This was an amazing little sampler. But was also such a tease!
I’m so glad to be back in the Witchlands and can’t wait to finish the whole book!

This book is one of the best books that I have ever read. Alternating between flashbacks and six points of view, Witchshadow is the continuation of the Witchlands Saga.

After their reunion at the end of Bloodwitch, Safi and Iseult find themselves once again separated. Their plans have all come crashing down around them and they must trust dubious allies to get them where they need to go in order to fix everything.

Because this is Iseult’s book, her narrative frames everything. We see her go from someone who hides in the shadows and fights against the truth of her powers to someone who embraces all aspects of herself and her history.

Two years after the release of Bloodwitch, book four in The Witchlands series, Witchshadow, is here. I have to admit that it got off to a rocky start for two reasons. The first is that I couldn't remember the events of the previous book. However, that was quickly resolved, because Dennard has kindly provided a summary here, which helped. The second reason is that the story switches from the past to the present. It was hard to follow and confusing at first, but once I got into the book it started to flow better.

After that initial hurdle I was sucked into the story. We have multiple points of view again and as with any book with multi POV there's going to be characters who you're more interested in than others. For me that's Iseult and Aeduan. Apparently the next book is the last in the series. If that's the case I really hope there's more scenes with Iseult and Aeduan together. There is not nearly enough of them in Witchshadow and their slow burn is torture!

Romance aside we finally get answers to some burning questions and learn more about Leopold who I have been very intrigued about. Witchshadow is ultimately Iseult's book and she goes through a lot of growth. I've liked her from the start, so I didn't think it would be possible to love her anymore than I already do, but alas, Dennard made it so. She is, no doubt, my favourite character.

I can't wait for the next (and maybe last?) installment in the series!

A review of this title is avaliable through Goodreads - and later through my blog. The Goodreads link is available below!

A great preview to a book I'm really excited to read! Attached is the review for the full book.

My preorder came a couple days early, and I was ridiculously excited to dive in to Witchshadow! Getting a preorder a little early sorta feels like a small reward for all the patience required to wait for a great book. My brain has had a bit of trouble remembering the details of the previous books and who all the characters are (aside from Iseult, Safi, Merik, and Aeduan) but I mostly just rolled with it anytime I was confused and it worked out fine. This world is so big and there are so many characters that it's hard to hold onto it all at once. I definitely envy the readers who will be able to binge read the whole thing once the whole series is out.

Each book has had a main character it focuses on (Truthwitch - Safi, Windwitch - Merik, Bloodwitch - Aeduan). Witchshadow focuses on Iseult. She has to go through a lot of growth and change in order to become who she needs to be to take on the world and the problems they are facing. That's not to say she's the only character we follow. We also get Safi, Vivia, Stix, and Aeuduan's POVs. There are also flashback scenes with Safi and Iseult.

Dennard is very clearly building something epic. I don't fully know what it will be, but I can't wait to find out. There are some pieces that readers can put together but the main characters can't, because we sometimes get access to more info than the characters have. This is both fun and frustrating. On the one hand, I want to know as much as possible, but I also feel like I am yelling at characters not to trust certain people or do certain things, but they don't listen because they don't know what I know.

One thing I really hope the next books (I think there are two more) will bring is all the characters together. Each book has brought together and separated different characters, but I want it all. All the Paladins, all the Exalted Ones, all the Well Chosen, and in general anyone we care about. Some romances have had some solid time to build, but others have been majorly put on hold. I feel like there are so many things that can and will happen as soon as everyone has been brought together and I am practically shaking waiting.

One small note is that there seemed to be a slightly higher number of typos/errors than I tend to see in Susan's books. It's not a big deal, but it makes me wonder if the editing was a little rushed.

I can't express enough how hyped I am to keep reading this epic fantasy series! I *need* to know what happens next and I can't believe I'll have to wait at least a year to get my hands on the next book!

I absolutely loved this excerpt and cannot wait to see where witchshadow takes me. Iseult is my favourite character and i cant wait to read more about her and hopefully see her reunited with Aeduan

I can’t wait for the entire book! I didn’t expect in the first few chapters to have reveals for large series-spanning questions.
The end of this sampler left me wanting more and I cannot wait to see how the rest of the book pans out



Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing this Chapter Sampler.

