This book lead me down a rabbit hole where I ended up purchasing and reading all of the Witches of Woodville books and even the comic so I think you'll know how this review will pan out.

It's December 1940, and Christmas has come to Woodville. Faye Bright is looking forward to a good old knees-up after a year of supernatural mayhem and Luftwaffe air raids, but it seems glad tidings are in short supply.

I'll need to try and keep this to this book and I now feel immersed in the world of Woodville. I love the characters in the book and the setting and time almost feel like a character in their own right. The take on old legends run through the books and the Holly King answers more questions in the mythology that has built up over the previous books.

Faye is a great character and her relationship with the other witches, her father and Bertie all build up in the books previous, and are added to in this, as well as the almost Dad's Army vibe of a small village at war including the Home Guard.

I really recommend this, though I'd also recommend starting at the beginning - The Crow Folk. This is very much my kind of thing and it fitted right in, it has the feeling of a cosy crime book but with fantasy, it’s nice, mysterious, gentle but also exciting. It has made a fan of me and I am really looking forward to the next book in the series! In some ways this reminds me a little of Magic Kingdom for Sale/Sold by Terry Brooks, not in subject but it has that great mix of in built backstory, great characterisations and its funny without feeling like an outright comedy fantasy. I love Magic Kingdom so this is high praise!

"The Holly King" delivers another enchanting installment in the WITCHES OF WOODVILLE series, blending wartime intrigue with supernatural mystery and a touch of holiday magic. I like how the author, Lev Grossman, crafts a richly atmospheric tale set against the backdrop of December 1940, where air raids and food rationing add to the tension of the unfolding supernatural crisis. As Faye Bright and her companions race against time to thwart the ancient power of the Holly King, readers are treated to a spellbinding adventure filled with twists, turns, and heartwarming moments of camaraderie. With its delightful blend of whimsy and wartime drama, "The Holly King" is a must-read for fans of magical storytelling.

Book Review 📚
The Holly King by Mark Stay - 4.5/5 ⭐

Well. I'll try my best to summarise this book with enough words, but I guarantee, it still won't do it justice.

Fantastic. The whole thing. From start to finish. Fantastic. I finished this book in 2 days and wow, what a brilliant start to 2024 for reading material. This one is going to stay with me for a while. It'll be a hard job to top this book for the rest of the year.

Faye - I ADORE her. Our FMC is not your usual "heroine". It's annoying to say, but we do in fact have the stereotyped heroines in books and Faye just isn't it. And that for me made this book everything and more. I live for her whole attitude, it was absolutely awesome! She's not your typical goodie to shoes and that made her so much more interesting.

Descriptions - phenomenal. There wasn't a single moment where I could not imagine it picture the scene that was set, or the way characters were perceived. Stay done a brilliant job of doing the hard work for me so it was as easy as sitting back and enjoying a good book.

I would easily give this book 5 ⭐ but I'm really very hard to get a 5 ⭐ out of, so 4.5 for me is basically a 5 ⭐

I can't recommend this book enough and I will now be going to find more books from Stay because his writing style and technique is impeccable.

I read and enjoyed all the books in this series which mixes elements of Pratchett, historical fiction and delivers delightful stories.
This one was a very good one that I thoroughly enjoyed and was very happy to catch up with the characters
Well plotted, witty, entertaining.
Can't wait for the next story this author
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book.

I hadn’t read any of Mark Stay’s books before The Holly King, but I was intrigued by the premise of the book, and I love my historical fantasy books. After reading this book, I’ll definitely be looking into reading Mark Stay’s other books, particularly his Witches of Woodville books. This book felt as though it was bursting with magic from the first page. Stay’s writing is infused with this sense of magic and wonder throughout, and I never found myself becoming bored or thinking that any part of the book was dull or a drag.

I’m sure that coming into this series at Book 4 probably puts me at a disadvantage to those who have been reading this book from the start of the series, but I never felt as though I was at a disadvantage because Stay’s writing makes it easy to immerse yourself in the world he’s created and pick things up quite quickly.

Speaking of the world, I adored it. I was surprised by how effortlessly I was sucked into the world, a mystical world of magic and witches with WWII taking place in the background. That premise sounds like there should be some dissonance between the horror of war and the wonder of magic, and yet it felt natural and seamless.

Moving on to the characters, I found that they were interesting and very fleshed-out, with their own personalities and motivations. They didn’t feel two-dimensional, and even the characters who are minor or side characters are still interesting enough for the reader to become invested in them, and aren’t simply treated as throwaway or supplementary characters, there to simply bolster the main characters.

