Cindy Hernandez ‘A Jar of Fingers’ Review

Written by: Wesley Thomas 

It’s official, a classic has been born. This book, along with the characters, will soon become iconic in horror fiction. Cindy has added her unique quirk to produce a truly remarkable piece of horror fiction.

In a nutshell, we have Deegie Tibbs, the protagonist. A young witch who finds herself in a complicated situation. Deciding to get, while the getting is good, she relocates. Most people would look for a nice house, fully furnished, pleasing to the eye, in a pleasant area. But Deegie isn’t like most people. Besides being a witch with supernatural powers, she is also very introvert in her fashion, interests, and behaviour. She is truly an extraordinary human being, that we cannot help but fall in love with. We sympathize with the difficult past she has overcome, and find ourselves smiling at her charming sense of humour. Deegie is the kind of character that would hold a story together, without riveting plot twists and compelling story lines. The kind of character that is utterly mystifying.

But alas, we do in fact have mind-blowing action and a thick, captivating plots. When Deegie is house-hunting and finds an unusual property that looks neglected, she takes on the challenging task of bringing a new lease of life to the building. She expected hard work, labour, possibly reconstruction. But what the young witch didn’t expect, was the spirits lurking in the house.

Deegie is no stranger to the paranormal, so at first, she is rather appealed by the otherworldly presence. One may even say, excited. Until the true reason why the house was vacant for so many years, is discovered.

I love how Cindy brings a refreshing new look at magic and witchery. There are elements that date back centuries. In fact the book, in my opinion, slightly resembles ‘Practical Magic’, the incredible movie starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. But Cindy brings a new set of rules to the craft, with some powerful, chilling, and even comical spells. Deegie herself has been characterized flawlessly, for not only the previous reasons mentioned, but for another strong reason. See Deegie suffers from a condition that makes using her inherited abilities difficult. Cindy clearly spent a great deal of time producing Deegie, along with other characters, both good and bad. There is even an element of romance tangled in the tale.

I haven’t read a book that flowed so easily in a very long time. Even as a self-confessed bookworm, my weakness being horror, I still sometimes struggle to finish a book if I find the plot to have an uneven pace and odd structure. But again, this wasn’t a problem with ‘A Jar Of Fingers’. The flow and pace is handled with expert precision and control. Because of this, we have an easily readable book that you don’t want to put down. Cindy clearly respects her readers. Because as much time as she has spent coming up with this original concept for a book series, she makes it very easy to digest, but also very addictive. Don’t expect to get anything done once you start reading this. Chores and errands will be disregarded until you finish this.

A special mention has to go to Cindy’s style of writing. Both poetic and descriptive, with some impressive metaphors mixed in, to truly paint a picture in the reader’s mind. How she depicts a scene is fantastic. She expresses vividly the location, along with the characters and their temperaments, and the vibe of the particular scene.

I cannot recommend this book enough! It has all the ingredients of a ground-breaking new franchise: gifted writing, lovable characters, interesting back story, breath-taking excitement and adrenaline, and a truly unforgettable tale.

The only downside? Eventually, the story ends. But do not fear, apparently there are a few more books to come in this series, that is rather clear by the end of this book! So be patient, all good things come to those who wait.

Order it here.

Rating: 5/5