The Witch’s Kiss (The Witch’s Kiss #1)
by Katherine and Elizabeth Corr
Publisher – HarperCollins Children’s
Release Date – June 30th 2016
Buy – Amazon | Book Depository
Sixteeen-year-old Meredith is fed-up with her feuding family and feeling invisible at school β not to mention the witch magic that shoots out of her fingernails when sheβs stressed. Then sweet, sensitive Jack comes into her life and she falls for him hard. The only problem is that he is periodically possessed by a destructive centuries-old curse. Meredith has lost her heart, but will she also lose her life? Or in true fairytale tradition, can true loveβs kiss save the day?
With the third and final book in The Witch’s Kiss trilogy and although I read this last year, I felt the need to reread the book in preparation for the last book. The funny thing is the first time I read it, it was for when I was going to meet them in my first book week at work, but I never reviewed it, and reading it for a second time I loved it even more.
The Corr sisters have created the next modern fairytale.
Then…The tale begins with Gwydion on a quest to bring back the King’s daughter in return to take her as his betrothed. But when the King refuses his promise, Gwydion spirals out of control and makes sure that his daughter will know nothing of love. So he takes it away, in the shape of her son, Jack. Jack becomes his apprentice and Gwydion, the master of the darkest magic. When three sisters sworn to the Queen to destroy Gwydion, and temporarily they send him into an eternal sleep… 1500 years later he awakens.
Now…A true love’s kiss, a sleeping master and his puppet – the King of Hearts – this is a story that Merry and Leo were told when they were children, what they didn’t realise that is was real. The recent attacks in their village is no coincidence when The King of Hearts has finally awaken. Merry is part of a bloodline of witches where they bound their bloodline to an oath, to finally complete what the three sisters prolonged to do, to destroy Gwydion by separating the King of Hearts and Jack once and for all.
What I loved is that Merry embraces that of a normal sixteen-year-old British teenager with the teenage problems, rebellious, boys, spots, friendships, but on top of all that she isn’t a ordinary person. She’s had grow up with this ‘rumour’ of her family, whispers in the locker room, the fact is she doesn’t mind being magical, but when she first start to ‘experiment’ she realised all to quickly the dangers of an untrained magic and being selfish with it can have it’s consequences. So when this oath falls on her shoulders, I don’t really blame her that acts out a bit, she has every right too. But one thing I really loved about Merry was that she’s brave and courageous, to grow up, face her fears very quickly knowing that the fate of the magical and non-magical worlds is down to her. Plus falling in love with the bad guy also helped…
“I’m not the wicked witch, but I don’t have to be perfect good fairy, either. I’m just me: a normal, complicated human, who happens to have a talent for witchcraft.”
This book isn’t just about fairy-tales and magic or curses, there so much in the way family. There’s the good and bad like with any family, especially with Merry’s mum’s distance. But then you have the exceptional characters, that bring so much more to book. Leo, everyone needs a brother like Leo. Having his perspective in the book, spoke volumes, it added such a familiar and truly touching moments between Merry and Leo. It gives it texture to the book and an unbreakable bond that you can’t help but just love so completely. But no matter what they’ll always be there.
Then there is Gran, she’s the life of the book. She isn’t your regular type of Grandparent in the slightest, head of a coven she has a heavy responsibility not only training Merry but also as her grandmother too. She’s a bit on the extravagant side but the coolest gran I’ve ever come across and that’s why I loved her.
The Corr sisters have this uncanny way of creating a book together that is seamless. Sometimes in a book you can tell who has written what part and that’s the beauty of it because they are so attune with each other and that’s what I loved. Having met the Corr sisters; Liz and Kate, they have such affectionate, supportive, and down to earth personas that you can see that through their writing and especially through the sibling love of Leo and Merry.
Rating – πππππ
Thank you to HarperCollins Children Books for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.
