SeawitchAuthor: Kat Richardson
Release Date: Aug. 7, 2012
Publisher: Roc
Greywalker #7
ISBN: # 978-0451464552
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Format(s): Hardcover (338 pgs), e-book
Book Source: Publisher
About the book: |
More than a quarter century ago, the Seawitch cruised away from her dock and disappeared with everyone on board. Now, the boat has mysteriously returned to her old berth in Seattle and the insurance company has hired Harper to find out what happened.
But Harper is not the only one investigating. Seattle Police Detective Rey Solis is a good cop, albeit one who isn’t comfortable with the creepy cases that always seem to end up in Harper’s lap. As they explore the abandoned vessel, Harper and Solis discover a cabin containing symbols drawn in human blood, a haunted engine room containing an artifact that should never have been aboard, and a log book that hints at dark events leading up to the ship’s original disappearance.
But the search for answers leads to a mysterious suicide, monstrous creatures, and the horrifying wreck of another ship a hundred years earlier. To discover the answer to the disappearance of the Seawitch’s passengers and crew, Harper and Solis will need to put aside their differences and solve a deadly mystery more than a hundred years in the making…
What G & U are talking about: |
Seawitch is the latest installment in the Greywalker series and let us tell you, Ms. Richardson did not disappoint. Our first foray into the Grey was the previous novel Downpour. Although it was not an issue with Downpour, there are previous issues discussed and alluded to in Seawitch that we did not quite comprehend because we had not read all of the previous novels. However, it did not distract from our enjoyment of Seawitch.
Harper Blaine, after the events in Downpour, seems to be back to her usual day-to-day routine in Seattle. The novel begins with the reappearance of Seawitch, a ship that had mysteriously disappeared 25 years ago. Ms. Richardson captures you from the first moment with her prose-like style. Her imagery of the Grey and the interactions of the “normal” and the Grey that Harper muddles through are enthralling. Una had just read the first chapters of Seawitch the night before she got up for her morning swim and the local gym pool. Swimming before dawn with the pool light the only illumination – Una felt like at any moment she would start seeing Seawitch in all its decay and mildew. This just shows the absolute power and richness in Ms. Richardson’s storytelling. The reader can easily walk into this world through the words.
However, it is not just the imagery that grabs you. The process and plot of the mystery, the way it unravels (not just unfolds) has a rhythm and seamlessness to it. Maybe it is because she is partnered with Detective Solis in this novel. The way each of them approaches this mystery helps to balance the foreign and unbelievable with a foundation of reality. It is uncanny and amazing how plausible the world that Ms. Richardson has created is. The only time Gikany and Una really noticed a stop or bump were the references to previous novels that we had not read. Truly, the combination of the rich fantasy and the detective mystery with its twist of paranormal is a recipe for an incredible story that sticks with you.
Gikany and Una could go on but we do not want to give anything away in our gushing. We have Twimom to thank for giving us Downpour to review. Hopefully we can “catch up” before the next novel and read the back-stories. If you haven’t picked up the Grey series, please do so. However, if you don’t want to wait, you could jump into Seawitch, but just know that some references will not be completely clear. But without a doubt it is a rich and wonderfully woven urban fantasy mystery series.
Their Rating: |
Enjoyed – strongly recommend (A-)
Purchase Info:
Reviews in the Series:
This sounds like an enjoyable urban fantasy to sweep me away on nice imagination vacation – with some mystery and action. Thanks for the review.
This sounds so good!! I really enjoy this series though I have a few to catch up to Seawitch.