Congratulations to Ash Van Otterloo on her debut middle grade novel, Cattywampus, the story of two young witches—one grappling with the revelation that she is intersex, the other with her father’s abandonment. Together, they accidentally resurrect a graveyard full of feuding ancestors, and must work to perform a counter-curse to save themselves and the rest of their Appalachian community. It’s a fun read with authentic Appalachian accents and sayings like “. . . bless your cotton socks.” It’s a unique story, told with wonderful writing and heart.
The magical story of a hex that goes haywire, and the power of friendship to set things right!
In the town of Howler’s Hollow, conjuring magic is strictly off-limits. Only nothing makes Delpha McGill’s skin crawl more than rules. So when she finds her family’s secret book of hexes, she’s itching to use it to banish her mama’s money troubles. She just has to keep it quieter than a church mouse — not exactly Delpha’s specialty.
Trouble is, Katybird Hearn is hankering to get her hands on the spell book, too. The daughter of a rival witching family, Katy has reasons of her own for wanting to learn forbidden magic, and she’s not going to let an age-old feud or Delpha’s contrary ways stop her. But their quarrel accidentally unleashes a hex so heinous it resurrects a graveyard full of angry Hearn and McGill ancestors bent on total destruction. If Delpha and Katy want to reverse the spell in time to save everyone in the Hollow from rampaging zombies, they’ll need to mend fences and work together.
Looks good!