4.5!

I did not know that this book would affect me so much!

Fern, a 15 yo girl, falls pregnant and is shipped off to a Home for unmarried "wayward" girls, to basically live there for the rest of her pregnancy and have her baby.
Cut off from the outside world and tired of the daily monotonity, Fern and her friends turn to a book that offers witchy solutions to common ailments. But soon, they realise that their dabbling in witchcraft can have dark and serious consequences.

This book left me heartbroken and frustrated and just so angry at the way these girls are treated!

They are blamed, vilified, ostracized, physically mistreated and completely ignored by their doctors, caregivers, social services representatives, their own family - basically anyone and everyone who is supposed to take care of them and help them - but instead, treat them with complete apathy.

All the while, the men who were responsible for getting these girls pregnant, get away scratch free.

Having a baby is a moment of happiness for many, but there is a lot of physical, psychological and emotional pain associated with pregnancy, child birth and postpartum, which often gets glossed over. The author has done a good job of describing these nuances.

The story also touches on a lot of raw topics - sexism, child abuse, sexual assault, gaslighting, lack of physical autonomy - being a few of them. So do check out the trigger warnings.

This book is tagged as a Historical fiction and Horror. While this is a great work of historic fiction, the main element of Horror in this book, for me, was the rigid patriarchy and the sheer injustice faced by the girls at every turn.

Despite the heavy subject matter, the book has many hopeful elements and heart touching instances of female solidarity and camaraderie.

Grady Hendrix has carved a unique niche for himself in the horror genre with works like The Final Girl Support Group and My Best Friend’s Exorcism. Witchcraft for Wayward Girls has no knife-wielding serial killer in the woods; it’s the people in power who are truly terrifying.

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls delves into the dark history of homes for unwed mothers in the 1970s but with a supernatural twist. Hendrix’s novel tells the story of Neva Craven, a 15-year-old abandoned by her father at a Florida home for unwed mothers after becoming pregnant. The home, with its strict rules, dehumanising practices, and ever-present sense of judgment, is a claustrophobic and oppressive environment designed to shame and control the vulnerable girls banished here.

Read the rest of the review here: https://westwordsreviews.wordpress.com/2025/02/04/witchcraft-for-wayward-girls-grady-hendrix/

In a Nutshell: A historical horror fantasy – mostly historical, occasionally (body) horror, slightly fantasy. Interesting character development, great themes, plenty of chills and thrills and triggers. Slowburn most of the way. Not sure if this will satisfy hardcore horror fans, but it worked quite well for this historical-fiction-loving scaredy-cat.

Plot Preview:
1970. Florida. When the parents of fifteen-year-old Fern discover her pregnancy, they drop her off against her will to Wellwood House, a place for unwed girls to be hidden away from their families, have their babies in secrets, give them up for adoption, and then return to the world as if nothing has changed. Fern is petrified of being alone and pregnant, but she soon discovers that she isn’t the only one in this predicament. She soon becomes close to some of the other girls, even though each of them are different from each other in background and ideals. Their daily routine is strictly monitored by the staff of Wellwood, but when Fern gets an unsanctioned book from the visiting mobile librarian, she discovers a hidden power she didn’t guess possible. But is it really that easy to play with dark magic? Does this kind of power come with a penalty?
The story comes to us in Fern’s third-person perspective.

Bookish Yays:
💐 The quotes at the start of the book, taken from actual magazines - wow! Unbelievable that such ignorance lasted even till 2005! (And probably continues even today in many places.)
💐 The first-person prologue by a then-unknown narrator makes for a strong start. (PSA: Read it once again after you complete the book. You’ll appreciate it even more.)
💐 An intriguing cast of pregnant youngsters, all of whom are youngsters forced into adult situations and making the best that they can. It was interesting to see how each of them coped with their traumatic situation differently: some withering inwards and some exploding with feminine rage. My heart broke several times, especially for Holly, but unlike in historical fiction where my feelings often veer more towards the emotional, this time I actually felt the rage of these girls.
💐 Some well-crafted older characters as well. Though not all of them are explored in detail and most are definitely not likeable, their presence and actions lend the required darkness to the plot.
💐 The details about Wellwood house and how it was run – quite realistic. I liked the idea of using floral monikers for each of the young inmates.
💐 The focus on social attitudes towards unwed pregnancies and how “it’s always the girl’s fault“. I don’t need to reveal any historical facts about the heinous laws that deny women control over their own bodies. The book is set before Roe vs. Wade, but so many of the situations and reactions faced by the girls in this story are still present today.
💐 While there are several books with witchy elements, this was among the few that actually makes good use of those elements. The witchy stuff was actually witchy! (Reminder: I haven’t read much horror and am writing this point from a historical fiction reader’s perspective.)
💐 The core “horror” in this book to me was not the witchy content but the scenes with labour and child delivery – yikes! They were so brutally realistic to read that I felt like I myself was going through labour yet again. Fair warning: those scenes might scare you off (natural) childbirth for life! I’m so glad I was done with all that before reading this book! 😆 The only reason I am writing this under Yays is that I am stunned at the level of accuracy in the detailing of labour and delivery. That is to say, I can’t believe the author is a man! 🤭

