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Help the Witch
Help the Witch | Tom Cox
16 posts | 4 read | 5 to read
'Often unnerving, frequently funny and always original, the tangled roots of these haunted stories reach into deep, dark places to unearth an alternative England' Benjamin Myers, author of The Gallows Pole As night draws through country lanes, and darkness sweeps across hills and darkness sweeps across hills and hedgerows, shadows appear where figures are not; things do not remain in their places; a new home is punctured by abandoned objects; a watering hole conceals depths greater than its swimmers can fathom. Riddled with talismans and portents, saturated by shadows beneath trees and whispers behind doors, these ten stories broaden the scope of folk tales as we know them. Inspired by our native landscapes and traversing boundaries of the past and future, this collection is Tom Cox's first foray into fiction. Funny, strange and poignant, it elicits the unexpected and unseen to raise our hackles and set imaginations whirring.
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review
Moll
Help the Witch | Tom Cox
Mehso-so

I gave this one a so-so because even though I liked most stories on their own, I liked some a lot more than others and as a whole collection I would have liked it to be a bit more cohesive. Worth a read though I'd say nonetheless!

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Moll
Help the Witch | Tom Cox

Story 10 - 'An Oral History of Margaret and the Village by Martthew and Five Others'

I'll be honest I didn't fully get this one, but parts of it got me thinking which can only be a good thing!

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom
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On a little solo dinner date and I must say it is an absolute vibe🥂

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom

Story 8 - 'Folk Tales of the Twenty-Third Century'

This one had 6 little folk tales and they all made me laugh😂 I enjoyed

Story 9 - 'Seance'

Another funny one that had me chuckling

blurb
Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom

Story 7 - 'Just Good Friends'

Another favourite, and another to read while drinking a cup of tea under a blanket. I like that this book doesn't portray ghosts etc as necessarily bad or evil

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom

Story 6 - 'Robot'

I think I liked this one - it got me thinking at least, particularly surrounding the uncertainty when it comes to the future

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom

Story 5 - 'The Pool'

I LOVED this one - now my new favourite so far

The way everything was described was so surreal & eerie; I got completely caught up in it

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom

Story 4 - 'Nine Tiny Stories About Houses'

Another interesting one - some of the stories were v creepy which had me finding the creepiness in the ones that were far less so

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom

Story 3 finished - 'Speed Awareness'

Definitely the creepiest and my favourite so far

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom

Story 2 finished - 'Listings'

This one was pretty fun too - I like the way the author is playing around with different ways of telling his stories. The first was told through diary entries and this was told through various property listings, newspaper snippets etc

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom

Story 1 finished - 'Help The Witch'

I quite liked this one, found it quite endearing - great to read under a blanket with a cup of tea

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Moll
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom
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On a train out of London this morning to go and see my client (they have a slide in their office, I'm hyped😂), so thought I'd do a spot of reading!

Kicking off this week of #Scarathlon2021 with Help The Witch!🧙‍♀️

slategreyskies A slide!? So cool!! 3y
Moll @slategreyskies Yes!! You can use it instead of going down the stairs and I did every time😂😂 3y
slategreyskies Yay! That sounds like fun! Our downtown library has a slide like that too, but it‘s hidden away in the children‘s department, and adults aren‘t allowed to use it. I wish we were, because it‘s awesome!! 3y
Moll @slategreyskies Whose idea was it to ban adults from using the slide smh smh😂 3y
21 likes4 comments
review
Emilymdxn
Help The Witch | COX. TOM, Tom Tom
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Pickpick

So quirky and original, intensely creepy and also poignant, sad, funny, all the adjectives. The first story Help The Witch was my favourite, but they were all great reads and perfect for #scarathlon2020 if you‘re looking. Full of empty moors and whistling wind, very classic ghost story mood but from new angles.

#teamharkness @StayCurious have all the points on spreadsheet but can‘t remember, +1 participation

rockpools Nice! Ghost stories aren‘t usually my thing, but I might actually be up for giving these a go. 4y
65 likes2 stack adds1 comment