A review by everthereader
Windwitch by Susan Dennard
3.0
Review Posted On: Eden of Books
Read review for Truthwitch here. (WARNING: This review contains overzealous fandom references because yours truly is a die heart fangirl.)
Spoiler Free Review:
I haven't been reading a lot of young adult fantasy recently because I've really lost interest for it (there are exceptions). I don't really see any POC or LGBTQ+ representation in a lot of them. I wasn't actually planning on reading Windwitch, but when I heard there were some LGBTQ elements, I immediately hopped on board (literally) and was pleasantly surprised by this story.
For the LGBTQ+ representation, there is a lesbian princess (was fangirling so hard at this) and a transgender character. Both play pretty big roles in the series and really liked both of their character arcs. As for POC, nothing is every made clear (sadly), but I totally head-canon or fancast Iseult as East Asian.
The world, Witchlands is intriguing, but still extremely confusing. As mentioned in my my review of Truthwitch, I would love a glossary of some sort explaining the 5 billion witches and their abilities. The plot was also interesting enough, though not enough to keep me fully engaged. There would be many times where I had no clue on what was happening in the story. The plot was very slow moving and took the backstage in this installment. Normally, I would prefer some development in the plot and did bother me at times that the plot was going nowhere. The characters did seem to make up for it. their was a lot of character development in this book. Though I still feel very disconnected from the plot and don't care much for it. I'm here for the characters, mostly.
Like, I mentioned, a lot more character development, especially for Prince Merik. I described as Prince Zuko kind of character in previous reviews. He still is angry and it's even more irritating. I think anyone would expect Merik to be firebender (Firewitch, technically) and it's interesting to see a stereotype be broken and have Merik be a Windwitch. I also really liked Vivia and Merik's dynamic. It's even more evident in this book on how similar the two of them are. Vivia was seen as more villainous character in Truthwitch and I compared to Princess Azula, she had that narcissistic elegance and frightening quality. In this book, Susan Dennard took a different route with her character which I liked a lot better. You really do get to understand Vivia's motives and what she truly wants for her kingdom. She's more of a morally gray character which gives her character a lot more depth. Really enjoyed reading about these siblings.
Safiya was my least favorite perspective, her chapters were pretty boring. Not gonna lie, I like her friendship with Iseult more than Safiya herself. Iseult and Aeduan's chapters were probably the most enjoyable for me. You could clearly see the tension and intensity and they make an interesting pair (not romantically, in general).
Overall, I really liked Windwitch, it was a lot fun to read a nice break in the midst of school. I'm interested to see where the story goes next, especially after that ending.
Rating: 3.25/5
Read review for Truthwitch here. (WARNING: This review contains overzealous fandom references because yours truly is a die heart fangirl.)
Spoiler Free Review:
I haven't been reading a lot of young adult fantasy recently because I've really lost interest for it (there are exceptions). I don't really see any POC or LGBTQ+ representation in a lot of them. I wasn't actually planning on reading Windwitch, but when I heard there were some LGBTQ elements, I immediately hopped on board (literally) and was pleasantly surprised by this story.
For the LGBTQ+ representation, there is a lesbian princess (was fangirling so hard at this) and a transgender character. Both play pretty big roles in the series and really liked both of their character arcs. As for POC, nothing is every made clear (sadly), but I totally head-canon or fancast Iseult as East Asian.
The world, Witchlands is intriguing, but still extremely confusing. As mentioned in my my review of Truthwitch, I would love a glossary of some sort explaining the 5 billion witches and their abilities. The plot was also interesting enough, though not enough to keep me fully engaged. There would be many times where I had no clue on what was happening in the story. The plot was very slow moving and took the backstage in this installment. Normally, I would prefer some development in the plot and did bother me at times that the plot was going nowhere. The characters did seem to make up for it. their was a lot of character development in this book. Though I still feel very disconnected from the plot and don't care much for it. I'm here for the characters, mostly.
Like, I mentioned, a lot more character development, especially for Prince Merik. I described as Prince Zuko kind of character in previous reviews. He still is angry and it's even more irritating. I think anyone would expect Merik to be firebender (Firewitch, technically) and it's interesting to see a stereotype be broken and have Merik be a Windwitch. I also really liked Vivia and Merik's dynamic. It's even more evident in this book on how similar the two of them are. Vivia was seen as more villainous character in Truthwitch and I compared to Princess Azula, she had that narcissistic elegance and frightening quality. In this book, Susan Dennard took a different route with her character which I liked a lot better. You really do get to understand Vivia's motives and what she truly wants for her kingdom. She's more of a morally gray character which gives her character a lot more depth. Really enjoyed reading about these siblings.
Safiya was my least favorite perspective, her chapters were pretty boring. Not gonna lie, I like her friendship with Iseult more than Safiya herself. Iseult and Aeduan's chapters were probably the most enjoyable for me. You could clearly see the tension and intensity and they make an interesting pair (not romantically, in general).
Overall, I really liked Windwitch, it was a lot fun to read a nice break in the midst of school. I'm interested to see where the story goes next, especially after that ending.
Rating: 3.25/5