Sightwitch: A Tale of the Witchlands (The Witchlands, #2.5)

by Susan Dennard

Set a year before Truthwitch, Sightwitch follows Ryber Fortiza, the last Sightwitch Sister as she treks deep underground to rescue her missing best friend. While there, she encounters a young Nubrevnan named Kullen Ikray, who has no memory of who he is or how he wound up inside the mountain. From the New York Times bestselling author of Windwitch Susan Dennard, an illustrated prequel novella set in the Witchlands setting up the forthcoming hotly anticipated Bloodwitch.

• ISBN10: 1250183529
• ISBN13: 9781250183521
• Publish Date: 13 February 2018
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Imprint: Tor Teen
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 240
• Language: English

Reviews

[Kate (Blogging with Dragons)]

I was so dismayed when I saw how small Sightwitch was! I had no idea it was a novella when I ordered it, but I’m glad I didn’t. I’m not normally a fan of novellas or short stories, and I might not have even read Sightwitch had I known it was one! I was even more skeptical when I saw it had illustrations, but I absolutely loved Sightwitch and devoured it in one sitting. The novella was completely immersive, as it is told from the unique perspective of many characters' diaries, with drawings and articles ripped from textbooks. For the first time since starting the Witchlands series, I felt like I finally understood a lot of the lore surrounding the world.

 

“First lesson of the Sightwitches….There are no coincidences. If you are here, it is because you are meant to be here.”

 

Sightwitch takes us to the hidden away world of the Sightwitch convent. There the sisters wait to be called on by the sleeping Goddess, Sirmaya, to journey into the mountain beyond the convent, and to awaken to their powers. Once awakened, these sisters have glowing silver eyes, signaling their abilities of Sight--to remember something after seeing it once, to use their knives to retrieve memories from corpses, and to see visions in the Scrying Pool. Until the day they are called by the Goddess, the sisters serve the convent, strictly adhering to the strict rules of their order and remaining hidden from the outside world.

 

Main character Ryber, who readers of Truthwitch and Windwitch will recognize from  the crew of Prince Merik’s ship, follows every last rule in the hopes that the Goddess will call her. But she is dismayed when first her Threadsister, Tanzi, is called by the Goddess and does not return--and then horrified when all the other sisters are summoned, and also do not return. All alone, and plagued by dreams of her sisters suffering and crying out for her help, Ryber sets out with only her determination--no Sight--and the help of the convent’s mysterious bird, “The Rook.” 

 

“Known across Witchlands for their abilities to both record the memories of the dead as well as foresee the events of the future, their mysterious sect has not been seen since the days of Eridysi, almost a millennium past.”

 

I was immediately hooked by everything in Sightwitch, not just Ryber’s perplexing situation. Heck, before reading Sightwitch, I, like the rest of the people in the Witchlands, thought Sightwitches did not even exist anymore! So I jumped at the chance to learn everything I could about them! Plus, the way the story was told, from the perspective of the diaries of several Sightwitches--that of Ryber’s, her Threadsister Tanzi’s, and the Sightwitch of legend Erydisi--only added to the suspense and intensity of the novella.  Not only was I trying to piece together what was happening to Ryber in the present, but also what was happening right before the Summoning event to Tanzi, and also what was happening way before both of their times, to Erydisi.

 

I loved reading from every single one of these perspectives--a rarity for me in most novels where I generally hate reading from at least one character’s point of view--as it allowed all the characters a chance to fully develop in such a short book. As a result of how it was written, I got to learn who Tanzi was. Readers don’t have any time to get to know her before she is summoned and disappears, but we are able to get to know her from her diary and Ryber’s. And through Tanzi’s diary, I get to know the main character, Ryber, even better. It is really a unique window into the world of each character. We get to see how other characters see or saw them, instead of just seeing events or other characters through their own unique perspectives. I was invested in Ryber’s personal struggle to find meaning without the Sight of her Sisters, in Tanzi’s hopes for Ryber to see that there is more to life than just following the rules, and in Erydisi’s struggle to build magical doorways to save mankind from the tyranny of the Exalted Ones and to teleport them into a refuge city underground.

