Bad Magic by A. M. Stirling

Thanks to A. M Stirling and Emma Welton of DampPebbles blog tours for a copy of Bad Magic in exchange for an honest review.

Bad Magic by A. M. Stirling

Trigger warning: Rape, sexual abuse, incest, child abuse, bullying.

My thoughts

Though the blurb should make it clear that there’s sexual violence within the book, I decided to put the trigger warning above my review for those who might be sensitive to this subject matter. The descriptions of the sexual abuse are graphic, though I didn’t find them gratuitous. More on that later.

If you’ve ever been a victim of sexual assault/abuse in any way, two things:

• 1) My heart goes out to you and I’m terribly sorry that you went through this; and
• 2) This book probably isn’t for you. You might not want to read reviews of it, either.

Characters

The two main characters, Richard and Amanda, are sick individuals, though in different ways.

Amanda’s twisted. It’s obvious from page one. As one character says, “She’s a real piece of work.” She takes delight in manipulating others, using their weaknesses to her advantage. She takes advantage of this family’s unwillingness to confront evil because they prefer to keep a pretty outward appearance. (This is particularly true of Nana!) Trying to pacify Amanda is impossible, but Richard-the-appeaser still tries.

Richard justifies everything he does: taking advantage of his love-sick gallery manager, living above his means, wheedling money out of his elderly grandmother, lying about his parents’ deadly car accident, and allowing himself to be manipulated by others. While I did have some sympathy for him, as the book progressed, it became clear that Richard is himself a manipulator. He desperately needs to be wanted and he desperately needs to appear strong in other people’s eyes. That weakens him when he’s dealing with Amanda as an adult.

Sexual violence

As I mentioned earlier, there are explicit scenes of sexual abuse and rape. It is sickening and disturbing, as it should be. However, I think A.M. Stirling handled these scenes well. While the descriptions could be too much for those who have been abused, they are not gratuitous. It’s explicit without being excessive.

I think the graphic descriptions are necessary for this story. Without them, we wouldn’t understand how confused young Richard is by his older cousin. The sense of violation, the strange sexual desire that isn’t truly desire, the feeling that Amanda must be appeased at all costs. We wouldn’t understand the dynamics of their relationship as adults, either.

From the start, Amanda is aggressive toward Richard. As the book progresses, her actions become worse. Their grandmother is completely deceived by Amanda. Despite Nana’s boyfriend’s attempts to intervene, Amanda infiltrates her grandmother’s life and slowly gains power over her. Her actions escalate from insidious comments to faking a burglary to drugging Richard and raping him again.

I wanted Richard to fight back, but for much of the book, he doesn’t. I suspect two things are at work.

One is that Amanda’s “sex lessons” (rape) as a teenager confused him. He can’t figure out whether it was sexual assault or not because of his body’s involuntary response to Amanda’s aggression. He mistakes the physical reaction for actual sexual desire. Because of his mental confusion, he doesn’t think he can tell anyone the full truth of what happened between them. He believes he wanted it and that it was his fault.

The second thing is the gender reversal. If a female fights against a violent attacker, many people applaud. But if a male hits a female in self-defense? If he accuses her of sexual violence? There’s a far different reaction from the general public.

A. M. Stirling beautifully captures the complex dynamics of the predator-victim relationship. Gaslighting. Self-blame. Confusion.

But he also uses the gender reversal to question our cultural assumptions about men and women. Violence and perversion aren’t the domain of only one gender. Both males and females can be predators–and are in this novel–and both can be victims. That, too, becomes apparent in the story.

Pace

Bad Magic has a slower pace than many suspense novels. This works to its advantage because we have adequate time to understand the relationship between Richard and Amanda. At times, I became impatient, waiting for Richard to take action. But Stirling uses that pace to create a sense of dread at what happens next.

There are a lot of secrets in this family. Stirling takes his time revealing them to us, slowly peeling off layers of deceit to reveal the ugly truths beneath. In some cases, what we think is a revealed truth is really a half-truth. In others, it’s a lie.

Given that I’m a sucker for art in fiction, it didn’t surprise me that I enjoyed reading about the art gallery. His current exhibition is the work of a young, rather neurotic artist whose impulsive actions put Richard’s relationship with a would-be rich patron at risk. I also liked Catherine, Richard’s gallery manager, who is rather innocent and deeply in love with him. But she’s no fool, either. Of all the characters in the book, she was one I could whole-heartedly cheer on.

Recommended

Bad Magic isn’t for everyone. It’s dark and often violent. As I said earlier, if you are sensitive to these issues, this probably isn’t a book for you. But I recommend it for those who like thoughtful suspense novels.

Buy Bad Magic!

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1916160107/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Bad-Magic-M-Stirling-ebook/dp/B07XQ4TVS6/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=bad+magic+by+m+stirling&qid=1575372711&sr=8-2

Damp Pebbles Blog Tour

If you like Bad Magic, check out my review of The Last Bridge by Teri Coyne.