Read This: The Maiden and the Marrow Witch

The Maiden and the Marrow Witch: A Tale of Magic and Murder, Rebecca Buchanan’s latest novelette, is a fast-moving tale of a young woman tasked with solving a sorcerous crime against the goddess her people worship. What begins as a seemingly uncomplicated coming of age story for 16 year old Ariemme, daughter of a pagan priestess, plunges into darker and more dangerous territory before very long–spurred on by a disturbingly twisted antagonist.

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Ariemme is one of the Pasithea’s many children. She is still coming to terms with her place within the family. She is not her mother’s heir. She did not inherit her mother’s divine talents. But Ariemme is still charged with finding the witch who killed the bull meant to be sacrificed on the equinox. She has only until the end of the day to do it–or her father will be the sacrifice, instead.

In a refreshing turn, Ariemme is not the chosen one among her many siblings, nor does she aspire to be. She is not the least of them, either. She knows the limits of her abilities and works within them to do what she must.

But it isn’t easy.

The Marrow Witch of the title exists outside the story’s bounds, but its existence is like an infection that shifts the weight of the narrative from quest to survival. The powers the Marrow Witch grants and the means needed to acquire them inject a deep horror into the story, and create new secrets that must be kept.

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While the story moves straight ahead with very few twists, it is not simplistic. In The Maiden and the Marrow Witch  Buchanan creates a vivid space for her characters, redolent with myths of her own creation. The rich world-building is flavored with aspects of the ancient Minoan civilization. The heat of the sun, the expanse of the land, and the complexities of the religious and family cultures all weave into an immersive experience.

I recommend it.