 

“There are two kinds of Sight, Ryber. The kind that lets you see the future, relive the past, and catalog the world around you in a detail you never knew possible. That is the Sight that I and the other Sisters have. But there is another Sight, a simpler Sight--one that is rooted in clarity of purpose. An ability to see the path that matters most and stay firmly gripped upon it. I’m sure you can guess which one will serve you better in the long run. Which one will serve us all.”

 

Perhaps it was due to this innovative writing style that I grew to like Ryber so much. In the other novels of the Witchlands series, she is simply a side character and I didn’t really think much of her. To me, she was simply there to demonstrate the existence of Heart-threads--or the Witchlands version of soulmates and to mourn the loss of her boyfriend, Kullen, when he Cleaved. So, I was really quite skeptical that I would enjoy reading a novella entirely about her--but I loved it and her! There’s so much more to Ryber than was presented in the other novels. In fact, I am now tempted to go back and to read the other novels just to see what hints are there of her future actions since Sightwitch takes place before Truthwitch.

 

“Originally the 12 Paladins were the only people with magic. They had absolute power over the elements they were born to keep in balance….Sightwitches were the only people aside from the Paladins to possess magic in the Witchlands. But Sightwitches are made, not born.”

 

I was most thrilled to finally learn more about the mysterious Paladins of the world from Erydisi’s diary. These Paladins have been mentioned a few times in Truthwitch and Windwitch, but I didn’t really fully grasp their role until reading Sightwitch. Reading the history of the Paladins through snippets of textbooks and notes from Ryber and Tanzi prevented the information from feeling like an information dump.  Simultaneously, it also allowed readers to see the characters funny notes to each other. I felt like I was in on the secret passing of notes or something! Somehow, everything feels much more secretive and mysterious through a diary. And watching the events that brought magic to the world of the Witchlands unfold in Erydisi’s diary as she tries to solve her own puzzle was truly exhilarating.

 

The only thing I wasn’t a fan of was how Sightwitch tried to hit me over the head with how special Ryber was and how important choice was over the Sight. I felt like I already understood that merely from reading Sightwitch, and that the author didn’t need to oversell it to me, especially on the very last page of the novella. Besides that, certain events unfolding were a little predictable, such as The Rook King being the traitor. But I honestly didn’t view that as a negative thing. If a story is predictable, that means the author has weaved a coherent story and has laid a solid framework. I much prefer being able to predict something in a story, to being completely blindsided by something done purely for shock value, which seems to be a very popular storytelling method of late. 


Ultimately, author Susan Dennard does such a great job with her storytelling. She always finds a way to make her stories a wild, fast-paced ride, but balances it with plenty of character development and world-building. With every entry in her series, I am more impressed by her work. She is truly becoming one of my favorite authors. After reading Sightwitch and learning more about Ryber and the development of magic in the Witchlands, I am even more excited for what is going to happen in the future novels. To me, it is amazing that the author managed to do so much set up for the rest of the series with Sightwitch. It is only through reading Sightwitch, a prequel, that I realize how much is truly at stake with Safi, Iseult, and the rest of the gang’s story and the implications for what it means for the rest of the Witchlands and magic as we know it. I also have a few sneaking suspicions that I can’t wait to confirm one way or another. 


If anything, Sightwitch made me even more excited to read Bloodwitch and other future installments of the series. It provided so much clarity and background depth to the Witchlands and some much needed character development for Ryber, and to a lesser extent, Kullen. As a result of reading Sightwitch, I am more invested in the Witchlands saga than ever before, and I highly recommend reading it if you are already a fan of the series.