This was an interesting departure from what I normally read, even though it does have witches in it, as I tend to avoid historical fantasy fiction, but at no point did I ever find myself becoming confused or bored while reading it. I’d gladly read the book again, and I’m almost certainly going to read the other books in the series.

The book drew me under its spell. I found the old magic interesting and I haven't read anything like this for a very long time. Faye isn't your usual heroine because she wears glasses and has attitude.
The story fit so well in it's war time setting and the characters were each distinct. I haven't read the previous books in the series but I didn't feel like I'd need to in order to understand this one as things were explained. This story draws you into a world you don't want to stop reading until you reach the end.
It's a breathe of fresh air in the fantasy genre or any genre or witchy fiction. I personally don't like the changing viewpoints but that's down to preference I still enjoyed the story. And will probably read the other books in the series because the characters are brilliant, they come alive. The dialogue just feels real.
A brilliant read

I've been addicted to the Woodville Witches series but this has excelled our expectations (again). So far each book builds on the worldbuilding and community from the last, adding to the imaginative experience.

You can not get more festive than using the folklore surrounding the Holly King, who comes into power on Yule defeating the reigning Oak King. Blend this tale with the Woodville community and you have a creepy, thrilling ride of possession, betrayal and secrets. No one is safe from danger. Darker than the previous books, now that Faye Bright is no longer a child it is more powerful, gripping and has more depth. The humour that helped during the war shines as does its strong sense of place and history thanks to the small details layered in. The slow burn romance between Faye and Bertie added to the suspense. Once started it was impossible to put down. This novel is a Yule treat that harks back to the dark tales told around the hearth to scare folk on the long nights.

All in all The Holly King is festive witchy perfection!

Something has woken up beneath the roots of hollow oak and the Holly king is back to reclaim his woodland domain. The book has curse, magic, spells, revenge and war. It has a backdrop of world war 2. When a delivery person go to deliver the mail from post office to oak woods. He notices something strange is happening in the woods and he becomes bound to it. The ancient power is gripping everyone. Faye has to pay for her mother’s mistake as Pearl is on the quest of revenge. Each character has a purpose and some truths gets unveiled. Perhaps the deepest secret of Holly Kind encapsulated itself too. The awakening of the Holly king is both strange and dreadful. But everything is not how it seems to be. As the winter solstice draws in, Holly king executes his plan, will the villagers fall under his spell? or Faye, Bertie, and witches will be able to save the village? I loved the bond between Faye and Bertie and the ending was so unexpected.

Thank you Netgalley and Publisher

Ancient woodlands, witches and Christmas folklore with an alarming twist - think more The Larkins meet the Hammer House of Horror. Stay’s imagination uses history as a prism to create a fantasy world that is both witty and readable. The cosy familiarity of village life during World War Two is juxtaposed with something decidedly gothic. It's not long before you're part of a parallel universe rooting for a trio of witches. If you like Aaronovitch, you’ll like the Holly King – now I need to read the rest of Stay’s books. I’m hooked!

I’ve enjoyed other books in the series, but this is the best by far. I loved The Holly King. It’s a bit darker than the other the other books with Faye and her fellow witches pitched against an ancient demigod that seems indestructible and can turn the villagers against anyone who stands in it’s way. The demigod seems the wood as it’s domain and anyone who tries to get in it’s way is in big trouble. Like the other books there is a lot of humour, but the tone is darker and there’s a lot more drama and action this time around. This is a real corker.

Have you been naughty or nice this year? Either way, the Holly King will bring out your darkest secrets and you certainly don't want to see what is moving in his sack...
Mr Stay does it again with a novel equal parts horror and humour, that is rooted in folklore and has the best set of witches this side of a Terry Pratchett novel.
Christmas will never quite feel the same after you've read this delightful seasonal tale of terror, trees and tinsel.

I’ve not encountered this series of books before, but will definitely be checking out the rest as I enjoyed this so much! The Holly King stands alone well, with a few references to (I presume) the other books in the series.

The world building in this book is really lovely. The era it’s set in is a love of mine, so combined with witches and paganism and you’ve got an easy win with me! I especially love the concept of witches helping the war effort.

The characters are likeable and the magic is well considered. A really enjoyable read.

The Holly King is the fourth book in Mark Stay's excellent Witches of Woodville series. A demi-god with antlers and a big white beard has awoken within the wood just in time for Christmas, but is disappointed to discover that the current villagers no longer properly venerate him. What to do but destroy them all?

Young witch Faye Bright continues her strong character arc, discovering more about herself and her family while trying to save the village with her friends. There's also a bit of snogging under the mistletoe with her beau, Bertie.

