Waking the Witch

11/1/2012

Waking the Witch (Women of the Otherworld, Book 11) by Kelley Armstrong
Penguin Audio
July 26, 2011; 9 hours 31 minutes (unabridged)
Narrated by: Johanna Parker

First Edition Print
Dutton Publishing
July 27, 2010; 320 Pages

Women of the Otherworld is a fantasy series by Canadian author Kelley Armstrong. The books feature werewolves, witches, necromancers, sorcerers, and vampires struggling to fit as "normal" in today's world. The series also includes novellas and short stories which are published online and are available here for free!

Waking the Witch is book 11 in the series. The story's narrator Savannah Levine is a terrifyingly powerful young witch who has never been able to resist the chance to throw her magical weight around. But at 21 she knows she needs to grow up and prove to her guardians, Paige and Lucas, that she can be a responsible member of their supernatural detective agency. So she jumps at the chance to fly solo, investigating the mysterious deaths of three young women in a nearby factory town as a favour to one of the agency’s associates. At first glance, the murders look garden-variety human, but on closer inspection signs point to otherworldly stakes.

Soon Savannah is in over her head. She’s run off the road and nearly killed, haunted by a mystery stalker, and freaked out when the brother of one of the dead women is murdered when he tries to investigate the crime. To complicate things, something weird is happening to her powers. Pitted against shamans, demons, a voodoo-inflected cult and garden-variety goons, Savannah has to fight to ensure her first case isn’t her last. And she also has to ask for help, perhaps the hardest lesson she’s ever had to learn.
(Description taken from the author's web-site)

I listen to books on CD in my kitchen. While I cook and clean I enjoy having someone read to me. Often the books that I listen to are not the same kind that I read. I'm not sure of the reason, but there you have it. So how did I come to choose the 11th book in a series that I've never heard of as my latest kitchen story? I suppose I can blame it on working at the library. Here's how it happened. It was the end of the day at the end of the week and I realized that I didn't have anything to listen to over the weekend. Quickly scanning the cart with the last few things that had been returned I spotted Waking the Witch. Halloween was approaching and I was in the middle of The Witch's Daughter so it seemed a reasonable choice. After all if I didn't like it I could bring it back on Monday.

As I started listening to disc one, the story captured my attention right away with it's description of the scene of a murder told through the eyes of the victim's young daughter. (You can listen to a clip below). I enjoy a good mystery so things were off to a positive start. The main character, Savannah, is a motor cycle riding toughy who can take care of herself - at least that's what she wants people to believe. I found her to be a bit abrasive, but it may be that's part of the image she's projecting in order to protect herself. I was disappointed in Savannah's use of her powers. For a "terrifyingly powerful witch" she heavily relies on the "knock back spell" and throwing "energy balls" at people. So much so that I thought she was a novice and those were the only spells she knew.

Being that this was Savannah's first solo case she was determined to do it all by herself, and she put herself into some dangerous situations as a result. She also seems to relate to the young girl we met in the opening. Her willingness to protect the underdog and challenge authority smooths those rough edges and makes her much more endearing.

The story itself is a pretty good mystery. There are several potential bad guys and the underlying reasons for the murders are woven throughout book, becoming clear as it comes to it's conclusion. While the book is able to stand alone, I was definitely at a disadvantage for not knowing any of the characters and their back stories. And I suppose I would have enjoyed it more if I knew about the supernatural elements that were probably introduced in the beginning of the series.

I give Waking the Witch 3 out of 5 stars. I'm not mad about any of the characters, and wasn't drawn in enough to want to learn more about the Women of the Underworld, but that's just me. After doing some research for this review I learned how popular the author and the series are. If witches, werewolves, demons, and vampires are your thing than this one is for you, but I'd say start with book one so you get the whole story.

Here's what a hand full of readers from Amazon had to say...

5.0 out of 5 stars - Great Waking the Witch like many other books by kelly armstrong was great, i like how the book ended cant wait till read the next. Published 9 days ago by Supernatural.

4.0 out of 5 stars - Savannah grows up and faces the truth CLIFFHANGER ENDING !!!!!!!!!!!! ARGUH NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO ! it was so intense, it was just almost there and then it hit the fan and .......the end.
Read more. Published 1 month ago by YodaWay.

5.0 out of 5 stars - Love Kelley Armstrong's books! Have not completed this book yet but off to a great start...hard to put down! Love this entire series and book 11 is no exception. Read more. Published 3 months ago by Mimi.

4.0 out of 5 stars - Small town, big problems Oh the shock. I must confess that I'd never before read a novel by Kelley Armstrong. Though I'd heard about her often and saw her books on the shelves, I just never got around to... Read more. Published 4 months ago by VampireNovelFan.

3.0 out of 5 stars - Thou Shalt Not Suffer a Witch to Live If you followed the Women of the Otherworld series, you will be familiar with the witch Savannah Levine, daughter of a dark witch and ruthless sorcerer.
Read more. Published 6 months ago by Emma Meade.