Waking The Witch (Women of the Otherworld #11) by Kelley Armstrong
Paranormal Romance
April 5, 2011
Paperback (Hardcover out 7/2010)
Plume

Reviewed by Tori

Favorite Quote: “The unspeakable sex acts might change my mind but for right now I’m happy in my current employment.”

With their rotating lead characters, feisty female narrators, and absorbing mystery plotlines, Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series (formerly called "Women of the Otherworld") novel merit even standalone scrutiny. At the center of Waking the Witch, the latest entry, is Savannah Levine, a twenty-one-year-old newbie detective whose first case appears to be a triple ritual killing. Like its predecessors, this urban fantasy combines the best features of mystery and supernatural fiction: prime time crime snooping and paranormal plot dimensions. Editor’s recommendation.(Goodreads)

Waking The Witch is Savannah Levine’s story. Daughter of an infamous dark witch and cut throat sorcerer, we meet Savannah in Stolen and catch glimpses of her in Dime Store Magic & Industrial Magic. Savannah is taken in and raised by Paige and Lucas after her mother, Eve, was brutally murdered. I love Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series and was very pleased to see Waking The Witch would revolve around Savannah. Smooth writing with engaging characters and lovely snarky dialogue swept me back up into Ms. Armstrong’s world from page one. I also like that Savannah has aged appropriately in accordance to the book release dates.

Savannah Levine is 21 years old and wants to prove she is more then adequate to help out in an investigative position at Paige and Lucas’s supernatural PI firm. Savannah struggles with having two infamous parents. She was placed in a box of preconceived notions as a child and now she strives to grow beyond it. When a client comes in with a case, Savannah sees her chance to shine. So she grabs her gear and heads out to help solve a murder mystery with a supernatural bent. Once Savannah arrives in town she realizes that a 6 ft motorcycle witch is NOT what the locals want and soon finds herself at the mercy of a small town with secrets that some would kill to keep hidden.

Savannah is a multilayered character with her powers, background, and intelligence. She also has a delightful witty personality that shines through in some fantastic snarky lines. She flings herself headlong into the fray and drags you right along with her.

The secondary characters in here are all well fleshed out as Savannah. Our villains are a nasty bunch with new and old coming out of the wood work to welcome Savannah into her new career choice. We see more of Adam and I liked the one-on-one conversations they have. We don’t see what a lot who follow the series want to see but we get some nice gentle tugs in that direction.

The main conflict is fast paced with plenty of intrigue and suspense to hook you right in. Multiple subplots twist and turn us around while indirectly affecting the investigation. I enjoyed tagging along behind Adam and Savannah trying to solve the mystery with them. While this series is paranormal in genre, this falls more under mystery and suspense with a supernatural base.

There is far less romance in here then Ms. Armstrong’s usual stories but it fits the tone of this book perfect. I did feel however that the romance in the book ends in an abrupt way and it threw me off kilter. Almost as if Ms. Armstrong decided it wasn’t working and just cut it off.

The ending comes at you hard and fast with some nasty surprises and a cliffhanger that will have you wishing it was 2012 already. All in all Waking The Witch is an exciting paranormal who dun it that is a welcome addition to the Otherworld series. I will add that while this is the 11th in the series, it is possible to read as a stand alone though you may miss out on the over all arc continuation with it’s references to other characters and past events.

Rating: B

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