Book Review – Cunning Words: A Grimoire of Tales and Magic by Marshall WSL
I recently read “Cunning Words: A Grimoire of Tales and Magic” by Marshall W.S.L and I am so very glad that I did. I went into this, with no preconceived idea on what I would find and funnily enough, even if I did there's no way I could have guessed what would be within it's pages. This book is unlike any others that I've come across in my witchy readings.
Marshall is a master wordsmith. The stories he spins within this Grimoire will leave you wanting more (always a good sign in a book) and I'm not kidding when I say that I could FEEL the magick coming through the words.
Stay tuned for Marshalls episode on the Witch Talks Podcast coming August 16 where we chatted deeply about this topic.
What I liked
Since it's a grimoire, I can imagine people expecting it to be filled spells from front to cover but the first part is filled with short folk stories that have inspired the spells found at the back of the book.
From the very first story I was drawn in. It felt like I was reading an old folk fairy tale from hundreds of years ago, think brothers Grimm or A Silver Bullet, and I was instantly in love.
Marshall has managed to capture the magic that sits between saying too much, and not saying enough. Personally I believe that stories are the best way to teach, and that's exactly what Marshall has done. The wisdom within each story and the pupose behind each detail was phenomenally executed.
Marshall has also chosen to include authors notes throughout, which were helpful and appreciated as they grounded the reader in Marshalls intent for each story, and reiterated safety and consent concerns where necessary.
I also appreciated the double spacing between paragraphs. It made it very easy to read and far less overwhelming in comparison to most other books on the market. As a neurodivergent person, this was very helpful and meant I flew through the pages within 2 days.
Another thing I loved was the deliberate, but not forced, inclusion of gender diversity and of a trans story too! These are SO needed in this space.
What I disliked
There isn’t much at all that I didn’t like in this book, except maybe that I had to read it as a PDF but because I loved it so much, I've just purchased the hard copy to be sent to me too!
If there was any criticism it would be that I wanted more and could have easily read double the amount of stories.
I would also like to have an index to easily find what I want but when I get my own copy I will simply colour code and tab the stories that correlate with certain spells for ease of use.
Do I recommend it?
Yes absolutely. I give it 5 witches hats.
If you’ve read my other reviews, I rarely give a 5 witches hat rating because not all books are for all people, but this is one that I truly think it is a joy to read, and agreed with everything within its pages, which is a big statement!
My witches’ hats rating system:
0 - Problematic, this book should be burned.
1 - Did not like this book, do not read
2 - It was ok, wouldn’t recommend it though.
3 - I liked it but it might not be for everyone
4 - I really liked it and think most people will like it
5 - AMAZING, I loved it and everyone should read it
Meet Hana
Hana O’Neill, the Suburban Witch is a professional Tarot & Astrology reader, Intuitive Coach and the host of the Witch Talks podcast.
