, he’s a better individual than anyone, including himself, gives him credit for. Maggie hits the right mix of tough, emotive, and intelligent to be likable and feel human, while providing a well-paced/written (platonic) relationship with Lazlo. Her younger brother adds a solid element of cuteness, as well as providing her with an opportunity to show heart and love. While the various scenes and adventures these three engage in are fun, it is because the characters themselves are fun and exhibit great chemistry with one another.

     The pacing of the story is strong, with the appropriate amount of time being provided for the various distinct adventures, breaks, and just gradual character and relationship developments. There are some criticisms I can level against the Witchstone, but they are minor and not really worth mentioning.

      All told, the Witchstone is just a through and through solid, fun dark, urban fantasy that I thoroughly enjoyed.