The Witch Collector

“Some women long for a husband. A home. Children. Others desire feverish kisses in the shadows, whispers of seduction against their skin. Me? I want my family. Together and free. I also want the Frost King and his Witch Collector. Dead. And today I make my wish come true.”

This quote captures Raina’s singular focus and rage at the novel’s start, contrasting traditional feminine desires with her thirst for vengeance. While other women yearn for love or domesticity, trauma shapes Raina’s priorities; she wants justice for her family and retribution against those she believes destroyed it. Her desire to kill the Frost King and Witch Collector defines her sense of purpose, thematically revealing how grief distorts her understanding of The Nature of Good and Evil. The passage sets the tone for Raina’s emotional arc, which gradually shifts from vengeance to understanding and choice.

“I hate living in the Northlands. I hate the Collecting Day harvest, and I hate this time of year. Each passing autumn day is another reminder that the Witch Collector is coming and that Silver Hollow […] will soon be buried beneath winter’s suffocating frost.”

Raina harbors deep resentment toward the Northlands and the rituals that have shaped her trauma. The seasonal imagery (autumn fading into “suffocating frost”) mirrors the emotional burden she carries, particularly regarding her sister’s abduction. Her hatred of Collecting Day reflects not only personal grief but also a broader condemnation of a system she perceives as unjust. In addition, this passage illustrates her lack of agency: Though she despises the Northlands, she remains trapped there, powerless to change her circumstances.