The Bewitching- Book Club

Hello, Hello, this is Christina and Carmen and this is another episode of a Spooky Tales podcasts for all things as Spooky true crime Hunter places myths legends in Latin America, but not today. Today is a book club episode. Book Club, book Club, book Club. That's right, we are finally recording our book club episode for The Bewitching by Syria Garcia. And just a reminder about how these work. Some months before the episode comes out, we say, hey, we're reading this book next. Whoever wants to read with us can, and then we send out discussion questions. Whoever wants to answer them can, and then we just recamp the book and do discussion questions. At the end, there's like a brief five minute spoiler free section where we do like not even five minutes, but yeah that like two minutes. Yeah, so yeah, that's uh, that's how these book club episodes work. And uh yeah, hopefully we got some answers from people. If not, we didn't, will we'll talk about it. And I feel like a lot of people listen to it after they read the book. A lot of people, yeah, yeah, or some people. Some people listen to it and then based on that decide if they want to read the book or not. I have done that with other podcasts. No, yeah, I get it too. I do that all the time where I'm like, do I want to read this book? And then I'll listen to a full last spoiler recaps, full recap, and then I'm like, yeah, I do want to read it. I do the same thing with movies. Yeah, yeah, So I love a recap. I love I love a spoiler, A recap full of spoilers. We do, we do, that's just yeah famously. Yes. Yeah, speaking of spoilers, are you ready for a spoiler free synopsis? Yeah? Quick little summary. So, the Bewit Chain, by our favorite Yeah, follows three women in three different timelines. Alba in nineteen hundreds Mexico, Beatrice during the Great Depression in Massachusetts, and me Nedva in the nineteen nineties. Who's connected to both women because she is Alba's great granddaughter and she attends the same university as Beatrice. She is the lynchpin between the timelines. Yes, yeah, and then Beatrice is also the focus of Nerva's thesis. She's a grad gradically yeah yeah, And all women are facing dark forces, dark witchy forces that are possibly connected. Yeah, don't don't don't. Yeah, And that is our spoiler free synopsis. If you don't want any spoilers, now is the time to leave. Yeah, but before we do the recap, did you picture anyone any I did? I did? Okay, did you cast anyone in the movie of the Bewitching? I feel like Alba. I didn't have a specific actress in mind, but I was picturing like someone from the you know how they have novels that are based on like the old times, like something like that's when I pictured. But I don't think I pictured anyone specific, did you I know exactly what you mean, and I pictured the same Okay, Okay, you know what I pictured? You know the you know the cover of the Escianda. Oh my gosh, kind of like that. No, we're the same, because that's who I pictured for Alba's Okay, okay, wow wow twins. Yeah, and then if you're for Beatrice, I don't think really, I don't really think I pictured anybody actually for Beatrice. But do you know I pictured them? Yeah? H Do you remember a Night of the Living Dead? Night of the Living Dead? No, I mean I remember it, but I don't think I remember Okay, Well, there's like a distraught white woman in Night of the Living Dead. She's the one with her the brother. They go in the beginning to the parents' grave. That's where the zombies come out of their brother's like they're I get you anyway, her, that's who I pictured. Okay, I'm just picturing like someone like a like a plane, you know, middle of the road white woman from the Midwest. Oh, she's not like I wouldn't say plane, but she is. Oh nope, I didn't picture someone like that. Really feature someone more, you know what. You know how I'm picturing. I mean, I don't want to say plain like offensive, but I'm picturing kind of like okay, and I don't I know you didn't watch Euphoria, but everyone has seen clips here and there, and you know, I think her name is Judd or Mod No. Jud is a dad Apatow, the director. His daughter is a Euphoria mod I believe is her. I think her name is mod. I'm picturing her as Beatrice. I see it, I see it. Yeah, what about for Ginny? Did you picture anyone for Ginny? No? For some reason, I'm picturing like a redhead, like maybe someone like, oh, what's her name? From The Stranger Things and she's like kind of more petty sync. Yeah, yeah, we're on the same page. Oh yeah. And then I don't think I pictured anyone like in my head specifically, No I was someone like bitchy, real bitchy looking for uh. I'm like, yeah, the younger version of what's her name that's in like Midnight Mass and all the movies. But she was like the evil woman in Mass. Okay, yeah, yeah, I know who time. Yeah, just so the people listening can know Samantha Sloyan. Maybe even Angela from the Office, you know what. Yeah, maybe even bitch vibe. Yeah. And then the men, I didn't picture anybody, No, same, same, yeah, except for the guy that she supposedly ran off with. Oh sometimes. Yeah, I pictured bad Bunny, but I think it's because I had been listening to that's my number one artist this year. That's hilarious. Wow. For all the white men I pictured, like asi variation of Jonah Is from Superstar. Oh oh my god, what the fuck? This is scary because I did too, because he just has like that nineteen thirties face, you know what I mean? Yeah, yeah, generic white guy for Noah Noah. I pictured for Noah like a young Leonardo DiCaprio, but like snobby looking, you know, like what the hair slips back and put him in a suit. So he's not tall enough to be Noah. No, you're right, No, you know what? Who would be good? Did you ever watch No? Probably not the pit or Er. No, it's funny because his name is Noah no Wiley. But here let me show you. This is actually pretty spot on. Oh yeah, because his character is rich and snobby, but he becomes a doctor. He comes from like a rich family and he when he becomes a doctor, they don't like that. They think he should be continuing the family business. Oh okay, while you're looking for that, you know who I pictured for. What's his name? The other college douchebag in minas Timeline. Oh, the other guy Conrad. Okay, what's his name? Glenn? Glenn? Is it Glenn? Oh, Glenn Powell? Yeah, but from Screaming Queens. Yes, yes, Chad, I could see that. Yeah, so he's not in purple clothes here, but just picture him in purple clothes. Okay, I could see that. I could see that. Yeah, okay, so we've cast it almost Yeah, what about he though, Oh, I actually didn't even think about here. I am kind of picturing oh my god, what's his name? Just because he seemed kind of like funny and chill, you know, love Hard, the guy from that movie Love Hard. Yeah, I don't know his name, the guy who does the CAF machine Jimmy Yang. Yes, yeah, he's a yeah him, yeah, yeah, you know what. Yeah, I picture someone taller because he was so chill, oh maybe yeah, and more serious, kind of like that serious Asian actor who sometimes is a doctor. Really you picture someone serious. I kind of did for some reason. Really Okay, well, hence who you he was always trying to convince her to party. That's why I'm like, he's not serious, you know what? Yeah, yeah, yeah, but that's why I originally pictured Oh my god, what's his name? Oh, Daniel day Kim. Oh I know you're talking about No, no, no, no, maybe version okay, Like you're just like, oh, yeah, I haven't seen a young picture of him. That's why I've only seen him like, no, no, you're right saying, but maybe yeah, okay, okay, now that everyone's cast wait Neva, oh my god, okay, you know I pictured specifically sees and one of only mergers in the building. Mabel Gomez. Yeah, that's why I picture agree. Yeah cool, and then she gets like worse, you know, this season goes on instead of getting better. So that's why I said specifically season one. Yes, no, I concur then yeah cool. All right, Okay, everyone's been cast. Okay, And so we have three timelines going on in the book, right, and they are alternating, but we're gonna go through one storyline at a time, one timeline at a time, because it will be confusing to go back and forth. But that's how you read the book. I think to just recap it, that would be confusing. So yeah, keep that in mind as we're recapping, because like, as something happens in Nedva's story, it's connected to Betty's story or Beatrice, you know what I mean. So and obviously we won't have that as we go through the recap. Okay. So the story begins in nineteen eighty eight with Minerva remembering something that her visa Wila Alba, who she calls Nana Alba and will refer to her that way used to say. And she used to say, back then, when I was a young woman, there were still witches and I just love that and I'm sorry. When I read that line, I was like, I'm okay. I was always going to get this anyway again because it's Cela mon Garcia and she is my If she writes it, I'm buying it. Yeah. But when I read that line, I was like, I'm convinced. If I hadn't already been convinced, if you need a reason, yeah, those words would have convinced me. They're like right there, like it's like the first line. Yeah. Yeah, then when I was young, I could write the witches. Yeah. So yeah. She's at at her university, Stone Ridge, taking in the fall atmosphere when she hears a cry and she thinks it's like a peacock or an owl since the hangout on campus. Whatever. It's the end of the semester and she's doing her rounds because she is a I think they're called resident advisors. She's like one of the supervisors of the ras. And besides being an RA, she also has a scholarship and she works in the language lab. So she's burnt out. She's a burnt out, girly, stressed, depressed. She's been forced into like doing all this to try and because she's a she's a foreign student, it's from Mexico, and so she has to do all these things to continue her education. But obviously it's gonna leave to burn out. Yeah. Yeah, she's going through it. So because of everything, she feels like she's behind on her thesis. And at the same time, she's kind of used to juggling a lot of things because when she was back in Mexico she used to help take care of Nanaba, who lived to be one hundred and one one hundred and one. But you know, it's like that undiagnosed ADHD situation where you're doing so much because you need to be doing so much other why is you're depressed, But then you do so much that you your body is now it's like a side for now. Yeah, yeah, it's And then you lay on the couch for like a month, Yes, doing nothing. Yes, it's not healthy. I don't recommend not at all sidetrack about DHD. You can cut out if you want, but no, never I was. I was with our friend Nana the other day and we were we had driven to San Francisco for in Better with the Rite for their live show. And then yeah, and as you should be, and uh, we we didn't eat. I think we had eight before, both of us separately, so we weren't hungry on the way. And then we get there and then she's like, should we eat before? But we didn't have enough time whatever, and then I was like, oh, no, I'm not. I was like I'm not. I was like, I'm barely starting to get hungry. And I was like I usually wait home starving to eat. And then she's like because she she was like no with ADHD, like I took like C last year, two years ago, and she's like, yeah, that's because your neurodiverg And I was like what, And then I was you not heard that word before. No, I've heard that word, but I hadn't realized in relations to you to eating, to my eating habits, because I literally wait until she's like, yeah, you're you're diet, you're eating cues or all messed up. And she's like, I always bring snacks in me everywhere because if I don't want to get hungry, she has snacks. Now you did something, it's true, Yeah, well she was prepared. Yeah, yeah, I guess she learned that in therapy. Wow, this is a tool A tool that she and her toolkit. Yeah yeah, I literally wait until i'm starving to I don't know any other way to function. I did the same thing too, when I have to pee, I feel like it's a reward and this doesn't make any sense. So no, not you making that fas Okay, I used to feel like that more before. Now I really just go pee. But I used to be like, Okay, after I finish this sentence, I can go. I finished, yes, yes, and that again, it's all related to damn in my experience. To add again, we're not diagnosing anyone. We're just saying so in your experience, I did diagnose me, Minerva and you okay, yeah yeah. So anyway, Yeah, she's not doing her round, and she stops by one of the residence dorms check their summer stay paperwork, and turns out she hates his phone. This is Conrad. Conrad and Conrad's are typical annoying douche drowning in his privilege, and Mineva thinks that Conrad's annoyingness pushed his ex roommate Thomas to leave after winter break. Thomas never came back after that, and so Mineva's inspecting Conrad's dorm and she finds out Thomas left a few boxes behind, and we also get the hint that maybe there was a little something between Minettva and Conrad because of how they interact together, and later