My agent, Taylor Haggerty, and all the other sorceresses of Root Literary: you spin dreams into books （and advances, heh）， and I can’t imagine navigating this journey without you. I’m especially indebted to Taylor for lending me her exceptional brain to help develop the original premise behind this book. Tay, your brainstorm emails are second to none in both inspiration and comedic gold, and it’s a continuing joy and privilege to trust you with my stories.
The entire team at Berkley Books, including but not limited to: Jessica Brock, Stephanie Felty, Elisha Katz, Bridget O’Toole, Katie Anderson, and Angela Kim. You’ve done so much for me and this book already, and I feel so lucky to have you at my back.
My magnificent editor, Cindy Hwang, an all-around exceptional person—working with you is a dream in itself. I’m keenly aware of how few authors are lucky enough to ever get the kind of opportunity you extended to me; I’ll never forget how hard you fought for me and this story. Thank you for loving and “getting” the witches of Thistle Grove every bit as much as I do, and here’s to us spending lots more time with them!
My critique group buddies—Chelsea Sedoti, Adriana Mather, and Jilly Gagnon—who are always among my first readers. You’re all very shiny diamonds, and I hope our Tuesdays together stretch out as close as possible to infinity.
I’ve been fortunate to have the kind of best friends who see you staunchly through the times when life is way weirder than fiction—you know who you are and how much I love you. （But just in case there’s any confusion, you’re Danea, Sharee, Claire, Jilly, Julie, Cara, and Elisar. You have seen some things, and I can’t wait to hug you all again over gimlets.） I’ve also gotten to know some wonderful new friends in Chicago: Tereza, Mike, Sophia, and Olivia; Raquel, Rick, Ricky, Bella, and Micah; Nora, Mike, Bene, Myra, and Ella; and Alit, thank you for keeping my spirits up and being such generous neighborhood friends.
I owe so much to my family for each book I write, but especially this one. Thank you to my brother and parents for their enduring support; especially my mother, whose great sacrifice—though she’d never call it that—in taking care of my son basically night and day while I wrote this gave me the freedom to run wild.
And thanks to Caleb, who gave me and our little lion-bear Leo stability in some very turbulent times, often at great expense to himself.
I live in fear of forgetting someone crucial when writing acknowledgments; if I’ve managed to mess it up this time, please know that I do appreciate you, and the omission is COVID’s fault and not mine.
READERS GUIDE
Payback’s a Witch
LANA HARPER
Questions for Discussion
At the very beginning of the book, when Emmy returns to Thistle Grove, she dismissively refers to the town’s magical beauty as “so damn extra”—and her own magicless life in Chicago as real, the life she’s chosen for herself. Do you believe Emmy’s value judgments about either place? Do you think she believes them herself?
When she first comes home, Emmy is a little surprised by her mother’s bluntness in their initial conversation. She then compares her family’s arm’s-length style of relating to one another to the very different bonds that exist between the Avramovs, Thorns, and Blackmoores. Which of these relationship styles reminds you the most of your own family?
Do you think Emmy truly comes home only because of the pull of tradition and the impressive parental guilt trip—or is the truth more complicated?
The families have dramatically different magical abilities: the Thorns are green-magic healers, the Blackmoores showy illusionists, the Avramovs diviners and necromancers with one foot on either side of the veil, the Harlows recordkeepers whose tea is always the perfect temperature. Whose magic would you most like to have? And least?
Over the course of the book, Emmy experiences a lot of guilt for the way she interacted with her best friend, Linden, and her parents after she left town. Given the circumstances, do you think Emmy did wrong by those she left behind? Would you have behaved any differently?
What do you think of Emmy’s experience with being the Arbiter, and the magic of the mantle? Do you think you would enjoy being immersed in such intoxicating power, or does the idea make you uneasy?
What do you think of Elias Harlow’s decision not to share with his younger descendants the magical role the Harlows play in Thistle Grove? Would you have done things differently in his shoes?
Would you rather be a Victor of the Gauntlet, or, like Emmy’s family, the voice of Thistle Grove? How do you think Emmy will combine her two roles? How might they complement or conflict with each other?