Witches of Ash and Ruin Book Tour

Today I’m really excited to be taking part in the Book Tour of, Witches Of Ash and Ruin, by E. Latimer, which is being hosted by FFBC !

Witches of Ash and Ruin

by E. Latimer
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: March 3rd 2020

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, LGBT, Queer

Modern witchcraft blends with ancient Celtic mythology in an epic clash of witches and gods, perfect for fans of V.E. Schwab’s Shades of Magic trilogy and A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES.

Seventeen-year-old Dayna Walsh is struggling to cope with her somatic OCD; the aftermath of being outed as bisexual in her conservative Irish town; and the return of her long-absent mother, who barely seems like a parent. But all that really matters to her is ascending and finally, finally becoming a full witch-plans that are complicated when another coven, rumored to have a sordid history with black magic, arrives in town with premonitions of death. Dayna immediately finds herself at odds with the bewitchingly frustrating Meiner King, the granddaughter of their coven leader.

And then a witch turns up murdered at a local sacred site, along with the blood symbol of the Butcher of Manchester-an infamous serial killer whose trail has long gone cold. The killer’s motives are enmeshed in a complex web of witches and gods, and Dayna and Meiner soon find themselves at the center of it all. If they don’t stop the Butcher, one of them will be next.

With razor-sharp prose and achingly real characters, E. Latimer crafts a sweeping, mesmerizing story of dark magic and brutal mythology set against a backdrop of contemporary Ireland that’s impossible to put down.

This book was received from the Author, and, Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own. All included quotes have been taken from an ARC and may not match the finished publication.

“𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚞𝚗𝚝 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚌𝚑 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚙𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚎. 𝙵𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞’𝚍 𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚗.” —𝚆𝚒𝚝𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝙰𝚜𝚑 & 𝚁𝚞𝚒𝚗

@theffbc @elatimerwrites

A perfectly dark contemporary witchy read of covens of witches banding together to stop a serial killer. Unleashing the power from the ancient Celtic Gods.

WITCHES OF ASH AND RUIN follows seventeen-year-old Dayna coping with her OCD Struggles to fit in and survive in her small Irish town. Dayna has been recently outed, for being bisexual, and the return of her long-absent mother,

A budding romance along with strong friendships, Witches of Ash and Ruin is a deeply immersive witchy read. The fast paced action plot line, with some memorable twists to keep you on your toes.

The backdrop is a small Irish town with a hardcore fanatical church, lots of witches, Celtic mythology, murder-mystery, along with well developed diverse characters – great LGBTQ representation, along with mental health issues.

A stunning plot-driven storyline with a great cast of characters that I liked and felt connected with. The writing flows perfectly and the author is able to balance the large cast of multiple POV’s.

E. Latimer Is able to pull you into the romance, enemies-to-lovers plot line. A budding relationship between Dayna and Meiner, who seem to be rivals, but take on a more romantic turn, as the book progresses the sparks fly.

The rivalry between the two covens makes the book believable, with authentic teenage dynamics. But eventually the two covens join forces and come together with a common goal, to ultimately stop the vile Butcher.

A captivating paranormal mystery, along with a stellar coven of witches,

The LGBTQ +OCD and multigenerational characters really makes this book amazing

“There was a little witch in every woman, but not every woman was a witch.”

Themes explored in Witches of Ash & Ruin

1) Sexual Identity

2) Mental Health

3) Physical/Emotional Abuse

4) Homophobia

5) Weaponizing of religion

The first in a trilogy this was engaging and intriguing witchy read.

I will definitely be reading work from this highly talented author.

Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

E. Latimer is a fantasy writer from Victoria, BC. Her middle grade novel,The Strange and Deadly Portraits of Bryony Gray was published by Tundra Books, and was recently nominated for the Red Maple Fiction Award.

In her spare time, she writes books, makes silly vlogs with the Word Nerds about writing, and reads excessively.

Her latest novel, Witches of Ash and Ruin, will be released Spring/Summer 2020 from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.