REVIEW: Sea Witch by Sarah Henning

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

ISBN: 0062438778

Format: Hardback, Paperback, E-Book

Release Date: 31st July 2018



Links: Goodreads, Amazon.com, Indigo
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Rating: 8/10


Synopsis:

Ever since her best friend, Anna, drowned, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. A freak. A curse. A witch.

A girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears offshore and, though the girl denies it, Evie is convinced that her best friend actually survived. That her own magic wasn’t so powerless after all. And, as the two girls catch the eyes—and hearts—of two charming princes, Evie believes that she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after.

But her new friend has secrets of her own...

Review:

**Thank you to HarperCollins Canada for sending an arc in return for my honest review**

I wasn't sure what to expect when starting this book. I had no idea that it was a Little Mermaid/Ursula retelling but I've been loving retellings recently and this one is definitely  up there with one of my favourites. I wasn't sure what to expect when starting it. But I was immediately  hooked. From the characters, to the setting and to the themes of friendship, love and trust. This book really had a lot going for it.

I do wish there had been a bit more world building but the setting was extremely vivid and I felt as if I was really there, smelling the salt water. 

The characters were beautifully written. Ana, Evie, and Nik were written with many layers of emotion and had secrets that they were hiding. 

The story was told from many POVs moving back and forth in time. It helped to build more depth and emotions to the characters this book was a sad, lonely tale which in a way humanizes the Sea Witch of the classic fairy tale.

The pace at the beginning was a little slow but the payoff at the end was totally worth it and had a twist I never saw coming.

I couldn't stop reading from start to finish. Sarah Henning writes beautiful and puts a wonderful twist on a beloved fairy tale. It took twists and turns I wasn't expecting and kept me up reading until I was finished.

The story was a wonderful debut and I look forward to seeing what else Sarah Henning comes up with in her next one.