on we find out that they made out. Confirms yeah. And so then later Minetva's friend he There, comes over. They chat, we learned the topic of Minneva's thesis and also about her love of weird horror. So Mineva's doing her thesis on Beatrice Tremblay, an obscure horror author who Mineva discovered through Lovecraft and through her research. Minetteva comes across and I'm gonna call her Betty now because that's how she's usually called Betty instead of Beatrice. Yeah, Mineva comes across Betty's only published novel, The Vanishing, and her plan for the thesis was to look into the autobiographical elements of The Vanishing and tied together with New England's history and folklore, which sounds super interesting, sounds fascinating, very very and she was inspired to do this because on the first edition of The Vanishing there's a no one on the back that says was based on a true story. Also In some other letters that Betty wrote to other authors, she mentions that mi Nedva also felt called to Betty because the vanishing reminded her of something that happened to her Nana Alba when she was young, a disappearance tied to witchcraft. And this brings us to Carolyn Yates. Carolyn Yate, motherfucking Carolyn, who min Neeva found out has a personal archive of Betty's papers and letters. Min Neva's been calling Carolyn secretary to try to meet with her, with no luck. But the next night in min Neevah goes to a party that he they'll peer pressure her into going social anxiety and she doesn't like parties, so she doesn't really want to be there. Yeah, she does end up leaving when it's too much, and on her way out she runs into a drunk guy and this ends up being Carolyn's grandson, Noah Yates. Noah offers Minetta bout a ride for miss driver because they're rich. Who has drivers, you know? And he drunkenly invents her to brunch the next day and she shows up in a ballsy move. She shows up, Yeah, nobody thought she would, but she eats too. She needs to for her thesis, and she's a go getter despite her anxiety. So min Neva shows up to brunch the next day and Carolyn tries to brush her away because this happens often where Noah is drunk and invites girls over, but he's still a sleep when they show up, so she's like, you should just go. He's not going to wake up. And she's like, actually, I'm here to talk to you, and she's like what, But anyway, she explains all her effort trying to get in touch with her to talk about Betty's archive or to let her basically look into Betty's archive for thee says, and so Minerva does make a good impression on Carolyn, you know, with her work ethics, studious studiousness. And so she makes a deal with min Neeva that Minetva I can stop buying to look at the archive as long as she makes appointments with her. And during their brief talk, Minneva learns about Virginia Somerset, the girl who went missing which the Vanishing is based on, and Nouel referred to her as Genny because that's usually how they referred to her, and Carolyn says that Genny's disappearance wasn't reported because it was speculated that Genny ran away with a young, handsome man from Portugal, and this young man was named Santiago. Okay, bad buddy. And Carolyn takes min Neeva to the archive, shows her some of Genny's paintings, which she hates, but she kept because her late husband, Edgar Yates, who used to be engaged to Genny, kept out how weird writing Yeah. I was like, what do you mean you married? You're missing friends, fiance, But I guess she was never really her friend. Yeah. And Carolyn also shares that Ginny was a witchy spiritualist and that Betty also believed in the paranormal. And then she also shows Netva Betty's unpublished manuscript about Genny's disappearance, and this is how we follow that timeline through that manuscript. Yeah, And later on min Neva and Hidel chat about the manuscript and Minettva is making connections between Betty's story of witches and what Nana Alba used to say about the witches. Then they talk about moving needing to move Thomas's boxes out of the dorm and they're like, why Mi Neva's like why can't Thomas do it? And that's when they find out that basically no one's been able to get in touch with Thomas, not even his sister, since he left after winter break, very similar to say Genny's disappearance also around winter. Yeah, what a coincidence, very and min Neeva thinks about the last time she saw Thomas and realizes that it's been a minute again since late December, and that he was acting kind of weird when she did bump into him. It was straight up when her time, and he was walking around without a jacket and he seemed kind of like rattled. M That night, min Neeva has a little tiff with Conrad when she's went a rounds about regulations. He's broken. The next day she thinks it's Conrad because they had a little argument, but someone has painted two long black lines on the front door of her house and that's weird, like why Yeah, And then it wasn't regular paint, it was like a sticky, stinky tars substance. Yeah. Mineva goes to Carolyn's house again to review Betty's archives, and she chats with Noah before getting into her research. She learns that Carolyn hates Betty's book and again, I mean Carolyn mentioned this, but no repeaced. Carolyn only kept the archive going because of his grandfather, Edgar, and the same with Jenny's art. Two hours go by and Noah fetches me Nedva for them to have tea with Carolyn, and Carolyn asked her about the research, and during the conversation, Mineva learns that a lot of Betty's things got lost when she moved in with Benjamin Hoffman after her cancer treatment. That's like one of their friends from college, well not really Carolyn's friends. She's friends with no one, no, no, yeah. And min Neeva asked about Santiago, like, is there any employee records, you know, because it might help her with their thesis, and Carolyn asks, all weird about this, Yeah, She's like, how does that help you? I don't see any importance in this at all. Don't pursue this, yeah, But ultimately she does offer to have Noah show me Nedva the old factory, her family's old factory, and Noah drives min Neva back to her dorm before dropping her off. They do stop at this factory, but they only look at the outside because Noah doesn't have keys, the keys to go inside, and Minerva learns that the factory closed around nineteen eighty after it struggled for some time. Edgar Noah's grandfather. He also agreed with Betty that something paranormal happened to Genny like it was in a regular disappearance, and she for sure didn't run away with bad Bunny, right. Santanio santaniol yas Minerva goes to the campus library to look into the old student newspaper to see what she can learn about Jenny's disappearance. And these were stored I didn't fully understand the mechanisms of this thing, but they were stored in stacks or some kind of crank machine thing. Oh, I pictured, like I'm forgetting what movie or what show or what I was watching. Where basically they go down to like some old library or something and they have to like turn this knob okay, and then it like goes through these like literal physical documents. I wonder what that was, because I feel like I saw that too here or whatever that was. Yeah, I don't know, but yeah, okay, it's like you know how like posters are stored at them all Yeah, and like sort through them, but something bigger where like it flips through the old papers. It's fascinating. And so there's this like warning message posted on it for all the students, Like it says, before moving the stacks, check to make sure there are new people or stools between them. So Minerva looks to different issues and while she's looking, she well, someone turns the crank and she's about to get crushed by the stacks, but she manages to get away and she just falls in the process. And she looks around to see who the fuck almost killed her, but doesn't find anyone. Scary, Yeah, only that someone has crossed out the warning message. Yeah, there's like a lot of little creepy things that happened. Yeah. The atmosphere of this was Yeah, they weren't jump scartes. It was just like a one long like h what is happening? Eerie? Like eerie? Yeah. Yeah. So then he there and Minetta moved Thomas boxes and sheants up rummaging through some of his books. Then a piece of paper falls out of one of the books and min Neeva recognizes that drawings on it. She's seen it before at the Willows Building. And the Willows Building is one of the dorms. I think, right, is it not their old dorm, like, uh, Jenny and YADDI, yeah, Carolyn's old dorm, I think so. So she looks through more of his stuff and she finds a notebook full of similar drawings, which also resemble Ginny's art. He that was gone getting food, but Minetva, I hears something outside, and so she looks outside, and it looks like it's nighttime, but it shouldn't because not that much time has passed since he then left to get food. And even though she can't see anything outside, she knows someone is standing outside in the porch. Oh, like she can physically feel it. Yeah, yeah, like she's being watched. Someone is there. So then the next day or so, Minerva goes to the library to check out some of the books on witchcraft that Thomas had been reading or something like that. Yeah, he had like a list of like, oh, it's a list. Okay, I'm like I forgot where how these How she got these titles? Yeah, she came across. Yeah, yeah, and so and she also goes to use the phone and at the library, Minerva called thomas sister, and she learned that Thomas was tutoring Noah and he spent Thanksgiving was Carolyn and Noah. And then she also finds some of the books a History of Witchcraft Floor and there in that book she sees some of the drawings that Thomas and Ginny had been d both both had that book, yeah, and well, I don't think she knows yet that they both had it, but she recognizes the art and she learns that these oh I see. Yeah, she learns that these uh marks are epotropaic Marx hopefully that's how you pronounce that, and they're symbols of protection against which oh. Yeah. So she checks out that book and another book on medieval bitchcraft in England, and then she meets up with Noah and she asks him about Thomas and he's like, well, Carolyn invited him for Thanksgiving because she felt sorry for him. And then while she's there, she also gets to you know, look more into the archive and do her research for her thesis. But she also talks with Noah a little bit more, and she learns that that he's on ghosts at the family factory and then he they basically agree for him to take Minettava to the factory the next day before Carolyn gets back, but once Minettava gets back home, she sees a dead rat with us like sticking up and this is something that Ginny also saw. Yes, yes, the threats are getting more serious. Yeah, they're they're escalating. Mine and Noah go to the old factory. It's creepy and run down, and then they get coffee and he shares a little bit about his family. Basically, they marry for money, not for love. The great uncles were not cut out for the family business. Carolyn is cutthroat, and his parents died from a freak accident but a coincidence. Yeah, and Noah also shares about something called the Blacklist, which was something that Edgar and Betty kept going and it was a list of mysterious disappearances from New England. Later on, while doing her rounds, Minetra feels like someone is following her and she realizes that the normal path she takes just keeps going and going weird. Yeah, she feels Hella frazzled and like. During her state of frazzledness, she remembers Nana Alba's words, which is tricky, but she keeps walking until she falls and she stumbles upon Conrad and Conrad thinks she's drunk because how frazzled she is, and she thinks he was the one following her, and he's like, no, you're fucking weirdo. Yeah, he was a little he was a little much here. I'm like, Conra, calm down. Yeah, you see, she's frazzled. She starts recording her Conrad, Yeah, come on, Conrad, fucking Conrad. And so then min Neva when she gets home, she tells you that what happened? And he's like, uh, girl, what because she s asks someone invisible was following me? Yeah, and so he's worried. He's like, girl, are you okay? The pressure is getting to you? Yeah, please get some help. The next day, min Neeva has tea with Carolyn, who asked about her progress with the deil and the research. Min Neerva takes this opportunity to ask if Genny was that thing we're during the days leading up to her disappearance. But Carolyn plays off Mineva's concerns and she's like, why are you keep bringing Jenny up? Yeah? Yeah, And Carolyn asked me Nedva about her scholarships, her financial situation, and she ends up offering to pay for Minerva's room board educational living expenses for the upcoming semester to allow Minerva to focus on her thesis. And she's like, apparently she's done this for many students in the past, is what she tells. Uh, but she doesn't say what students here? No, she doesn't like who was on her list of recipients. Yeah, and but later we find out students like Thomas. Yeah, like Thomas. And when min Neerva gets home, she has a horrible headache, almost like the headache is warning her or something