Book Review: River Woman, River Demon by Jennifer Givhan

 

From the publisher:

When Eva’s husband is arrested for the murder of a friend, she must confront her murky past and embrace her magick to find out what really happened that night on the river.

Eva Santos Moon is a burgeoning Chicana artist who practices the ancient, spiritual ways of brujería and curanderisma, but she’s at one of her lowest points—suffering from disorienting blackouts, creative stagnation, and a feeling of disconnect from her magickal roots. When her husband, a beloved university professor and the glue that holds their family together, is taken into custody for the shocking murder of their friend, Eva doesn’t know whom to trust—least of all, herself. She soon falls under suspicion as a potential suspect, and her past rises to the surface, dredging up the truth about an eerily similar death from her childhood.

Struggling with fragmented memories and self-doubt, an increasingly terrified Eva fears that she might have been involved in both murders. But why doesn’t she remember? Only the dead women know for sure, and they’re coming for her with a haunting vengeance. As she fights to keep her family out of danger, Eva realizes she must use her magick as a bruja to protect herself and her loved ones, while confronting her own dark history.

A psychological thriller that weaves together the threads of folk magick with personal and cultural empowerment, River Woman, River Demon is a mysterious incantation of reckoning with the past and claiming one’s unique power and voice.

My thoughts:

This book is a paranormal thriller. That being said, it would be a thriller even without the paranormal aspects. Eva Santos Moon makes a perfect main character. We are seeing through her eyes and from her perspective. It's hard for her to tell exactly what's real. So, it's hard for us to know also. That alone is frightening. Add in that her husband is being detained for the drowning murder of a close friend of theirs and that ratchets up the tension and suspense. 

This book works well as a paranormal thriller because of the ways that Eva and her family handle Majick. When Eva asks for supernatural help, it really starts the part of the plot where mystery and Majick intertwine.

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars. It's a page - turner. I liked the characters readers are supposed to like, and didn't like the ones we're not supposed to like. I didn't like some of the choices the characters made, but it made them more real. I would recommend this book to people who like paranormal thrillers as well as those who like a story where Majick is accepted as real and attainable.