Witch Song by Amber Argyle

The world is changing. Once, Witch Song controlled everything from the winds to the shifting of the seasons. But not anymore. All the Witches are gone, taken captive by a traitor. All but Brusenna. As the echo of their songs fade, the traitor grows stronger. Now she is coming for Brusenna. Her guardian has sworn to protect her, but even he can’t stop the Dark Witch. Somehow, Brusenna has to succeed where every other Witch has failed. Find the traitor. Fight her. Defeat her. Because if Brusenna doesn’t, there won’t be anything left to save.

Not only does it have a hauntingly beautiful cover, Witch song is also a hauntingly beautiful story.

Amber Argyle has a way with words.

Witch Song is set in a world where the power of a witch is in her voice. Brusenna lives with her mother, Sacra, away from the villagers who taunt her whenever they see her - witchcraft is different, so it is hated.

The first thing I noticed about the narrative is the descriptive way Amber Argyle writes. The world that Brusenna lives in, though similar to ours, is not quite the same. The descriptive way the story was told helped to flesh out Brusenna’s world but still allowed for imagination. 

The next thing I noticed was that magic was different in Brusenna’s world - not the mainstream idea of magic. I thought the world building and magic complimented each other well.

I especially loved Joshen as a character. Brusenna was your usual heroine - unsure yet headstrong, focused and driven, consumed by the task at hand - but Joshen, her Guardian, surprised me from time to time. He was loyal and steadfast, but also caring in a refreshingly, non-creepy way. I enjoyed his character so much that I wanted to invite him over for tea and a chat (in a non-creepy way).

The story was engrossing from the beginning. It was fast-paced and the characters that were introduced were well developed and unique in their own way, thus memorable. I was extremely cautious while reading this book because I had some high expectations going in; Amber delivered on those expectations and then some. I look forward to reading more of her stories.

[review copy from publisher]