Do you like books about families and secrets? What about those with magic and decade long lingering stares? Then you’ll have to continue reading my book review of Strange Folk to find out if it’s right for you! Full thoughts below on this inter-generational story of family.
Summary
Lee left Craw Valley at eighteen without a backward glance. She wanted no part of the generations of her family who tapped into the power of the land to heal and help their community. But when she abandons her new life in California and has nowhere else to go, Lee returns to Craw Valley with her children in tow to live with her grandmother, Belva.
Lee vows to stay far away from Belva’s world of magic, but when the target of one of her grandmother’s spells is discovered dead, Lee fears that Belva’s magic may have summoned something dark.
As she and her family search for answers, Lee travels down a rabbit hole of strange phenomena and family secrets that force her to reckon with herself and rediscover her power in order to protect her family and the town she couldn’t leave behind.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Strange Folk revolves around family. We are able to see through the eyes of multiple characters giving Strange Folk an inter-generational perspective. We see the ways Lee navigates the memories of her hometown. Of seeing her old ghosts and haunts, all these dreams we had when we were trying to leave. And seeing life through her daughter’s eyes allows us to get a closer view of the magic that Lee grew up with. Her children become this lens for us to get to know the town. Strange Folk is rooted in family and home. In it being about the people we love, but also the place that we share.
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I especially enjoyed Meredith, Lee’s daughter’s POV, as she navigates this new setting and new family members. Much like this perspective, coming home Lee has to figure out all the things a small community can look over. In Strange Folk Dyer explores a story about intentions and power. About what we do when we have the power and how our intentions can be twisted in front of our eyes. The whole setting is a key component of the story, of the community, and the magic of the every day.
Find Strange Folk on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.