almost like important. Yes, yes, sadly she does the Carnstein her cat. Yeah, the cat is dead. Unnaturally it's Nick cather beIN twisted a little bit, a little bit. Yeah, it's pretty bad and he's dead. So then she calls he then on a panic and she's like, someone's bewitched me, And he's like, girl, are you okay, Chica? I think you need some help? Yeah yeah, And so she agrees to contact heal services, but instead she makes a protection charm as she should, from one of the stuff birds. And it's a little bird that we see in the cover. Yeah, yeah, this uh one with the pins on it, like it's wing. I love that she like someone else maybe would have been like no, no, this isn't real, this isn't real. But she immediately clocked in and she's like, I'm being bewitched. I need to protect myself. And because of all the stories her and how she was like no, and it's it's wild because I got another book. This wouldn't have happened, because you have this studious person in very deep academia at this point who maybe wouldn't embrace this folklore stuff. But she is not like that. Yeah, and maybe because she's so into horror. And also all the stuff her sugar with the Mexican Yeah, which tells and uh you know kind of like oh it could be real. Yeah, she's not denying, she's embracing. Yeah. Yeah, and it saves her life really yeah. Yeah. The next day, Minerva meets with Benjamin, the man who is Bessy's with Betty. Yes, thank you. I was like, who's Benjamin? And Benjamin tells Meneva he was friends with Edgar first, and that's how he came to know Betty and they bonded over being different because he was a sexual and she was a lesbian, so they would be each other's dances, sorry, not dances, dates for dances. Hasn't say beards? Yeah, yeah, they were each other's beards for dances, you know, to keep up with appearances and whatnot. Yeah. And Benjamin shares that Betty spent the last years of her life with him. She had no family around, not much money since she worked as a copy editor. He never believed that Geny run off with Santiago because he actually did some investigating into this. He tried to report on it for the paper he was working for at the time, but it was shot down. But in his investigations he found out that the timelines they don't add up. No, Santiago actually went missing five days before Ginny, and it's unlikely they eloped because he had just landed a full time job with Carolyn's family's company. And Benjamin tried to talk to the other workers to learn a little bit more about Santiago, but Carolyn's dad shut him down. What a coincidence? And Benjamin also learned that Santiago left all his belongings behind, so it's like, really doesn't make sense that he ran away, right, all his things are still there. They would have packed their stuff up to run away together. You would think, right to start a new life together. Yeah, you gotta have some things, right. Yeah. So then Benjamin brings some boxes of Betty's belongings and in them, Minneva finds the Blacklist, where Betty and Editar kept track of all the weird disappearances in the area. And Benjamin also tells me about how weird he thought that it was that Carolyn swooped in on Edgar real quick after Deny's appearance, and he's like, that is so distasteful. Yeah, he's like, what kind of Yeah, distasteful, Yeah, and yeah, and he also he's like, Carolyn, her dad, they were just users of people. They're trash. Yeah, And okay, this is when the light thing happens. When minever gets hold, she's looking through the Blacklist, very eerie, when all of a sudden there's light shines through her windows and at first she thinks it's a car, but she looks outside and there's no car there, and it's not really like a car light. It's a soft green, wispy missed that turns into a sphere or like a ball, a ball a ball. And we say that because as mostly everyone who listens will know the which is uh signed or tell whatever? The ball of the fire and it's a witch and so there's a little green also Theuci legend. It one of the like supposed real accounts of in somewhere in Mexico. I forgot where in like the nineteen sixties people say they saw like a green mist. Oh I didn't remember that. Yeah, that's what I liked here. I feel like there was like a lot of little like lore of different witches legends. If someone's gonna get the correct lore from a bunch of different places, it is, Yeah. And so this fear gets closer and closer to the window, and then the phone. This part was so creepy. I thought the phone start drinking, but when she answers, the line is dead and it keeps drinking. So then she does connects the phone classic core movie, y it was it was. And then there's a knock on the back door, which turns more into pounding, and then something starts scratching under the windows, and then it spreads all over the house and then the heart the house starts to shake, horrifying, so creepy. And I mean Neva's from Mexico, so she knows earthquakes and She's like, this is not a normal earth squeak. Yeah, it calms down whatever. But the next night, Neva goes to the same friends party from before, also peer pressured into going by Hideo and but she ends up feeling anxious and overwhelmed. She steps out for some air, but when she's outside something it's the lamps un to the ground. It's getting worse, yeah it is. And she's still on the ground outside when Noah pulls up and he's like, what happened? Are you okay? And he tries to ask her what happened, but she doesn't know who to trust, so she doesn't tell mem anything. And then he's like, what the hell's wrong with you? Why won't you tell me? He's like, I thought we were friends. Yeah. And then the next day Minneva meets with Christina Everett and this is Thomas's advisor. Oh okay mm hm, And so Christina tells Meneva that Thomas was looking into for his thesis into ectoplasm, spiritualism and art, focusing on American artists, one who attended Stonewidge Ginny, and Christina shares that Thomas was a little weird. He was a witchy guy, he used a wigi board and Terry Card's and Minneva remembers that there's a break in earlier at the Joys House and she found a wigi board and lit up candles. I see theead this is Joy's house, and then there's the Willows, So I'm like, it's the Joys House at the Willows. That's why I was kind of like a little confused about Yeah, but these I know they are buildings in the college. They't know. At the Joys House though, I think is the old dorm that Ginny and Betting were at. See, I thought that was the Willows, Okay, but I'm not sure. I don't fully remember. And Christina ends up giving me Nettva one of the books on witchcraft that Thomas had left behind, and when Mineva opens the book, she sees that Ginny and by this point she recognizes Jenny's handwriting from everything she's been looking at, but she sees that Genny wrote look beneath the floorboards on the title page of the book dun Dum. That night, Minevra goes to Jenny's old room, where she finds witch's marks on the door and on the window frames, and Minerva feels Genny's ghost there. She tried to She tries to speak to Jenny's ghost, and Jenny's ghost seems to respond by scratching a specific floorboard. So then she goes to that floorboard and within the gap she finds a note that Genny left behind, which has one name in it, one name a wind Grave. Oh, Carolyn, are wrong, my bad? And then man Neva hears footsteps in the hallway and she finds Carolyn that's okay, that's when and that's what I was thinking of when I was like, Carolyn, yeah, And she's standing in the doorway smiling like a weirdo. Yeah. And min Neva's she's put two and two together. She's like, oh, Genny couldn't say her name, but she could write it down. And Carolyn's like, well, not really me. It was my dad back then. It was him that writes me right, really with both of them, oh yeah, yeah yeah. And Carolyn says, she'll tell me Neva the truth. If min Neerva steps out in of the room, she can't touch her in the room. She's safe in them, right because all the protection marks and Genny's ghost mm hmm. And Mineva is like I'm not coming out, but but yeah, but Carolyn threatens to get he then onto a car accident, so then she said she can't do Is this where she mentions, no, one's parents are not yet it's on the way. Yeah, okay, okay. So Minerva goes with Carolyn because Carolyn threatens to you know, kill he. Basically she's like, speaking of car accidents, don't don't don't. Yeah. So they go to the factory and Carolyn's like, yes, this is where I kill people at the factory, and here is where I kill people. Yeah, cut me, and she tells Carolyn tells me, Neva, what happened the night that Ginny went missing. So it turns out that Ginny had attacked Carolyn with a pair of scissors, then ran outside into the snow where Carolyn's dad was waiting, because obviously at this point she knew you know who was builting her. And then they both chase Ginny and they'd hope she'd last longer because fear makes the blood taste better, apparently, Yeah, and they killed her, and they killed her because of her ability, just he ghosts, it makes her blood better, more powerful, right, They drink blood for saying young and power to keep the found business going. Yeah, Santiago was the same. He also had ability less than Ginny, but that's why he was picked to be killed. And they needed like a man and a woman for the ritual. Mm hmm. And and I should remember if I know, I did mention it later on because I remember we're reading this and it's switching from tailand to timeline. Yeah, we're doing one time at a time. Yeah, Like we learned that Betty overhears Carolyn and her dad talking about like but why him? Why him? Like about picking people and this is what you know is going on. They're picking who they're gonna kill for the ritual. M h And it turned out that Carolyn was one storting with Santiago and then she spread rumors about Ginny to cover her tracks, like fucking cage the one that they also supposedly saw with him was her. Yeah, and then yeah, like it was all part of their plan m hm. And if it wasn't for you meddling kids for Minerva. Yeah, And Carolyn admits to killing Thomas again for his blood because he has he also had some abilities that she sends after shaking his hand at some event, so then she plotted to get close to him and kill him by having him tutor Noah, and she admits to having killed several other students before, so she gets ready to kill me Neva. She puts on this little red plastic tunic to give the blood off for her. She's like, let make a dress, put my gloves on to hold them. It reminded me of Santa Cruid diet when they cover everything. Yes, yes, So then mine was like, why are you even killing me? You're already rich, And then Karen's like Carolyn's like, well, I'm running out of time because there's no descendants to pass on and show you know the way of their evil ways. And she needs Noah to have a grandkid to teach her evil what she waste to because the ability skipped him. And she also admits that she killed Noah's parents to get culture to him to teach him. But that's when she learns he doesn't have ability. Her ability skipped what her son. Her son rejected his abilities. Her son had the abilities rejected him, and so then she had him killed so she could take their baby, yeah and raise him in her ways. But turns out he didn't have the ability it skips a generation. Apparently sometimes yeah, I can. So. Then Mi Nedva cuts her wrist, but in the struggle she's knocked down by the goals. She can't get back up. She cuts Carolyn's wrist or her own rist. She cuts her own wrist, okay, thank you, yeah, and so she can't get back up, and then Carolyn's on her drinking from her wrist. But soon Carolyn starts choking coughing of blood and turns out Nedva, on the way to the factory, had been all day. She had mixed witch is poison, poison for witches into her coffee that she had been sipping on all day long, something she learned from Nana Alba. Nana Alba to the rescue, and Carolyn's like, you little bitch, how dare you when just when I was about to kill you she poison me. So then she's pretty much dying, but she still has a knife, and so she's about to stab me Nedva, but Mi Neva's like help from the ghost, and the ghost helps me Nedva by turning the knife against Carolyn. And this gives me Neva the chance to chop off her head. Because you have to chop off a witch's head, something she learned from Nana Alba. Yeah, and so then she chops off the head and Carolyn's body melts away, and it's now Halloween time. Noah stops spy while min Neiva is carving a pumpkin on her porch, and he's like, I'm dropping out to Boston because the Willows. Oh, I think the Willows might have been their house. Oh yeah, that's okay. The Willows is Carolyn's house. Yeah, that's very close to campus. Yeah, and so on campus. Yeah. And he's like, the Willows is too big for just me. And he's like, I haven't received any updates about Carolyn going missing. But turns out she was more sick than she let on, so there's speculation that she ended her life, and some message boards probably read it, yeah, are pointing to him as a suspect. And so they talk about that for a bit, and then they also talk about Neva and no One's like, oh, I can't imagine spending my life