The Briar Book of the Dead

Set in the same universe as the acclaimed All the Murmuring Bones and The Path of Thorns (one of Oprah Daily's Top 25 Fantasy Novels of 2022), this beautifully told Gothic fairy tale of ghosts, witches, deadly secrets and past sins, will be perfect for fans of Hannah Whitten and Ava Reid.

Ellie Briar is the first non-witch to be born into her family for generations. The Briar family of witches run the town of Silverton, caring for its inhabitants with their skills and magic. In the usual scheme of things, they would be burnt for their sorcery, but the church has given them dispensation in return for their protection of the borders of the Darklands, where the much-feared Leech Lords hold sway.

Ellie is being trained as a steward, administering for the town, and warding off the insistent interest of the church. When her grandmother dies suddenly, Ellie's cousin Audra rises to the position of Briar Witch, propelling Ellie into her new role. As she navigates fresh challenges, an unexpected new ability to see and speak to the dead leads her to uncover sinister family secrets, stories of burnings, lost grimoires and evil spells. Reeling from one revelation to the next, she seeks answers from the long dead and is forced to decide who to trust, as a devastating plot threatens to destroy everything the Briar witches have sacrificed so much to build.

Told in the award-winning author's trademark gorgeous, addictive prose, this is an intricately woven tale of a family of witches struggling against the bonds of past sins and persecution.

"Angela plays by her own rules. She's fantastic"  —Hilarie Burton-Morgan, actress and author of Grimoire Girl, on A.G. Slatter's writing

"When I reviewed A.G. (Angela) Slatter's 2022 novel The Path of Thorns, I said she was one of the best contemporary fantasists in the field. But I was wrong; my vision was too narrow. Angela is simply one of the best contemporary writers of fiction, regardless of genre... The Briar Book of the Dead is everything I love about Slatter's fiction: the craft, the passion for narrative, and the foregrounding of strong, smart, singular women. More, please." —Ian Mond, Locus

"A.G. Slatter shows that her genius for the magical gothic tale is not waning, with witches and ghosts and terrible deeds coming together to create a riveting story... The Briar Book of the Dead is evidence that Slatter keeps going from strength to strength. She writes complex characters, who are utterly believable in their relationships and attitudes; she creates vibrant worlds whose details show there's so much more to them than appears on the page. And her prose is so beautiful and absorbing that 350 pages fly by, and you're left wanting more." —Alexandra Pierce, Locus

"Slatter writes witches like none other, and her newest is a darkling feast, jewelled and blood-stained, rich with secrets and seething with unbearable power." —Cassandra Khaw, author of The Salt Grows Heavy

"Angela Slatter hits it out of the park again. With gorgeous prose and a heart-breaking story about family, magic, and the weight of the past, this is a darkly fantastic masterpiece that shouldn't be missed." —Gwendolyn Kiste, Lambda Literary and Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Reluctant Immortals and The Rust Maidens

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