Blog tour: The Memory Witch by Heather Topham Wood + excerpt, review & giveaway
I have enjoyed author Heather Topham Wood's Second Sight series so I'm thrilled to be part of the tour for her latest book, The Memory Witch. This tour is hosted by Itching for Books Tours. We have an excerpt of our choosing and our review. Unfortunately, I made a mistake and thought I had sent the author questions for my scheduled interview but didn't so I'm running my review instead. There's also a giveaway to enter. Have a great day!
+(1).JPG)
The Memory Witch by Heather Topham Wood
Series: The Memory Witch #1
Release Date: December 15th 2013
Publisher: Crescent Moon Press
BOOK DESCRIPTION:
Ten years ago, Quinn Jacobs’ mother made a bargain with a local witch—steal away Quinn’s memories from the first eight years of her life and in return, Quinn would spend a year in servitude to the witch.
On Quinn’s eighteenth birthday, she’s forced to leave her home and friends behind. For the next year, she’ll live at the Chadwick House, learning everything she needs to know about being a spellcaster. As her powers grow, Quinn begins to unravel the secrets of the past and the reason her mother was so desperate to conceal the horrifying truth.
Excerpt:
My mother cleared her throat and set her tea on the mahogany coffee table in front of her. She seemed upset, but I had a feeling it had nothing to do with my sleepover at Tanner’s house. “Quinn, will you sit with us?” “Of course,” I agreed. If it meant staying out of trouble, I would willingly perform a juggling act to appease my mother.
I sat on the sofa next to my mom and volleyed my head between the two women. My mother spoke first. “Quinn, this is Stella Corey, she’s an…old friend of our family.”
I jumped back as the woman cackled at my mother’s introduction. I gave her a startled look, but the woman addressed my mom instead. “Bridget, you haven’t told the girl anything?”
My mother tucked a piece of her blond bob behind her ear. A brief look of guilt passed over her expression before she gave the woman a murderous look. “How the hell was I supposed to explain any of this? I was hoping it would never come to this.”
“Meaning you were hoping I’d be dead by now,” Stella replied dryly before calmly taking another sip of her tea.
My mother’s lack of response seemed to confirm this sentiment. I knew my jaw must have been on the floor over this exchange. Stella smiled at my shock. “I have to say, Bridget, I never imagined she would turn out so beautiful. When I met you, you were skin and bones and a tangled mess of blond hair.”
“She’s smart too,” my mother admitted. She said pointedly to Stella, “She has a scholarship to Lehigh in the fall.”
“Well, that’s not my fault, dear. You knew the terms when you came to me.” Stella waved her off dismissively.
I was tired of the mystery surrounding the exchange and took my mother’s hand in mine. She looked regretful as she examined our intertwined fingers. “Mom, what’s going on?”
“Where do I begin?” she asked rhetorically. She looked to Stella for help. The old woman simply shrugged her shoulders and leaned back further into the loveseat.
My mother’s eyes were moist when she twisted back to face me. “Quinn, I’ve never told you the entire truth about your childhood.”
My breath hitched. I wanted to take in this moment because I had a feeling my entire life was about to change.
I thoroughly enjoyed Heather Topham Wood's other series, Second Sight, and knew I had to check out her latest title when I heard it involved witches. That was a great decision on my part. The Memory Witch piqued my curiosity with the Prologue and learning that teen girl Quinn had lost memories (up until age 8) and a deceased father upped the stakes.
Wood secures her rank as an entertaining and wonderful writer with this one as she demonstrates with this first book in her latest YA paranormal series, The Memory Witch. Quinn is a typical teen with a testy parental bond and a boyfriend she cares for but is afraid to take their relationship to the next level. Of course, she has to deal with not being able to remember her childhood which will certainly do a number on a person. When her mom drops the bomb about a deal she made which will now affect Quinn on her 18th birthday, I expected a bit more of a rebellious reaction from the teen, but then she tends to keep her emotions bottled up. Quinn learns she is a witch and has to leave her home, her school, her friends and her future (including a scholarship to Lehigh) to live with the old witch, Stella, who comes to collect her claim.
The author does a great job conveying this new world and how Quinn not only reacts to it, but how she fits into it for the one year her mother made the deal for. A supposed normal teen must now learn to handle a new world of magic as Stella's apprentice, study spellcasting and deal with her feelings for the old witch's caretaker nephew, Mason. What adds to this mix is the warning Stella gives her not to get attached to Mason, but since they aren't many people around, Quinn finds herself becoming his friend (an more-there is romance). I'm a fan of Wood's and now of Quinn's and look forward to the next book in The Memory Witch, an engaging new series fans of witch stories will want to read.
Rating: 4
Cover comment:
Like it!
Book source:
I received a promotional copy in exchange for my honest review during a blog tour.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Heather Topham Wood’s obsession with novels began in childhood while growing up in a shore town in New Jersey. Writing since her teens, she recently returned to penning novels after a successful career as a freelance writer. She’s the author of the paranormal romance Second Sight series and the standalone The Disappearing Girl .
Heather graduated from the College of New Jersey in 2005 and holds a bachelor's degree in English. Her freelance work has appeared in publications such as USA Today, Livestrong.com, Outlook by the Bay and Step in Style magazine. She resides in Trenton, New Jersey with her husband and two sons. Besides writing, Heather is a pop culture fanatic and has an obsession with supernatural novels and TV shows.
Great review and excerpt. Thanks for participating!
ReplyDeleteWhat an awesome blurb and excerpt…most of these don't show the book in a good light, however, this is really well written..it grabbed me right away…I'm a fan! Have a great tour!
ReplyDelete