Review--Waking the Witch

At twenty-one, Savannah Levine--orphaned daughter of a notorious dark witch and an equally notorious cutthroat sorcerer--considers herself a full-fledged member of the supernatural race that rules the Otherworld. The once rebellious teen has grown into a six-foot-tall, motorcycle-riding jaw-dropper with a full arsenal of spells that she's not afraid to use when she gets caught int a bind. There's only one small problem--her adoptive parents, Paige and Lucas, don't always trust her. Of course, she's given them plenty of reasons...but those are in the past. People can change, right?

When Paige and Lucas take off on a romantic vacation alone, leaving her in charge of their detective agency, Savannah is presented with a a case that she can't turn down, and one she can finally call her own. Recruited by another supernatural detective, she travels to Columbus, Washington--a small, almost shell of a town. Two troubled young women have been found in an abandoned warehouse, murdered. Now a third woman is dead, and darker forces seem to be at play.

Savannah feels certain she can handle the case, but with supernatural activity appearing at every turn, things quickly become more serious--and far more dangerous--than she realizes. Caught up in a web of lust, false identities, and lies, Savannah must summon strength from her depths and fight like she's never fought before.

Finished Waking the Witch, as promised and WOW! I love Kelley Armstrong's Otherworld series and Savannah, now all grown up is a wonderful addition to the gang!

It's amazing to have read the first books and see her as a preteen and now she's twenty-one and trying to prove herself to her adoptive parents that she's not the same girl anymore and that she can be responsible. So she takes on this case when another supernatural passes it her way. It's the chance to prove herself.

The case is quite complicated and there are a few suspicious characters in the small town of Columbus. To top it off, the local law enforcement is very forthcoming with much info, nor very helpful. Then another detective comes in to work the same case as well, Michael has a more personal investment in the case but Savannah is drawn to him in some ways. He's a nice guy, human, but nice.

The love interest fell between two guys, Michael and Adam. Yes, Adam returns, he was one of my fave demons because he can be pretty funny and as mentioned early one, Savannah has always had a crush on him. Adam's feelings for Savannah though remain a little unclear.

Savannah is determined to solve this case no matter what it takes, she wants the experience and the chance to prove herself. She wants to be accepted in her role of being an adult and no longer the rebellious teen. Of course, no one is perfect. Savannah still has the same snark and wit she had when she was just a 12 year old and is still quite entertaining in speaking before thinking in some instances.

The pacing was great too! Really intense, because Savannah has to follow leads that can get pretty dicey and leading to unsavory characters. There is definitely something dark and evil brewing in Columbus and Savannah is making herself a target for it by her investigation. The secondary characters and subplots were superb! They intertwined so miraculously that I am envious of Kelley, subplots are hard for me to wind in for some reason in my own writing!

There are several suspicious characters as I already mentioned, but did I mention the cookie making cult? That's just a little teaser for you there and it plays a major part in Savannah's investigation. And of course free cookies! ;)

The mystery itself was very shocking! I really didn't see any of it coming and Savannah started putting the clues together at some point and came to a conclusion near the end. It's a really mind-blowing, shocking, cue dramatic music revelation! And still there is more to be had with Savannah and the rest of her story, for as I was warned by my friend, there is a cliffhanger at the end that really nags at me! I was expecting it and yet not expecting the depth of it!

There are still quite a few leftover repercussions that will likely move on into the next book, but to some extent the mystery was solved. Case closed. There are just other factors that popped up that will be the leading problem in Spell Bound!

There are some other things I would love to mention but they lead to spoilers which I am against, so I will cut my review here. But if you've read Kelley's books before than you already know that this is a must read! Savannah has always been a interesting character in the Otherworld and I'm glad we get to hear her story for the next 3 books, including this one. Still hoping for a Cassandra novel, myself, someday. And if you haven't read any of the Otherworld novels but love Urban Fantasy, this is the series for you! There are a wide variety of characters that you get so absorb with, everyone has a favorite! Any UF lover can find their fave character/creature in this series.

Overall it was a GREAT read, really fantastic! I give it 5/5 stars!

And once again I remind you to check out my contest that I'm holding til the end of the week Check it out here.