Monday, February 11, 2013

The Water Witch (Fairwick Chronicles #2) by Juliet Dark

After casting out a dark spirit, Callie McFay, a professor of gothic literature, has at last restored a semblance of calm to her rambling Victorian house. But in the nearby thicket of the Honeysuckle Forest, and in the currents of the rushing Undine River, more trouble is stirring... 
The enchanted town of Fairwick’s dazzling mix of mythical creatures has come under siege from the Grove: a sinister group of witches determined to banish the fey back to their ancestral land. With factions turning on one another, all are cruelly forced to take sides. Callie’s grandmother, a prominent Grove member, demands her granddaughter’s compliance, but half-witch/half-fey Callie can hardly betray her friends and colleagues at the college.

To stave off disaster, Callie enlists Duncan Laird, an alluring seductive academic who cultivates her vast magical potential, but to what end? Deeply conflicted, Callie struggles to save her beloved Fairwick, dangerously pushing her extraordinary powers to the limit—risking all, even the needs of her own passionate heart.
Those that have worried about me, wanting to start a series from the beginning... rejoice! Guess what? I haven't read the first book in this series. Yep, I jumped into the second book. :D Luckily for me, I didn't need to read the first book to understand what was going on. I did get a sense that I had missed some interesting things that had happened in the last book, but connecting to the characters in this story wasn't hard at all.

Now, even though I didn't have a hard time connecting to Callie, I did feel that if I had started the series from the beginning, I would have had a better feel for Liam. Even so, this was more about Callie so my lack of preparation for this book did not make me suffer. And as much as I did like Callie, I have to say she quite often frustrated me with her seemingly inability to think things through. She blundered through quite a bit of messed up magic and it still didn't seem to teach her to stop and think before plodding through. Still, she did care so much for her friends that it helped balance out all the frustrating parts.

This story, despite some of the plot holes, was fun. Not all my questions were answered and some of the twists were a bit predictable. However, it had some quite steamy smexy scenes and a few interesting secondary characters. I would like to know more about this world and I may have to pick up that first book to see if it fills in some of the holes. I also have to warn those, like me, who hate cliffies... yep there is one here but I admit (grudgingly) that it has made me want that next book to see what happens to these characters next.

I give this book 3 stars. It's a fun PNR book that you don't need to read the first book to get into the world. However, you might want to start with book 1 to get a solid feel of Callie and Liam.
I received this eARC from the publisher and NetGalley and no compensation for my review was given.

22 comments:

  1. Haha, I love that you just jumped into it and skipped the first book entirely. I'm slightly OC and I doubt I could do that, but I totally admire you for it. :)
    I'm curious about these plot holes, this may sound mean but I love noticing them because most people tend to take things at face value and never really think critically.
    Fantastic review!

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    1. I have to admit, I don't always catch plot holes. Often it depends on the mood or some other factor. Probably because I was aware I was reading the second one first made me a bit more aware. :)

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  2. Ooh I like the sound of this and what a gorgeous cover.

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    1. You might like it. You might also want to start with book 1. :D

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  3. I love witches but this series just isn't screaming out to me. It does sound like that despite the plot holes that it might work for some people.

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    1. Hm... you might enjoy it, but I think you'd want the first book. I wasn't lost, but I could see how reading these in order would work better. :D

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  4. I do want to read this one..must check book 1

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    1. *spins hypnotic device* No, you want to read in out of order... *erie music* ;)

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  5. MELISSA! It's really you, you're back! YAY! You'd disappeared on me there for a while with all this reading in order and buying first books before reading second books and I was getting concerned. So glad to have my middle-of-the-series-first girl back:) Love the cover for this one!

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    1. See... I told you it was me! I knew it was me all along! ;)

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  6. Oh it's always so perfect when we don't have to read the first book, love that!!! If knew I would have asked for it.

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    1. Hee hee...

      It might bug some since you do get hints on what went on before, but it didn't bother me in the least. However, that is strange me... ;)

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  7. I have a thing about not jumping books in a series, but glad that you still connected with her, even if not the best feel on Liam.
    Happy reading,
    Brandi @ Blkosiner’s Book Blog

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  8. I don't jump into series mid-way too often, but sometimes I have too when I review things for Romantic Times and they give me the second or so book in a series. Most of the time, it's not too bad to understand. I'm glad you enjoyed this one overall!!

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    1. I do like to read in order, but PNR doesn't seem to be one that always has to be read this way. Good thing for me. :)

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  9. Once again Melissa refuses to color in the lines and reads books out of order! You rock, girlfriend. I have both of these books scheduled for Fire and Ice the last week and I will be reading them. fingers crossed for a good read!

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  10. Okay, I was getting worried about you. It's not normal for you to follow a series. ;P Glad it's a good one on its own too.

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  11. I think I remember seeing a review of the first book somewhere (apparently not here;) and it sounded good. Her bad decision making sounds like something that would drive me batty but it sounds like a decent read overall!

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  12. I'm always in need of a fun pnr. But characters that make hasty decisions make me anxious! LOLO

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  13. This looks like an awesome book to read. Wonderful cover. Thank you for sharing.

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  14. I would love to be able to skip to the middle of a series! So often I go, oh no WAY too many books to read before I can catch up, and so I miss out on reading something I might have enjoyed because it's too daunting to get there.

    It's amazing that this book worked for you without the book one context, and that you were able to connect with Callie. I do love that cover, so lovely! Thanks for sharing! :-)

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