in academia. We're so different, but actually we're more like than you think. And she's like what On the inside, She's like what, because she's like, is he saying he also has does he know it's what she's thinking about the whole time? Likely? What does he know? So she doesn't say anything, tell him anything. She's just in her very quiet, observant way. She is so observant. Yeah, I feel like I reserved, am like her. But not. No, you're not. No, you would never keep it to yourself. I could be like that. I could. No, No, we're not. We're both being delusional here. No, are you serious? I am. I spent a whole year depressed on work. Nobody knew why. You're right, You're right, you're right. I don't even tell you twill months later. Yeah, I can't believe I am very reserved, Christina. That's not I'm a negative coping skill. It's not good. It's not. No. No, like like we were saying earlier, it's not only. But my point is that I could keep a secret like me Neva. Yeah. Yeah, and so really I am mean Neva And anyway, no one tells me Neva. And he's like, oh, hopefully we can be friendly, you know, keep friendly after I move away, And she's like, oh, we're friends, and he's like, well, we're not enemies, not yet. And she's like what what Inside She's like what. But so then she's like, well, she's feeling weird about this now because she's like Keith, this bitch knows something. So she's like, I'm gonna I'm gonna hind aside because I have to get ready for something. And he's like, oh, you're not gonna invite me inside and she's like no. But in the inside, she's like thinking, you never invite a witch inside your house. And but like he didn't have this power, so and Carolyn told her. But Carolyn could have just been saying that that's true. She doesn't know how much he knows. I feel like Noah's not like that, though he has like little moments where it seems like he knows more than he does. True, So I understand, See, you're already talking yourself into into sharing your secrets. You're right, min Neva's reserved because she's protecting herself. Yeah, it's yeah, it's an unhealthy coping mechanism that has saved her thus far. Yeah, but I just feel like the way that he the laziness, the the stuff that hurt that Caroline has been saying about him. But what if Carolyn left like a letter she's like, oh, this and this happened. You know, you don't know, right, And Carolyn was a sneaky bitch, she was she was, so yeah, it's kind of left up in the air. Yeah, and you can't trust the white man, so sorry, a rich white man exactly. So that was a min Neva's story. Alba's story, it begins with her busy prepping, getting the house in order and all bossing everyone around for the arrival of her uncle Arturo. And she's especially annoyed at her brother because he's like, what are we doing all of this for that bitch art He sucks, he fucking sucks. He but we hate him by the end, we really do hate him. Wait wait oh yeah, actually Arturo from from Teresa Prophet. Yes, wait yeah, that's so people know who we're talking about. Anyone who said yes, yeah, something like that. Yeah, that is who I pictured. But I think just because of the name Artudo. Oh anyway, although that there could be annoyed sometimes Alba is super close to him because they were born. Only when you're apart, which has a name. But that's apparently offensive. I heard it's offensive. Yeah, yeah, twins Albado seems to be in love or infatuated with Arturo, so there's it's a lot of uncomfortable moments between them. Yeah. Yeah. And Alba and her family are grieving their dad died only four months before he arrives and they're about to hold a mass for him. Ardro didn't come for the funeral, but he's there now for the mass, supposedly, but he's there to stay, supposedly to help the mom. Alba tells Artudo how hard things have been lately and how she hates all of the household duties that she's responsible for. What is she like, seventeen? I think so sixteen seventeen? Yeah, so yeah, it's her job now to help. And here we learned that when Alba's mom, Luisa, was sixteen, her mom died and Arturo was only two, so Louisa and the older sister Julia took care of Arturo because their dad had no interest in physically caring for him. And then when Arturo was nine, he went to live with Luisa and Alba's dad in the rancho Piedras Guebradas, and Arturo's eventually sent to a boarding school because he didn't really care for the rancho life. He wasn't built for it, despite Alba's dads ever to teach him, and so he was like a city boy, you know. He that's where he thrived TVH. Arturo is a dick and thinks he's better than the quote unquote simple people of the Rancho. But right now Alba is blind to Arturo's air of super superiority. Oh my god, air of superty, some superority, yeah, secret the mass, and she hasn't noticed he better than everyone. Yeah, he's very arrogant and above these people. They're beneath him. Dado, on the other hand, questions Arturo all the time, and he's like, why is this city boy here? And so he's like why is Arturo? Why did he bring so much luggage? And this is where Arturo says that he plans to stay and help Louisa out because their father's death had been very hard on her, and immediately is like, we don't need or want your help. I've been doing everything. I've been handling everything, and you don't even know shit about running the Rancho like you were sent to boring school. That's how much you don't know about it this life. And he's right later ur Tuo knocks on Albazdor And this is an awkward moment before you get in to that. I was just going to say, real quick, I asked, I really, I especially loved that those hatred of Dudo, same same, I loved it. I was there for it, I was seated. Yeah, and I like, I understand those were different times that things like that did happen. Yeah, oh that the Tuo and albating, Yeah Alba, but no, this is a real thing that does happen. Like because I know a lot of the reviews, a lot of the reviews incest. I can't get behind this discussing incest, but like, this shit did happen, and not only in Mexico. It happened everywhere where, every everywhere. And I I don't think by writing about it, it's not like she's not supporting it. She's not saying it's okay. Nah. If anything, I think it shows the the dynamic of the unhealthy, you know, inappropriate dynamic, and that Alaba was obviously, you know, the powerless one who couldn't help, but have this infatuation of you know, one of the only men she was around, Yeah, who she thinks is cool. And I think it happens living the life that she wants. Yeah, she admires him. It turns into something a little more, you know than that, because maybe she's growing up, you know, yeah, hormonal whatever. And sometimes it happens like younger people will get crushes on their older cousins, their older uncles, and it's on the uncle the older people to not act on it because it's inappropriate exactly. But it's not like like, oh, this is completely okay, Like it's never comes across like that. No, not at all. But we needed to say that because some of the reviews people have been leavings like they think she's condoning it. Yeah and no, so yeah, this is aquamment number one. He knocks on alabaz door to give her a trinket that he bought her. It's a necklace with a pearl on it, and he helps her put it on in a very creepy, lingering, gross way to read about. And they're low key flirting. A few days past and it's now after the mass and friends of the family, the Molinas among them, were invited to visit them after the mass, and Alabaz chatting with friends and one of the friends points out how hot. Valentine is who works for the Molinas. Did you cast anyone for Valentine? Okay, maybe what is the show with a little girl of kids in La and my block? Yeah, the low gangster from that one that was Spooky's younger brother. Oh, because you know there's like young their teens Alba and Valentine. Yeah, like seven, sixteen seventeen, right, yeah, okay, diego tinoco. I could see that. I could see that. The friends also mentioned that Valentine is alba sweetheart, but al was like, oh my god, no he's not. But then Valentine walks over and he gives Alba some pink roses and he asks to ride with her back to Pierre Squevradas. And once almost everyone's gone, mister Reelina asks Tadeo if he's thought about his offer to buy the farm from Taddeo and was like nah, and Arduo's like unwarrantedly, but in the conversation he's like, oh, this sounds like a good idea. Fucking bitch that gets mad at Ardudo and he mean mugs him so intensely that the Molinas are like, yeah, we're gonna go. It's a company now. Yeah, we're gonna go. And then and Arthur don't argue about selling the farm about talks to Arturo about the argument. And this is our first glimpse. This is our first red flag, a real red flag about how shitty Arturo is. He manipulates by asking, are you mad at me? You want me to leave? I'll leave if you want me to, like turning around the situation, like, yeah, poor me, I have to go now if you want me to. Yeah. Yeah. I was like, no, I don't want you to leave. Actually I nodded a corner around a piece of yellow cloth just so you would come visit. And this is like little things people do, like wearing red underwear for love on New Year's same kind of shit. Yeah, And Arturo judgmentally asks where she learned that nonsense from talking down to her, saying that she's too old to believe in simple superstitions of peasants like a bitch. Yeah, And Alba tried to defend herself, saying her father used to believe in these things and he had portents just like her, and that she knew when Artua was coming because of the portins that she experiences. And they talk the more and Arduro is just fucking creepy. He tells Alba that Tado may belong there in the rancho but she's far too pretty for the rancho life. Gross disgusting, and again Alba is blameless here, Yeah, Alba, Tadeo, and Arturo go into town to run errands. Alban and Arturo goes to the pharmacy where they're weirdly flirting again. They run into Valentine, who interrupts her disgusting flirting and he excitedly tells Alba, you won't believe what I have. Arturo is so fucking annoyed, and he tells Valentine to properly greet his niece, and he's just so fucking rude to him this whole time, like, oh, is this how you say hi to a ladys? I hate him. Araba leaves with Valentine though, because he wants to talk to about issue that he's having with one of his horses. And then they see that Theo who seems to be arguing with the witch. And they noticed the witch because she wears out with the red stripe bringing down which all of the local witches from Los Pinos were Daalel tells him the witch was trying to sell him something, and he invites Valentine over for dinner. Daleo also agrees to stop by early the next day to look at the horse. At dinner, Daaleau mentions that the arm where the witch scratched him hurts, and he tells everyone that the woman talked to him about evil spirits. Valentine doesn't think that the woman bet Petoins meant him any harm and says that his family has bought he medos from her, remedies from her before. Artuau is a little bit about this, like nobody's even asking for his stupid fucking opinion, and he's like, people from the countryside are stupid for believing in superstitions, and it's like, shut them up. Louisa even tells Uda to stop being rude. Yeah, because he used to be obsessed with her late husband stories of w and spirits, and to me, this was another red flag right here. Yeah, what do you mean obsessed with this stuff? M hmm. Like and if you were so obsessed, then all of a sudden, you know, you're like, oh, you're acting like you're not, like, well, what's going on? What's going on? Yeah, what's going on? Especially the bloodiest ones, and they even caught him going to Los Pinos with the Destto Boy plenty of times, and Arduo defends himself by saying he only went because of the Destto Boy, but Luisa manages to change the topic again and this was all weird yeah already. When everyone leaves, Arduo has an inappropriate conversation with Alba about Valentine courting her and where he basically says in this conversation that as the man of the house, Taddeo will be the one to choose who's best She'll she'll slip into. But he says it all grossly like Bulger Dan's your uncles trying to be saying to you. Yeah. But then they make up and they have another gross flirting The next morning, after serving breakfast, Alba finds that Tao is not there, but she thinks something of it since he said he was going to leave early to go check out Valentine's horse, But then she starts getting worried once she walks into Dado's room to find a broken pitcher and a patch of blood under one of Dalel's boots which had been tossed by the headboard, and no one else in the family is really worried for some reason. Well, obviously Ardudo is gonna dismiss all this. Yeah, and then her mom is just too busy to be worried. I think at this point, yeah, at this point, yeah, I can tell that something is wrong her and that they will have this deeper connection. Yeah. Is there're only one year apart, so there are twins. Yeah. Albac goes to Valentine's place and her mom takes her, makes her take Arturo there. They find out that