In a different world, perhaps running parallel to our own, witchcraft is not only real, but it’s taboo. Witch accusations and burnings are ordinary. Even more so, unmarried women are also taboo. Years after her mother’s disappearance, Jo still misses her more than ever. As she approaches 28, she needs to think about getting married, lest she needs to register as a witch.
The Women Could Fly ties many real-world issues into the storyline. I’ve always said that you don’t have to like a character to enjoy a book but getting to know Jo was difficult. Her mother was an awful person, but I understand Jo’s yearning for her. Jo’s life was a daily repetition that didn’t work for me, making the book skim-worthy in places. While this book isn’t wholly for me, I feel it will be relevant for many.
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About the Book
Josephine Thomas has heard every conceivable theory about her mother’s disappearance. That she was kidnapped. Murdered. That she took on a new identity to start a new family. That she was a witch. This is the most worrying charge because in a world where witches are real, peculiar behavior raises suspicions and a woman—especially a Black woman—can find herself on trial for witchcraft.
But fourteen years have passed since her mother’s disappearance, and now Jo is finally ready to let go of the past. Yet her future is in doubt. The State mandates that all women marry by the age of 30—or enroll in a registry that allows them to be monitored, effectively forfeiting their autonomy. At 28, Jo is ambivalent about marriage. With her ability to control her life on the line, she feels as if she has her never understood her mother more. When she’s offered the opportunity to honor one last request from her mother’s will, Jo leaves her regular life to feel connected to her one last time.
Rae's Reading Lounge 
Nice review, Rae. I agree, sometimes a book isn’t for me, but I’d know that others would enjoy it.
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