Any fans of Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House might want to put Helen Oyeyemi’s White is for Witching on their radar! Or really any fans of any books where a house plays a major role - Rebecca, Salem’s Lot, you get the idea.
.
It’s quite a chilling little book, following twin brother and sister as they try to move on from their home in Devon which their father attempts to run as a guesthouse, onto university, even though they’re both still struggling with the death of their mother, and Miranda battles with her pica.
.
I’ve never read a book that featured a character afflicted by pica, which is an appetite for non-edible or hold no nutritious content, and I thought Oyeyemi did a good job of balancing Miranda’s struggle, the effects of being addicted to eating chalk, her desire to please her father battling against her repugnance to normal food. It was creepy at times yes (especially her ancestors’ pica, I won’t spoil it but it had me cringing on the train), but it wasn’t like the disorder was being used as just a sensational plot device.
.
I really liked all the characters, and I enjoyed the relationship which didn’t feel forced (yay for more normalised f/f romances!), but I did get confused by the narration sometimes. It jumps around in the middle of chapters, and it’s not always clear who is speaking (sometimes it’s the house itself). It might take a little while to get back in the flow, but it’s a very atmospheric read, with dark fairytale vibes and some fabulous writing in there, even if it is a bit uneven at times.