The Black Witch Chronicles
The Shadow Wand
Publish Date: August 1st, 2018
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Format Reviewed: eBook
Series: The Black Witch Chronicles
Author: Laurie Forest
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Trigger Warning for Sexual Assault
Introduction
Before the White Wand was given to Elloreen Gardner, Sage Gaffney was its protector. Sage comes from an extremely tight-laced family who are deeply entrenched in their religion. After a terrible event and the fallout, she flees. Outside in the world for the first time, alone, she comes across those willing to help her -- some of the very people she was raised to look down upon.
Sage is a light mage, capable of rare magic, but she didn't think she could do anything with her power. She was destined to marry, raise children, run a house, and nothing else. Now with the world open to her, she decides to make a difference.
Quick Thoughts
The romance was fairly instant, which I can almost forgive because this is a novella. But...she did move on from traumatic and life-altering events fairly quickly. This might irk some readers.
More amazing characters are introduced and more world-building unfolds.
Sage goes through her own personal growth and it is very satisfying. However, she is much like Elloreen in her thoughts at the beginning, and she becomes more "woke" as the story progresses.
To be honest, I could have not read this book. It didn't really tell me anything I was dying to know. Though I suspect characters/issues from this will resurface in book 3 (which I am on the waitlist for at the library).
Final Verdict
Read it if you are a super-fan. It may not be for you if you have a hard time reading about sexual assault. We already know about this event from the other books in this series. The author gives you a warning in the beginning, and honestly, you can skim it or skip the whole scene if you would like. The fall out with her family was difficult to read as well, though victim-blaming happens far too often in real-life.
Sage is a light mage, capable of rare magic, but she didn't think she could do anything with her power. She was destined to marry, raise children, run a house, and nothing else. Now with the world open to her, she decides to make a difference.
Quick Thoughts
The romance was fairly instant, which I can almost forgive because this is a novella. But...she did move on from traumatic and life-altering events fairly quickly. This might irk some readers.
More amazing characters are introduced and more world-building unfolds.
Sage goes through her own personal growth and it is very satisfying. However, she is much like Elloreen in her thoughts at the beginning, and she becomes more "woke" as the story progresses.
To be honest, I could have not read this book. It didn't really tell me anything I was dying to know. Though I suspect characters/issues from this will resurface in book 3 (which I am on the waitlist for at the library).
Final Verdict
Read it if you are a super-fan. It may not be for you if you have a hard time reading about sexual assault. We already know about this event from the other books in this series. The author gives you a warning in the beginning, and honestly, you can skim it or skip the whole scene if you would like. The fall out with her family was difficult to read as well, though victim-blaming happens far too often in real-life.
