About

Truthwitch is the first book in The Witchlands series written by Susan Dennard.

Truthwitch book cover

Blurb

In a continent on the edge of war, two witches hold its fate in their hands.

Young witches Safiya and Iseult have a habit of finding trouble. After clashing with a powerful Guildmaster and his ruthless Bloodwitch bodyguard, the friends are forced to flee their home.

Safi must avoid capture at all costs as she's a rare Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lies. Many would kill for her magic, so Safi must keep it hidden - lest she be used in the struggle between empires. And Iseult's true powers are hidden even from herself.

In a chance encounter at Court, Safi meets Prince Merik and makes him a reluctant ally. However, his help may not slow down the Bloodwitch now hot on the girls' heels. All Safi and Iseult want is their freedom, but danger lies ahead. With war coming, treaties breaking and a magical contagion sweeping the land, the friends will have to fight emperors and mercenaries alike. For some will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch.

Review

This was a quick read. The pacing was relentless from the very start.

Given an epic setting, you'd expect at least a few chapters focusing on world building. Here, details were mixed with a racing plot. A few times I wondered if I had accidentally missed the first book or perhaps a prequel series.

I liked the magic system and how it was applied during the events of this book. I'd have enjoyed more if the lead pair's prior shenanigans and training were shown (perhaps as flashbacks). Their dynamic was good, but the past events which led them to rely upon each other are mostly just described.

The ending was good and left a lot of threads open for future books. If it was a finished series, I'd have probably tried to binge read the remaining books.

My rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟☆

What others are saying

From Jesse's review on goodreads:

Susan built up such a unique world with amazing characters. I even liked the little romance that starts to build in this book! I'm all for books with romances that aren't overwhelming. My one complaint is that I found myself confused at times, because you're just expected to pick up on the different roles that the witches play. Other than that I really enjoyed this story and I can't wait to see what's in store for the rest of this series!

From Hamad's review on goodreads:

Truthwitch was a good YA book that is well written and addicting. The prose is simple, the characters are interesting enough (except for the main character which is a bummer) and the magic system is cool. The plot is not complicated but it is fast-paced and full of action.

Bingo

/r/Fantasy/ 2021 bingo categories:

  • Found Family
  • New to You Author (HM)
  • Witches (HM)