Another great instalment of this historical comedic fantasy (is that a real genre?) series.

I've read all of the books in this series. There are few mentions of the previous books, but only in passing, so you can read this book as a standalone novel without reading any of the others in the series.
This book feels slightly 'older' than the earlier ones and has leaned into the horror elements a bit more. Is Cozy Christmas Horror a thing? If so, this is it. It's scary, but in places it is also genuinely funny. The big fight with the Christmas ornaments made me giggle.

If you like Terry Pratchett's Tiffany Aching books, you'll enjoy these books. I'm looking forward to reading more books set in Woodville.

This is book four of the Witches of Woodville series however I'd not read any previous books so came to this afresh. It's December 1940 and we are in Woodville, a village in Kent. The war is taking a dark turn however it is going to get even darker in Woodville. A demigod, the Holly King, is returning to take control of his woodland realm, part of which is Woodville. There will be feasting first but then the Holly King will destroy Woodville unless someone can stop him.

Faye is a young witch just coming into her powers. She is dreaming and the dream features her mother who was also a witch before she died. But the dream keeps ending before she can find out what is going to happen. The village (or its environs) is home to two other witches. There is a very old one and one who is younger - always good to have a trio of such witches!

While there is quite a bit of action much of this tale is fairly light to me. The Home Guard get a look in and there are some "village characters" and personalities. Quite often everything is "tickety-boo" when it generally isn't. However from time to time the depth of this increases substantially - the Feast of Fools for example is very dark as is the woodwose. Some characters I really liked, Faye was fine however the older witch, Charlotte, I really liked and would have liked more of. Equally I found Faye's father intriguing and could have done with some more about him. I guess, as this is the 4th book, I'm somewhat behind the curve here. However I do think this can easily be read as a standalone story.

In the end this did seem a little light and jokey at times. The magic was powerful however almost completely unexplained. I did find the sense of time and places very good indeed and the wood was excellent. A decent read and entertaining with parts of it very good indeed.

The fourth book of the Witches of Woodville sees us return to the village in December 1940, and you know what that means? Festive, yuletide, folkloric horror with a touch of canoodling!

In some ways, this feels a bit like a return to the folklore horror of the first book, The Crow Folk, with WW2 more in the background this time (although it makes it's presence felt in other ways). When the village postman is oddly compelled to slip out early and deliver a mysterious package into the middle of the woods, the ancient Holly King is summoned, and the whole village is at risk. It's up to Faye and the other witches to solve the mystery of his return and the motives of a fairy of dubious character. And to add to that, there's the return to the village of a soldier on leave, suffering from the horrors he's witnessed and having strange visions.

The characters are as charming and eccentric as always, and I love that Woodville feels like a village on the edge, not just of the war, but of the strange magics that seem to be drawn to it.
An incredibly enjoyable read, funny and fast-paced. The cosy fantasy/folklore horror elements are perfect for anyone who enjoys a festive ghost story at Christmas. The Holly King is yet another great instalment in the series. If you've enjoyed the previous books, then this will not disappoint. If you haven't read any of them yet, why not?

I do love a visit to Woodville! Stay goes from strength to strength with his brilliant blend of charm & creepiness, history & fantasy. A proper corker and utter treat.

The fourth Woodville book continues the story of young witch Faye Bright and her Kent village in World War II. This one has a slightly darker edge than the others, with a returning soldier’s PTSD driving one of the main plotlines. In my last review of these I described them as Terry Pratchett writing a Dad’s Army novelisation, which holds even truer here, as alongside the jokes, the author has tapped into the same vein of anger and empathy that made Pratchett great. There’s also a strong streak of pagan folk horror in the book, which for me is great as I’m a sucker for anything with antlers walking upright through an ancient woodland. As before, this book isn’t going to revolutionise your life, but it’s going to make it better for a couple of hours.

This is a wonderful addition to the Woodville series, with the same blend of magic and old fashioned charm. I loved the way the demigod, The Holly King, is brought to life, not in a mythological way, but as if he really was alive just after WWII. The romance side is coming along nicely too, and everything ends beautifully, with plenty of room for Woodville #5...
Blinking marvellous, and bring on the next one. Recommended in spades.

The witches just get better with each book in this excellent series. It's Christmas time and Faye, Mrs Teach and Miss Charlotte must overcome the Holly King who has appeared in their village with the intention of destroying them all.
The characters are excellent, the humour just right and the plot delightfully entertaining. The character of Sid adds a certain poignancy to the story, reminding us of the horrors of war.
Highly recommended.