Bookish Mixed Bags:
🌹 The book is much of a slowburn. In fact, the first 30-35% is just regular historical fiction. (Which was fine for me but will bug horror fans.) Just as I began wondering if I had got the genre wrong, the creepy stuff started making an appearance, but this was more continual than continuous. Basically, when things get creepy, they get reaaallllllyyyyy creeeeepppyyyyyy; you just need to have a good amount of patience during the rest of the story. Most of the horror is body horror, with minor elements of the supernatural.
🌹 The epilogue left me with mixed feelings. It's a good ending in the sense that it offers a much-deserved closure to the arcs. However, it just doesn’t read like a horror novel’s culmination, giving more women's fiction vibes.

Bookish Nays:
🌵 Fern’s character development is a bit ad hoc. I couldn’t get a handle on her personality because her decisions seemed to swing randomly.
🌵 The generalisations. Everyone who is connected to religion is vehemently evil. Every parent is a stonehearted jerk who feels no pain dumping their pregnant daughters in a home. Every white adult is self-centred and every Black adult is knowledgeable and helpful. Plus, the Black characters use some kind of voodoo-style beliefs. I am not fond of such cliched one-note portrayals.

All in all, despite my issues with a part of the content and characterisations, I am mostly satisfied with my first Grady Hendrix work. I obviously have nothing to compare it with as I have no idea about his general plots or writing style. But I strongly feel that this book will be better suited for historical fiction fans with a penchant for horror than for horror fiction lovers with a liking for historical fiction.
Recommended to those who can handle it, AND have a fondness for feminist themes, AND don’t mind slowburn stories, AND preferably already have kids or don’t ever want to have kids! There are plenty of triggers, but mainly beware if you are wary of gore or child abuse content.
4 stars.

My thanks to Pan Macmillan and Tor Nightfire for providing the DRC of “Witchcraft for Wayward Girls” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

It took me a long time to write this review, I had such mixed feeling upon finishing this book that I really had to sit with it for a while before attempting to write anything.

The book starts off with Neva, a 15 year old girl being sent to a home for pregnant teens by her family. When she arrives the woman who runs the Home changes her name to Fern for the duration of her stay. Stripping Neva of her identity. The girls, when they arrive at this home, get told they are there to give birth and give away their babies. While there they are subjected to horrible treatment from the staff, given restricted diets, and subjected to invasive medical exams without consent.

The first 40% of the book is very slow, mostly you are getting to grips with life at the home, and getting to know the 4 main characters, Fern, Zinnia, Rose, and Holly.
Once the witchcraft does kick in there still isn't much of it. I think Hendrix was attempting to show the real horror of the book is how unmarried pregnant girls were treated in the 70s which he does do fantastically. But in a book named Witchcraft for wayward girls, I really wanted a lot more witchcraft.

This book is very dark, sad, and quite honestly a struggle to read. I had to put the book down many times due to graphic birth scenes, descriptions of miscarriage, and just the horrible treatment of the girls in this book.

As much as I enjoyed this book I recommend it with extreme caution. If you enjoy pregnancy horror you may love this but if graphic birth and miscarriage are upsetting for you then definitely give this one a miss.

To start, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Pan Macmillan, for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of Witchcraft for Wayward Girls. I would also like to apologise for the lateness of this review.
If i had to summerise Witchcraft for Wayward Girls in a few words, I would say it was a heartbreaking and bittersweet read.
I'm no stranger to Grady Hendrix's work, but i can safely say that none of his other books have ever made me feel the way that this one did. The horror aspect of this book doesn't come from the spells and witches but from the society these girls were raised in that demonised them, hurt them, and controlled them. Throughout this book, I truly became attatched to these girls and their journeys with both pregnancy and witchcraft. I laughed with them, felt joy with them, cried with them, felt the same fear they felt, rooted for them, and fell in love with their characters.
I think this has easily become one of my favourites of Grady Hendrix works and I think any fan of his work would enjoy this book along with any fans of books about witchcraft as a medium to empower women. I would also highly recommend anybody interested in reading this book reasearches the trigger warnings as this is an extremely heavy book to digest.

