A review by reka111
The Witchfinder by J. Todd Kingrea

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Date: 2023/04/09-2023/04/14
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: ★★★★.25
Spice rating: —
Age rating (I think): 16+

TIGGER WARNINGS: torture, death, profanity

Thank you for the e-copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

First, what you can expect from this book:

  • enemies to lovers (but rather hate to love)
  •  found family
  • unique world construction
  • great wording
  • exciting and adventurous
  • some chapters end with a cliffhanger or twist 
  • the battle of good and evil
  • morally grey characters
  • witches and magic
  • 3rd person
  • mainly male lead
  • medium-paced
  • funny speeches

PRELIMINARY:

I'll be honest, this book was very hard for me to absorb (but eventually did) and that was due to the slow start and the names that I didn't even know existed at first (but still, what a cool name Malachi is and very unique, if anyone is interested means messenger of god, which is almost comical here).

The characters grew very close to my heart, especially Teska, I could identify with her a lot and I'm sorry for everything she had to go through. I've always loved strong and fighting women, but she holds a special place in my heart even among them.

When I finished this book, I had so many emotions swirling inside me that I couldn't really name any of them, but I also can't decide how I feel now a day later.

ATTENTION SPOILER (if you haven't read the book, scroll down at your own risk)

THORNE

Okay, shame, no shame, but I only read a few male-lead books, so this was the first one I picked up in a long time and, to be honest, I was quite afraid of it, because it's a little harder for me to identify with male lead characters, because I'm always used to them  only the love interests. But I was pleasantly disappointed. Thorne was everything I wanted and expected from this book. He goes through an unusual character development (that's seriously rare) throughout the book and it's remarkable from him. At the beginning of the book, he has the power, and like everyone he uses it, both deterrence and obtaining information, he blindly believes in the church and does not question whether what he is doing is right. With him, you can observe in a terrible good way what happens to a person when he is suddenly deprived of this superiority and has to survive without it.  Actually, I don't believe that he is bad, but I wouldn't say that he was good either, because he did a lot of bad things and his hands are not clean - no one's are - but at least he can learn from his mistakes. It is clear that his motivation is replaced by loyalty to friends and love, and along the way he finds something that is really worth fighting for. It was what made him so human; his bad decisions, his loyalty and how he changed. You may see him a stern and evil figure on the outside, but inside is much more complex, capable of empathy and he's fight for those who close to him. Overall, he was a great protagonist, someone I would love to read about anytime.

TESKA

My Ghost, who was so brave, for so long and didn't forget to remain human in a world full of monsters. Like Malachi, she goes through a lot of character development herself;  Driven by revenge, she turns from a lost thief into a true warrior and finds the path destined for her by fate. I guessed that she has something to do with witches or brexias (and that Throne witchfinder simply makes things funnier), but not so much. It was obvious from the first moments that she was not normal and that there was something special about her. I loved that she was so determined and brave and persistent but never blind, not only in not following the church, but because she was able to forgive Solomon, which took a lot of strength for her. She has undeniably become one of my favorite female characters with her personality and uniqueness. I look forward to seeing what happens to her.

THE OTHERS

As in (almost) every book, you need a funny secondary character, but here the author managed to make his jokes so well that they were not disturbing. Yes, Warner carried this thing on his back and I'm really grateful to him for that, even in the most tense moments he had a joke up his sleeve and made me laugh. I was so scared that he and Cabbott might not survive, but they did, so now I'm calm and owe that witch my soul.

For me, Hawkes was more of a fighter and protector than a real personality, despite this, I have to mention him because of his loyalty and perseverance, since without him the characters would not have lived (and without Teska).

Dario, well, he was either terribly strong or terribly stupid. Maybe both at the same time, maybe neither, but I know that he did everything for his family and friends, and for that I respect him. He literally - though not willingly - gave up most of her life to find out what happened to his nieces, only to lose them again. Somehow I don't trust that he will be with us for a long time, he will slip by like a butterfly, but I am ready for it, because like him, I have no other choice.

Neris, the brexia (or witch) is the leader of the communion. To be honest, I wanted to get to know her better and her goals and motivations, because she wasn't really driven by anything other than fear, on the contrary, she was very interesting and I hope we can get to know her better in the future.

A single word is enough for Rann; Darth Vader and everything will make sense.

Merrick was a revolutionary, a leader and a fool. But honestly I got used to his presence and it was terrible when he disappeared and what they did to him. He deserved much, much better. He believed so much in a better future so much, and he wanted it so much and it didn't work out for him, but I hope Throne will do it for him and bring them a free world, one in which there is no church, no rules and free people.

LOVE STORY

Okay, so I couldn't stick enemies to lovers on this no matter how much I wanted to. They weren't really enemies (or not long enough to be called enemies), but the fact is that they didn't get along well in the beginning.  Although for me this out-of-the-air love was a bit rushed, it wasn't that terrible, not as much as I've experienced in other books, here at least they got time and probably more, because nothing really happened. I wouldn't really say that they are together, rather they just stomp in front of the other and expect that the other will notice this.

Totally random comment:
Ok, Teska has red hair (just like witches used to) but that's not the strange thing, it's that Elaine had it too (according to Merrick) but I have no idea who she is and what happened to her. I mean, she's proven to have something to do with Throne and uhhh I feel like this is a painful memory for him. But I'm still very interested in who or what exactly she was.

THE PLOT PACE/CONCEPT/ETC

One of my problems - as I mentioned - was caused by the slow start, but I understand why it was necessary; to get to know the situation and the characters, regardless, that's why I had to remove it from the rating.

The plot itself actually kicks in around 20%, so it clearly deserves the flag of slowness at the beginning, but from there it gallops like a wild horse and I honestly liked that we never stopped for a moment until the end and there was always something going on when I say  that action is needed, that's exactly what I mean.

The wording, however, was beautiful, in the strictest sense of the word. I liked that author didn't just throw the words out there, but gave them real meaning and gave exactly as many descriptions of the things that the reader absolutely needs in order to understand the plot.

Okay, a map really helped a lot to define where we were going, but since I've never been very particular about them, I just let my brain fill in the places and imagine Departia itself, but this is definitely a plus point.

The world structure itself was very good, magic, witches, different creatures, etc., in a word, stayed true to its name and remained fantasy and did not change into something else.

FINAL WORD

So I finished this book thinking that I will definitely come back here in the future, as there is a second book and soon a third.  Although I'm a little worried about the title, because in the previous book everything fell apart because of the Crimson Fathers and the Crusaders. I am very curious about their goals and what they want (or why they need Teska so much).

RECOMMENDATION

I definitely recommend reading it, because it guides you to a world where magic and monsters come to life, friendships are made and run away, secrets come to the destructive surface and dreams turn to dust. First of all, fantasy fans may like this book, but I strongly recommend it to anyone, because it is not worth missing.
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