Truthwitch (The Witchlands, #1)

by Susan Dennard

The first in the Witchlands series, Truthwitch by Susan Dennard is a brilliantly imagined coming-of-age story perfect for fans of Robin Hobb, Victoria Aveyard and Trudi Canavan.

In a continent on the edge of war, two witches hold its fate in their hands.

Young witches Safiya and Iseult have a habit of finding trouble. After clashing with a powerful Guildmaster and his ruthless Bloodwitch bodyguard, the friends are forced to flee their home.

Safi must avoid capture at all costs as she's a rare Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lies. Many would kill for her magic, so Safi must keep it hidden - lest she be used in the struggle between empires. And Iseult's true powers are hidden even from herself.

In a chance encounter at Court, Safi meets Prince Merik and makes him a reluctant ally. However, his help may not slow down the Bloodwitch now hot on the girls' heels. All Safi and Iseult want is their freedom, but danger lies ahead. With war coming, treaties breaking and a magical contagion sweeping the land, the friends will have to fight emperors and mercenaries alike. For some will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch.

• ISBN13: 9780147523754
• Publish Date: 5 January 2016
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Out of Print: 25 March 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Random House USA Inc
• Imprint: Random House US Audio
• Format: Audiobook (UK Trade)
• Pages: 1
• Language: English

Reviews

[Stephanie]

TRUTHWITCH.

This books wasn't bad, but I found myself asking "but why?" a lot. I couldn't parse out the central, overarching conflict in which these characters and their personal issues fit into the story. Just a lot of individual problems that tied together, kind of. If this book could be described via an action, it would be a shrug with a half nod of approval.

Good but not great.

[Kelly]

Is nothing. Absolutely nothing.

[Nicole Lynn]

Thoughts to come :)
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This review previously appeared on my blog, PopCrunchBoom Books.
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My Review

"She could bend and shape the world.
And it was time to do so." (p. 394)

Today's review is on the much hyped book: Truthwitch. I read this book back in February as part of a read-along! If you're interested in my Discussion Question Answers for each week you can check out the posts here: week 1, weeks 2 & 3 and week 4. Even though I shared some of my thoughts on the work in the posts mentioned above, I still wanted to review the work and give my final thoughts on the novel as a whole. So check out below for all my likes and dislikes of Truthwitch!


So this book definitely had major hype surrounding it. All I keep thinking of is the mad dash at BEA last year for people to grab an ARC of it. It was cray cray! Any way, as I mentioned above, I was super excited that someone was hosting a read along just after I had purchased the book. Reading a few chapters a week and then answering some discussion questions really helped me absorb the book and enjoy reading it.


Truthwitch follows two best friends, Safiya and Iseult and their life (mainly mishaps and adventures) in the Witchlands. Safiya is a truthwitch, which she, Iseult and their mentors, strive to keep secret so that her powers are not taken advantaged of. In order for that not to happen, Safiya and Iseult are driven to various paths and experiences. They both encounter people from their past as well as new allies. They also make multiple enemies. In the first book of the Witchlands series, Susan Dennard introduces readers to a new world with two strong female characters that you're rooting for from the start!

By the end of the book, I really ended up enjoying this story. I haven't read fantasy in forever and I was super excited to jump back into the genre with this read. And while I wasn't disappointed with the book, I wasn't going cray cray over it either. It was just a relatively fast-paced, enjoyable fantasy read for me. I will most definitely be continuing on with the rest of the series, but I wouldn't call this an all time favorite of mine.

With that all said, Dennard does a lot of things really well with this story. I felt the world building was really well done, especially since she didn't rush too much into all the other lands or 'witch powers.' I felt she really eased that information into the book. Additionally, she wrote really strong main characters. Both Safi and Iseult were distinct in their voices and personalities (I'm very much more like Iseult!). I loved how they balanced each other and how they each have their own individual storylines/story arcs. Safi and Iseult definitely have growing to do, but I'm excited to see that growth. I think a lot of the growth they have to do has to do with their co-dependency on each other. While I super duper dig the friendship and bond both the girls have, I definitely think that they need to learn to survive without each other and grow stronger individually--which Dennard does a great job of introducing by the end of this book.

The secondary characters were strong as well. I loved seeing the different Witchland powers through these characters--both "good" and "evil." There was some definite twists with these secondary characters and I loved seeing the multiple layers to them. Not every book makes secondary characters so multi-layered or developed and I really applaud Dennard for doing so with her characters. I can't wait to learn more about these secondary characters - Merik, Aeduan, Prince Leopold, and Kullen--and see what future roles they'll be playing this series!

The only real problem I had with this book was the switching points of views (POVs). I don't mind swapping POVs, but I felt like too many people were telling the story. While mainly the POV was from either Safi or Iseult, the POV also shifted to Merik, Aeduan, and Leopold. I think one or two others might also have had some time as the narrator. Either way it just seemed like a lot for me and I would have preferred less shifting POVs. I definitely understand why Dennard chose to include so many shifting POVs. It definitely allows for more insight into the characters and their actions/motivations, but it just threw me as a reader. With this said, this was really only a minor overall problem for me.

