5 Books About Witches That Are Not Harry Potter

Listen, I love Harry Potter as much as the next person does. It’s one of the books that defined a genre but it’s time to let go and discover witches anew. This blog post was inspired by a Blogoween prompt from Kaleena at Reader Voracious. This is my first post of Blogoween.

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

Children of Blood and Bone is inspired by Nigerian mythology and if that isn’t enough to make you want to read it then I don’t know. Zélie Adebola lives in Orïsha world where magic is outlawed. The maji were killed under orders of a cruel king but Zélie has a chance to bring back magic and fight the monarchy. Zélie, with the help of a rogue princess, goes against the prince who wants to eradicate magic forever and struggles to control her powers and feelings.

Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cόrdova

Alex, a bisexual Latina, is a bruja just like everyone in her family but she doesn’t want to be. On her Deathday celebration, she performs a spell to remove her powers but it backfires and sends her entire family into a spirit realm. With the help of Nova, a brujo, she travels into the dangerous Los Lagos with the hopes of bringing them back. This book is filled with Latin mythology, spirit realism and mystery and incredible worldbuilding.

 

When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore

Miel, a queer Latina, grows roses out of her wrists and Sam, a transgender Italian-Pakistani, paints moons and hangs them in the trees. They are strange and inseparable. Four sisters who live in the town believe that the roses that grow out of Miel’s wrists can be used as a love potion. They want the roses and would do anything to harvest them from Miel.

 

 

How To Hang A Witch by Adriana Mather

The Salem Witch Trials but the roles are reversed and it’s set in the modern day. Samantha is a descendant of Cotton Mather (as is the author), the man responsible for the witch trials, when she starts school in Salem she is marked as the enemy by the descendants of the witches who are known as the Descendants. People start dying the minute Anna arrives and soon enough, the entire town is on the hunt for her.

 

Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor

Sunny, a Nigerian living with albinism, just wants to play football. When she becomes friends with Orlu and Chichi and they form the youngest ever Oha Coven that seeks to take down Black Hat Otokoto, the man responsible for kidnapping and maiming children.

 

 

I hope these witchy books are amongst your favourites. What are your favourite books about witches and no, you’re not allowed to name Harry Potter?