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My Book Review Policy

[Quirky Cat]

Sightwitch is an illustrated novella that fits into the Witchlands series. It’s technically 2.5 in the series. If you haven’t read it yet, but are planning on reading Bloodwitch, I’d suggest reading it in the meantime.
Sightwitch doesn’t quite follow the established rules shown in Truthwitch and Windwitch. For one thing, it’s set in the past. For another, the perspective shifts bounce back and forth between a character we know and a character from an even more distant past that we’ve yet to be introduced to.
You can probably guess from the title that I am of course talking about Ryber. I loved Ryber in Truthwitch, and really missed her presence during Windwitch, so I was thrilled to have a chance to see more of her again. Even better, this novella teaches us more about her, her abilities, and the way she was raised.



Sightwitch was an amazing read, and it was everything I could have hoped for from a novella like this. It told me everything I wanted to know about Ryber, and even included another character I hadn’t dared hope to see.
The novella is set in the past, before the events in Truthwitch. It’s set back before Ryber had found her hearttread, to give you an idea. It shows us how she lived during this time. How she was raised, and more importantly, how the sight worked and how it was given.
Remember, the sight is the only witch ability that we know of that one doesn’t have to be born with. I had wondered about the details of it, and now I know. I will say that I was not disappointed with the explanation that I was given. If anything, the full story exceeded my expectations.
There were so many things about this novella that I loved. Besides the obvious, of course (Ryber’s presence). I love the system that was introduced for sightwitches, the way their religion worked, and especially the risks and costs that were revealed later in the novella.
The artwork for this novella was fantastic, and all credit must go to Rhys Davies for that. I love how the artwork always complemented what was on the pages; from little sketches and drawings to full maps or anything else that was better shown than described.
The gradual building of the tension was brilliantly done. I had originally picked up Sightwitch for a bit of casual reading before dinner. Before I knew it I was fully sucked into the novella, happily going hungry in exchange for knowing what happened next. Once I got into it, I just couldn’t put it down.
I’m really happy that the novella was set in the past, and in a way I kind of hope that any future novellas follow the same rule. It makes for an interesting aside. There are some characters I wouldn’t mind learning more about…
Sightwitch has made me even more anxious to read Bloodwitch, assuming something like that is even possible. But we’re almost there!


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[bookishzelda]

Sightwitch was freaking amazing and it’s not like I didn’t expect it to be, because I did. I actually procrastinated reading because I knew I wouldn’t want it to be over. I really didn’t want it to end when I finished reading. It’s a shorter book but

This story is set prior to Truthwitch and gives us such a great insight into the Sightwitch sisters history as well as all of the Witchland history. I enjoyed all the Sightwitch sisters and learning about them through different journal entries. Of course I also loved The Rook too.

I’m obsessed with Ryber. I love her, maybe even more than I love Iseult and Vivia. I want to reread the first books in her POV. She is just an awesome character. I can’t gush enough about her! She makes me laugh that she is such a rule follower and she is also smart, clever and witty. Her interactions with Tanzi and Kullen make me want to say can you be my friend too? Love love her.

I also really liked reading the entries for Eridysi. Sightwitch adds so much to the rest of the series. So many things!! I loved getting this little bit of history from a thousand years ago. It was so interesting!!

The World Building is solid and it happens in such a small space when you think about it. The Covenant and the Mountain are our backdrop. These places were so flushed out though and they came vibrantly to life in my mind through the illustrations and descriptions. It made me love the style that this book is written in even more. I love the Witchlands. I always feel like I’m in a video game and I love feeling that way. Although the skull spider thing just kept making me think of Skulltulas that are in Zelda, I’m pretty sure that’s not what they look like but I couldn’t get it out of my head. I'm always a fan to see what creature is going to come out of the woodwork, or ice in this case. The Shadow Wyrms are freaky!!

I could gosh about this book all day. I really loved it and what it adds to the series. It makes it that harder to wait for Bloodwitch but it also made me want to reread Truthwitch and Windwitch to catch all the things I probably didn’t the first time. Especially armed with this new information.