I really enjoyed everything about this. Was far better than I thought it’d be, expected it to be a mystery bit of fun however it was so much more. Already sent copies to all my friends

A delightfully dark southern gothic horror that feels all too relevant in today’s world. Witchcraft is filled with Hendrix’s trademark wit and setting as a character. Would recommend to any fans of horror with a dose of political commentary and levity

I was so excited for this book when I first heard about it as I loved the idea and premise of this book, plus with that title, it screamed READ ME, so thank you NetGalley! After reading this book, the story and the characters are definitely going to stick with me for a while and because of that my feelings towards this book have been changing the more that it lingers with me. This isn’t a bad thing, because I usually have a bad habit of forgetting what has happened a few days after finishing a book, and because this one is still lingering with me shows something.

At the beginning of the story, it did drag, but I think it was meant too. I got to know and semi care for the characters and their situations, getting a deeper understanding of them all, separating them from each other and understanding why they may want to dive into witchcraft when the time came. You got to see how young they really were with how little they understood about their own bodies and pregnancies, the ludicrous things they were being told and believing, which also went to show the time this was set in. It made me want to jump into the story and help them, screaming the truth at them and to protect them. There were certain emotional aspects of this book, that I wasn’t expecting to feel and honestly broke me for a little bit, even more so because it felt real.

Once it got going and witchcraft was introduced, I was already invested and I was excited to see how this was going to go, especially with the countdown to the characters due dates. I liked certain aspects, but I also started to lose my attention at certain parts towards the middle. You get some scenes, which screamed Grady Hendrix to me, so if you know, then you know. But, it definitely picked back up and I was once again invested and excited for the ultimate climax of this book and what it had been leading towards.

I’m not sure how I feel about the overall ending of this book, once they jumped into the future. It felt rushed and like Hendrix was just trying to conclude what he could in the short amount of pages. Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy seeing where the characters ended up and getting the little bit of each of their lives, but it left me feeling like I needed more from it. Like something was lacking.

Hendrix writing this as a privileged white male author is undeniably risky. Yet, I was pleasantly surprised by how he focuses on the trauma, injustice, and downright rage of women throughout history, and today.

That said, a few elements didn’t quite land for me, and this book certainly won’t be for everyone. It’s bound to ruffle some feathers, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it earns a spot on some banned-book lists.

I went in expecting heavier witchcraft themes, but it leaned more toward historical fiction/horror with a touch of the occult. Still, Hendrix doesn't hold back on the body horror, evoking strong reactions, which I assume was entirely his goal.

Given its release after Roe v. Wade's overturn, the book hits differently - leaving me angry and heartbroken for those who may see echoes of their own lived experiences in this book.

Grady Hendrix is such a mixed bag for me. I was quite excited for this - liked the cover and the write up, but ultimately this just didn’t work for me like I had hoped. I found the story went nowhere and it was a bit of a slog for me to read, took quite some time, when on paper this looked to be my jam. It wasn’t terrible, but I just wasn’t hooked, and didn’t love the pacing or the characters.

This book had a great plot with intriguing characters. I’ll definitely be looking out for more from this author.

Grady Hendrix is a drop-everything-and-read author for me. ‘Witchcraft for Wayward Girls’ is another absolute belter of a book, and quite possibly his finest work. It contains the most realistic, visceral description of the violence of childbirth that I've ever seen or heard. The book also illustrates how these young girls and women were treated in the homes. It's a really engaging read which evokes the full gamut of emotions. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute but the ending was precious.

I’ve read almost all of Grady Hendrix novels and for me, his books are a mixed bag.
This one though, this one is definitely one of his better books.
His style of writing seems to follow the same cadence, starts off as a slow burn and gradually builds the tension. It doesn’t always work as if the story doesn’t have enough interest, you can be easily distracted, but that’s not the case here.
It contains elements of horror, mystery & suspense, and packs a real emotional punch.
The characters are interesting, have depth and are believable, even if not relatable.
It all combines to give us a stellar read from this author. Would definitely recommend, if you’re on the fence with Grady Hendrix, I’d definitely give this one a go.

