66 pages • 2 hours read
Sydney J. ShieldsThe Honey Witch
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2024A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
When Althea presents Marigold with the choice to become a Honey Witch at the cost of forsaking love forever, Marigold assumes the decision is easy. How does the novel explore the ways in which power and love are sometimes at odds with one another? How do different characters respond to this apparent dichotomy?
Compare and contrast Marigold and her mother, Raina. How is each woman characterized? How does Marigold’s journey reflect her mother’s? In what ways are the women’s life decisions similar or different?
Examine the depiction of the natural world in The Honey Witch. How do various characters respond to nature? What does the novel suggest about the interrelation between nature and humans?
Marigold and Lottie are one of several queer couples mentioned or seen in the narrative. How is queerness treated in the world of The Honey Witch? How does it compare to other recent works of contemporary queer fantasy?
Analyze the role of Althea in the novel. How is she characterized? What is her significance in the text? In what ways is she a foil for Versa?
The Honey Witch is set in the 1800s, in an alternate reality where magic exists. In what ways does the novel reflect elements from the real-world 19th century? In what ways does it diverge from it?
How does the novel interrogate gender roles and/or gender dynamics? How does Marigold’s understanding of her femininity and identity change throughout her character arc?
Lottie has a complex family history. How do her backstory and personal experiences with both her birth family, Versa, and her adoptive family with August explore the benefits and potential issues of family dynamics?
How does magic function in the text? What is its wider significance, and how does it help illustrate more abstract concepts, such as the struggle between good and evil?
Lottie and Marigold are both dynamic characters that change over the course of the novel. In what ways are their character trajectories similar to one another? How has each woman changed and developed by the end of the novel compared to how she was in the beginning?
