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July 17, 2013

Review: Weather Witch by Shannon Delany

Weather Witch
Title: Weather Witch (Weather Witch, #1)
Author: Shannon Delany
Publisher:
 St. Martin's Griffin
Publication date: June 25, 2013
Genre(s): Young Adult (Paranormal)
Source: Publisher 
Format: Finished Copy
Pages: 336
In a vastly different and darker Philadelphia of 1844, steam power has been repressed, war threatens from deep, dark waters, and one young lady of high social standing is expecting a surprise at her seventeenth birthday party–but certainly not the one she gets!

Jordan Astraea, who has lived out all of her life in Philadelphia’s most exclusive neighborhood, is preparing to celebrate her birthday with friends, family and all the extravagance they might muster. The young man who is most often her dashing companion, Rowen Burchette, has told her a surprise awaits her and her best friend, Catrina Hollindale, wouldn’t miss this night for all the world!

But storm clouds are gathering and threatening to do far more than dampen her party plans because someone in the Astraea household has committed the greatest of social sins by Harboring a Weather Witch.
Weather Witch started off with a creepy and intriguing opening. Witchcraft is openly acknowledged in this world. Ever since the big world and the emergence of the New World as well as its rules and laws, witches, specifically Weather Witches, when found, become the property of the 'government'. They are what power all the lights and energy consuming machinery in the New World, from airships, lanterns, to simple automatons. I found the idea very exciting, especially since you all know how much I love books that incorporate magic and witchcraft in them. Also, this book is set in the 1800s so it contains Steampunk elements. However Weather Witch, while strong in the beginning, lost its momentum and my interest as the story progressed. 
To be 100% honest, I lost interest in the story of the main lead, Jordan. The synopsis, in my opinion, gave too much away. 3/4 into the book and nothing new happened other than what was told in the synopsis, that Jordan was accused of being a Weather Witch and is not transported to the holding Tanks of where they are all taken to 'Make' and then used as a power source. I kept expecting for more, but I got nothing. The good news is that this book is told from multiple POVs.. kind of like watching a tv show episode where you get glimpses of many of the character's POVs. The ones I mostly enjoyed were Rowen's, who was the gentleman courting Jordana, as well as the Maker himself. I know the Maker is viewed as the antagonist, but with the emergence of his four year old daughter, as well as his love for one of the maids, I couldn't help thinking that he is a product of his upbringing, being that his father used to be the Maker. 
I personally felt this book progressed at a snail's pace; I know it is part of a series and I wonder if the author dragged it on to make it an introductory novel. I wished I was able to connect more with the characters, while I did feel a certain connection with the Maker's story, I thought many of the actions of Rowen were a bit ridiculous if not borderline stupid, but he was still enjoyable. As for Jordan, I wished she woke up from her denial earlier and tried to do something, but she was pretty passive throughout most of the novel, only towards the end did she think to try and save herself. All in all, this novel was entertaining but had many flaws that I couldn't get past and give a rating higher than a three. Paranormal fans, as well as historical fiction fans might enjoy Weather Witch.
 

11 comments:

  1. Not much connection with the main characters and a slow pacing, this sounds like a book I would struggle with. Such a shame!

    Wow at Mel@thedailyprophecy.

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  2. Bummer. I've been hearing similar reviews on this one and even my review was somewhat of the variety. It was definitely an overload of information at times and a slow pacing, but I adored Shannon's 13 to Life series so I had to read it. I am hoping that this was a case of a bad first book syndrome where the rest of the series will get better. Nice review though!

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  3. This book sounds really interesting, especially now that I know it's set in the 1800! I'm sorry your enjoyment for this novel decreased as the story progressed. Lucky for me, I haven't read the synopsis yet so that may not be the same problem for me. The characters don't seem lovable though. I'll have to look for more reviews of this one, but thanks for the wonderful review, Juhina!

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  4. This is my first time hearing of this and although I am attracted to the cover, after your review I don't know if I should pick it up or not. Too bad about the pacing...I really hate it when that happens in a book! It drags everything down. Maybe I will try this out later on, because I am a PN and historical fiction fan! :D

    Great review, Juhina! :D

    ~ Maida
    Literary Love Affair 

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  5. It's a good thing that I haven't read the blurb then. I hate it when nothing happens in the book that wasn't already told in the blurb. That's why I stopped reading them. I'm sorry this happened to you as this book sounds really amazing. Thanks for the honest review!

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  6. I'm not much into books about witches because I've yet to read one which I'll love but I love books that have multiple POVs because they tend to make the reading experience much more interesting if also a little bit confusing. But it's disappointing to know that the book couldn't hold your interest throughout.

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  7. I do like witch books, but I'm sorry to hear that you didn't connect with the characters. That's the worst :(

    Kate @ Ex Libris

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  8. Darn, that summary. That's why I NEVER read summaries lol. I just look at the cover, find out what genre it is, and look at the overall rating on Goodreads and sometimes read maybe 1 or 2 reviews on it if I'm unsure whether to buy it. I haven't read any witchcraft books except The Crucible which was creepy but good. I'm not sure whether to check this out because of the main character.. we'll see.

    Leigh
    Little Book Star

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  9. I love that witchcraft is out in the world. I think paranormal books like that are fun when the paranormal is out to everyone. Bummer that it moved so slow.

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  10. I'm actually reading this one right now! I'm only at about 15% but it started off a bit rough for me already. Sometimes the writing style feels confusing to me and you're right, the plot is on the slow side. Thanks for the honest review :)

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  11. The premise for this sounds pretty interesting, so it's a shame this doesn't live up to expectations. I love steampunk, but I'd hate for it to start so strongly only to go downhill from there. Jordan sounds frustrating as well. I'm sorry this didn't really work for you, Juhina, but fantastic review! :)

    Aa'Ishah @ Reading Under the Stars

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