A promising start but end in lackluster ending, The Year of the Witching is the debut of Alexis Henderson. A story about a girl named Immanuelle Moore who live in secluded settlement with religious fanatics just to find that maybe she's the reason of the curse that suddenly plagued her hometown. Some of reviews dubbed this book as The Handmaid's Tale with touch of Salem's Witch Trial but since I'm not read Handmaid's Tale yet, I can't really compare it. 

I think Henderson is successfully writing the suffocating vibes with the way Bethel was cut out from the outside world. But, the setting is also the weakness. I don't have slightest idea where Bethel located. Is this America? Or another made up country? When is exactly the time frame of the story? Is it happen in the 17th century just in the same time with Salem Witch Trial? The religion itself don't have particular name, only a believe that Father Light is good while Dark Mother is bad. Yeah, this book pretty much scream "patriarchy sucks!"

Immanuelle life already horrible from the moment she born. Her father was burn in the pyre because his forbidden relationship with Miriam, Immanulle's mother. Miriam then dwell in witchcraft while she pregnant with Immanuelle, only to die later in the childbirth. Moore family also seems bleak. The entire of Bethel citizens can be categorized into two category, bleak and fanatics to the core. They also shunned people who they deemed as witch and burn them in fire. Girls and women were the major victim, while the men reign supreme with their leader called Prophet have so many wives. Prophet's brides were considered as blessing. With that kind of setting, you already know that living in Bethel sucks with capital S. But, Immanuelle live there for her entire life and she already indoctrinated with Father's Scripture. So when a chance encounter in the Darkwoods (aka evil forest) make Immanuelle meet with the four witches, her old live become untangled and the dark evil inside Bethel become unraveled.

I can't count how many things in this book make me rage. The fanaticism, the unjust and unfairness that especially women in the Bethel endure. I also annoyed with the way Immanuelle still try to save Bethel's citizens because majority of them either crazy with religious fervor then they become complicit and pretend that the "evil" that happen between them didn't exist. The views of the religion is pretty much white and black, there's no area in between. What make me sad is, the practice of the Prophet to take young girl as their bride still common to this day. I can say that The Year of the Witching maybe written as a commentary and critic especially to the religion fanaticism.

While I like Immanuelle's characterization and especially her relationship with Ezra, or when Immanuelle finally met her other grandmother, Vera; I agree that her naivete can be hard to read. I agree that this book feels like YA and I already said that the ending was lackluster. Near the ending, I'm dreading with what will happen to the Bethel, especially Immanuelle and Ezra's fate because the part named Slaughter only to find it that the chapters that followed feel flat. Also the conclusion feel meh. After raging so much because of the unfairness that Immanuelle endured to ensure Bethel's safety, the ending is just....that.

The horror aspect actually pretty tame. Only blood and gore and some of little body horror that still bearable to read. The real horror is the way of Prophet and his apostles threat their subjects, especially toward girls and women. The Way of the Witching is promising although the ending is meh, but with the way epilogue written there's more to come for Immanuelle and Bethel in the future. I wish that in the next book (if it will come out) will explore more about Dark Woods and the other settlements that Bethel's citizen called heathen city.