Review by Booklist Review
There's power in a union, and in this union that power is augmented by witchcraft. In an alternate version of the history of the labor movement in Lowell, Massachusetts, the mill owners, rich men who live in Boston, are concerned with profit above all else. When they raise the boardinghouse fees, the mill workers--the weavers and spinners, all girls and young women--organize. They don't just put together a list of demands and strike in this version of history, though. They also weave their hair into an unbreakable bond, and their sabotage requires sympathetic magic from every one of them. As the central organizers struggle with the challenges of surviving without pay, they keep their eyes on the potential benefits of winning the fight for better wages and hours while dealing with the very real consequences of betrayal. There is also a sweet romance sub-plot. While this is not a long book, Malerich (Fire and Locket, 2019) packs a lot into the story, with a satisfyingly positive conclusion and a timely reminder that the work for justice is never-ending.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
YA author Malerich (Fire and Locket) makes her adult debut with this spellbinding account of a group of textile factory girls in Lowell, Mass., who form a union after their boardinghouse rent is raised. Their demands are simple: higher wages and working conditions that won't slowly kill them. Judith Whittier, who spearheads the effort, and Hannah Pickering, whose lungs are compromised from inhaling lint, have a plan to make sure their strike doesn't fail. Hannah, a Seer, has a connection to magic, and though she's never cast a spell before, she and Judith convince the other girls to bind themselves together so that none of them can break their strike until their demands are met. The spell works, but the factory owners bring in new workers, and the union members struggle to get by with their funds cut off. As tension rises in the ranks of the union, Judith's feelings toward Hannah change into something more than friendship, and Hannah's health continues to decline. With Hannah too ill to help, Judith makes one last, magical bid for the girls' places at the textile mill. The practical magic and genuine connection between Judith and Hannah are sure to charm. Historical fantasy fans won't want to miss this. (Nov.)
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
The textile mills of Lowell, MA, were built for profit, and the Boston-based owners decide that their returns will improve by raising the working girls' rent. In response, the girls go on strike, led by the tenacious Judith Whittier. Although Judith's experience in Dover failed, she has crafted a plan that involves her best friend, Hannah Pickering, and Hannah's talent for witchcraft. As the conflict comes to a head, the mill agent, Mr. Boott, is determined to break the strike and bring the girls back to the mills--or see them suffer. Tension rises as whispers of the spell work increase, and with Hannah's health at stake, Judith finds her drive and heart strong. Class struggles and industry exploitation are woven into a touching tale layered with magical and romantic elements. VERDICT In her adult debut, YA author Malerich (Fire & Locket) has created a delightful historical fantasy shining a spotlight on New England history, making this a terrific companion to Alix Harrow's The Once and Future Witches.--Kristi Chadwick, Massachusetts Lib. Syst., Northampton
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Sisterhood, love, and magic blossom in this timely tale of protest based on a historical incident. In mid-19th-century Lowell, Massachusetts, the "mill girls" spin the thread and weave the cloth in the textile factories, all to the profit of the "Boston gentlemen" who own the mills where they work and the boardinghouses where they live. But when those very same gentlemen decide to raise the young women's rent by a quarter a week, the women decide it's time they had a say in their living and working conditions. Fierce Judith Whittier organizes the workers into a union and ensures their loyalty to the cause--and specifically, to their planned strike at the mills--with the help of her friend Hannah Pickering, a gentle and sickly Seer who bends her untrained magic into a spell that uses a lock of every woman's hair to literally weave all of them into solidarity. Now the union members are magically compelled to maintain the strike, but what will they do when the mill owners' agent, the hardhearted Mr. Boott, brings in new and more desperate workers to take the strikers' places at the factories? As Judith and Hannah seek a magical solution to their cause, they both gradually realize that what they feel for one another is more than mere friendship. A feel-good message of a marginalized community battling amoral, exploitative capitalists might seem a bit obvious, but it also feels empowering during these uncertain times, when so many are still effectively disenfranchised. If the story has a flaw, it's that it might've been richer with a higher page count and more development. The battle between the union and the establishment could have spawned additional twists and turns, more magic spells. Some more character development would also have been welcome; we learn a certain amount of Hannah's history, but we learn very little about Judith's backstory and even less about the other mill girls'. Slender but still well-crafted and satisfying. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
