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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
I enjoyed the sweet, timid yet strong, characterization of Tilda, who is healing from the tragic death of her husband a year before. The novel doesn't dwell on that loss, though, which is good, but rather uses it only as back story to give context to the story and perhaps explain motivations and actions. The plot unwinds in two timelines, bouncing between Tilda's modern story and Seren's tale from one thousand years before, both ladies living on the banks of a Welsh lake with its own water monster lore. Seren is a Celtic healer and seer in dangerous times of warfare and tribal politics. I sometimes struggle when reading books featuring multiple timelines, feeling the shift to be jarring, but I found this book to be full of seamless transitions. This book is full of detailed historical scenes, and also some fanciful plot elements.
Nope. Nope. Nope. Can’t do it. I want to but I just can’t. I’m on hour 5 out of 13 of this audiobook and oh my dear god...almost nothing has happened. And with the exception of two exceedingly predictable romances, I have no idea how the two storylines will tie together or when this will happen - nor do I care to know anymore!
The Brackston just tries way too damn hard to make her book “high level” or “elevated”. Adding highly unnecessary obscure words and descriptions - making the book just drag on for forever.
The Brackston just tries way too damn hard to make her book “high level” or “elevated”. Adding highly unnecessary obscure words and descriptions - making the book just drag on for forever.
A seer witch for the prince foresees his impending doom from those close to him, and her warning goes largely unheeded.
A young widow moves into the cottage her and her deceased husband bought right before he died. Once there, strange things begin to occur, and she finds herself pulled toward discovering the history of the area.
Told from two points of view - the witch and the widow- it weaves a tale of how past events are now culminating into the present.
It was an interesting story. There were some parts that had me rolling my eyes a bit. Some of the dialogue was not completely believable. However, it still gripped me enough to continue through it. The description of the scenery was gorgeous, and had me wanting to plan a trip to Wales.
I will say that I did not realize that this was the 3rd book of a series until I came here to add it to my read list. So, it definitely does not matter if you had already read the previous two. Will I read them? Probably eventually. I did enjoy this one enough to give this author and series another shot.
A young widow moves into the cottage her and her deceased husband bought right before he died. Once there, strange things begin to occur, and she finds herself pulled toward discovering the history of the area.
Told from two points of view - the witch and the widow- it weaves a tale of how past events are now culminating into the present.
It was an interesting story. There were some parts that had me rolling my eyes a bit. Some of the dialogue was not completely believable. However, it still gripped me enough to continue through it. The description of the scenery was gorgeous, and had me wanting to plan a trip to Wales.
I will say that I did not realize that this was the 3rd book of a series until I came here to add it to my read list. So, it definitely does not matter if you had already read the previous two. Will I read them? Probably eventually. I did enjoy this one enough to give this author and series another shot.
Thank you, NetGalley, for providing this book from Thomas Dunne Books for review!
Tilda didn't mean to become a recluse when she moved into the tiny Welsh cottage by the lake. But because she was supposed to share this time with her husband, who died a year ago in a car accident, she's finding it hard to connect to the new home and people. She stumbles across an archeological dig while out on a run, and is drawn to it by more than simple fascination -- she senses a dark power, and strange things begin to happen in her new surroundings. She sees a woman on a boat, a woman as pale and silvery as herself, a woman named Seren who was a shaman of the area around 920 AD, and Seren's history is Tilda's future.
I enjoyed The Winter Witch so much that I wanted to read anything else set in Wales that Brackston wrote. Though magical realism isn't my thing, I thought I'd give this part-contemporary part-historical novel a try. It's not what I expected, but I did enjoy it.
The historical storyline worked for me in some ways and not so much in others. What worked included the pre-Anglo-Saxon and Viking invasion, when Christianity was new and people still embraced aspects of the Old Ways. Magic is a part of life, and people sought shamans for visions, advice, and healing. Seren's role in the royal court of this small Welsh area is an honorable one. I enjoyed the dynamics and her romantic storyline and her deep love of nature and the connection she had with the water horse in the lake. But aspects of what I just stated I enjoyed were also things that didn't quite work for me. I liked the romantic storyline, but as a contemporary reader I had difficulty accepting her affair with the prince while he was married to the princess. I couldn't help but feel sorry for the princess and think Seren a little selfish. The water horse was a bit prevalent in this, too, rather than an occasional sighting of a mythical creature. Hold back -- the magical realism is showing.
The contemporary storyline began a bit slowly, and I was quite frustrated with Tilda at first. But she grows on the reader, aspects of her personality waking up and flourishing. It's as if she's waking up from her grief, so in the end I enjoyed her character growth immensely. The way she handles coming to terms with her newfangled magical power was amusing and awesome, as well. Her interest in the history of the area, and how she makes logical connections between now and then, was incredibly enjoyable. I loved her interactions with the archeologists, and her time with Dylan made me smile. But again, as her power grew, it stepped beyond what I was expected and entered into magical realism. I have so much difficulty with that.
