First of all, I have to say thank you to netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read an e-arc of this book. And to abide by the rules, it has been #gifted to me.

Bloodwitch continues on the story set in Truthwitch but this time we follow our beloved Aeduan also known as the bloodwitch. People may know that I am not a particular fan of changing point of views through out the story, but in this book, it seemingly fits and gels together. The book starts with a scene set on a battlefield with lots of bloody corpses and from there, you know that this book is going to be bloody, brutal and one hell of a ride. Aeudan sees that his enemies are coming nearer and closer to him. They want to destroy the sanctuary and its secrets but Aeduan won’t let that happen. In order to do this, he must team up with the threadwitch known as Iseult and stop the destruction of a place he once called home.

The chemistry between Iseult and Aeduan is always the best. You just know that they want each other in some way or another but yet cannot. But their slow burn with each other is becoming more a light and honestly, wow.

I love Susan Dennard’s writing and I’m so lucky to have read Bloodwitch before its release.

4 out of 5 stars.

Thanks to Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for providing me with an Advance Review Copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is the third book in Dennard’s Witchlands series. The digital copy of the ARC itself was really muddled and difficult to read which hindered my reading comprehension at certain points. I think the file itself must have been corrupted in some way as some letters were missing and the text was mixed up. I’ll be buying a physical copy of it upon release though.

This book throws you right back into the action of the Witchlands series. It’s definitely not a book to read unless you have read the previous books in the series as you’ll be completely lost. The bonus is that the series is really, really good so you should check them out if you haven’t already. This is not the book to start with however, and you may even want to re-read them if you have read them previously because the story doesn’t allow for recap and I found myself having to re-read parts of the previous books to remember the context.

Bloodwitch, if anything, is even better than previous instalments. Dennard is a fantastic world builder; her characters feel vibrant and real and you will likely become genuinely attached to them. The story follows on shortly after the events of Windwitch and focuses mainly on Aeduan, the eponymous Bloodwitch as well as Safi and Iseult. There are a lot of supporting characters to keep track of which makes for a bit of a whirlwind reading experience. Dennard doesn’t coddle her readers which I personally appreciate, but others might struggle a bit with the pace of the narrative and the number of alternating points of view. Some character arcs are more interesting than others, but this is down to personal preference rather than a flaw in the book. Some of the chapters felt like Daenerys chapters to me. If you’ve read Game of Thrones you’ll know what I mean. I don’t really subscribe to trigger warnings...it’s a book series set in a fantasy world, there’s going to be violence. Some parts make for difficult reading so if you’re sensitive to that, keep it in mind.

I really enjoyed this book and in my opinion it’s the strongest in the series yet. The character relationships and dynamics are as compelling as ever and the narrative itself is gripping. If you haven’t read the previous books now is the perfect time to pick them up. It’s always tricky to write a review about a book that is part of a series because people who haven’t read the series are unlikely to start with it, and those who already read and enjoy it are likely to read it no matter what. If you’re a fan of the series pick this one up!

Bloodwitch, the third book in the Witchlands series, is the best of the series so far and one of Dennard's most stunning novels to date. It has a little something for every fantasy fan, and it's crystal clear exactly how talented the author is. Her glorious worldbuilding can rival anyone's, her characters flawed, real and unforgettable had my heart from the very beginning, and the plot is captivating and adventurous. There are so many twists and turns in the plot that I almost thought I was reading a thriller; it was virtually impossible to predict where the story would take us so there were many surprises throughout.

Each character has their own agenda and is assembling their pieces awaiting the time when the chess game will truly begin. The personal growth each character has gone through is evident and continues in Bloodwitch. The whole book feels deftly plotted with multiple storylines complementing one another. I love the strong female characters and the complexity and depth of their development. This is one of the most anticipated fantasy novels of 2019, and it certainly didn't disappoint. I hope there's not too long to wait for the next instalment to be published. With fast pace and gripping drama, this book is a must-read for all fantasy fans.

Many thanks to Tor for an ARC.

I think, of all three books in this series, this one was my favourite. Thinking back on the previous two books, everything that I wished had happened in those stories pretty much came together in this one. You can really feel how the characters and the storytelling have developed to get to this point. Honestly, it's my favourite thing to see a writer's progression across a series. 

I will say that, for me, this series is not one of my favourites. I have a hard time hanging on to multiple storylines and as soon as there are more than about five characters I have to keep an eye on I get a little bamboozled. In this case, you not only have to keep a brain for the characters but also pretty complicated politics in various nations and my poor little frazzled head can't quite cope. That's not a critique as much as it is an explanation for why these books didn't work for me (it's the same reason ASOIAF didn't quite gel with me). But I know heaps of people who love those kinds of plots and multi-character stories and it does not surprise me that a good portion of them adore these books. 

Bloodwitch is more than just a story about Aeduan, it's the drawing together of a story that has been being woven through the previous two books (are there enough thread metaphors in this review yet?). It makes sense of a lot that has previously been a mystery and it challenges the characters and the reader in ways that are sometimes quite difficult to read! I think I possibly need to re-read this entire series now that I have a better handle on what's going on, something to plan into the year when my TBR is a little less 'loomy'. 

Throughout this series I've been impressed with the variety of characters, the myriad stories and the creative magic system in these books. That absolutely holds true in Bloodwitch and I cannot wait for more people to discover this amazing series. 

