Book Review: Witch Born by Amber Argyle (Witch Song #2)

From Goodreads: 

Brusenna thought it was finished.

She defeated the Dark Witch, saving the Haven Witches from imprisonment and death. She found love and a place to belong.

She was wrong.

Haven is not the sanctuary it appears to be. Even love is in danger of slipping away like water through cupped hands.

Some things can't be saved.

A new threat merges with the old as the Witches’ dark history begins to catch up with them. Only Brusenna knows the extent of the danger and how to stop it, though doing so might cost her everything.

Including her life.

Will Brusenna be required to make the ultimate sacrifice?

*******

Second books in a series are always tricky. The first can be a home run, and the second has such high standards to meet that, on its own its good, but as part of the series its a stinker. Or, the first can be just average, nothing great, and the subsequent books get better and better. The trick is then luring readers into being interested.

Witch Born was kind of a mix of the two. Witch Song (book 1) was excellent, and Witch Born was equally awesome. We see Senna as a stronger character in a lot of ways. We see Joshen as stronger in some ways, and yet not as strong in others. And Senna's mother seems to have crumbled a little bit as a person, but not as a character. We are introduced to a lot of new characters that you hate to love but love them regardless.

The book was filled with mystery and intrigue. There were definitely a few plot twists that surprised the heck out of me. In short, I was completely enthralled and engrossed for the days I was reading Witch Born.

It was more mature than Witch Song, simply because Senna and Joshen are more mature. Don't misunderstand, Witch Born is still very clean. No swearing or sexual content. Just some kissing and a few instances where Senna realizes she's not completely modest in her shift. And, of course, some fantasy violence.

The ending was good in showing that all endings can be happy, but there is no such thing as a perfect happy ending. Not to mention it makes me excited for the future of the series.

My only complaint, which may not qualify as a complaint but more as an observation, was that since it's been so long since I read Witch Song, I was sometimes lost. Ok, there were a lot of times when I was a little lost. I felt a tugging in my memory where I thought, "OK, I think this was important in the first book...but I don't remember." Or, "Who?" It frustrated me simply because I think I would have emotionally connected to the book a little better if I could remember the details from the first one. It might have been nice if the author could have given a few more prompts instead of just expecting the reader to remember everything. However, that is very tedious to write, and can be boring to read through if you recently read the first book.

My advice is just make sure you remember Witch Song before reading Witch Born. But make sure you read Witch Born! It was definitely worth it, and I cannot wait for the third book. It might be a while since Witch Born was just released yesterday. :)

And PS. I know you love that cover as much as I do.

PPS. I just found out this could be the final book in the Witch Song series, which makes me very sad. Though the ending was left open for more, I can see how it would be a goodbye as well. And if that's the case, I'm satisfied. Though if you're reading this Amber Argyle, I'd be a lot MORE satisfied if there were three books in the series. I'm just sayin'. 

• Paperback: 330 pages
• Publisher: Starling Books (September 5, 2012)
• Amazon
• Goodreads
• Source: Author for review

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