This is such a great beginning to what I imagine will be a wonderful book. I love these characters and getting to see them again and see them struggling and continuing on is just dang wonderful.

can't wait for the real book. my only feedback is that it's hard with series' like these to have a year long gap between each installment

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with the Extended Chapter Sampler of Witchshadow by Susan Dennard.

It was great to read the first 25 chapters/190 pages of this book just after finishing reading Bloodwitch. The sampler ended at a perfect moment for me to want to immediately pick up the book so I can continue reading!

OH MY GOODNESS! What an incredible start to the book! We’ve already got so many answers and new questions and already some shocking moments. I just finished the Extended Chapter Sampler on NetGalley and I will desperately be waiting for my finished copy to arrive. I was so worried that I had my expectations too high but this is already shaping up to be the best book of the series yet.

I’ve always admired Susan Dennard’s ability to make readers work for the plot and world-building, to immerse us into the world of the Witchlands without an inane amount of info-dumping, and I feel like she took it to the next level in this instalment. Starting this felt a bit like I had just been thrown off a rollercoaster without any warning beforehand, and I initially had a hard time finding my bearings where plot and character motivations were concerned. But once I did, the rest of the chapters played out like a movie in my head, and it was such a ride to see the culmination of each character journey thus far.

Safi, who’s always had such a free and loud presence, now has to find a way to comport herself in a manner from which her status and privilege has usually shielded her. And Iseult—my girl, my love, whose turn in the spotlight I’ve been eagerly awaiting—now has to break out of the shell she's been stuck in her entire life as she masters her powers. The shift in their respective situations is a perfect example of why these two are different sides of the same coin, why they are 'initiate, complete'. And I think that, and the several ‘wait a minute’ and ‘aha!’ moments I've had while reading, are testament to how well Dennard has built the Witchlands' long game. This is her world, we're all just living in it.

This was such a big sampler, so thank you for giving me the opportunity to read it.

I forget how much I love a Susan Dennard until I read a Susan Dennard. In a sea of YA and New Adult fantasy, the Witchlands series has the distinction of having a backstory so rich and full of mystery that it makes me think of the Harry Potter series. Every installment adds onto that mountain of enthralling mysteries with a dizzying amount of new ones - the sample chapters of "Witch Shadow" are no different and I loved every word of it.

I have found time and again that many multi-installment book series lose their spark as the series progress, but this one does the exact opposite. The action is fast-paced, and split between numerous points of view, all of which are equally exciting and enjoyable.

And the characters? They're flawed, they're real, and did I mention the enormous amounts of good, old-fashioned UST for many of the story's couples? The world-building is superb, all the expansion of the universe and new insights into its mysteries being completely revelatory and engrossing. The tension is tangible, both the good and the bad kind, the twists coming in fast and furious, making the story completely unpredictable. And yet somehow you know you can trust the author to deliver, that all these separate agendas will one day convene into the finale of all finales.

I am anxious to fully immerse myself in this world again and discover all the implications of the new chapters - and the book is out tomorrow!

Originally, there were supposed to be only four books in the series, but we are now up to 5. Honestly, I could ready 50. Keep 'em coming, Dennard.

I went into this book ready for Safi and Iseult to kick some ass and... got really confused. First I wondered if I was reading the wrong thing or if I'd missed a book without realising it, because Witchshadow does not start how any of us expected it to. I have to be honest I was pretty damn angry with Susan Dennard because here I was ready for the girls to get together at last and I was forced to a halt by flashbacks?! It's a writing technique and not one I have to say I was overly fond of, especially when it's taking so long for events to match up and things to get to where I expected the book to actually start.

And yet, I've given this sample four stars because as much as I'm irritated by the technique Dennard used I can't deny that it's ramping up the drama and anticipation to a boiling point, and I can see that everything is started to to get to that point where things are GOING to happen. Whatever happens next in Witchshadow is going to be explosive and I can't wait.

I both love and hate these chapter samplers because while I am greedy to read any amount of a book early (especially one in a series that I've been DYING to get my hands on) it most certainly is never enough. I CANNOT WAIT to get to the rest of this and see what else Iseult, Safi, and the rest of the gang gets up to...

