I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Sea Witch Rising
by Sarah Henning
Series: Sea Witch #2
Series Rating:
Published by Katherine Tegen Books on August 6, 2019
Genres: YA Fairy Tales Folklore Fantasy
Pages: 416
Format: Hardcover
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Also in this series: Sea Witch
“The Little Mermaid” takes a twisted turn in this thrilling sequel to villainess origin story Sea Witch, as the forces of land and sea clash in an epic battle for freedom, redemption, and true love.
Runa will not let her twin sister die. Alia traded her voice to the Sea Witch for a shot at happiness with a prince who doesn’t love her. And his rejection will literally kill her—unless Runa intervenes.
Under the sea, Evie craves her own freedom—but liberation from her role as Sea Witch will require an exchange she may not be willing to make. With their hearts’ desires at odds, what will Runa and Evie be willing to sacrifice to save their worlds?
Told from alternating perspectives, this epic fairy tale retelling is a romantic and heart-wrenching story about the complications of sisterhood, the uncompromising nature of magic, and the cost of redemption.
Will Evie and Runa be able to work together?
Sea Witch Rising by Sarah Henning is the fantastical sequel that the fans have been waiting for. Ms. Henning comes back into this world in a well thought out sequel. This book takes place during the Little Mermaid story but with twists that I never saw coming.
Evie
The titular character returns in this amazing sequel that paints the villainous character into a good role despite all the ups and downs she has endured. Evie has been through quite a lot since we last saw her, including helping out the little mermaid, Alia, to go to the surface to win the heart of the prince she has saved. Much like both Evie and Anna in the first book all those years earlier. Of course, she knew that by doing that she would get a whole lot of company, but Evie has braced herself and ready.
Evie is still the strong character that we saw from the first book but even more now since she has become the creature that she is. Unlike the others though she is still able to wield both land and ocean magic which makes her a formidable opponent.
Likes and Dislikes
What I like about her is that even being alone for so long, Evie is still a good person and wants to believe in the good in people. So, she hopes that they won’t lie to her for any service that the merperson wants from her. That includes going up to land to seek a love that may or may not happen. I adore that Evie is still in love with Nik despite that by this point, he is already gone. Evie trusts the youngest of the sea king’s daughters and hopes that she will be different.
The only thing that I dislike is that in the last fifty years she hasn’t tried to break the spell holding her in her cove.
Runa
The youngest of the sea king’s latest set of daughters and an actual twin as well. Out of all the daughters, she is his most prized one since she can do more for him than the others can. Runa doesn’t take into consideration how leaving the sea king will affect him or the other merpeople. For Runa, she loves Alia and will try to help her so that she can return to the sea and her sister can stay on land.
Sadly, their whole plan backfires, and now they are running out of time for them both. Alia to stay alive as a human, and Runa to go back to the ocean. Everything changes once the end of the little mermaid’s tale take place, and Runa has no clue what to do about that. It’s impressive to see her transformation and how she handles all of this within a matter of days.
Likes and Dislikes
What I like about Runa is that she takes everything with strides and manages everything. By that, I mean that she can do what she needs to do while making sure that everyone knows their part. Another thing that I like is that by helping things grow, she can help these witches on land that can barely do anything except heat a bowl of soup. She does very well on her new endeavor, and Evie probably knew that she would end up going on this route.
The things I dislike about Runa is that despite knowing that her twin couldn’t kill the newly turned King on his wedding night that she tries to do it for her. Then Runa falls into a lot of traps that she doesn’t see coming.
Five Stars
I am rating Sea Witch Rising by Sarah Henning with five stars as it is superb and excellently written. Ms. Henning had me on a hook the whole time reading it. I love the tie into World War 1 in this book since it is in 1914 and how it has affected the human’s kingdom and the sea’s kingdom as well. Everything about this book screams fantastic, and I love how it was all planned out perfectly. The ending was excellent, and I’m happy it ended as it did.
Other Book in the Series
Sea Witch
by Sarah Henning
Series: Sea Witch #1
Published by HarperCollins on July 31, 2018
Genres: Young Adult, Fairy Tales & Folklore, Paranormal, Romance, Mermaids
Pages: 368
Format: Hardcover
Buy on Amazon, Buy on Book Depository
Wicked meets The Little Mermaid in the captivating origin story of the sea’s most iconic villainess, perfect for fans of Heartless and Dorothy Must Die.
Ever since her best friend Anna died, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. Hiding her talents, mourning her loss, drowning in her guilt.
Then a girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears on the shore, and the two girls catch the eyes of two charming princes. Suddenly Evie feels like she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after.
But magic isn’t kind, and her new friend harbors secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad—or on two legs—without Evie’s help. And when Evie reaches deep into the power of her magic to save her friend’s humanity—and her prince’s heart—she discovers, too late, what she’s bargained away.
Upcoming Book Signing Tour
Friday, October 4th at 11:00 AM
Missouri Library Association Panel
#ReadLocal: A conversation with Local YA Authors at KCI Expo Center
11730 N Ambassador Dr
Kansas City, MO 641153
Sunday, October 13th at 3:00 PM
In Conversation with Vanessa Lillie at Our Daily Nada
304 Delaware St
Kansas City, MO 64105
Thursday, November 7th at 6:30 PM
Sequel State of Mind Panel at Johnson County Public Library, Monticello Library
22435 W 66th St
Shawnee, KS 66226
Saturday, November 9th at TBD
In Conversation with Naomi Hughes at Watermark Books
4701 E Douglas Ave
Wichita, KS 67218
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Sea Witch Rising by Sarah Henning.
Until the next time,
Happy Reading!
About Sarah Henning
Sarah Henning is a recovering journalist who has worked for The Palm Beach Post, Kansas City Star and Associated Press, among others. When not writing, she runs ultramarathons, hits the playground with her two kids and hangs out with her husband Justin, who doubles as her long-suffering IT department. Sarah lives in Lawrence, Kansas, the hometown of Langston Hughes, William S. Burroughs and an excellent basketball team.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2019 Goodreads Reading Challenge
- 2019 New Release Challenge
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