<i> "We were born to kill each other. And yet she tucks her body close to mine." </i>

The unearthly squeal I let out at the scene from that quote above! Fans of Serpent & Dove, brace yourself. Here is your new addiction.

I love the initial idea and the whole world building! They are rich and immersive. The pacing was great, and I love the slow burn e2l romance of Fritzi and Otto so much! Otto is so precious omg we need to protect him at all cost. Love love loveeee!

I'm about 50 pages from the end, but couldn't wait to write my review as I am absolutely LOVING this story. Despite being more historical, it is scarily relevant to current events. The characters drew me into this story immediately and held me tight all book long. I'm a little scared that this book will end on a cliffhanger and I don't know that I can handle waiting for book 2! I haven't been this sucked into a story in what feels like forever and it broke my reading slump wide open.

UPDATE: While the ending was extremely satisfying, and is not a true cliffhanger, it does leave the door open for another book. One which I will be first in line to grab as soon as I'm able.

Night of the Witch sees an alternative fantasy version of the horrible and very real witch hunts of Trier, Germany. This brutal backdrop still allows for some of the best elements of fantary romance: enemies to lovers, forced proximity, and same bed. It is as if Serpent and Dove meet The Other Boleyn Girl. Like the Other Boleyn girl, the history is so close but it never lets truth get in the way of a good love story, Night of the Witch never lets the real world get in the way of a good fantasy. Where its wrong its wrong in spectacularly magical speculative writing.

Only Fritzi and her cousin survived the massacre of her Coven and Fritzi will not let anything get in her way, not even a city full of witch hunters, from saving her cousin from the Pyre. Witch hunter Otto is devoted to his God but questions whether the women they burn are even, in fact, witches and not innocent women who crossed the wrong person and was accused.

This novel is fast paced and will keep your attention from the first page. However, the world building is a bit lacking. At 330 some odd pages, there was room to develop the world and the relationship between he characters a little more but, the plot is strong enough to forgive it where it lacks. The missing cousin, Leisel, a ten year old witch is the break out character of the whole novel. The relationship between Fritzi and Otto is fast, and while I would have loved to see it a bit more fleshed out, it was not exactly insta-love. It was still very much enjoyable, but is also, very much, secondary to the more epic quest of Save the Magic, Save the world. The novel also does not shy away from brutal descriptions of the very real burnings that were happening in Trier at this time, so be prepared for some heartbreak.

If you like a fast paced, brutal tale with wonderfully snarky children and a heroine who can’t seem to get anything right but gods be damned she’ll try, I recommend this novel to you.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Finally!!!! A book about witches were the romance is not witch falling in love with a witch hunter, but actually two people with the common enemy. Oppressor/oppressed romance always gives me the ick, so I'm very glad to see the subversion of the trope within this novel.
The things I really liked about this books are the immersion of the world, and how the author really lets us get to know the magic system and understand the climate we're being introduced to. I thought the way the magic was portrayed was unique and fresh. It was a fast paced and easy read, which is fairly typical for YA fantasy. Knowing that it was written for a younger audience I tried not to be too harsh on things like how the young main characters are portrayed but there were a few times within the book that felt more immature than simply intended for young readers. The romance also felt a bit rushed, however it was a side plot I just do wish we got a little more build up and tension between the characters. I wanted to have a bit more fun with the dramatic irony in knowing that both characters are fighting on the same side.
Overall it was a fun YA fantasy I would recommend to readers looking for something magical and fast paced.

Darkly thrilling, NIGHT OF THE WITCH pays homage to the many stories of those throughout history who have been hunted for being who they are. Featuring themes of forbidden romance, resistence in the face of oppression and magic, Sara Raasch and Beth Revis deliver a compelling — albeit somewhat uneven — read.

One major complaint is that this would have been best as a standalone. Both the ending and general sense of resolution felt very dragged out, with plot devices orchestrated in the last quarter of the book that don’t fit with the rest of the story. (To avoid spoilers, I won’t name the biggest reveal, but I will say that it’s an editorial decision that comes off as an obvious attempt to secure a sequel.) If this was a standalone, I definitely would have given it a higher rating.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.*

The Night of the Witch is adventurous and unpredictable. I fell in love with the characters. I appreciated that this is not your typical “witch” story.

