Other Words for Smoke

Haunting and literary, Sarah Maria Griffin’s sophomore novel follows twins Mae and Rossa as they discover a house full of witches, experience devastating first loves, and face a dark power beyond all imagining. Fans of Libba Bray’s The Diviners and Maggie Stiefvater’s All the Crooked Saints will devour this dark tale.

When the house at the end of the lane burned down, none of the townspeople knew what happened. A tragedy, they called it. Poor Rita Frost and her ward, Bevan, lost to the flames. Only Mae and Rossa, Rita’s niece and nephew, know what happened that fateful summer. Only they know about the owl in the wall, the uncanny cat, the dark powers that devour love and fear. Only they know about the trials of loving someone who longs for power, for freedom, for magic. Only they know what brought the house tumbling down around them. And they’ll never, ever breathe a word.

Captivating and atmospheric, Sarah Maria Griffin’s second novel explores the balance between love and fear, youth and maturity, and good and evil. With an unusual structure spanning five summers, intriguing characters, and a dark mystery, this uncommon novel will appeal to readers of Rin Chupeco’s The Bone Witch and Madeleine Roux’s House of Furies.