“Villains are made, not born.” 

They often have backstories, events that trigger their villany. Claudia Gray’s The First Midnight Spell tells the story of the main antagonist of her Spellcaster series. Elizabeth Cooper is 16- years-old, not 400, in 1695 when she first falls into dark magic. 

In peaceful Fortune’s Sound, Rhode Island, Elizabeth almost couldn’t be happier. Her coven of witches, led by Widow Porter, is the only community she’s ever known, but with her Aunt Ruth who’s taken care of her since her parents’ passing and her best and only friend, Prudence (Pru) both in the coven, she had almost nothing to complain about. Almost. 

Nat Porter is the one exception she can’t forget about. Nat Porter is, in her eyes, perfect. He’s also the son of Widow Porter. She’s determined to marry him, but the First Laws of the Craft, that all witches in her coven are required to follow, forbid a witch from marrying the son of another. 

But when it’s revealed that breaking one of the First Laws results in being cast out of the coven, instead of immediately being punished and stripped of magic, a plan starts forming in Elizabeth’s mind. Breaking the First Laws seems worth it. At worst, magic remains and she’s able to be with Nat—and that’s only if she gets caught. 

Against Pru’s warnings, Elizabeth begins to go down this dark path, and she begins to spiral when she discovers that Nat is already in love, with a girl he plans to marry soon. Feeling the pressure of time, she resorts to the one thing she knows she really shouldn’t do. Although the story was written for fans of the Spellcaster series, to understand how Elizabeth’s descent to madness began, it works well in piquing readers’ interest for the rest of the series. 

Elizabeth is by no means a likeable character, and though it’s possible to see how each step “made sense” in her brain as she escalated, it’s hard to feel sympathy for her. However, other characters like Pru and even Nat are easy to empathize with, especially with how Elizabeth’s actions affect them. 

The First Midnight Spell can be a novella for both learning more about Spellcaster’s antagonist and discovering Claudia Gray’s world. Despite not having the most loveable main character, The First Midnight Spell features an interesting villain backstory in a richly imagined world with a strong magical system.