Witchcraft For Wayward Girls was my first Grady Hendrix read, and it won't be my last as I devoured this book. Hard hitting, emotional, and yes, full of horror, yet I don't know what was more horrifying the gory descriptions of the witches and childbirth or the reality of the maternal homes for unwed mothers.
Grady writes female characters so well, and I was incredibly emotionally invested in the girls' story.
Set in the 70s, the story focuses on Neva, who, after falling pregnant at the age of 15, is sent to a home for unwed mothers and renamed Fern. When she meets the other girls there, she forms a friendship, and this is their story. A story of resilience, female friendship, and ultimately self-discovery. Witchcraft For Wayward Girls does an excellent job at highlighting the treatment of these young girls and their children, the misogyny, racism and lack of support system in place for women who became pregnant unmarried.
It makes for a compelling, important read and really made me think about women's reproductive rights even recently, it seems quite timely. Yes, there are bits that made me quite squeamish, and yes, it is classed as horror but in a scarily realistic way. I'd definitely recommend this one and think it's brilliantly written.

Wow! This book is EVERYTHING.

I really didn’t expect such an emotionally charged book from Grady Hendrix. His books usually pack a punch, but this was a full body-blow, a full-on mind-blower of a book.

It’s 1970 and ‘Wayward Girls’, young un-married teens who become pregnant and therefore are considered a shame and embarrassment to themselves, their families and society are secretly ripped away from their lives to Miss Wellwood’s establishment in Florida, to give birth, give up their babies for adoption and then told to ‘forget this even happened’ and get on with their former lives.
Whilst there, they have to remain anonymous and are even given ‘Garden Girl’ names. They are shamed at every turn, restricted in their movements, diets and minds with very minimal kindliness shown, unless they can form tenuous, short-lived bonds with the other girls.

The main protagonists are Fern, Rose, Zinnia and Holly. All different characters but with a shared feeling of righteous rage at the way they are treated. Rose is the most openly rebellious, but she is called ‘a sanctimonious hippy’ by the social worker and this is just one of the terms used to degrade and belittle the girls.
Holly’s story is almost too unbearable to read. I think her character epitomises the hopelessness of these girls most succinctly.

Miss Parcae, the librarian from the book mobile which visits fortnightly, seems to be the only person who shows any consideration for the girls situation. She passes Fern a book ‘How to be a groovy witch’.
At first, Fern is unimpressed with the book and its seemingly innocuous spells for beauty, love and household. But when the bored girls try out a spell to pass on Zinnia’s sickness to their uncaring doctor with dramatic effect, the girls soon realise that this book might be a key to help them out.

Without giving away any more spoilers, the girls become drawn deeper into Miss Parcae’s world. And I’ll just say that this book doesn’t quite take the ‘witch’ route which seems favoured in most contemporary witchy-based fiction!

This book is harrowing, to say the least. But it’s non-stop electrical excitement from start to finish.
A definite early contender for the book of the year.

First of all I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a big fan of Grady Hendrix and was excited for his new novel. Even though this is a horror it isn't scary enough that you want to hide the book away (which I have done with other horror novels).

I did think that it was quite a slow start to the story but understand that it was just to build up the environment the girls were in, then when the witchcraft finally started it seemed to go from 0 to 100 very quickly and was chaotic at times in the best of ways.

I think the only disadvantage is that I wanted more of the conflict between the witches as it seemed to be resolved too quickly for me but this was a minor disadvantage as I did enjoy the book as a whole.

That's my first Grady Hendrix book, but definitely not the last. This guy really knows how to write. 

Firstly, I have to talk about the elephant in the room. Yes, Grady Hendrix is a man, and he wrote a book about young girls in very vulnerable situations (being not married and pregnant in the 60/70s) and about witchcraft, two very feminist topics. I was a sceptic about this, but I love books about witches too much to miss out on such a book. And the way he wrote the characters and the real horror of this book (patriarchy, of course) was beyond my expectations. There's no judging, no preaching, instead he shows situations that were too common in those times. 

This book is a real slow burn, but mostly I didn't feel it. And the payoff was really worth it. The only issue I have with the plot is that there could be a little more witchcraft. I don't want to spoil anything, but I just wish that we had a spell or two more. But I enjoyed the way witches are portrayed in this book. 

