Overcoming Witches and Patriarchy: Serpent & Dove, Must-Read Feminist Fiction

Shelby Mahurin is an American author of young adult fiction. His success begins with the trilogy of this tender and dark work: Serpent and dovepublished in 2019 by Editions I read. With many hundreds of books published every year, I read it never fails to satisfy the most experienced readers.

In the realm of Belterra, Lou unexpectedly meets Reid, of the sworn order of the Church of Witch Hunters, which exists only to rid the world of women like her. In an atmosphere where the oppression of witches and the persecution of women reign, things don’t go as planned for the heroine. A dramatic twist for the two opposites who attract each other like magnets: a combination of circumstances will bring them closer and force them into a forced marriage. They will have to learn from their differences and unite them to make them a forcebecause the destiny of the world depends on their destiny…

Shelby Mahurin’s work increases many issues related to the status of women and men’s complexes that don’t date back to yesterday. Through his words of impactemphasizes the omnipresence ofa patriarchal society and breaks the codes of traditional witch fiction.

An ancient machismo where independent women are a curse

Independent but also powerful, Lou is a resourceful heroine. This need to control the female sex and to get rid of them if they dared to contradict a man was well identified by Shelby Mahurin. The author did the bold choice to mix this patriarchal vision with witchcraft. More than just magic in the air, it almost feels like it the salem witch hunt who was born in 1692. The persecution of these women which led to their sordid execution at the stake spread between the 17th and 19th centuries. But the question is: why does a woman’s power scare men?

For hunters Serpent and dove, independent women who do not need a male presence are dangerous and suspected of being witches. Sordid beings that must be got rid of for the good of the people. The Archbishop plays an essential role as he is the man who holds all power over the people. Faithful to the Church and protector of the charming book hunter, Reid, he finds himself sworn enemy of Lou. The Catholic Church has long been synonymous with power. If this was true then, it is even more so in Shelby Mahurin’s book:

“Hunters.
They had sworn allegiance to the Church and protected the kingdom of Belterra from dark forces. In other words, against the White Ladies, the murderous witches who haunted the narrow minds of Belterra. »

It is said that fear comes from what you cannot control. An empowered woman making her own choices, rebellious on the fringes like Lou’s character, would be the worst enemy of the men called “saints” by the Church. Therefore, she deserves to be compared to Eve who tempts Adam and brings him to his ruin, an occult creature that deviates every man from the right path… The dialogues between these good servants of the Hunters of Belterra demonstrate it perfectly:

“Never before have I seen such black magic, such a desecration of the human body. But witches weren’t human. They were vipers. Demons incarnate. […]

You will not let the witch live.
Archbishop to Reid: “Don’t worry, my son. The ways of women are wicked. And especially those of the witches. Their duplicity knows no bounds. »

The witch hunt, revealing a patriarchal society

The archbishop would not take up the scheme ofa patriarchal society that sometimes persists in 2022? In the idea, Shelby Mahurin becomes aware the influence men have on women to feel stronger. Yes, the image of alpha male for excellence. The one without which the woman is worth nothing. So imagine witches on the loose? Inconceivable and too dangerous in a society seen by men.

Yet women are essential to men in the realm of Belterra. They guarantee offspring. One mindset at a time looking backwards and misogynist. The Archbishop of the Book spews his contempt for women through his words when he asks Lou, who he thinks is pagan, and Hunter Reid to join for life:

“Don’t waste your life, your promising career, the oath you swore before God, for the sake of this pagan. Once she is your wife, you can lock her in the closet and never think of her again. You will have the legal right to do whatever you want with her.”

It makes you wonder if women have any use in the eyes of men beyond serving them. But as the archbishop, a detestable character in the book, would say: “as if God could be a woman”. As if women had the right to breathe after all…

Through two points of view (that of the witch Louise and that of Hunter Reid), Shelby Mahurin brilliantly and subtly manages to understand the stakes of a patriarchy suffered by women. this company, to the archaic gaze of timeis lived by two characters to whom everything is opposed but of which the soul is similar. Regardless of the reader’s gender, social status or age, these modern witches, immersed in a traditionally misogynistic universe, illustrate that there is nothing good in a society where the diktat of the submissive woman kingdom.

If you feel like immersing yourself in the feminist work of Shelby Mahurin, Serpent & Dove will be available from Editions I read on the shelves of booksellers from 4 January 2023.