My rating: 4/5 stars

I received a free digital advanced review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I LOVE this series and was so so excited for this series.
Unfortunatley the kindle version of the arc was in pretty bad shape and made for a very difficult read.

That being said everything i did read i loved, the characters in this story are incredible and really well fleshed out. The world is unique and enchanting and the story line is thrilling. There is no doubt i'll be getting this book when it releases!

SPEECHLESS!!!! completely and utterly speechless. 

Aeduan is the main forces in Bloodwitch, put we still get to find out what is happening with Safi, Iseult, Vivia and Merik. Each of the characters have their own ongoing drama, which keeps the action fast paced, never boring and completely gripping. 

I have new respect for Vivia and Vaness with the strength they have to rule, especially dealing with people who feel the ruler should be male. 

I need to mention the chemistry between Aeduan and Iseult, it’s electric, it gave my heart goosebumps.

finding out about Aeduan life before Truthwitch makes me want to set up a fan club for him, to show he isn’t the monster people say he is. 

Bloodwitch has it all Romance, betrayal, magic, drama, humour, action, politics, and friendship. All wrapped in a plot that has plenty twist, turns and surprises. 

My rating for Bloodwitch is 5 out of 5. 

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor UK for my copy of Bloodwitch for a fair and honest review.

If you love fantasy, feminist tales, adventure, and worldbuilding of epic proportions, then this series will be a perfect fit! Susan somehow manages to escalate the already perfect drama. The characters leap off the page with unbelievable personality and wonderful conflict. I hope this series never ends!

The Witchlands series is probably one of my favourite on-going series'. I've been impatiently waiting for the release of book three, and the fact that it was going to be Aeduan's story had me even more excited.

As with the previous books, Bloodwitch, switches perspectives, with Aeduan's being the central point of view. I have shipped Aeduan and Iseult since the first time they crossed paths in Truthwitch. So, it's no surprise then that my favourite parts of Bloodwitch where when they were together - like I tried to slow down and savour those moments when I got to them, yet at the same time I couldn't read fast enough. Dennard has done such a good job with creating tension between these two - they are the definition of slow burn.

If you're looking for a YA fantasy which features complex and multi-layered female characters this is the one. I love how Dennard has created female characters that are strong, but in different ways. She shows that the term "strong female character" doesn't just mean being able to fight and not liking feminine things - which I really appreciated as this is something that frustrates me.

A character who I absolutely fell in love with in Bloodwitch was Leopold. I really enjoyed his interactions with Iseult, but he's still a bit of a mystery, so I'm hoping we get to learn more about him in the next book.

The overall plot was amazing, and I liked all the interconnecting story-lines. All in all, Bloodwitch was a fantastic addition to the Witchlands series!

What’s this? An ARC review? For one of the most anticipated reads of next year?

That’s right and what a rollercoaster of a read it was!

I must admit, I wasn’t hugely excited for this particular volume. Each of the Witchlands books, including the Sightwitch novella, have gotten better with each book. But it was Adeduan’s book and I wasn’t a huge fan of his character.

Until now.

Bloodwitch keeps all the main characters mostly separate. If they’re together in the beginning, they will separate and it meant you got a lot of different perspectives and new characters. But it worked so well. My favourite by far was Vivia but my problem is whether I ship her with Stix or Vaness. Well…until the ending, no spoilers, but man, they’d both be so cute.

I do kind of wish there was more of Cam though.

As usual, the world building was excellent. It was nice seeing the past we were shown in Sightwitch starting to be tied in more and that completely fascinated me. Dennard is so good when it comes to world-building, I’m slightly envious.

I feel like I've been waiting forever for this book and now I've finished it I'm even more desperate for the next... We get to see some real character growth in Bloodwitch and not just Aeduan's, as well as so many twists and turns it's impossible to guess where the story is going.

There is constant drama and threat in this book, with politics, religion, magic and family all getting thrown into the mix. Everyone - Safi, Iseult, Merik, Vivia, Aeduan, Vaness - is fighting their own battle while the major players are moving their pieces into place in preparation for a much bigger war. There are some epic showdowns in this book and I know there are plenty more to come!

I've been waiting a long time for this book because I am shipping Iseult + Aeduan hard, and I'm not going to give away any spoilers in this review... All I will say is that their journey in this book is both frustrating and heart-warming and tingly. One thing I did miss in Bloodwitch is seeing all the characters interact - everyone is on their own personal journey, so there are a lot of isolated storylines and not as much riffing off each other as in previous books (which I loved). BUT I sense that is about to change...

It's so fab seeing everyone develop their own strengths and overcoming weaknesses, and I love that Susan Dennard is obviously devoted to treating her characters like real humans, who are flawed and take time to come into themselves. I cannot wait to see where Aeduan goes in the next book!

This is easily the best book in the series and possibly Dennard’s best book so far. I have been VERY unenthusiastic about male MCs in fantasy lately (blame an entire childhood and young adulthood of only being given white, cishet, male MCs and finding that now I’m offered variety that I’m impatient with the former.) That said I love Aeduan. He’d been a favourite side character in previous books and I was completely down for his adventure. It made me look at Isuelt a little differently too. Also the plot felt a lot more coherent. No spoilers and full review to come but I really enjoyed this book.