Rating: 3 out of 5.

This was an interesting contemporary paranormal fantasy. Persephone May is an orphan and has been alone her whole life. She wants nothing more than to belong somewhere, but whenever she tries to forge bonds with other people, unexplainable things happen and she finds herself moving on again.

After one particularly jarring public display of powers she doesn’t understand, Persephone receives an email inviting her to visit one of her only friends on the elusive Wile Isle. As soon as she steps on the island, Persephone feels at home, something she’s never felt before. It’s clear that Wile Isle is no typical island, nor are some of its occupants. Persephone learns that she is a witch from a long line of witches and she may have a part to play in the welfare of the island and its occupants.

I liked the overall general theme of the story and it was well written. The problem I had with the book is that it just seemed to drag on. Maybe it was because Persephone reminded me of Debbie Downer from SNL or Eeyore – everything was always the worst case scenario and everything was so heavy and dark. Even in stories with difficult storylines or heavy subject matter there is an occasional spark of lightness and laughter. I didn’t find any of that in this book. Some of the descriptions of places, people or things were far too in-depth and I found myself skimming parts of the book. I had high expectations for this book but it fell a bit short.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press. All opinions are my own.