The Witches of El Paso: A Novel

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A lawyer and her elderly great-aunt use their supernatural gifts to find a lost child in this richly imagined and empowering story of motherhood, magic, and legacy in the vein of The Inheritance of Orqudea Divina and La Hacienda.

If you call to the witches, they will come.

1943, El Paso, Texas: teenager Nena spends her days caring for the small children of her older sisters, while longing for a life of freedom and adventure. The premonitions and fainting spells she has endured since childhood are getting worse, and Nena worries shell end up like the scary old curandera down the street. Nena prays for help, and when the mysterious Sister Benedicta arrives late one night, Nena follows her across the borders of space and time. In colonial Mexico, Nena grows into her power, finding love and learning that magic always comes with a price.

In the present day, Nenas grandniece, Marta, balances a struggling legal aid practice with motherhood and the care of the now ninety-three-year-old Nena. When Marta agrees to help search for a daughter Nena left in the past, the two forge a fierce connection. Martas own supernatural powers emerge, awakening her to new possibilities that threaten the life she has constructed.

Sexy, smart, and soulful, Luis Jaramillos The Witches of El Paso pulls us across borders and time to get to the essence of what it means for families to survive this beautiful, fractured world (Mira Jacob, author of Good Talk).

Reviews

Luis Jaramillo weaves a captivating tale of family, tradition, and the enduring power of love. His vivid prose and intriguing plot make his novel hard to put down!Reyna Grande, author of A Ballad of Love and Glory
Gorgeous and thrilling,The Witches of El Pasocasts a revelatory spell. I didn't want it to end.R. O.Kwon, Bestselling author ofExhibitandThe Incendiaries
Spanning borders and centuries, The Witches of El Paso is a wild, wondrous novel about the magic that is singing all around us. With this story, Luis Jaramillo shows us how to catch the tune.Julia Phillips, author ofDisappearingEarth, an international bestseller and National Book Award Finalist
Sexy, smart and soulful, Luis Jaramillos The WitchesofElPaso pulls us across borders and time to get to the essence of what it means for families to survive this beautiful, fractured world.Mira Jacob, national bestselling author ofGood Talk
"Jaramillos atmospheric prose conjures the dusty El Paso of the past, and depictions of La Vista vibrate with 'colorful knots of waves,' glowing indigo, maroon, and bright pink, yielding 'a wild spell, like yeast in the air.' This riveting page-turner affirms the adage, 'Family stories teach us how to live. Family secrets teach us to kill parts of ourselves.'

"Gripping and cinematic, the novels worlds of El Paso past and present will bewitch and enrapture."Kirkus(starred review)

Author Bio

LuisJaramillois the author ofThe Witches of El Pasoand the award-winningshort story collection,The Doctors Wife. His writing has appeared inLitHub,BOMB Magazine,Los Angeles Review of Books, and other publications. He is an assistant professor of creative writing at The New School. He received an undergraduate degree from Stanford University and an MFA from The New School. Find out more atLuisJaramillo.com.