Reviewed by Dan

TITLE: Witcheskin

AUTHOR: Nem Rowan

PUBLISHER: Less Than Three Press

LENGTH: 281 Pages

RELEASE DATE:  February 26, 2018

BLURB:

Following the disappearance of his father, Owen returns to the Welsh village where his parents grew up to live with his mother and her boyfriend. While pursuing the mystery of cattle mutilations in the area, he meets Maredudd, an old friend of his mother’s, and learns something about his parents that they’ve never told him…

REVIEW:

This story was quite a surprise. From the blurb I really had no idea what the book was about. The title led me to believe it involved magic but I wasn’t sure.

What I didn’t expect was the main character being a transgender young man named Owen. Owen is portrayed as a very insecure young man who has been tormented since he and his mother moved back to Wales after the disappearance of his father. His mother has moved in with a man who treats Owen badly, constantly calling him by his former name. He has also told everyone in the village that Owen is transgender, and Owen has been unable to find a job because of it.

Something strange is going on in the village though and only Owen seems to be paying attention to just how many animals are being slaughtered by some strange beast. That is…until he meets a friend of his mother, named Meredudd. I remembered that double d is prounced totally different in Welsh so I googled it.  It was so much easier after I figured out the name was prounced Mereduth. But I digress.

Once the two meet sparks seem to fly but Owen is afraid of wanting something he has never had. What will Meredudd, who is beautiful, think of Owen’s scars. Will he be disgusted?

I liked the interaction of the characters and the building of the story and its magical components. It kept me reading. I’ll be honest, I figured out one of the surprises before the reveal, but it didn’t hurt my read.

I enjoyed the author’s writing style and the story. I’d recommend it to anyone who likes a story with a central mystery, and a few interesting side characters riding along beside the MC. I really liked Owen. I was rooting for him the entire way through the story, and no spoilers, but I was really happy with some things that happened along the way and near the end of the story.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: 

Less Than Three Press  

Amazon