that theyo never made it, and Valentine ga there's a couple of men to go looking for Taddeo and promises to spling by later to give a an update. And Valentine does come back, but only with Taddeo's horse. There's no Tadeo, and he says that they found they found the horse by the river. A week goes by and the search continues, but there's still no sign of Tadeo. Albert, her mom, and ar Tudo go into town with the hopes of getting the mayor's help to put out a reward for anyone with information about Daddeo's whereabouts, which Artudo thinks is a waste of money because he wants all of that money, right, He's like, stop wasting my money. Yeah, that's my money, but Louisa insisted on it. That's her son, like yeah, come on, come on now. Albert pretends she needs something from the pharmacist so that she doesn't have to go to the mayor's house when she runs into Valentine, and Valentine shares rumors being spread by the townspeople about Tadeo's disappearance. These rumors include that Tadeo was robbed and death were dead, that he ran off with the girl, and that a witch from Los Pinos put a spell on Tadeo and killed him. But through her own she senses Alba knows that that they was still alive. Valentine suspects Alva's family has been cursed with bad luck. Luisa and Arturo get back, and Arturou suggests the higher a pi from the city, while Valentine suggests that they get a cleansing first, which Arturo immediately shouts down because he's a little bit yeah. When Valentine leaves, he starts tucking shit to Alba about him, calling Valentine foolish and dumb and believes blah blah blah. Yeah. Once at home, Artuau apologizes to Alba and she ends up breaking down in tears and he comforts her. But there's always this discussing weirdness when it comes to these two because of Artudo. Again, he is the inappropriate. We can't be normal. She's just a girl and he is a freak. But he's a freakish monster taking advantage of his knees. Yes, exactly, after all, he is a man. That night, Alba hears a shrill, whiny noise outside, but she can't figure out what kind of animal it is, and she opens the window and she hears it again, along with these scuttering noises, and she hears her a couple more times, but she still can't figure out what kind of animal this is. The next morning, the family finds that Theo's horse dead, dead Animalsanda Rancho keep dying and Albert keeps having nightmares of Taddeo. Valentine slops by and he insists to Alba that her family has been bewitched, and she low key agre agrees with him. Albat tells Valentine about the noises she heard the other night, and they fear it. It might be a de yo yokani, a kind of witch who sucked human blood and devoured the hearts of men. The worst kind of witch. Yeah. Valantine tells Albat to stay calm because witches get more power as her victims become more fearful. He tells her to put a pair of scissors in a bowl of water under her bed to keep any which away. He also gives her his necklace because it's been blessed, and they make a plan to go to Los Pinos next Tuesday while Arturo's gone. Before leaving, Valentine gives Alma one more warning once, which is get a taste of their victim's blood. Things get worse and they only get more powerful as they drink more blood and their victim falls under their spell even more. That night, Alba does the scissor thing. At the next morning, she finds the scissors are hell arrested overnight. It's like they were left out in the rain for months. Alba and Valentine go to Los Pinos to visit Missus Jovita for her help. Missus Jovita immediately tells Alba that there's a shadow upon her and that at the Yoyokani is hunting her family. She then tells them that at the Yoyokani is dangerous and that she needs to make Alba a talisman for protection, but it's gonna cost more than a bottle of ram and coins. Albas stars to feel dumb about having to come to miss Hobbida in the first place, because she's like, well, she wants her money. She's she's a calm woman, even more so when missus Kobita, missus are you're saying? Miss when missus Hobita asks for Alba's ring as a payment. But then missus Hobda correctly guesses that Alba has potents, and she warns Albat that that the yoyo Kani wants to feed from the blood of his victims, bewitches them, and that it was the yoyo Kani that ate that they all. Alba finally hands over the ring after hearing all this, and Missus Hobita gives Alabat the talisman. A dead dove was seven pins on it, the one on the cover of the book. She tells Alba it's stronger than the scissors. Then she tells al about to prick her finger on one of the pins because her blood will protect her, and warns her not to allow the the yo Yogani to drink her blood. When Alba asks about destroying the the yo Yogani altogether, missus Hobita tells her it's not that simple to do. Alba mentions to her that her dad used to say, to kill one, you have to cut the head off or carve their hearts out. Then they leave. Alba recognizes a woman this is the wish that she thinks curstadeo, but Valentine says that Dona Petua wouldn't do anything like that, and then they have a little argument about it, but then they kiss. Then they kiss, yes, and I was like, yes, this is an age appropriate relationship for you. And they were so sweet, like he was so sweet, and it was just like young love, so innocent, your age appropriate again, like you said, yeah, yeah, yeah, no weird no, weird things yeah on here in this relationship. Yeah. And he's respectful and kind of not working, you know, all those valid use and apparently good looking according to Alba's friends. Yeah, things keep going wrong at the Rancho chicken stop laying eggs, things like that. Alba's emotional and she tells her mom in front of their house staff that they're cursed and that it was dead, and this upsets her mom. She's like, don't be saying that in front of the staff, Like they're gonna swear and leave. Yeah, So Albad runs off to her room, where Arturo finds her. They have another weird, gross moment. During these weird moments, Alba always notices a shift in Arturo's moods or eyes, which she describes as dark. That night, Alba sees a ball of light near the trees, which she immediately clogs as a witch. This ball of fire emits an owl like sound, but Alaba knows it's not an owl, and she's overtaken by an immense by any mental fear that she's never felt before. She runs to her mom's room, but it's gone by the time they make it back to Aliba's room for her to show her mom, and her mom doesn't want to hear this shit. She doesn't want to hear about witches from Alba. She tells Alba she's acting like a child. I have enough on my plate. Yeah, She's like, I don't need to be thinking about fucking witches. On top of all this shit. She's like, your dad died, that they all was missing, and I still got to keep this house running and shut the fuck up. And now you're over here talking about the witch. Shut up, shut up about the witches. Shut up a bus and son. Yeah. Alba finds herself remembering her kiss with Valentine, and then her thoughts drifts off to wishing her Doudle her Deol would kiss her. Sorry. Yeah, and she's like what the fuck and reads the Bible as soon as she can to repent. But you know, in a repressive society where church is so important, you you have these kind of gross thoughts instead of normal, healthy sexual thoughts. That's where the taboo, really, what's the word I'm looking for drives? Yeah? Yeah, yeah, and this repression yeah, and that's why predators can find such easy find dollus in these high control environments. Yeah yeah, Okay, back to her repenting. That night she dreams that's someone sorry, she repents for no reason. Yeah, okay, So that night she dreams that someone kissed her, was kissing her neck when all of a sudden she fell. Whoever or whatever it was bit her, and all she sees that night is two large eyes fixated on her, and the next morning she sees that she has a cut above her heart. She scared and so she asks Valentine to go to Los Pinos with her. But before she leaves, l Rancho Arturo's acting kind of weird, asking if she's getting sick, that she looks tired. Weird things. Yeah. When they get to Los Pinos, they see Jovita, who pretty much tells Alba she's fucked because she's learned that the witch has bitten Alba. Valentine tells Alba they can lure the witch and trap it, just like the old stories, say, let me find it, and are you going to read this part? This part was fucking cool. Yeah, that's why I'm in it. Okay, So Valentine says, we'll do as the story say, We'll lure it and trap it. Alba looks at him. Valentin was nodding, yes, like in that story. My grandfather used to tell. We wait until night falls, skin an animal and lay its dead carcass upon the ground. Then we wait in the shadows until the scent of blood draws the the yo yokani out. When it approaches, we take a cord and tie a knot, then say some words, then tie another knot and say more words. Once you've tied twelve knots, it will be trapped. Then you can kill it. And the word are. The first word is earth. You tell it that you're holding it with earth. Then you say you're holding it with water, then with fire and air. You say it again. We reach twelve. Once you've begun tying the knots, you can't stop speaking. That's a trick. It might try to scare you or trick you, but you must keep going. Amazing. They kiss before going their separate ways, and Valentine says he'll go into town that evening to get his bullets blessed. And he tells all about that, Sorry, I said the word. And he tells all about that he should start, Oh, that he should start properly courding her instead of this what they've been doing. Yeah, and they're the cutest, Like I know, I love them. I was also, Yeah, I was devastated. We'll get there, We'll get there. Yeah, No, I was too. Alba's dream keeps. Alba's dreams keep getting worse, and Alba ends up getting a portent that's a terrible will happened so she asks her mom she can ride to the Molinas because she's worried something has happened to Valentine. She tries to make up an excuse to go over there, and Ardudo convinces her mom to let her go, but offers to join her. When Alba gets to the Molinas, she learns que Valentine he just died thirty minutes ago. Her portents are like very spot on. Yeah yeah. Alba gets overwhelmed at the church service for Valentine, and when she steps out for some air, she overhears some of the talentspeople say that a mountain lion couldn't have clawed Valentine, like that that was witchcraft, and that he was on his way to Piedrasquevradas, which is cursed, which is their rancho Yah, their curse Rancho. Arturo finds Alba Sabin and promises her that they'll leave this curse rancho. But Alba gets a portent or image of Valentine's death and she vows to event his death and kill the witch and just so sad, yeah and so yeah. She literally gets a play by a play in her mind of how that died. That's how she knows Valentine. Oh my god, sorry, I keep getting the confused Valentine. Yes, Valentine. Yeah. And so she's gonna avenge her man. She's gonna follow the plan that her and Valentine had in the first place to kill the witch. And she does this first part. She sets the trap with a dead rabbit, and soon a creature appears. And now you're going to the page, Yeah, because I want to describe what the creature looks like. This was so insane as a thing closer to the dead rabbit, sniffing and hissing, it seemed to drag what did a veil of shadows so that she could not see clearly, even as she noticed certain details of its anatomy. She saw the line of feathers running down its bony spine, the talons like those of an owl, the slick skin of an eel for those for this was a creature of impossibility, neither mammal nor bird, but something in between that moved the gliding smoothness of a snake. Creepy, very creepy. And so once the creature starts eating the rabbit, she starts biting it with magic. But during the spell, the creature tells her to stop Indadel's voice. She tries to keep going, but it's having hard time, and then it springs forward, pinning her down. The creature starts choking her, so she shoots it. As it's dying, the creature turns into Dadeo. I'm like, how much can she fucking go through? Man? Yeah, that's enough. Yeah, and then she nails her brother. Oh my god, because the witch turned him into this creature. But she didn't know it was him. She thought with the witch, oh my god. Oh and sorry, Dale's body just disappears after she Spanish just kills him. Yeah, and he's like, you must live on Yeah, very beautifully said, yeah, I was crying. Yeah. Alba's mom and Arduro leave for the town to meet with the mayor, and while they're gone, Alba takes advantage of their absence and goes to Los Pinos to speak to the witch that she thought bewitched Dado. Perpetua tells Alba that she is not the one hurting her family. She was only trying to warrant Dado, and Perpetua is surprised that Alba hasn't figured out who the witch is yet, since she has you know, yeah, she has to know, but she doesn't want to know because Alba has a gift of portents and he is also gifted, and it seems to run in the family. Before revealing that she's talking about Arturo, Perpetua says that he used to come with the DeSoto