Witch Blood Rising
Awaken Your Magic in a Modern World
Asa West’s meditative guidebook offers comfort, advice, and inspiration for seekers interested in harnessing their magic, connecting with the natural world, and finding beauty in the everyday.
Part memoir, part instructional guide, this text on witchcraft includes concrete introductory advice on practices like herbalism, tarot, and spell work. West, who grew up in Orange County, felt estranged from her peers in her youth; she longed to connect to nature. Haunted by visions she could not explain, she experimented with several spiritual practices before being introduced to witchcraft via the movie The Craft. Although her introduction to this life-changing practice was filtered through the dramatized, patriarchal lens of Hollywood, West felt called to the film’s wildness. This experience taught her not to shy away from finding inspiration in unexpected, seemingly mundane places.
The chapters focus on particular aspects of witchcraft explored through personal anecdotes and stories. Tackling subjects including sexual orientation, neurodivergence, global warming, and parenting, the guide is topical and expansive; each section flows well into the next. Each also ends with a spell written in the form of a guided meditation meant to help practitioners integrate the book’s wisdom into their lives.
West’s advice is engaging and nonprescriptive, urging individuals to follow their intuition rather than subscribe to dogmatic schools or rigid rituals. It includes techniques for connecting to one’s inner power and finding the magic in everyday life. Witchcraft, it argues, is a personal, flexible, and approachable practice that allows one to access their innate power and wisdom while living in concert with the natural world and other beings.
Accessible and lyrical, Witch Blood Rising is a nuanced, insightful guide to the practice of witchcraft, focusing specifically on its role in contemporary life.
Reviewed by
Bella Moses
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
