Common Sense Media Review
By Mary Eisenhart
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Thrilling, tricky, heart-filled tale of witch in training.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
VERITY VOX AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE begins with a cry for help, written on a leaf and brought to a young witch in training on the very day her last assignment ends. Starting at age 13, young witches leave their families and are sent to a different town each year to help out and improve their skills till they're ready for their permanent home. Verity Vox and her familiar Jack (a cat, most of the time), have been in training for some years now, but when they get to Foxfire, a once-prosperous Appalachian coal town that's fallen on bad times, they realize they're not just dealing with village-life difficulties, they're facing something much bigger. Over the years, the town's inhabitants have made a lot of bad bargains with Earl, an evil magician who offered desperate people a lot of too-good-to-be-true deals and then collected: their lives, their souls, their body parts, this and that. Many have died, many have disappeared, but when a grieving mom begs Verity to find her daughter, a recent victim, Verity doesn't feel she can refuse, and sets off to save Tacita.
Is It Any Good?
Witchcraft enthusiast and first-time novelist Don Martin spins a thrilling tale of love, kindness, and good magic vs. greed, trickery, and evil as a young witch tries to save a town from its trouble. Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire offers irresistible characters, lively dialogue, relatable situations, creative problem-solving, and courageous deeds. Also heartfelt connections and newfound community along the way. There's a lot of gore and grossout as an evil magician and a forest full of scary monsters do their thing, and Verity and her friends work to put an end to it. Brilliant storytelling, not to be missed.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about witches, and the different ways they're portrayed in different stories. Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire shows witches as kind, helpful, and courageous; other stories take a much darker view. Which ones do you like best? Why?
Do you know anyone who's facing a lot of pressure, maybe from family, to pursue a particular path in life, and they want to do something completely different? How does obligation versus integrity to yourself affect your decisions? What's going on, and how is it working out?
If someone like Verity could show up and fix the problems in your town, where should she start?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Fantasy
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic ) , Friendship
- Character Strengths : Courage , Empathy , Humility , Perseverance , Teamwork
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Page Street YA
- Publication date : August 5, 2025
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 14 - 17
- Number of pages : 336
- Available on : Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Award : Common Sense Selection
- Last updated : October 31, 2025
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