A review by bookishpea
The Water Witch by Jessica Thorne

4.5

4.5✨

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. 

This books seamlessly woves fantasy, folklore, mystery and romance together. Mysterious deaths, a search for a lost city and a mythical water witch who terrorises the families of Saint-Sirène. 

 My favourite part of the book was most definitely the folklore aspect. I'm not sure how much of it is 'true' Brittany folklore but the way it is woven into the mysterious plot was genius. The descriptions of the region created a breathtaking imagery which was very easy to follow along. The prologue set the scene and the story so well, I almost wish we had more chapters based in Ys!

I definitely read this more as a fantasy than a mystery. A lot of the big plot twists were easy to guess and anticipate but it didn't take away from the experience at all. The romance is definitely a sub-plot but it still has such a massive importance and deals with the confusion of love so well. 

The reason this loses a star is because I think we needed a couple more chapters explaining the curse of the Water Witch. I like how the story ended but I think the explanation of the curse and how Dahut had lived on wasn't explained enough and left me a bit confused.

Overall a wonderful folklore, fantasy read that makes me want to check out more of Jessica Thorne's work!