2 out of 4 stars
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Not every being on Earth is fully human. There are entire communities that humans do not know about. The Witch by K. Stevens focuses on those others: non-humans such as shifters, elves, and witches who live on Earth unknown to those who are only human. This 106 page urban fantasy book was a quick and interesting read.
The Witch starts in both the beginning and the middle of the action: the main character Julia, a half-elf, has an unpleasant history with Afanasiy, a cult leader who is allegedly doing genetic manipulation experiments. However, readers only hear about their past and Afanasiy’s wrongdoings through Jules’ conversations with others rather than seeing these scenes for themselves. Jules is on a mission: to start a war with Afanasiy, which is the focus of this book, the first in the trilogy. The readers follow Jules while she goes around meeting other non-humans, taking stock of who will be on her side once the war starts.
What made this a good read? Stevens created an interesting world with a mix of non-humans who exist together. I think there is potential for more stories to be set in this world. Besides the war that Julia wants to start, readers see that some of these beings don’t get along with each other, adding to the tension. I also enjoyed the descriptions; they were very detailed and the prose was nicely written. The mystery of the past (what exactly happened between Jules and Afanasiy?) and the looming war of the future kept me reading.
However, there were a few things about the book that did not work for me. First, Jules came across as too strong and without flaws except for her bad attitude. For example, the main character is magically attached to her mother so she is able to pull from her magic as well, thus making her stronger. Second, a lot happens in the 106 pages and it is written in a way that makes the story feels rushed. I understand it is the first in a trilogy and there are two more books, but the pacing and how packed it was did not work for me. At times it felt like this installment was just a rushed set up to get to the next part of the trilogy. I would’ve preferred to have the setup of the war happen more slowly, giving the readers more of a glimpse of how big and bad Afanasiy was rather than just hearing Jules and the other characters talk about it. The backstory was eventually more explained to readers, but I think we should have seen more of it rather than just being told about it.
I rate this book 2 out of 4 stars. The world created by Stevens has potential and the war that Jules is starting should be interesting. I also cannot read the first book in a trilogy and not know how the rest of the story goes, so I will be looking for the next installment, even though I’d prefer to read a prequel though to read about Jules and Afanasiy in more detail. The book, though it felt rushed to me, had a solid storyline and the world in which it was set was very well thought out. For these reasons, I gave it a 2. Other readers may find more enjoyment in the novel than I did.
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The Witch
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