Conjure Women

Hey Book Friends.

I finally finished “Conjure Women” by Afia Atakora. It was certainly interesting, but I’m a little lost. It wasn’t what I was expecting at all; matter of fact I was anticipating more conjures, spells, and hoodoo. The story is more about enslaved healing women who use tinctures to cure and nurse other enslaved people on the plantation before, during, and after the Civil War.

“Conjure Women” is a multigenerational story following these healing women, but mostly centers on Miss Rue, a young healer who learned her mother’s skills in treating people using natural herbs and potions. Before the Civil War, Rue was a slave girl to the Master Charles’ daughter, Varina. The two, essentially, grow up together and share several secrets amongst themselves. There’s also a traveling preacher by the name of Bruh Abel—Brother Abel. He is a biracial person who travels often to the plantation to spread the Word of God.

There is a slew of other interesting characters throughout the story, but I truly lost interest in the second half of the book. There’s something missing. Imagine creating a beautiful makeup look; everything is perfect and then you realized you forgot to put on primer.

I wished I liked this book more. I am aware that one of the reasons I had a difficult time reading this was due to the current upheaval in society right now. Also, watching Human Rights and Civil Rights being attacked and fought for on the news made focusing on this book very difficult. I mentioned it to a few #bookstragramfriends how I can’t concentrate and how my mind just wanders off.

Again, not to be so overtly witchy, but I wanted more spells. I wanted some badass Hoodoo/ Voodoo/Santeria practicing women creating a mutiny. Nothing like that at all. Also, I detest stories that jump around in time and every chapter was just that. It requires more attention than I was interested in giving, but still plowed through this book.

Let me know if you’ve read this or if you’re interested in reading this.