Tag: toil & trouble

ARC, Four Star Book, Memoir

Toil & Trouble ARC Review

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You

“Here’s a partial list of things I don’t believe in: God. The Devil. Heaven. Hell. Bigfoot. Ancient Aliens. Past lives. Life after death. Vampires. Zombies. Reiki. Homeopathy. Rolfing. Reflexology. Note that ‘witches’ and ‘witchcraft’ are absent from this list. The thing is, I wouldn’t believe in them, and I would privately ridicule any idiot who did, except for one thing: I am a witch.”

For as long as Augusten Burroughs could remember, he knew things he shouldn’t have known. He manifested things that shouldn’t have come to pass. And he told exactly no one about this, save one person: his mother. His mother reassured him that it was all perfectly normal, that he was descended from a long line of witches, going back to the days of the early American colonies. And that this family tree was filled with witches. It was a bond that he and his mother shared–until the day she left him in the care of her psychiatrist to be raised in his family (but that’s a whole other story). After that, Augusten was on his own. On his own to navigate the world of this tricky power; on his own to either use or misuse this gift.

From the hilarious to the terrifying, Toil & Trouble is a chronicle of one man’s journey to understand himself, to reconcile the powers he can wield with things with which he is helpless. There are very few things that are coincidences, as you will learn in Toil & Trouble. Ghosts are real, trees can want to kill you, beavers are the spawn of Satan, houses are alive, and in the end, love is the most powerful magic of all.

– Goodreads

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love reading about Augusten’s life. I’ve been a fan since Running with Scissors and this new novel did not disappoint.

Thanks, giphy!

What I liked:

As I said, I’ve loved Augusten for a while now. His life is so interesting, but I guess it’s always interesting when someone other than you is facing grief and trauma. Not all of Augusten’s life has been sad, but he’s seen some shit.

I loved getting to learn about him being a witch, the way he can just know when things are going to happen, the spells he casts. He takes you through what it’s like to be an actual witch. It’s super interesting.

The story goes present to past and back again. We get to learn about him learning he’s a witch, the people who taught him how to harness his abilities. We get to see the present day life of he and his spouse, Christopher. We get to see how he uses his powers now. Honestly, I’m a little bit jealous.

What I didn’t like:

Nothing! This book was just as good as his past ones.

Would I recommend?

Yes! This is a perfect book for Halloween. Its such a fast read that pulls you in. I loved it!

Until next time…