The Bewitching

Hardcover
$29.00 US
6-1/8"W x 9-1/4"H
On sale Jul 15, 2025 | 368 Pages | 9780593874325
Grades 9-12 + AP/IB

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Three women in three different eras encounter danger and witchcraft in this eerie multigenerational horror saga from the New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic.

“Back then, when I was a young woman, there were still witches”: That was how Nana Alba always began the stories she told her great-granddaughter Minerva—stories that have stayed with Minerva all her life. Perhaps that’s why Minerva has become a graduate student focused on the history of horror literature and is researching the life of Beatrice Tremblay, an obscure author of macabre tales.

In the course of assembling her thesis, Minerva uncovers information that reveals that Tremblay’s most famous novel, The Vanishing, was inspired by a true story: Decades earlier, during the Great Depression, Tremblay attended the same university where Minerva is now studying and became obsessed with her beautiful and otherworldly roommate, who then disappeared under mysterious circumstances.

As Minerva descends ever deeper into Tremblay’s manuscript, she begins to sense that the malign force that stalked Tremblay and the missing girl might still walk the halls of the campus. These disturbing events also echo the stories Nana Alba told about her girlhood in 1900s Mexico, where she had a terrifying encounter with a witch.

Minerva suspects that the same shadow that darkened the lives of her great-grandmother and Beatrice Tremblay is now threatening her own in 1990s Massachusetts. An academic career can be a punishing pursuit, but it might turn outright deadly when witchcraft is involved.
© Martin Dee
Silvia Moreno-Garcia is the author of the novels Velvet Was the Night, Mexican Gothic, Gods of Jade and Shadow, and a bunch of other books. She has also edited several anthologies, including the World Fantasy Award–winning She Walks in Shadows (a.k.a. Cthulhu’s Daughters). She has been nominated for the Locus Award for her work as an editor and has won the British Fantasy Award and the Locus Award for her work as a novelist. View titles by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
“The Bewitching is a stunning story about the power of generational knowledge that proves that any danger to be found in magic lies solely in the person who wields it. By gently leading readers through different time periods, places, and perspectives, Silvia Moreno-Garcia shows just how a story can be a spell—one I was happy to be under.”—Jessica Johns, author of Bad Cree


Praise for Silvia Moreno-Garcia

“Whenever I want to read a book I know will be good, I go to Silvia Moreno-Garcia.”—Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

“In Moreno-Garcia’s skillful hands, you’ll find the satisfaction of richly drawn characters, saturated settings and deftly constructed plot twists. . . . No matter the genre—gothic, horror, noir—she’ll embody its essence with a verve all her own.”—The New York Times Book Review

About

Three women in three different eras encounter danger and witchcraft in this eerie multigenerational horror saga from the New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic.

“Back then, when I was a young woman, there were still witches”: That was how Nana Alba always began the stories she told her great-granddaughter Minerva—stories that have stayed with Minerva all her life. Perhaps that’s why Minerva has become a graduate student focused on the history of horror literature and is researching the life of Beatrice Tremblay, an obscure author of macabre tales.

In the course of assembling her thesis, Minerva uncovers information that reveals that Tremblay’s most famous novel, The Vanishing, was inspired by a true story: Decades earlier, during the Great Depression, Tremblay attended the same university where Minerva is now studying and became obsessed with her beautiful and otherworldly roommate, who then disappeared under mysterious circumstances.

As Minerva descends ever deeper into Tremblay’s manuscript, she begins to sense that the malign force that stalked Tremblay and the missing girl might still walk the halls of the campus. These disturbing events also echo the stories Nana Alba told about her girlhood in 1900s Mexico, where she had a terrifying encounter with a witch.

Minerva suspects that the same shadow that darkened the lives of her great-grandmother and Beatrice Tremblay is now threatening her own in 1990s Massachusetts. An academic career can be a punishing pursuit, but it might turn outright deadly when witchcraft is involved.

Author

© Martin Dee
Silvia Moreno-Garcia is the author of the novels Velvet Was the Night, Mexican Gothic, Gods of Jade and Shadow, and a bunch of other books. She has also edited several anthologies, including the World Fantasy Award–winning She Walks in Shadows (a.k.a. Cthulhu’s Daughters). She has been nominated for the Locus Award for her work as an editor and has won the British Fantasy Award and the Locus Award for her work as a novelist. View titles by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Praise

“The Bewitching is a stunning story about the power of generational knowledge that proves that any danger to be found in magic lies solely in the person who wields it. By gently leading readers through different time periods, places, and perspectives, Silvia Moreno-Garcia shows just how a story can be a spell—one I was happy to be under.”—Jessica Johns, author of Bad Cree


Praise for Silvia Moreno-Garcia

“Whenever I want to read a book I know will be good, I go to Silvia Moreno-Garcia.”—Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

“In Moreno-Garcia’s skillful hands, you’ll find the satisfaction of richly drawn characters, saturated settings and deftly constructed plot twists. . . . No matter the genre—gothic, horror, noir—she’ll embody its essence with a verve all her own.”—The New York Times Book Review

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