The Invocations
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4.9 • 12 Ratings
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
From the author of New York Times bestseller House of Hollow comes a darkly seductive witchy thriller where, though both men and demons lurk in shadows, girls refuse to go quietly into the night.
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Three girls, one supernatural killer on the loose . . .
Zara Jones believes in magic because the alternative is too painful to consider—that her murdered sister is gone forever and there is nothing she can do about it. Rather than grieving and moving on, Zara decides she will do whatever it takes to claw her sister back from the grave—even trading in the occult.
Jude Wolf may be the daughter of a billionaire, but she is also undeniably cursed. After a deal with a demon went horribly wrong, her soul has been slowly turning necrotic. It’s a miserable existence marred by pain, sickness, and monstrous things that taunt her in the night. Now that she’s glimpsed what’s beyond the veil, Jude’s desperate to find someone to undo the damage she’s done to herself.
Enter Emer Byrne, an orphaned witch with a dark past and a deadly power, a.k.a. the solution to both Zara’s and Jude’s problems. Though Emer lives a hardscrabble life, she gives away her most valuable asset—her invocations—to women in desperate situations who are willing to sacrifice a piece of their soul in exchange for a scrap of power. Zara and Jude are willing, but they first have to find Emer.
When Emer’s clients start turning up dead all over London, a vital clue leads Zara and Jude right to her. If a serial killer is targeting her clients, Emer wants to know why—and to stop them. She strikes a tenuous alliance with Zara and Jude to hunt a killer before they are next on his list, even if she can’t give them in return what Zara and Jude want most: a sister and a soul.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Sutherland (House of Hollow) pits three teens against a monstrous evil in this devilishly bewitching novel steeped in dark academia and set in a fantasy London where only women wield magic. Grieving schoolgirl Zara Jones yearns to reanimate her murdered sister while reclusive, queer heiress Jude Wolf seeks peace from a curse that has left her necrotic and tormented by demons. Seeking assistance in their endeavors, Zara and Jude tap Irish-born orphan Emer Byrne, a skilled witch who crafts custom spells for women willing to trade their souls for power "so that they in turn could find their own strength." When a serial killer begins hunting Emer's former clients, the trio reluctantly unite to find the murderer before the perpetrator finds them. Vivid descriptions, mellifluous prose, expert pacing, and a slow-burning romance keep the tension high and the pages turning while intimately written character arcs probe themes of misogyny, grief, and dynamics of gender and power. Sarcastic, wise-cracking dialogue tempers dark topics with droll wit as the twisty, haunting tale unveils multiple horrors such as rotting souls, inhuman evil, grotesque rituals, decaying bodies, and the chilling social inequities that disempower women. The protagonists read as white. Ages 12–up.
Customer Reviews
Witchy fun!
The Invocations by Krystal Sutherland delivers on its promise of a dark witchy thriller. The story follows three young women: Zara Jones, Jude Wolf, and Emer Bryne. Though their lives are initially seemingly so different, they find themselves intricately connected by what each wants most. Zara is determined to bring her sister back from the dead after she is murdered by a serial killer. Jude seeks a spell worker who can save her cursed soul. And Emer, a witch, seeks power and answers to why her former clients are being murdered by the same serial killer that killed Zara’s sister. Now they must come together in their quest because each has something the other wants/needs. This story is fast-paced, magical and mystical, and kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Zara, Jude, and Emer are all such distinct and likable characters full of flaws and strengths that work together to create whole characters that I rooted for throughout the read! This was such a fun and satisfying read that I’d recommend to all fantasy lovers!