In the end, I'm excited to read more in this series! I'm definitely happy I picked up this book and also for taking part in the read along this past February. Depending on when the next book is due out, I might reread this before it releases (like I did for the Harry Potter books). However, right now it's still fresh in my mind so it will most likely stay sitting on my shelf looking all pretty ;) I most definitely recommend this to any YA lover especially if you're into fantasy! This was such a great jump back into the fantasy genre (as a whole) for me and I can't wait to read more of the genre!

*cough* DNF *cough*. Alright, I may finish this one in the future. It certainly wasn't horrible or anything, but I also wasn't entranced by any means. Because of this, I was able to easily put it down and not pick it back up. But I DO want to finish it. When I will is a different story. Maybe help a girl out and convince her?

[tweetybugshouse]

I read the sample on this book 3 times trying to decide if i wanted to pre order it and the sample just did not grab me like i wanted it to so i decided not to pre order it and would just borrow it from the library down the road or wait for a good sale. Low and behold my fantasy and sci fi subscription box brought me truthwith. I put it on the shelf and figured i get to reading it down the road. Well a good author friend asked me to read it with her i struggled through the first half just like i did when i read the sample with hope that it would grab me and that i would enjoy it. I did finally get grabbed once the girls each got to take on a chapter and became separate voices, then i enjoyed it. I got caught up in each girl story as it unfolded and i cringed and flinched through the terrible times at sea. The ending was a little climatic then i expected but i am eager to see where the st

[jesstheaudiobookworm]

3.25 ★
I could lie to myself and say that it wasn't so bad. In fact, I tried denying that through most of the book because I really wanted to like it as much as everyone else. I didn't want to be the only "Negative Nelly" out there harping and complaining. But putting a sugary spin on this wouldn't be an honest review. The truth is that Truthwitch gave me more grief than enjoyment. At first, it was hard to put a finger on my issue with it and then I realized that was because I had multiple issues with it. It was like the entire Throne of Glass series combined into one installment and put on steroids. Beginning installments for high fantasy series usually start out slowly, with lots of descriptions, character backgrounds, and world-building. Truthwitch had very little of of any of that. I was shocked at the lack of imagery. In a fantasy world such as this, I want vivid descriptions of everything. In my opinion, Dennard's descriptive writing could be called "minimalistic", to say the least. High fantasy series also normally start out slowly to give the reader/listener time to process this new world and develop opinions about the characters (opinions that will probably change later, but still). Imagine if you accidentally started the Throne of Glass series with Heir of Fire. You were just thrown in with very little help and expected to keep up during all of the action. You may be alright with that scenario, but I'm certainly not. And that's exactly how listening to Truthwitch was for me. It was very demanding on the reader/listener. There were several key concepts in story that I was never given ample time to grasp and I still have no clue what they mean, even after finishing the story. That, friends, is not how it should be done. This story was also extremely unbalanced with entirely too much action and too little processing time. In my opinion, Dennard should have spread the action in this book out through at least one or two more installments and filled the rest of this with character development. In an earlier post, I said listening to Truthwitch was like chewing a tough piece of meat and I stand by that analogy.

Obviously, I am in the minority here. But this is a bandwagon I simply cannot jump onto. Susan Dennard had some really great, original ideas with Truthwitch, but I feel they were executed poorly. For example, I love the idea of two badass best friend protagonists who would do anything to protect each other. That was the driving relationship in the story, not the romance. Again, that was a really great idea that wasn't given proper development and that is so frustrating to me because this could have been really very good. But it's hard to enjoy swimming when you can barely keep your head above water.

Narration review: Cassandra Campbell was an excellent narrator. I enjoyed her accents and I appreciated the character voice distinction. That made the multiple POVs easier to handle. Her voice had a very nice and mature tone to it. It somehow managed to be soothing and quietly intense simultaneously. ♣︎

[Nessa Luna]

Probably one of the most anticipated books of 2016, if not the most anticipated. Truthwitch tells the story of Safiya and Iseult, a truthwitch and her threadsister. Safi must keep her identity hidden, for if anyone finds out she's a truthwitch, they'll all want to use her... Or kill her. But of course, not everything goes according to plan, and soon Safi and Iseult must flee their home.

I think I first heard about this book from Sarah J. Maas, author of the Throne of Glass series, because the author of this book, Susan Dennart, is her best friend. So of course, if your best friend has a new book coming out - you'll promote it, which of course will mean that people that haven't read her books yet (me) will pick it up. I was super pumped for this book, because it was about witches and that is honestly one of my all time favourite subjects.

