Feminist witch tale is so very gory and so very good.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Violence & Scariness
a lot
High amounts of gore, the most notable being corpses—those in crime scenes and dug up—described thoroughly and then described some more. A gangrenous (cursed) leg wound on a main character repeatedly described. Humans are eaten by demons, with chunks of flesh flying; skin flayed from bodies is taken as a trophy or sewed or stapled onto other bodies. A serial killer kills only women—with a few tense scenes from the hunted victims' point of view. Characters are choked and stabbed, get fingers bitten off, and cut themselves to draw blood for demons. Jude's literal demons cause her enough pain that she knocks herself out. Buckets of blood are used to attract demons. Story of the mass murder of Emer's family and Zara finding her sister dead. Stories of women beaten, harassed, and drowned, and of an abuser whose genitalia melted off.
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Mostly drinking among 17-year-olds in the U.K. and Ireland, where it is nearly legal (they are supposed to be drinking with adults present but they aren't). They have champagne, a liqueur, wine, beer. Jude remembers getting drunk at a wedding at age 11 and trying heroin once. Her brother was found once high on mushrooms. Men smoke cigars at social clubs, Zara's uncle smokes marijuana.
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A stop at McDonald's. Dior perfume and many high-fashion brands only Jude can afford, with high prices noted. Quick mentions of Netflix, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Call of Duty.
Positive Messages
a lot
A reminder of how many obstacles women have to obtain power and a freedom from fear. The importance of female friendship and of standing up for other women are both stressed in this story as well.
Positive Role Models
some
Jude, Emer, and Zara, all 17 years old, all loners at the beginning of the story, learn to rely on each other. They come up with terrible plans together that get many people killed, but their empathy for women and their suffering helps ground them in a sense of purpose and save many more people. Zara's school principal reminds her that her brilliance and determination will lead her anywhere, after she uses those traits to do something incredibly reckless. Both Jude and Emer are extremely bright as well, though Jude relies heavily on her rich father's influence and money to get what she wants.
Diverse Representations
some
Jude, Emer, Zara, and the police officer Reece Chopra are all lesbians. Reece Chopra is described as having brown skin and Zara's principal is Black. Emer is an orphan, Jude lost her mother young, and Zara and her sister were abandoned by their alcoholic mother and raised by their grandmother. Zara lives with an uncle after her grandmother dies. Emer is homeless, and Jude is mostly estranged from her family but given a house and a very large living allowance.
Details about Oxford, Hampstead Heath in London, Guy Fawkes night. Mentions of writer Sylvia Plath, King James I, Homer's The Odyssey. The story of Countess Bathory, considered the first female serial killer. Many details about body decomposition (you'll learn words like "saponification" and probably wish you hadn't). Some witch and demon lore is taken from older tales, some is fresh. Gender studies topics include the history of witch hunts around the world and how the perpetuating of this outsized fear of female power propped up the patriarchy.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that The Invocations is a very gory and very good dark fantasy by author Krystal Sutherland (House of Hollow) that's marketed to mature teens. It could have just as easily been marketed to adults, like young adult author Leigh Bardugo's Alex Stern series was. Like that series, the level of writing in this book is high, it deals with some very creepy occult and demon stuff, there's violence against women, and boy is it bloody. Corpses—those in crime scenes and dug up—are described thoroughly and then described some more, a gangrenous (cursed) leg wound on a main character is repeatedly described, humans are eaten by demons with chunks of flesh flying, and skin flayed from bodies is taken as a trophy or sewed or stapled onto other bodies. A serial killer kills only women—with a few tense scenes from the hunted victims' point of view. Characters are choked and stabbed, get fingers bitten off, and cut themselves to draw blood for restless demons. Other mature content includes drinking and swearing ("f--k" and on down) by 17-year-olds, and mild kissing between the lesbian main characters. More than just a bloodbath, The Invocations is a reminder of the many obstacles women have to power and freedom from fear. The importance of female friendship and of standing up for other women are both stressed as well.
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What's the Story?
In THE INVOCATIONS, Emer hides out at Oxford, attends large lectures, works out at the school gym, and pretends to fit in. All so she can use the library to look up dead languages to study and stay safe from the witch hunters that killed her family. Jude wakes up in her own large flat after another painful night and stares at her gangrenous leg—a reminder that she messed with the occult with no experience and paid the price. She's desperate to find a real witch to break her curse. Zara hunts down, steals, and reads any book she can find on the occult after the mysterious death of her sister Savannah almost a year ago. She's determined to bring her back and will do as much research as it takes. Jude and Zara finally meet over a woman's corpse in a crime scene they pay under the table to see. It's the fifth similar murder with a piece of skin cut from the victim's wrist, but this time there's a pentagram traced in blood and the words "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live." And this time there's also a small lead curse tablet with Emer's name on it—a business card of sorts. Jude is relieved to finally find a talented witch like Emer to help her, but as soon as they meet and Jude and Zara tell her of the murders, the tables are turned. Each one of the victims was one of Emer's clients, and now dozens of women are still in danger. The killer must be stopped, and Emer will need Jude and Zara's help.
One of the quotes on the back of the book jacket absolutely nails it, calling this ultra-dark fantasy featuring all lesbian main characters "lyrical, grotesque, and pulsing with feminist rage." Somehow those three descriptors meld into a fantastic read—as long as you're cool with all the gore. The story setup immediately intrigues. A girl is stalked in the prologue, and then we meet one main character after another: Emer, Jude, and Zara. Their backstories are rich in detail and deliciously jarring—especially Jude's. Not only is her leg rotting off because of a botched invocation and some really pissed-off demons, but her whole house is rotting around her. Wow. After Jude and Zara's meet-cute at a horrific crime scene, desperation finally draws them to Emer and the mass-murder mystery gets rolling.
Every new discovery the trio makes on their windy way to identifying the killer comes at a very bloody price, and after enacting a ridiculously faulty plan. At times it's hard to root for Zara, particularly because she's so pro-necromancy—ugh. But the dead have the answers, so off to the graveyard they go. Again. Women need saving, women who sought out protection from Emer. No one was there to save Emer's family or Zara's sister from men who fear a woman with power. Here's where that feminist rage comes in to save the day, built over centuries of witch hunts and repression under the patriarchy. Even in a finale where chunks of flesh are flying and blood is spurting everywhere, the focus remains fixed on the feminist heart of this unique and riveting story.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the literal buckets of blood in The Invocations. Was it ever too much? Do you think any part of the violence could have been toned down, or was it a perfect match for the story told?
Witches in this story are women seeking power and control over their lives in a world designed for men. What are the many ways men flex their power in The Invocations? Are there ways besides witchcraft that women try to claim that power back?
Emer doesn't charge for her services as a cursewriter. How does that show her empathy? How does that empathy help her to connect with two other loners, Zara and Jude?
Available on:
Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
Last updated:
April 8, 2024
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