by Rachel Griffin
I don’t know how this is my third Rachel Griffin book, and yet I’m still surprised with the impact it has on me. Her work is somehow both light and heavy, both simple and complex, both short yet leaving a long impact. But here I am, surprised that Bring Me Your Midnight has done the impossible, yet again.
Rachel Griffin makes magic feel not only possible, but that it currently exists, hidden from society but undeniably present.
I could have devoured this book in a day, but I forced myself to make it last. The Nature of Witches is likely still my favorite, but that’s so hard to say when Wild is the Witch and now Bring Me Your Midnight just lingers in my mind, constantly creeping into my thoughts. Perhaps it’s because The Nature of Witches was the first, so it’ll always hold a special place in my heart. But Bring Me Your Midnight is undeniably it’s own thing, and just as incredible.
I was brought back to childhood memories of visiting the beach, of nearly drowning but not letting it stop my love of the sea, of days and days spent on the beach with loved ones, enjoying nature and the ocean. Even though I’m, to be honest, not a beach person, Bring Me Your Midnight has me wanting to visit again, just to be reminded of the beauty and majesty of the ocean and shoreline.
I don’t know what I was expecting with Bring Me Your Midnight, but I found it and then some. Between life stresses and what I think are book hangovers, I haven’t read a book in a week [as of me writing this], which is unheard of for me. The closest I come to taking a break from reading is waiting until the next day to start a new book, or forcing myself to take several days to read a book. With Bring Me Your Midnight, my book-hangover was cured, and it was a struggle to force myself to take longer than a single day to read it. I wanted to devour it, and it’s evidence that Rachel Griffin’s work is magic in and of itself.
That’s a really long intro, but, as usual, I went into this book knowing next to nothing about it, but you can know everything you want to by visiting the Goodreads page, which you can find here!
Recommendation: Read it. Have you read and enjoyed [to whatever degree] her previous work? Read it. Even if you’re not a fan of the beach or the ocean, it doesn’t matter. This story is light and deep, heavy and simple, short and lingering-in-your-brain long. It’s such a lovely refresh to anything you’re currently reading, it sweeps you off your feet to an island of witches and magic, and it constantly finds a may to creep back into my brain. Just like The Nature of Witches, I will likely be recommending it to anyone who reads books even remotely similar. If you liked The Poison Season, you’re in luck! It’s similar while still being its own thing. Read it!
Alright, now that I’m done semi-repeating myself on the simple yet complex entity that is Bring Me Your Midnight, let’s talk about it a little more. But where do I even start? I guess we’ll start with the magic system [non-spoiler-y like]. While there are similarities to the magic in Bring Me Your Midnight and Wild is the Witch, there’s a [spoiler-y] element to it that makes it different.
Tana is predictable in a lot of ways, but also unique. She has this strong love for her coven that has lead her to not push back against her lack of freedom [too much, anyway], and an even stronger, deeper love of her magic. So, when her magic, something she loves basically above all else, is essentially threatening to kill her, she left with few options – and by few, it’s really just one. Wolfe.
Wolfe is a great, complex character [who I might like more than Tana, to be honest]. He’s presented as her foil, in essence, but becomes something else not too long after he’s introduced in the story. He’s like and unlike so many other MLIs [Male Love Interests], enough of both to make him easy to read but also intrigue you enough to not get bored or leave you feeling like he’s a repeat of a MLI from another book.
While the story is a romance, it’s also so much more. [That’s not really a spoiler, right?] Yes, the romance between Tana and Landon – and Tana and Wolfe – are a big part of the story, but you could, honestly, kind of take them out of the picture and still have a strong story [in my opinion, anyway]. This book is as much a coming-of-age/coming-into-yourself story as it is a romance. And, in my opinion, it makes it a stronger book. It is almost two stories at once, and that’s kind of amazing. While I do think The Nature of Witches also sort of has this going for it [and I don’t think Wild is the Witch does], Bring Me Your Midnight executes this the best.
I found myself not wanting to put this book down, and I think you will too! Onto spoiler-y thoughts below!
**SPOILER-Y THOUGHTS INCOMING! IF YOU WISH TO AVOID THEM, STOP READING NOW! YOU ARE, OF COURSE, ALWAYS MORE THAN WELCOME TO COME BACK AND READ THE REST WHEN YOU’VE READ FOR YOURSELF, IF YOU’D LIKE!**
Will I be reading this book again? Maybe. Will I stare lovingly at it when I receive it and add it to my shelves with a happy heart? Definitely.
While I do feel like the magic system in this book is the least strict of the three magic systems Rachel Griffin has created, it doesn’t detract from the story. It just sort of makes the magic seem that much more fictional [which isn’t necessarily a bad thing – we read fantasy because it’s one of the most fictional genres there is, right?], but it is different from how Wild is the Witch and The Nature of Witches feel. Both of those books feel like those witches could actually exist, but the way the magic works in Bring Me Your Midnight feel a little less like that – mainly because it seems like the magic is more limitless in capability than the others. There’s never really a hard line drawn between what the magic is capable of and what it isn’t [other than it’s ability to kill the user if enough of it isn’t used, which is the central part of the story].
That’s really my biggest critical thought of the book, and it’s not even a real deal-breaker. It’s just another reason why Bring Me Your Midnight is unique from her other books.
Tana’s parents’ shop [and Ivy’s parents’] make me want to get into plants and botany [which is something that I’ve gotten more seriously tempted by when reading Outlander for the first time]. Tana’s love of the ocean has me, a not-beach person, wanting to go back to, well, the beach. Wolfe’s magic, and Tana’s introduction to it, has me wanting to find something that gives me a similar feeling [because that has to be possible outside of magic, right?].
[Also, Ivy might be my favorite character. And I’m curious if she takes Tana’s place and marries Landon to protect the coven and island. I feel like it was fairly heavily implied.]
All of that said, it was a beautiful, atmospheric read that had me on the that island of witches, the ocean nearly vivid enough to smell, and I find myself feeling like the first print case design just doesn’t measure up to how pretty the story inside it is [as in, the story is prettier than the first print case]! That said, I can’t wait to see some beautiful fan art that I’m sure this book is going to inspire in some talented artists!
Also, the ceremony Tana has to do when she comes of age gave me Divergent vibes, and now I want to reread that book. Why am I like this? Especially this year? It keeps trying to be the year of the rereads, but I have to be strong. [Right? . . .]
Anyway, if anyone loves botany and has any tips on where I should begin [especially botany related to tea and medicine], I’m all ears!
As always, I hope you enjoyed the review, and be kind, stay safe, and read on!
The Fox Den 