Boy. And this is where I was like, oh my god, really there, Yeah, I didn't realize it was I do. Oh wow, I was a little slow when I was reading this. Anyway, Well I knew something was wrong. Yeah, like I knew he was there was something super off about him. So here I was like, yes, that's right, he is the one doing all this anyway, So he used to come with this the boy, and he soon asked a lot of questions. Abat doesn't believe, and I'm like, come on, but she doesn't want to. You know what's so funny when when she was like, I'm surprised you haven't figured it out yet. The which craft whatever runs in the family, and he whatever has abilities like you blah blah, and like I kept picturing them the same from the office, when Oscar's asking Dwight where him and Angila did it, and he's like, you know where, and then yeah, was like, he's like, where do I where? And he's like I just like smiling. Yeah, pictured, But you know what I think at the same time, Artudau really did well for himself when he he did what was talking so he ar Tudo really did well for himself when he was talking shit about these superstitions. Yeah, because he like, it could never be him. Yeah, exactly, And he's this sophisticated city boy who would never stoop to that lave. So yeah, I think that's one of the biggest reasons she doesn't believe it's him. She can't even fathom that it's him. Alright, where was I? Alba doesn't believe pert Petua so Berbeto was like, all right, set a test for him to place. The test is for her a place of flower against his lips while he's sleeping, and if he's a warlock, it's going to wilt. Alba refuses to accept that her uncle would be evil, and she accuses Perbeta of cursing him to become evil to what end? Al to what exactly? Yeah, come on, Alba. Perta is so chill about this because she's like, no, you'll see, child, you will see. And she also tells albat that Arturo killed her daughter, Elena. And in an earlier scene that we might have skipped and Arturo are having their gross flirty moments and Alba tries to guess the name of Arturo's supposed girlfriend and she actually guesses the name Elena, and he gets so upset at this, and this is why, and I wonder if it was like her subconscious and her witchid senses, Yeah, that told her to say the name Elena, but she didn't even think about that. She just was guessing randomly, so she was writing, and yeah, he gets super upset at this. Perpetua tells Albada Arturo is a te yo yo kani and that he ate Elena's heart raw because she had gifts too and it would make him more powerful. Perpetua shows Alba her hands. She's missing three fingers from one hand from when she tried to kill Arturou, and she explains that he turns his enemies into animals. And I think this maybe is when Albert starting to realize, oh my god, that's what happened to Dado and so yeah it is Ardudro. So yeah, just like the wild animal that killed Valentine and Perpetua tells Alabad that nothing can kill Arturo, and she tells her to just run away, but begs to know how, and so Perpetua tells her a story of a young woman who was being bit by a sorcerer and falling under the sorcerer's spell until they make the girl's blood poison to the sorcerer, and once the sorcerer was a sleeper unconscience, they cut its head off, which this is where Minerva got the idea. Yeah, she learned it from and he learned it from Peto, and this on the story goes. Just because I thought it was super cool. There is one story. It's about a young woman who finds herself under the spell of a sorcerer. He flies into her room each night and bites her on the neck. For six nights this happens, and her family is distraught because each day she grows weaker and sicker. But on the seventh day, her brothers consulting wise woman. The wise woman tells him to burn a painting of their mother, who loved the girl and has died. Mix the ashes with salt and the crush the wing of a moth, and place them in a cup filled with wine, whispered to the wine, telling it to protect the young woman. Then have the girl drink the wine and open the window to the chamber so that the sorcerer may fly in. The white woman tells him the sorcerer will drink. Actually, that's the clodest part, oh, the first part. Yeah, that's how you make the poison the poison. Yeah. Yeah, So if anyone, if this happens to anyone, just try that, remember that poison recipe. Keep that in mind for the Yes. That night, Alba does the flower thing, and sure enough it wilts once it touches Ardo's lips. But before she can leave the room, Ardros creepy ass, wakes up like he was he knew this was going to happen, like he has an Alba radar or some shit. He probably does, No, he probably does. He threatens Albyan to not screaming for help and confesses he needed to get rid of theo because he wouldn't sell the farm, and he also killed Valentine because of his medaline. He tells her he wants her to be his woman, that he knows she wants him too, and that she basically summoned him before letting her go, he bites her and kisses her. Alba is sick the next day, and when her mom checks on her, Alba tries to tell her the truth about Arturo, but she can't get the words out because her tongue is hied. Similarly to Jennie and god Jinny who couldn't write Carolyn's name or her dad Carolyn's dance name, and she wrote wing Grave because she couldn't say it, very same thing. Arturo and her mom talk about selling the farm when Alba's mom leaves, and when Alba's mom leaves, Ardudo to Alba is like, haha, I did that because he's a bitch. Yeah. Alba resolves herself to get rid of Arturo and end all of this because he's just gonna keep doing this. Alba goes to Arturo and asks what his plan is, and Arturo says, once he sells the ranch, they can live in Bachuco while he travels with the money, their money, the money he makes from them, and he implies that he's going to kill his dad and sister Julia to collect their inheritances too. All right, I did it, and he's like, come along so I can keep drinking your blood. He also confesses to hurting her while drinking her blood because he was jealous of Valentine and that's what when she has that dream of something biden her, it was actually him and it hurts her because he does that apartments. Yeah, because he's a bitch. Yeah. Arturo's like, I'll have you no matter what. So Aliba proposes a deal. She'll comply with him if he doesn't sell the farm, which Arturo agrees to. So she because this is she needs to do this to make her plan happen, right she They do it sex with Yeah, okay, it's disgusting. Yeah. After the data is done, she tries to cut off Arturo's head, but he wakes up as soon as the blade touches him. Albat manages to run away, but he catches her pretty quickly. He pins her down and starts shrinking her blood again with no restraint. This time, she kisses him as a way to distract him, and he falls for it because he may be a brujo, but he's a man above all. He does keep drinking her blood though while they're doing it. Wait, they do it again. Yeah, oh my god, it's like her way of distracting him. No, I know, I know. So they're doing it again. But after a while something forces him to slow down. His breathing becomes labored, and he's like, what have you done. Alba tells Artudo she's poisoned him, but she doesn't stop there. She swings and acts over Arturo. He tries to get her to stop. He tries to convince her they belong together, but she's like nah, nah, and she cuts his head off. Six weeks go by and Alba experiences important and she knows she's pregnant with the girl and yeah, no, not Mina's mom, Minira's grandma. Yeah, yeah, yes, m hm and yeah, and that's that. And in this part it's no longer like separating the chapters, like as Minerva is basically ending Carolyn, you also get like the paragraphs of this of Nana Alba and her like that's super cool. I thought, yeah, I agree, I agree. Okay, geminy De Beatrice, Yeah, okay, so now we're almost done. One more storyline, Beatrice, this is the shortest one, I think, Yeah it is. It's because it's the manuscript of Virginia of Jinny's disappearance. So it starts off with Betty reminiscing how hard the Great Depression was for the family, really everyone, and how hard it was for a woman during that time too, like, for example, they wouldn't get hired if they were married, and so, you know, she talks about her only options, and she's not rich like Carolyn, right, so she has to get her English degree so that she can have that to fall back on, you know, if things don't work out for her. So Betty talks about putting up with Carolyn's bed attitude when it came to Ginny, which was her then was her new roommate, because really it was a matter of survival for someone like Betty to be friends with someone like Carolyn who was rich. Right. Yeah, Carolyn came from the wind Grave family who owned the wind Grave Manufacturing Company founded in the eighteen thirties and had expanded all over Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire Hampsphere Hams. Sure, I've never said that state. I think. I don't think so, you Hampshire, Hampshire. I was about to say it the same way I heard, and Betty mentioned that Genny transferred to their college in the second year and that she was beautiful but she was new money, so she wasn't readily accepted by Carolyn and the other girls. And then on top of being new mini, she was Catholic, not Protestant like all the New England people. And she was a spicy white you know, they had barely become white Italians. Yeah yeah, so yeah, she was looked down upon by people like Carolyn and uh yeah, Genny was eccentric. She was a spiritualist, and she worded everyone out. But Betty, they became close friends, they became besties. Also, Beatrice liked her. Yeah, Betty had a girl crush. She liked her. Yeah. Yeah. And Carolyn and Jenny argued all the time, and this put Betty in a hard place because she couldn't really side with Ginny because she had to, you know, keep being friends with someone like Carolyn, have someone like that on your side. But you know, she loved she loved Ginny, but her love for Jenny was unrequited because soon Ginny and Editar got together. Yeah, Jenny was straight, she was not. Yeah, she wasn't for the girls like Betty was. Unfortunately for Betty. Yeah yeah, but would it happened so cute? It would It would have but then Carolyn wouldn't have wanted to kill her because of Edgar, you know, true, well that wasn't the only reason. Whatever. Eventually everyone in the house became friends with Jenny, at least amicable, and so things were financei October up until the Halloween Ball, when Betty notices a darkness in Jenny's eyes. Two weeks before Halloween, a young man named Santiago, a bad bunny, the man later rumored to have run away with Ginny, shows up at the house to work as a handyman, and the rest of the girls start making fun of Ginny that she's being flirty with Santiago, and really she's just being friendly. She's the only one talking. She's just being kind, She's just being a normal kind of person, right. But although back then we should know, like there was different gender norms and rules, of course, you know. Yeah, but so yeah, everyone makes in her. They think she's being flirty. She's not really being fluty because she loves Edgar. And so at the Halloween ball, everyone thinks it's weird that Carolyn is being overly flirty with Edgar. But more importantly, Benjamin tells a group about the wind Grave business not doing too hot, and he warns Ginny that Carolyn probably wants to steal editor from her for the money, and Jenny's like, no, there's no way Edgar would ever do that, and in fact, we just got engaged. Betty's heartbroken of course for Betty. Yeah, and my dream would have been for her and Jenny to just live together forever. Yeah, I would want that for Betty. Yeah. At the end of the ball, everyone realizes that Ginny is missing, and it's been over half an hour since anyone's seen her. When she does finally show up, she is She's running towards them and something's wrong. She's sobbing. She tells them that she was looking for Betty when all of a sudden there was a bend on the road and she couldn't see anyone. Oh, but she felt like, yeah, just like Thomas. Yeah, well, I mean this happened to yeah, And she felt like she was being stared at and followed, and she heard footsteps that didn't sound human, and she felt like breathing, there's breathing down her neck, but nobody was there, and everyone's like, oh, it's probably just some guy pranking you. Of course it's not yeah. So three days after the dance, Betty and Ginny and the friends they hold the seands also Virginia. Ginny can't talk to ghosts, and so she holds a seance because she wants to find out more about what's happened to her, and she wants to talk to her mom, who is dead, so her mom's ghost and so four of them are needed for the sands. So Betty, Ginny, Carolyn, and some other girl named Maryatte all participate and everything's chill until Ginny asks spirits, maybe seek your counsel, and then all of a sudden there's two knocks, quick one after the other, and the knock can get so loud. Well, then the knocking gets loud on the table shakes. Then Ginny gets all stiff, her eyes are wide open and she's like she says, you're in