It’s as we said: the debut releases this year have been killing it! And Lindsey Olsson’s debut novel, To Drown a Witch, is no exception. This dark romantasy takes place in a kingdom where magic is outlawed and the King’s Guard is hunting down a dangerous witch.
To Drown a Witch is the first book in a duology, which we’re so grateful for after reading the ending. It follows Nes, a thief with the ability to smell magic, and Toran, the Prince’s Crown in charge of leading the witch hunt. Toran recruits Nes for his mission, promising to free her father when they find the Witch.
Their fragile alliance soon turns into something more. And neither of them expect to let their guards down as much as they do. Here are three reasons why you should read To Drown a Witch by Lindsey Olsson!
Book Overview: To Drown A Witch
Content warnings: death, murder, death of loved ones and family, corpses, drowning, decapitation, gore, graphic violence, weapons, vomiting (Read at your discretion!)
Summary: In Gadore, the Witch is feared above all else. Reborn into each generation, she is the only person with magic running innately through her veins, able to wield that magic with a single thought.
So when guards across the city begin to drop dead, gruesomely murdered by violent and vicious magic, everyone knows the Witch has returned—and no one will be safe until she’s killed.
Toran is the Prince’s Crown, the most highly skilled fighter in the King’s Guard. Tasked with the responsibility of leading the hunt for the Witch, Toran tries to focus on his assignment to forget the ghosts of his past. And after he learns of Nes, a thief with an uncanny ability to sniff out magic, he forcibly recruits her into joining his hunt.
As the two face deadly magic and otherworldly threats, their mutual dislike soon turns to something more electric, and they find themselves drawn to each other in ways they’d never imagined. But the Witch is always a step ahead of them, and with bodies piling up, secrets threaten to come to light—secrets that could destroy everything from the fragile trust between them to the very city of Gadore itself.
It Keeps You Guessing
From the beginning, To Drown a Witch aims to keep us on our toes. We meet the Witch firsthand without finding out her identity. And as dozens of guards’ bodies show up dead by her magic, we don’t get many clues. Nes and Toran’s search for the Witch thus raises even more questions, making us suspicious of everyone. (The very feeling that any witch hunt evokes, by the way.) Then by the final part of the book, we get hit with plot twist after plot twist as we build up to the big reveal.
The Romantic Tension
Another reason why you should read To Drown a Witch is the romantic tension between Nes and Toran. Their mutual dislike and distrust at the start of their forced alliance turns into a spark the more time they spend together. They save each other’s lives in more ways than one. Nes grows more fond of Toran and his protective nature, even letting her walls down around him. But Toran’s still haunted by a ghost from his past, complicating his own feelings toward Nes. It’s this push and pull that keeps us glued to the page!
And The Cliffhanger…
We don’t know how many cliffhanger endings we’ve gotten this year, but To Drown a Witch might have the most illegal one yet! The big reveal upends everything we predicted would happen. And yet, each of the characters knew exactly what they were doing. The Witch somehow stays one step ahead of everyone, and we didn’t manage to clock it until the last few pages. Now that we know it’s a duology, we can rest (un)easy and wait to see where Nes and Toran end up next.
With illegal magic, electrifying romantic tension, and a brutal witch hunt, Lindsey Olsson blew us away with her debut novel, To Drown a Witch!
To Drown a Witch by Lindsey Olsson comes out July 14th, and you can order a copy of it here!
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