This was such a nice and chunky sampler! I wasn't prepared to get as many chapters as we did in this but I'm so thankful there were so many. I love this series so much and while I fully understand the reason for the longer wait on it releasing and I'm glad we're getting the best book possible there's still a small little gremlin in my heart that was sad I had no Witchlands book to look forward to last year. But! The day is nearly here and this sampler just got me so excited to dive into the rest of this book! I love all these character's so much and I'm so happy to be reunited with them. Speaking of reunions, I love how at the end of Bloodwitch Sooz was like look our girls are finally back together and now we see in Witchshadow, JK they're separated again! We only know pain in this house. I can't wait to devour this book on release day!

I can’t wait for the entire book! Even in the first few chapters, the tension is well done. I also love the setup where we start in the future and know that things have gone down in the space between the two books but not specifically what’s gone down, and the way reveals for both large series-spanning questions and questions about how the characters got to the situations Witchshadow finds them in to begin with are handled.

I've never read a Chapter Sampler on NetGalley before, but it was simultaneously an incredible experience as well as heartbreaking because I am left with more questions than answers once it is finished. Witchshadow is certainly not starting in the direction that I initially anticipated, but I am greatly excited by what will happen in the second half. All of the characters are in precarious situations, but Aeduan and Safi scare me the most because.. well you know.. Anyway, as always Susan's writing was phenomenal, and her characters are some of the most visceral that I have ever read from. She never disappoints! Obviously, I highly recommend it to anyone in love with female friendships, diverse representation, and magical worlds filled with chaotic-impending doom.

I'm just going to say it: Susan Dennard is the queen of worldbuilding.

It'll come as no surprise to hear that I adored this extended sampler of Witchshadow. Every minute of it was a delight to read, though admittedly it did make me all the more anxious for the 22nd to get here. I'm dying to find out what is going to happen next (because I'm greedy like that).

It felt so good to be diving back into this world, reading about characters that I have come to truly care about. If anything, my only regret is that I didn't take the time to reread the series before picking this beauty up. I'm going to have to add a reread to my to-do list. Asap.

Thank you for giving me the chance to read this early sampler, I adored it and cannot wait for the rest!

I was lucky enough to get my hands on a sample of Witchshadow by Susan Dennard ahead of its publication and it blew me away! Though it was a struggle to remember what led to certain events at times, reconnecting with some of my favourite characters was so fun!

Here are my favourite reasons to pick up the book:
Iseult is in the spotlight
More than any character, this is Iseult’s book to shine. Finally comfortable with her powers, she is determined to see this through and find Safi. It’s that determination that carries her through the thick of it and shows how far she’s come as a character compared to the beginning of the series. While never as brash as Safi, the two begin to resemble each other as their desperation to reunite grows once again.

We explore Safi as a character
Unlike Iseult, Safi gets quieter. She’s learned a lot over the course of her journey and she applies all that to escaping her latest situation. She’s cold, calculating and far more patient than Safi from the first book but she also stops to consider those around her. Her world includes more than Iseult now and her actions reflect this.

The relationship between Safi and Iseult
Their friendship continues to be at the heart of the series. After being separated early on, they’re desperate to be with each other again and it’s a feeling that shadows their every chapter. It’s rare to see this kind of friendship in a YA novel, and even rarer that it doesn’t get overshadowed by various love interests, so I loved that Dennard kept this going to the end.

The expansive world
Yet again, Dennard expands her world throughout the story. While the snippets of history hint at a far greater overarching plot to the series, there isn’t enough to fully satisfy. Instead, this keeps readers guessing and eager to turn the page. Like previous books, Dennard adds to her world, making it even more expansive and immersive.

An unexpected relationship
When two characters were thrust together at the end of the last book, I didn’t expect much to come from it. However, Witchshadow develops their relationship into something akin to friendship. Each character slowly drops their walls for the other, hinting at the possibility of a much deeper connection between the two. Since I was delightfully surprised by who these two characters were, I’ll be keeping them nameless to avoid spoilers.

There are many reasons to pick up Witchshadow by Susan Dennard, but these stood out to me. The writing continues to be fast-paced and dynamic while the plot looks to be so exciting. This latest installment of The Witchlands series has a lot going for it and Dennard lets the reader know from the very first chapters.

I’m absolutely hooked and I can’t wait to get my hands on the full book soon!