deadly peril for Ginya in a voice that's not hers. And when Ginny comes to she's just hella drained. She doesn't remember anything. And the next day is Sunday, and Sundays are when most of the boyfriends come to visit. Because all all contact between the two genders, it has to be supervised at the house so that's why they all come on Sunday. So all the boyfriends come on Sunday, but Edgar doesn't come, so Ginny stays in her and Betty's room alone. Betty wants to go upstairs to check on Ginny because she's worried about her, and then Carolyn butt in and she's like, can you be a third reel for me and David? She doesn't like David because she likes end her right, right, and she's only she says, I'm only keeping him around in case things don't work out with someone else, and she's talking about her yeah, but no one knows An is engaged right to Ginny, and Betty feels like she can't say no again because of Carolyn's position, right, yeah. And so then during this, Carolyn also tells Betty that she thinks Ginny just made up the whole saying thing that was an act and that Genny just wanted attention. So she's already like starting the bad reputation rumors of Genny. Yeah. And so when Betty's finally able to go check on Genny, Jenny's in her room and she looks outside and she says, sees Jenny talking to Santiago, but it looks like a normal conversation, nothing weird, and once Ginny gets back inside, she tells Betty that she was talking to Santiago about him needing a job and that she might Carolyn about it if there's a position for Cynthiago at the mill. And then they talk about the sands and Genny says that the spirit was frightened, So something's going on, you know, something that spirit would be scared of. M h. While they're talking, Ginny does end up sharing that back in California, she did almost run away with the guy that her dad didn't like. So that and she's saying this too to Betty, to Betty okay, not Carolyn, No, not Carolyn okay, because Betty goes to check on Ginny and they talk about Carolyn right, maybe getting a job for something that goes right, But Jenny tells Betty that Jenny almost ran away with the guy. Yes, right right. I just feel like she would have sent this to Carolyn, who then would spread like, oh, well she's did it before. Yeah, And she doesn't share it with Carolyn, but it does get around later and it is part of the reason her investigation her disappearance not really investigated. So it's November now and Betty finds that Genny's been reading books about witchcraft. She's obsessed, and she's also been acting weird, like she thinks someone's following her, watching her from the window. She's seen floating orbits of the lights hovering in the trees. And one morning, Ginny wakes Betty up and she rushes her outside to show her footprints by their window, proof that someone's been watching her. And that morning Betty hears Carolyn and Carolyn's dad. She hears Carolyn's dad telling Carolyn, you need to pick up the pace. Things are getting dire, and Karlyn's like a little bit easier if we only needed one, and she's like, why do we need two? And then the dad's like, well, you know why symmetry. Wow Wow, Okay, I must have not been paying attention because I don't remember this. Yeah. Yeah. So then Betty goes to talk with Carolyn. She's like, hey, I'm kind of worried about Ginny, and Karen's like, gosh, she probably just you know, wants attention again, and then they hears scream. So it turns out there's a dead rat in Genny's sheets. That's why she's screaming, just like the yeah, the dead rat that she saw. So then r after that, it thinks, give me a break. Everyone leaves and Betty comes back earlier because she needs to work. She's a working goal. Yeah, she needs money. Yeah, And she's surprised to find Ginny there at the house because everyone usually comes back way later. And it turns out that Ginny came back earlier than normal, earlier than planned, because Edgar got mad at her because she was playing. She was placing in prospective charms at his family's house, and she's just trying to protect herself. But he thinks doesn't accept anywhere except that he thinks she's creepy. But he regrets that. Oh, I'm sure because later on he does. But this has to do. This has to be why. He later asks, like obsessed will find out what happened to her? He's like, if only I had believed her, Yeah, yeah, And they also have another fight because during her trip, she comes back early because while she's over there, Ginny's dad calls her because someone sent him a letter expressing concern of her mental health. Probably Carolyn, I can only assume, Yeah, and so yeah, everyone, because then if the dad is like, you need to come back home, and then she goes and she disappears, right, make her job easier, Yeah, And so yeah, everyone thinks Genny's losing it basically, Yeah. After Thanksgiving, Ginny only gets worse. And who's there to step in, Carolyn? Wow, what a coincidence. So at this point Edgar is so worried for Ginny and he asks Betty to talk Ginny to seeing a doctor. And it's now December and one night Betty and the rest of the roommates can't find Ginny and one of them is like, oh, she's probably with Santiago, just a baseless rumor, and this actually pisses Betty off. She's like, stop fucking spraying shit around. They all the fuck She's not, are you, dumb bitch? And Genny gets home after curfew and she ends up telling Betty that she got lost coming back from the library because the path just changed again. This has happened before. Yeah, and Betty's then after right, yeah, and Betty is like, maybe she's seeing a doctor, but this only pisses Ginny off, and Genny talks about feeling like there's an invisible noose around her neck tightening every day, and that something terrible is chasing her. And Betty's like, maybe you should see a doctor. But Jenny, she's frazzled, right she walks out, She's like, it's there between the trees, hiding in the shadows. But they don't see anything once they get outside. But that night both of them hear a high pitched noise like an owl. Yeah, an owl. And so then we're at the day that Genny goes missing. Betty is working at a dinner party in exchange for being allowed to stay at stone Ridge or the win or break, and she's expected to work during the whole party. Betty tries to convince Ginny to stay somewhere else until two PM, which is the time that Edgar's supposed to pick her up. But Ginny's like, I'm fine, I'll be I'm fine. I'm safe in my room for many curses because she puts up those protective charms, you know, yeah, And Betty's like, oh my god, because she thinks, you know, Jenny's lost a goddamn mind. Yeah, And so before leaving, she's like, hey, if something happens, call me at this number. I'll be here. And around seven pm, Ginny calls Betty and she's like, I know who'll bewitch me, but I can't speak their name because I've been tongue tied. And then she's like, if something goes wrong, find bell, book and candle before hanging up. Whatever that means. Betty never finds out what that means. Yeah, and Betty streaked out, understandably, so she leaves a party. But when Betty gets to their room, Ginny isn't there, but her and her knitting stuff are still there. All her stuff is still there, everything mm hmm. And she's nowhere in the house either. So then Betty goes outside and she find the trail of footsteps and follows them. But soon the footprints just become a jumble of steps and they end near a tree. And on this note, there's a single drop of blood. And then Betty at you know, her story ends by just her sharing how botched the investigation into Genny's so the parents was and how over the years Edgar was only one who understood how she felt about Genny going missing. And then of course we learned what actually happens in min Neva's story when Carolyn tells her how did she get her to get out of her protected room? It just wasn't strong enough for both, for both of them, her dad and her. Yeah, yeah, okay, okay, this makes sense. Oh and later when min Neva is in the same room, Carolyn can't go in. But it's just Carolyn, it's not Carolyn. And she's also protected by Ginny's ghosts like robbers, not allowing Carolyn to enter the room. Yeah, okay, but they also could have drawned her with something too. We don't know that's true. True. I'm curious, I wonder, but I think it was that that it was just she wasn't strong enough against both of them, especially the dad being an older warlock. Yeah that makes sense, all right, And this is all timelines. Now, yep, we did it. We got through it. And you know what, for three separate timelines, that was pretty good. Good discussion questions. The first one, as min Neerva investigates Beatrice Tremblay's life and the events behind the vanishing, she recalls stories her grandmother told her about witchcraft. Well, lessons do you think Minerva draws from her grandmother's stories? I mean, I think that she has learned to just like everything, no, well everything, but like that these things are real, that things this. Yeah. She has learned to believe in witchery yeah yeah, and it's real and dangerous and her Nana Alba taught her how to protect herself. Yeah, and she follows those things and she wins. She also I think she gets more in tune with her own patents because at the end she realizes like, oh, these aren't just migraines. Yeah, that too, That's true. So much so that she can't even trust Noah at the end, even though they were friends. I thought, well, actually, since you said that, I think that kind of brings us to the next question. Oh, what did you make of the relationship between Minneva and Noah. How would you describe their relationship? What do you think it draws them to each other? Oh? Okay, So I thought she was like, oh, he's just another Brady kid, privileged Braddy, you know kid. But then as they talk more, I thought they were getting close, and not in a romantic way, but I thought like in a friendly way, like they were going to be friends. I kind of felt like there was vibes between them that even me. Nedava's like, you know, when they're like going on coffee dates, he's like talking to her a law more and he's like, you're so close off blah blah blah, and there I feel like, I feel like he tries to like flow with her, and she's kind of like because I think there's even some parts that She's like, I could I could see something there, you know, So yeah, I feel like I think, yeah, I feel like, if obvious, leave the witchcraft, the bewitching hadn't happened, take away who his mama or who his grandma is, I feel I mean, I don't think anything would ever happened serious, right, because he has his future planned out, he has he's engaged. I think I skipped over. I don't think I mentioned any of that. But he's engaged, you know, because these this Foumily does arranged marriages and whatnot to keep the riches and the business going. But he clearly doesn't want that life, although at the end he kind of resigns himself to it. And at first they're kind of like opposite, right, Like she she's like, I'm way better than you. I'm like, waste more than you, but I earned this. I yeah, it's just a baby worked for this. Yeah, I'm Barbie and you're Can not the can I want to be with. Yeah, right, although she kind of does. I think she kind of does. Yeah, well maybe in the middle. Yeah, not at the end. Yeah, not at first and then yeah yeah yeah yeah, I don't know. I mean I think that she does kind of, you know, is drawn to him a little bit more like in the middle. But if I had to think about what draws her to Noah, I feel like I can't really say. I mean, he's kind of charming and he's funny, he's he's friendly. I would say his like not honesty, but like he well, no, I guess his honesty, like he says things how they are like yeah, I know, that's why. I like they're kind of like opposite. Yeah. I think that's what draws maybe each other yea for her to him that she is not like that, yehond But also she kind of she doesn't have time to waste on friendly like ten conversations. She wants to get, you know, into the thick of like the deepness of conversations. That's one of the what the one of their fights is about. I think after he takes her back to the dorm after the party and she's like, oh, so you only want to talk to me when you need something from me, And she's like, I didn't ask him for anything. Yeah, yeah, so yeah. I think they're the Their differences in personality and upbringings and just way of being is what draws into each other. Yeah, but I guess they're not friends. They're friendly a little bit. Okay, let's see me. Neva story is set at Stone Ridge, a fictional university inspired by the school the author attended. What makes university such popular settings for spooky and dark tells? What are some of the local legends you learned about your own schools? Oh? My god, schools, they're scary. They're scary places. There're a nightmare. That's why there's the perfect setting for a spooky story. Let me tell you my recurring nightmare is that, like when I'm stressed and I know I'm stressed, is because I had this nightmare. I'm in school. It's usually high school or college. Sometimes it's college, and I'm like, I don't have my schedule printed out. No