Reviewing Sea Witch absolutely tore me in two, I think I was expecting a book full of magic and action but the majority of the story is essentially building up to the end where the action really happens. I liked it, but it wasn’t quite what I expected at the same time.
Title: Sea Witch
Series: N/a
Author: Sarah Henning
Publisher: HarperCollins Children’s Books
Release Date: 31st July 2018
Pages: 368
Source: eARC provided through NetGalley by HarperCollins Children’s Books (this in no way affects my review which is honest and unbiased)
Rating:
Goodreads Synopsis:
‘Everyone knows what happens in the end.
A mermaid, a prince, a true love’s kiss.
But before that young siren’s tale, there were three friends.
One feared, one royal, and one already dead.
~~~~~~~~~~
Ever since her best friend, Anna, drowned, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. A freak. A curse. A witch.
A girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears offshore and, though the girl denies it, Evie is convinced that her best friend actually survived. That her own magic wasn’t so powerless after all. And, as the two girls catch the eyes—and hearts—of two charming princes, Evie believes that she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after.
But her new friend has secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad, or on two legs, unless Evie finds a way to help her. Now Evie will do anything to save her friend’s humanity, along with her prince’s heart—harnessing the power of her magic, her ocean, and her love until she discovers, too late, the truth of her bargain.
The rise of Hans Christian Andersen’s iconic villainess is a heart-wrenching story of friendship, betrayal, and a girl pushed beyond her limits—to become a monster.’
Review
I had to leave writing my review for this book for a couple of days, because by the end of it I didn’t quite know how I felt about the book overall… I liked it, but it wasn’t quite what I was expecting at the same time.
I’ll start with the positives first. This is a unique fairytale retelling which shows the origins of Ursula from The Little Mermaid. It really helps you to understand a character which hasn’t really been explored that much before. The build-up leading to the end of the book was just the right pace for me, it had some twists at just the right time, with the majority of the story being first person POV of Evie but we also had some chapters which were from the past and in others’ perspectives.
The past chapters helped to explain things but I found myself sometimes confused at whose perspective we were seeing. I could work it out but I didn’t like that it took me away from the flow of the story for this. The love triangle. If you’re a fan of them then of course it won’t affect your enjoyment levels but for me personally I just found it a little… unbelievable?
The build-up was enjoyable if you’re interested in reading about the characters’ histories but the majority of the action really happened in the final parts of the book. I guess before this the story was more focused on friendships and a little romance but if you’re expecting a story with lots of magic and action then this probably wouldn’t be the right book for you.
In terms of the characters… I liked them, sure, and I loved Nik who is absolutely adorable but sadly I just couldn’t feel that much for Evie or Annemette (the Anna Doppelgänger). With the villain of this story, their actions were outlined and reasons to an extent but it just made no sense the extent to which they went. I guess this adds to the shock at the end (and as their motives are uncovered) but as with the love triangle I suppose I just didn’t understand why they went as far as they did.
Have you read this yet?
What did you think?
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Rachel Greenlaw says
I’ve just started this so your review was a very interesting read!
lauren says
RIGHT RIGHT!
i agree with your review a lot! :’)