I also loved the characters. All the girls are different from each other, they're stuck in the same place and waiting for the same fate, but each one has a different story and different dreams. I usually hate reading about teenagers because their actions annoy me, but here I had no problems even when Fern was acting really stupid. Other than the girls in the House, there are a few adults, almost all of them an example of how patriarchy uses women to destroy other women. 

Except for Miriam and Hagar, which I wish we could get more of. 

I have to mention the horror aspects of Witchcraft for Wayward Girls. Most of the horror scenes are body horror, there are gory descriptions of childbirth and some other stuff that's too spoilery. So be aware of that. There are some other more witchy horror scenes, and there are a lot of feelings of hopelessness created by the biggest horror ever - the patriarchy. 

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I already know that it will be one of my top books of 2025. I recommend it to anyone who's not squeamish.

All the stars! What an exceptionally powerful novel this was.

I have read from Grady Hendrix before, so I’m familiar with his fun and campy form of horror, but of all his books the premise of this one sounded like it would be the most for me. And I was so right!

The history this novel is built upon is horrifying. The hardship, the trauma, the grief, all of it so very real, so when we say horror, that’s part of the deal. It’s not the Only horror, but it’s the horror that hits the hardest. And rightly so. And then Grady comes along and tops it off with a witches coven and magic to reclaim the power that’s been taken from these young unwed mothers… Yep, yes please!

It’s the emotional impact of this one that I find the most astounding. I knew Grady could tell a great tale, that wasn’t in doubt, but the emotion in this one is impeccable. The pure rage I felt as I was reading is true testament to just how well it’s written. Grady has created these girls and women that feel so very real to me, and I was utterly devastated right along with them, because their pain is my pain. That in itself is witchcraft; I’m calling it; Grady is a witch. He has the power to write how it feels to be in a situation that he cannot possibly have first-hand experience of. He’s (clearly) not a pregnant teen, yet he somehow pulls this off. And with such impact, I’m reeling.

The topics here are important, the emotions and message powerful, and yet it’s never heavy handed. It is so fundamentally about women, that for it to come from a male author and still feel so empowering is remarkable.

Stunning work, and huge congratulations to Grady for pulling off the impossible.

I highly recommend this one folks. This one is going to stay with me for a very long time.

This was phenomenal, start to finish.

Fifteen and pregnant in 1970s North America, Neva is sent to a home for 'wayward girls' - an anonymous boarding house for parents to send their underage pregnant daughters to so they can give birth, surrender their child to an adoption service, and then go home 'like it never happened'. And do these young girls get any choice in this? Of course they don't. So when Neva comes across a little magic, well, what's a girl to do?

This is very much one of those horror novels where the true horror is the societal norms of the time and the baked-in lack of agency for these young women. Oh there's witchcraft too, and some fantastic hints of cosmic horror, but the terror lies in these young girls staring down a life path they have no choice but to walk. Hendrix doesn't shy away from any of it - not the body horror that comes with the pregnancies, not the fact of what really happened to some of these girls given their very young age, not the way that every authority figure contributes to this gruesome cycle. I also wasn't expecting a male author to do such a phenomenal job writing a cast of young women but he does so incredibly. Everyone feels deeply authentic and individual.

Oh, also the end of this book had me sobbing my heart out in all it's bittersweet beauty, so there's that, too.

An impeccably researched, heart-wrenchingly brutal, gripping horror read!

4.5 ⭐️
This is really quite a special book. Harrowing, raw, and incredibly touching.

It’s 1970 in Florida, and here we follow Fern, a pregnant teenager who is being forced to live and work in a home for unwed expectant mothers. A home that strips you of your rights, your needs, and your voice, a place that expects you to give up your baby at the end of your pregnancy. But Fern is not alone. She’s one of many young women there facing the same fears and anxieties over what is best not only for their own lives but also their babies. Fern bands together with her fellow expectant friends and creates the most incredible and life-changing bonds.

This book deals with feminism, coming-of-age narratives, pregnancy, loss, grief, rebellion, motherhood, and even witchcraft. The writing is flawless, and Hendrix strikes the perfect balance between the real and the supernatural, the funny and the serious. His female characters, as always, are drawn beautifully. They’re fully realised and dimensional, and you as a reader cannot help but empathise with them and invest in their stories. I feel like I’ve felt all the feelings reading this book, and that’s quite something. Ultimately, this is a very powerful novel, in more ways than one.

A huge thank you to @netgalley and Pan Macmillan for allowing me to read this advanced copy in exchange for my honest thoughts. This was an absolute pleasure to read and review!