4 stars. This generational saga follows three matriarchs over 400 years of history. While not overtly fantastical, the curiosity and intellect of these women manifests in innate understandings of the workings of nature, tying back to the English witch trials in the 17th century. All in all, this is a spellbinding tale of resilient women (arguably gender essentialist at times) pursuing their independence despite the tyranny of institutional patriarchy in its ever-changing facades.

*content warnings discussed below*

On a more serious note, there were borderline gratuitous descriptions of sexual assault, rape (of a minor), physical abuse, and the use of the word "seed." The prose in these sections almost tripped over itself trying to make romantic (in the literal sense of the word) what was happening. Perhaps I was meant to feel disgusted reading these scenes, but institutionalized misogyny is so insidious in how it manifests both explicitly and covertly that I didn't find it necessary for Violet and Kate to be subjected to such graphic horror on the page for me to empathize with their struggles.

For the men reviewing this book and disliking the portrayals of the male characters, I will ask you to examine your opinions in the contexts of your own behavior, and whether or not you are defensively reacting because you are a perpetrator of this greater violence.