The only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is that I wish it went deeper into the magic system and the world building. But overall, this was a great read! I will read the next in the series.

The moment I found out these two authors wrote a books together I knew I had to have it. Then to find out it was a witchy read, even better! I enjoyed the historical fiction part of this book. This book is categorized and priced at a young adult book but if the romance gets more intense it may need to be new adult! I can’t wait to see where the series goes!

This book was so much more than I was expecting in the best ways. I truly loved Otto and his personality (as well as the other characters) and so many of the quotes from the book that stand out to me are those that talk about how people should be treated. It's definitely a message that resonates in the current state of the world.

I know that my students will love this book because they begged me to read them the first chapter for First Chapter Friday when Beth Revis mentioned it in a class Zoom meeting and they found out that NetGalley had sent me an ARC (Thank you NetGalley!). They loved the first chapter and I'm positive they will love the rest of the story. There is something for the all from magic to romance to action. I cannot wait to be able to hand them a copy of the novel.

'To every witch that burned and every witch that watched, and every promise they made in the smoke'

A magically page turning read set in medieval Germany, filled with a compelling magic system, witch trials and chemistry.

Surviving an attack on her Coven, Fritzi is determined to save her cousin from the horrors of the witch trials. On her travels to the city where the hexenjäger's (witch hunters) have taken her cousin, she stumbles across a hexenjäger captain, Otto.

As hunter and hunted, oppressed and oppressor, witch and witch hunter, Fritzi and Otto work together to uncover haunting truths and a common enemy.

I enjoyed the plot, the characters and the magic system, however I did think the romance was a little rushed and would have liked to see a bit more tension between the two.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for this eARC.

Wow, well… I have to say that this one was definitely interesting! The title and description intrigued me, it just didn’t really wow me.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Finally!!!! A book about witches were the romance is not witch falling in love with a witch hunter, but actually two people with the common enemy. Oppressor/oppressed romance always gives me the ick, so I'm very glad to see the subversion of the trope within this novel.
The things I really liked about this books are the immersion of the world, and how the author really lets us get to know the magic system and understand the climate we're being introduced to. I thought the way the magic was portrayed was unique and fresh. It was a fast paced and easy read, which is fairly typical for YA fantasy. Knowing that it was written for a younger audience I tried not to be too harsh on things like how the young main characters are portrayed but there were a few times within the book that felt more immature than simply intended for young readers. The romance also felt a bit rushed, however it was a side plot I just do wish we got a little more build up and tension between the characters. I wanted to have a bit more fun with the dramatic irony in knowing that both characters are fighting on the same side.
Overall it was a fun YA fantasy I would recommend to readers looking for something magical and fast paced.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book. Below is my honest review.

Summary:
In this book, we follow Fritzi and Otto. Fritzi is a witch who has nature magic (think trees, plants, etc.) and is the only one in her coven left alive after a brutal massacre. Otto is a witch hunter (also known as a hexenjäger), but that's just his cover. Secretly, he and his sister are trying to free witches that have been captured.

One day, Otto and his sister start to put their final plan in place to free all the witches by first faking his sister's arrest (pretending she's a witch). Fritzi comes upon this fake arrest and intervenes, not knowing that this was all part of the plan. She ends up sending Otto's sister to an unknown place. Fritzi and Otto then team up to continue with his plan.

In the background, there's something more sinister going on with magic and the goddesses that the witches pray to.

Thoughts about this book:
✔️ Easy to understand world and magic
✔️ Has historical context to the story but still feels like its own plot
✔️ Has plot twists that I didn't see coming
✔️ Likeable characters
❌ Romance felt a little rushed (but I love slow burns, so I'm biased)
❌ Did not like Dieter's voice (made it sound like he was way older than Fritzi)

Overall, it was a fun and easy read! I have always enjoyed Beth Revis's and Sara Raasch's books, and this one was no different.

Would I recommend this book? Yes.

Thank you for this ARC. Really enjoyed this story. Not read the either another stuff but I will be now! What a great story! Cannot wait to see what comes next!