Rating: 
Summary: Not a good example
Review: I've been an avid fan of the late Ms. Bradley for years. I've devoured nearly every book she's written. Her characters, normally, are so full of life, they can step off the page. Plots move along logically. Unfortunately, Witch Hill is such a 180 from her normal writing, I could barely believe she authored it. The central character of Sara is neither logical nor interesting. Her bahaviour waivers from ditsy to bizarre to incomprehensible. The side characters, it seems, were designed to be eccentric, yet are irritating. For instance, Tibby. With her jackdaw familiar and slightly off center womens' lib ideals should seem spunky. Instead, she is an unsympathetic user. The background love story moves too quickly and is nonsensical. And as a Wiccan, her twisted vision of a sabbat offended me. This book claims to be part of the "Light" series, yet lacks the heartfelt 'truth' in each book. Anyone who has not read Ms. Bradley before should chose another place to start. Either The Mists of Avalon or the Inheritor. All in all this was a disappointment with poorly envisioned characters in a thinly created plot doing incredibly stupid things.
Rating:
Summary: Wow, I'm stunned at how awful this was.
Review: I've liked other mooks by MZB in the past. Even when I disliked her stories or characterization I thought she could write well. I picked up this book, figuring I wasn't really going to go wrong with a good witch story.I don't know quite what's going on with this book, but rather than reading like a book by MZB, it reads like a book by a high school sophomore trying to write like MZB. A not very imaginative high school sophomore, who thinks an overuse of cliches will make her story dramatic. It also reads like it might have been a sketch for a novel (was this book published posthumously? That would explain a lot. I can't imagine any author *wanting* this to get out as a representative of their work.) It has weird lapses and jumps, and things happen with no setup whatsoever. Good horror needs an element of realism, but the way the characters in this story behave is so laughably divergent from actual human nature that the supernatural elements are almost mundane in comparison. The main character is your standard odd, pretty, redheaded artist type, so we all know SHE'S in for some supernatural highjinks. Upon inheriting an moving into her aunt's house in New England she begins getting compulsions to sleep with one guy after another, and a woman as well. Okay. Whatever. Somehow this is an indication of the fact that she's really a reincarnation of her witch aunt, which no one in town doubts. She looks like the aunt, so she must *be* her. Y'all know how simple dumb country folks is. This book is insulting to everyone it attempts to portray, from magical pratitioners to young country doctors to anyone who ever lived in New England. The fact that the plot is also senseless and the resolution completely glossed over makes it one of the worst books in this genre I've ever read. Go pick up Web of Darkness or the Mists of Avalon if you really like this author, but give "Witch Hill" a miss.
Rating:
Summary: Wow, I'm stunned at how awful this was.
Review: I've liked other mooks by MZB in the past. Even when I disliked her stories or characterization I thought she could write well. I picked up this book, figuring I wasn't really going to go wrong with a good witch story. I don't know quite what's going on with this book, but rather than reading like a book by MZB, it reads like a book by a high school sophomore trying to write like MZB. A not very imaginative high school sophomore, who thinks an overuse of cliches will make her story dramatic. It also reads like it might have been a sketch for a novel (was this book published posthumously? That would explain a lot. I can't imagine any author *wanting* this to get out as a representative of their work.) It has weird lapses and jumps, and things happen with no setup whatsoever. Good horror needs an element of realism, but the way the characters in this story behave is so laughably divergent from actual human nature that the supernatural elements are almost mundane in comparison. The main character is your standard odd, pretty, redheaded artist type, so we all know SHE'S in for some supernatural highjinks. Upon inheriting an moving into her aunt's house in New England she begins getting compulsions to sleep with one guy after another, and a woman as well. Okay. Whatever. Somehow this is an indication of the fact that she's really a reincarnation of her witch aunt, which no one in town doubts. She looks like the aunt, so she must *be* her. Y'all know how simple dumb country folks is. This book is insulting to everyone it attempts to portray, from magical pratitioners to young country doctors to anyone who ever lived in New England. The fact that the plot is also senseless and the resolution completely glossed over makes it one of the worst books in this genre I've ever read. Go pick up Web of Darkness or the Mists of Avalon if you really like this author, but give "Witch Hill" a miss.
Rating:
Summary: Baaaaaaaad
Review: This book is so bad that it would be a waste to burn it. Giving it 1 star is being extremely generous. I was thoroughly disappointed because I am a fan of her writing.
Rating:
Summary: Baaaaaaaad
Review: This book is so bad that it would be a waste to burn it. Giving it 1 star is being extremely generous. I was thoroughly disappointed because I am a fan of her writing.
Rating: 
Summary: This depicts an artist's struggle w/her destiny as a witch.
Review: This tale is a great introduction to the authors distinct style, characterization, and intricate plots; which are all very well developed and fine tuned in this novel. The story is told by a female artist who suddenly realizes she carries the seed of witchcraft, which has been passed on for hundreds of years, before her generation. The book gives gruesome and explicit details of her struggle with how she feels about these spiritual connections and the ensuing events. As usual Marion Zimmer Bradley paints a lifelike experience for the reader which could be compared to Mists of Avalon on some levels. Bradley's empowering style and spiritually enlightening ways with words keeps readers' interest and coming back for more. This is a great novel to get your palate wet and acquire the taste for Marion Zimmer Bradley. Truly a talented author in our time; She has a lucid and articulate knowledge of her subject(s) including Wicca (or Goddess orientation) with strong historical accuracy, spiced with just a touch of erotica
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