Banish by Nicola Marsh

Both residents and visitors of The Greatest City In The World often comment on it’s anonymity; the city’s constant buzz and activity allows for them to fade into the background within it’s streets, to be able to escape from one’s history and the mistakes that they have made. For 17 year old Alyssa Wood, that reason in particular is what lead her to abandon her alcoholic and seemingly borderline insane mother in Broadwater for the bright lights of New York City and her well-known and often eccentric priestess aunt. For Alyssa, New York is a getaway. An escape from the past and the guilt that she is desperate to forget after her ex-boyfriend committed suicide… The day after she broke up with him.

Six months into the move, and things seem to start looking up for Alyssa. Her aunt is supportive, but not overbearing. She finds a best friend and school study partner in Seth who, like Alyssa, comes from a small town and seems to have secrets of his own. Alyssa even finds romance, companionship and acceptance in Ronan, a musician and IT geek. Ronan culminates their first date by sending Alyssa a video of him performing a song that he had written for her… only when she watches it, she sees a body. A bloody body. A bloody and possibly dead body. Her worries only tenfold when she determines that she is the only one who can see the body. As more and more pieces of Alyssa’s hidden past show up in her new life, she must accept the possibility that her family’s Wicca beliefs may not necessarily be beliefs and the past that she has tried so desperately to hide… and somehow save the familiar girl in the video, and herself, in the process.

Banish is a very interesting read that approaches urban magic in a distinct way. It is quite different from the typical paranormal stories that are often released, and I really liked Marsh’s approach on the soul and the possibility of communicating with the dead who find themselves with unfinished business on Earth. Marsh did this in a way that wasn’t terrifying or disturbing, yet still believable. I also enjoyed the little pieces of Alyssa’s history that were shared with us, as she was a character that I had difficulty understanding and providing empathy for. I enjoyed seeing the details of Wicca magic and some of the beliefs that they have, as well as the spells that were shown to us readers. I LOVED the last 3/4 of the story, I couldn’t put it down until the very last page. Nicola Marsh has a lot of potential with the thriller genre. On the other hand, I was not convinced of the romance between Ronan and Alyssa. I felt little chemistry or connection between them and their relationship development was quite lacking. I actually think the story would have gone better without the romance.

When stripped of the thrill and the mystery, Banish is a simple story of a girl who is trying to find her identity, of redefining oneself regardless of one’s past and the mistakes that they may have made. It is simply a teenage girl, torn between her cultural roots and the expectations that society has placed on her. And I think that’s what I enjoyed the most about it. Alyssa’s character development soars in the last 3/4 of the book. She is no longer the blind child of her past. But even with the thrill and mystery, Banish shows the story of loss. Of desperation and guilt and anger. Of horrors that are not necessarily Wiccan and how one’s actions can affect so many other people. And it is a really good story.