one can tell me where my classes are, No one can help me find my schedule. Sometimes I find you and you're like, bitch, I don't know where you're supposed to be. No one's helping me, and I'm in the wrong class, and actually I don't even know because I don't know where I'm supposed to be. I have had that I'm like in high school, and then I go to the school counselor's office and they're like, you don't even go here. And then I have a different version for your college and that's that's the one where I find out I have a class I'm in and I have gone all semester because I didn't realize I wasn't enrolled in this class. So then I show up and it's the final, okay, and it's mad final. No. Yeah, same actually have that version too. Yeah, I have a work version where and I just dreamt this. I'm not even stressed out really about again, but I dreamt this like just the other night, and it was that I had to be at work early because I had a deadline and I had to file something by like in the morning, early in the morning, and then I wake up that I missed my alarm and it's like ten am, and I never I think I haven't been to work and I missed my deadline. That's funny anyway, past our nightmares of school and I did I did love all the tali ins with New Hampshire and Boston and the I was gonna say that missing people and yeah, and of course that we didn't really get into in the recap, but the book goes into a little bit like about that the people like missing and the uncanniness, the mysterious, uh mystery of it, and like other like when Noah's sharing his ghost story with Mi Netava, they talk about some other local legends like it's so spooky that i'mosphere, I love it. Yeah, and that side of the country super haunted. Yeah a school and that side of the country, oh, super haunted. But yeah, no, schools is a place of huntings and there's so many different energies, so many different people going, and sometimes traumatic things happen at school more now than ever unfortunately before. Unfortunately, but I mean that's why there's so many legends of like, oh, the school theater is haunted, and like the ghost of a kid who was in theater and then like died, my suicide haunts this theater. There's so many sorts like that, and if for a local college, for us. It was a Mills College. Is that what it's called. Yeah, and that's a really old college college and more confidence. You passed by the gates and it looks I literally driver them all the time because that's the exit that I take to go visit our dad. Yeah. Yeah, and yeah it looks scary, it looks haunted. I don't remember the legends anymore. We did. We do have an episode on them. Yeah, one of our school episodes. We I think I was a guy stat that way before I was from in it. Yeah you were, yeah, yeah, but there's like at least three or four stories in that college alone. Like yeah, So, was there a scene that you found most frightening or unsettling? Oh yeah, I think the one with well it happened to mine and Jenny, but I think we really get a more feel for it in minette Ra's timeline. But when she is lost in the the wherever she's walking, like yeah, it changes and it's dark and she hears someone following her. I think that's that was the scariest. There's like footstep, but there's someone there and she feels like she's being watched. That was I think the most un settling scene. For me, either that one or no, I think that one. Okay, for me, it was the house, Uh, when Minette vs at the house and then what happens first? I don't remember what happens first, but she hears like a knock at the house, the phone rings and they're scratching, and that was so eerie. Yeah, you know what? Yeah, that one was. That one was pretty bad too. What similarities you notice between the women and there are timelines? Man, what similarities? Well, I guess I should say the rest of the question, and what are some differences in the way that they respond to the supernatural happenings they encounter, and what do you think accounts for those differences? Okay, I so before I get into the similarities, I guess the differences. So Alba and Minerva, it's part of their culture and their traditions, right, because Nana Alba passes on this cultural way and took a while to get there. Yeah. But the only reason she's able to be at Doudo is because she takes the lessons from Valentine and she and her dad and Petru Petua and she you know, she's able to to fight because she believes and she she did even when Valentine was the one saying you're being bewitched. She believed the bewitching is true. She just didn't know who was caused. She didn't and she didn't want to believe it was causing it. But it's not because she didn't believe in which crist right. And once she learns and and she has a way to fight it, she's fighting it, you know what I mean? Yeah, and that's something she passes on to what is the thing she says, you learned to live with it or something like that. Yeah, and then me Neddva, she has all this, like, like I said, cultural wisdom from Nana Alba, and so it's part of her survival. Like that's why she's able to fight because she she knows how to beat Carolyn. No one else knew how to be Carolyn. And that's why. Yeah, that's why she lives. Yeah. Yeah, and Genny. Nobody believes her, you know, Okay, Genny, I was like, what about Jenny, But like nobody believed me nedda Ba either, But but we never took it upon herself. She doesn't need Yeah. Yeah, and Jenny, I don't think Genny knew I need to Genny was more in tune with like the ghosts and the spirits, just like commas. Yeah, oh my god. Jenny and Thomas were basically the same. Yeah they were, and they just didn't they didn't have like that knowledge about which is like Neda did. Yeah. Yeah, and even though all of them believed, yeah, they didn't know how to fight it. Yeah, Genny didn't have the knowledge. Yeah, what about to Marty's can you think of any I'm sure there are that they all believed that. They all believed, like I'm all like, I'm sure there are, yeah, the other otherness, paranormal, normal, Yeah, yeah, it's just the only the difference is that Jenny didn't know how and they all had the abilities which made them targets. Yes, yes, And just the difference with Alma and Alba and me Neva is that they were able because of their culture and these stories being passed down and where they lived and you know, their background, they knew how to fight it or they learned how to fight it, and Jenny didn't have that. And also I guess Genny was alone because me did well, No, I don't think anyone really believed me Neva. Me never had her ancestors with her, but Alba had Valentine and Valentine and Perpetoin. I was so so devastated, but yeah, she had them, and her dad also imparted like this knowledge on her although he wasn't there, but she knows she had his wisdom with her too. Yeah, and I think even though in the sense of like Jenny and mi Nevra were both like alone. Yeah, but min Neva again had her ancestors with her basically, and Jenny didn't have that, And I don't really chose important of ancestral knowledge. Yeah yeah, wait, wait, what do you think will happened to me Neva after afterward the story ens, Like do you think she's going to get more into the witchery stuff? Like she's I think she's fully in now, Oh, she's fully in. And I think she's gonna become a famous author. She's gonna become Syria. I think that's who is going to Yah. Yeah, she's gonna finish her dissertation, She's going to publish. This book is going to be like written in a way where it becomes so popular. She's going to finish like Beatrice's unpublished manuscript about Jenny that's going to be completed. She's gonna tie it into her her. She's gonna write the bewitchy She's gonna write and then she and then she'll write more books. Oh yeah, no, I'm serious. No, yeah, no, I'm believing. Okay, okay, I'm picking up what you're putting down. Yeah, okay, good, good, Okay. Should we rate the book final dots? Okay? This book for me ten out of ten, ten carn stains out of ten, carn steins r P. Yes, the cat, yeah, thet Yeah. I mean this book had everything that I would want in a book. It had timelines. Oh sorry, I was gonna say. It also gave me the most perfect fall vibes, even though it doesn't exactly happen in the fall, but for some reason, it just gave the falls, except from it's set from like October to or yes, it starts in the summer break, remember, yeah, from Netta. But yeah, just I don't know, it's just the college settings. Let me pictures that beautiful, those beautiful pictures of the East coasts in the fall. I started reading this in the summer beach and I finished it in the fall with all the trees changing colors. Amazing that was the perfect time to be reading this, Yeah, yeah, it really was. But you could even be reading this in December, because there's December timeline. This is it's a season book and all the scenes that's happened, which means, uh, no, I had everything I needed in a book for me. Is a ten out of ten, Like you said, a timeline I love like a different timelines, especially with the Nana Alba and the Minetteva tie in like a yeah, generational, But it also didn't feel it didn't feel disconnected with No, it all tied in together. Yeah, with Beatrice, yeah, through through Mi neet Ba and all tied together. Yeah, because sometimes timelines can go wrong where they feel disconnected, yeah, or disjointed or switching back and forth as unnatural, and this was not like that, especially how the end of I don't remem if it. I think it was min Neva's chapter. How you have the end of nan Alva's story there as well, Like it was just perfect the way it was written. It just blends into the other. And yeah, again I'm seeing the critiques. I know I saw one of them. You haven't seen any critiques, oh the the the Alba, Oh well yeah I did see the about that. We did, say, I feel like our thoughts on that a little bit earlier. No, we did. It's because I saw one specifically. Okay, like share they wrote, well it was normal back then. Okay, well it was normal. It doesn't mean I gotta like it. You don't have to like it to read. No one's liking it. We're all cringin she she didn't write it. Okay, when I was reading it, it was it didn't look like it was meant to be like you're supposed to like it. No, No, that was a critique. I think these practices that did happen, it still happened, unfortunately, So what happens, it still happens, like to say, and this isn't a celebration of that relationship. I don't know, never at any point in fact, it almost I feel like I feel like Alba was taken advantage of one hundred obviously, like yeah, one hundred percent. Yeah, So I don't know. I don't understand those critiques either. And even at the end, Alba never like, yes, she admires him, she you know whatever, has this crush on him that he took advantage of. But at the end, she's not thinking of him, like in any positive way. She's like, I survived him, Yes, yes, like that was the worst thing that happened to her and she survived him. Yeah, that's how she describes it, Like, come on, Yeah, so I don't understand those critiques at all. Yeah either, but yeah otherwise, Yeah, perfect book for me. Ten out of ten. What about you? Definitely? Yeah, ten out of ten. Okay, Yeah, again we're biased, Like, well, I feel like I'm obviously I love everything she writes, but I have rated other stuff like three and a high never twenty five. Yeah, it means I still like it. It doesn't mean it is a fair Yeah, this is a fair rating recommendation from us. Yes, ten out of ten for sure. Yeah, okay, I think that brings us to the end of the episode. Yes, and we do have our next book already picked and read by me, we do. What is it? Oh my god, Oh my god. It's The Possession about It by the ass. Yes, I'm halfway through. I'm almost done. Yeah, I gotta start working on those, I guess, but I mean that'll be probably January. I think January. Yeah, I'm sure you'll be done, right. That's going to try and be done. We were ambitious, we were overly ambitious. So I finished, I'd finished. It was me this time. Yeah, we said we were hoping to finish both of these books by the end of the year. But look, we got done with one. They'll be witching, yeah with one. And uh yeah, we'll be back with our next book Club episode for the Possession of the Ads. So I won't share anything, even though I'm dying too. I've been enjoying it, all right. So yeah, other than that, let us know what you thought of this book. Did you love it as much as we did? Yeah, let us know, did you not? Even if you disagree, you can let us know. Yeah, yeah, and we'll fight you. And I'm just kidding, but okay, I guess that brings us to the end. Thank you everyone for sitting with us. Hopefully you stayed the whole time. Hopefully and even if you heard it in pieces, we had a good time party about it. So we did. We had a great time talking about it. And yeah, I don't know, watch out for dead rats and balls of fire outside that too. Yes, all right, stay spooky, we'll catch up one next time. Bye Bye. A Book Tells is hosted by Christina and Carmen, produced and edited by Christina by Christina Carmen and with the help of Don Shout Out Don. 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