Throughout this plot, we're trying to figure out what happened to Seren, how she's connected to Tilda, and what exactly is buried in the unearthed grave. The who, what, when, where, and whys of it all drive the story. I had so many guesses from the beginning, but all of them were completely wrong. But by the time it was revealed (about 80% into the book -- great timing!), it all made complete sense and clicked into place. Of all the aspects of the story, it was this I was most interested in: connecting the past and present through this grave.
The Winter Witch was more earth-based magic (it's all in the plants and winds and animals, no spells or incantations or brews or mythical creatures) with a very realistic historical storyline (a mute marries a drover). I wanted to know more about Seren than Tilda, or at least see this as two separate books rather than two narratives in one. The book was enjoyable, and perfect for someone with a higher tolerance for magical realism.
Tilda didn't mean to become a recluse when she moved into the tiny Welsh cottage by the lake. But because she was supposed to share this time with her husband, who died a year ago in a car accident, she's finding it hard to connect to the new home and people. She stumbles across an archeological dig while out on a run, and is drawn to it by more than simple fascination -- she senses a dark power, and strange things begin to happen in her new surroundings. She sees a woman on a boat, a woman as pale and silvery as herself, a woman named Seren who was a shaman of the area around 920 AD, and Seren's history is Tilda's future.
I enjoyed The Winter Witch so much that I wanted to read anything else set in Wales that Brackston wrote. Though magical realism isn't my thing, I thought I'd give this part-contemporary part-historical novel a try. It's not what I expected, but I did enjoy it.
The historical storyline worked for me in some ways and not so much in others. What worked included the pre-Anglo-Saxon and Viking invasion, when Christianity was new and people still embraced aspects of the Old Ways. Magic is a part of life, and people sought shamans for visions, advice, and healing. Seren's role in the royal court of this small Welsh area is an honorable one. I enjoyed the dynamics and her romantic storyline and her deep love of nature and the connection she had with the water horse in the lake. But aspects of what I just stated I enjoyed were also things that didn't quite work for me. I liked the romantic storyline, but as a contemporary reader I had difficulty accepting her affair with the prince while he was married to the princess. I couldn't help but feel sorry for the princess and think Seren a little selfish. The water horse was a bit prevalent in this, too, rather than an occasional sighting of a mythical creature. Hold back -- the magical realism is showing.
The contemporary storyline began a bit slowly, and I was quite frustrated with Tilda at first. But she grows on the reader, aspects of her personality waking up and flourishing. It's as if she's waking up from her grief, so in the end I enjoyed her character growth immensely. The way she handles coming to terms with her newfangled magical power was amusing and awesome, as well. Her interest in the history of the area, and how she makes logical connections between now and then, was incredibly enjoyable. I loved her interactions with the archeologists, and her time with Dylan made me smile. But again, as her power grew, it stepped beyond what I was expected and entered into magical realism. I have so much difficulty with that.
Throughout this plot, we're trying to figure out what happened to Seren, how she's connected to Tilda, and what exactly is buried in the unearthed grave. The who, what, when, where, and whys of it all drive the story. I had so many guesses from the beginning, but all of them were completely wrong. But by the time it was revealed (about 80% into the book -- great timing!), it all made complete sense and clicked into place. Of all the aspects of the story, it was this I was most interested in: connecting the past and present through this grave.
The Winter Witch was more earth-based magic (it's all in the plants and winds and animals, no spells or incantations or brews or mythical creatures) with a very realistic historical storyline (a mute marries a drover). I wanted to know more about Seren than Tilda, or at least see this as two separate books rather than two narratives in one. The book was enjoyable, and perfect for someone with a higher tolerance for magical realism.
I liked this book, but I didn't love it. I found that I was more invested in Serene's story than I was Tilda, until the very last few chapters where they seemed to cross over and I wanted to read more. Full review to come
I loved the premise of this story and the Welsh setting was rich and vividly portrayed. The connection between the characters wasn't unique in this sort of parallel-story-across-time tale, and their shared albinism felt like a way to reinforce their connection in case we didn't understand, but overall I liked how the stories of Tilda and Seren were intertwined. The characters in both timelines were very well written, with perhaps the exception of Dylan who seemed flat to me.
I don’t usually read a lot of books that have to do with magic but I read a review on this one and it sounded interesting, so decided to give it a try. I liked the Celtic angle and setting of this story! The duel story lines alternating between Seren and Tilda was fun. I liked how their stories meshed and complimented the other. I also loved the book cover! .
Useless prologue, way too much obsessing over the protagonist's albinism, and a romantic interest that isn't that great... but overall a very entertaining read. I wish the dog had served more of a purpose, as it seemed like eventually we would find out Thistle was actually the prince reincarnated, or maybe magically inclined, or was adopted for some other reason than just for the sake of having a dog. Point being: there are a few things in the book that appear to hold weight but do not further the plot whatsoever. The chapters involving Seren were breathtaking, however, and I somewhat wish that Tilda had been in a separate book entirely.
Finally! This book is the whole reason I started the series. It was definitely my favorite; I loved the tie-ins with Welsh/Celtic historical fiction and mythology. The romance was eh, I kept waiting for him to be the bad guy or also have ancestry traced back to the crannog but...nope. And as with the other stories, the ending felt...quick and easy? At least the dog didn’t die.