Unfortunately - for me - right as I was about to start this book, I fell into a sort of reading slump. I just didn't feel like reading at all, and maybe that's partly because of the book (which I will be talking about later), and partly just because I felt like crap. Still, I didn't want to put the book down, so I just read bit by bit whenever I was in the mood.

Safi and Iseult are best friends, threadsisters, and they would probably die for each other. I honestly loved their friendship, and they are just so good together. I really hope we'll see more of them fighting together in the upcoming books, because those fight scenes were honestly my favourite parts of this book.

What I didn't like so much, was the fact that this book had multiple POV's. Yeah I guess it's a thing with high fantasy books that there are multiple POV's, and that probably is the best way to tell a story like this, but I just don't like it. It wasn't that each character had a chapter (which for me is the better way of using multiple POV's), but in each chapter, several characters would get their part, and that is just so so so annoying. I would have been okay with just Safi and Iseult getting a POV, but then there was Merik, and Aeduan, who I honestly didn't care about at all.

Okay, honestly, I didn't like the romance at all. I knew Safi and Merik were going to be 'a thing' from the moment they met, and I secretly hoped that I was wrong. But, of course, I wasn't, and they spend the entire book flirting with each other which was just so annoying. Merik was all about how he couldn't do anything with a domna and the bethroted of the emperor at that and seriously - that went on and on and on every time they were looking at each other. Either kiss the girl or stay the f away from her, damnit. I really hoped the book would be more about the amazing friendship between Safi and Iseult, but instead it was this. Such. A. Shame.

This was my first Susan Dennart book, and I think I will go and try out some of her other books in the future. I like her writing, and even though her other series - Something Strange and Deadly - is about zombies, I just want to try it out!

And the best part about this book? It. Has. A. Map! Books with maps are always my favourites, because those maps help me imagine the world better. I mean you can write about how *country* is located to the south of *another country* and about how *village* was north of *city*, but if you have a map, your readers can imagine it so much better! I always give a little extra points to those books that have maps...

So yeah, in the end, I really enjoyed Truthwitch even though I was going through a reading slump and there were some minor things I didn't enjoy. I will definitely be picking up the second book called Windwitch. Are you a fan of Sarah J. Maas' books? Or just high fantasy in general? You should definitely pick up Truthwitch!

My opinion on this book in one gif: 

[Briana @ Pages Unbound]

Truthwitch is one of those books everyone seems to have already read and everyone else has reviewed. So while I initially questioned whether to write a review at all (Who's left to read it?), I decided to go for it based on the fact that although I enjoyed Truthwitch a lot, I didn't think it was the greatest thing to happen to fantasy. And I'm definitely in the minority for that opinion.

I actually did not read any reviews for Truthwitch at all before picking up the book, but that did not allow me to escape from the hype. Promotions and pure, unadulterated love for this book were everywhere in the weeks leading up to its release. I couldn't go on Twitter without getting the impression that Truthwitch would be my new favorite book, a book that would change my life, a book that would be everything. So, sure, part of my critical attitude may be just an adverse reaction to major hype. People set some incredibly high expectations for this book, and I'm not sure anything could have lived up to it. Mostly my issue is that, although technically brilliant, the book never really grabbed my emotions.

Truthwitch is undoubtedly great fantasy. Susan Dennard has put an amazing amount of care into the world-building (almost too much, actually; I thought the details were overwhelming and irrelevant at times) and into the characterizations. Though I didn't end up loving all the characters the way many other readers do, I certainly appreciate them and their complexity. My prime example is love interest Prince Merik. I'm simply not swooning over him, despite his very admirable love for his country and desire to help his people without turning to unethical means. And I'm not swooning in part because he's flawed. He's selfish and self-righteous. He says he's going to do one thing while secretly planning to do another, then gets angry when people act based on what he told them and not on what he intended, as if they're supposed to read his mind. An annoying this itself is, it's even more annoying when the other characters agree with him that they were in the wrong. They weren't. I don't understand some of these characters at all.

And that perhaps is the main problem. I was interested in the characters, as I would be interested in observing people walking on the street. I didn't fall in love with any of them. I could see the relationships Dennard was trying to build, the way she wanted to build a strong female friendship between Iseult and Safiya and the way she wanted to craft a heart-tugging one between Iseult and the mother she could never quite tell loved her. But I wasn't really invested in any of it.

This is consistently the hardest thing for me to explain: why a book doesn't emotionally move me despite apparently having all the correct ingredients. I recommend this book. I think it's really good and, in fact, some of the best YA fantasy I have read in a long time. I just wish I cared a little more and that could pinpoint and articulate the reason I didn't.

[jnikkir]

SO. FLIPPING. GOOD. The worldbuilding, the magic system, the characters (THE CHARACTERS!!), the romance (I ship it so hard)... I can't even.

Full review to come -- but just so you know, if you haven't preordered this book yet, you're doing life wrong.