Witchling - BookWyrm.World

audio cd

Published by Tantor Audio.

ISBN:: 978-1-4001-1000-1

(1 review)

Meet three semi-supernatural sisters, out to save the Otherworld...We’re the D’Artigo sisters: Half-human, half-Faerie, we’re savvy—and sexy—operatives for the Otherworld Intelligence Agency. But our mixed-blood heritage short-circuits our talents at all the wrong times. My sister Delilah shapeshifts into a tabby cat whenever she’s stressed. Menolly’s a vampire who’s still trying to get the hang of being undead. And me? I’m Camille—a wicked-good witch. Except my magic’s as unpredictable as the weather, as my enemies are about to find out the hard way...At the Wayfarer Inn, a portal to Otherworld and the local hangout for humans and beasties alike, a fellow operative, Jocko, has been murdered. Every clue points to Shadow Wing, the soul-munching, badass leader of the Subterranean Realms. He’s made it clear that he aims to raze humankind to the ground, turning both Earth and Otherworld into his private playground. Our assignment: Keep Shadow Wing and his minions …

Meet three semi-supernatural sisters, out to save the Otherworld...We’re the D’Artigo sisters: Half-human, half-Faerie, we’re savvy—and sexy—operatives for the Otherworld Intelligence Agency. But our mixed-blood heritage short-circuits our talents at all the wrong times. My sister Delilah shapeshifts into a tabby cat whenever she’s stressed. Menolly’s a vampire who’s still trying to get the hang of being undead. And me? I’m Camille—a wicked-good witch. Except my magic’s as unpredictable as the weather, as my enemies are about to find out the hard way...At the Wayfarer Inn, a portal to Otherworld and the local hangout for humans and beasties alike, a fellow operative, Jocko, has been murdered. Every clue points to Shadow Wing, the soul-munching, badass leader of the Subterranean Realms. He’s made it clear that he aims to raze humankind to the ground, turning both Earth and Otherworld into his private playground. Our assignment: Keep Shadow Wing and his minions from creeping into Earth via the Wayfarer. The demons figure they’re in like Flynn. After all, with only my bumbling sisters and me standing in the way, how can they miss? But we’ve got a secret for them: Faulty wiring or not, nobody kicks ass like the D’Artigo girls...

3 editions

coral reviewed Witchling by Yasmine Galenorn (Sisters of the Moon (1))

None

4 stars

I really waffled on the number of stars to give this, since I'm trying to rate this not just as a standalone book (which deserves 4 stars), but as the stand-in for a full series review (which is much closer to a 3). I'm ... half way? through the series? as I write this, and I'm invested enough that I plan to finish. A few of the plots feel a bit sloppy (e.g. a character introduced part-way through a book as an antagonist, given part of a reconciliation arc, and then killed off later in the same book), but with a series this long, not every book is going to hit right for every reader.

Things I like:
This series is LGBTQIA+- and poly-friendly, despite some outdated language choices (to be fair, the first book is from 2006, and the author seems straight to me; it's all pretty forgivable). At …

I really waffled on the number of stars to give this, since I'm trying to rate this not just as a standalone book (which deserves 4 stars), but as the stand-in for a full series review (which is much closer to a 3). I'm ... half way? through the series? as I write this, and I'm invested enough that I plan to finish. A few of the plots feel a bit sloppy (e.g. a character introduced part-way through a book as an antagonist, given part of a reconciliation arc, and then killed off later in the same book), but with a series this long, not every book is going to hit right for every reader.

Things I like:
This series is LGBTQIA+- and poly-friendly, despite some outdated language choices (to be fair, the first book is from 2006, and the author seems straight to me; it's all pretty forgivable). At least one primary character is bisexual, and several are poly. As we do in the real world, they have queer and poly communities around them, as well.
The metaphysics seem well-thought-out.
The overarching plot holds together well so far.

Things I dislike, or that would make me unlikely to recommend it:
There's rape. At first it's merely alluded to, as an important part of one character's backstory, but then it happens "on camera," as it were, in more than one book.
Some of the sympathetic male characters are pushy/controlling in ways that I find off-putting.
One of the primary narrators is awfully whiny, even after a lot of time spent in "character growth" arcs, and I don't find her sympathetic at all. Her romantic plot is also less-than-convincing, though there are moments about learning to live with a partner that feel true to life.

The audiobook narration is generally fantastic, though it pains me when, several books in, the narrator forgets how to pronounce "youkai." There are a couple of other words that are inconsistent between books, as well, but this is a common problem for long series.