Witchlanders by Lena Coakley (ARC Review)

Genre:	Young Adult, Fantasy
Publication.Date	August 30th 2011
Pages:	411
Published By:	Atheneum (Simon&Schuster Canada)
Website	Lena Coakley | Witchlanders
	Witchlanders - Goodreads
My review copy:	ARC received from the publisher
Where to get:	Barnes and Noble | Amazon | Book Depository

     High in their mountain covens, red witches pray to the Goddess, protecting the Witchlands by throwing the bones and foretelling the future. It’s all a fake.
     At least, that’s what Ryder thinks. He doubts the witches really deserve their tithes—one quarter of all the crops his village can produce. And even if they can predict the future, what danger is there to foretell, now that his people’s old enemy, the Baen, has been defeated?
      But when a terrifying new magic threatens both his village and the coven, Ryder must confront the beautiful and silent witch who holds all the secrets. Everything he’s ever believed about witches, the Baen, magic and about himself will change, when he discovers that the prophecies he’s always scorned—
Are about him.

(goodreads.com)

Please note:  Quotes are from an ARC and will be verified against a published copy.

"It's time to put out that fire, Mabis", he said, suddenly feeling awash in frustration. "The witches didn't come because you have nothing to tell them. It's all nonsense. There's no stranger in the mountains, no assassin. You're just a farmer's widow gone mad on maiden's woe!"?

 One woman was like him, blond and blue-eyed, while the other, like the girl in white, clearly had Baen blood. Ryder knew they were witches, though, both of them. They both wore the mark of Ayase on their throats: two red slashes depicted in crimson stone, the symbol for the vow of silence.

"I saw something. Something I wasn't supposed to see. Something.. I was going to say horrible, but it wasn't really. Something I couldn't understand. There are secrets in the coven, Ryder. Secrets valley people could never guess. Secrets even many of the witches don't know".

    

     Lena Coakley uses her writing to weave a potent and unforgettable story, filled with magic, adventure, love, betrayal, revenge and long-buried secrets. Witchlanders is not only beautifully written and absolutely compelling, but with its unique take on witchcraft, fantastic characters and exquisite winter scenery, it is a true gem among the Young Adult fantasy books of recent years. 

     The main protagonist, Ryder, works hard in the field to make sure his mother and sisters have enough food to survive the winter. He’s a practical, simple guy, who doesn’t care much for the witchcraft. In fact, he doesn’t even believe in magic and he definitely doesn’t like the fact that every year he’s forced to pay tithes to the witches. The witches live high in their mountain covens. They claim that they’re protecting the village by praying to the Goddess and throwing bones to predict the future.  Ryder thinks it’s all fake and he’s extremely irritated when his mother, Mabis, starts throwing bones herself, foretelling the arrival of an assassin and other hard-to-believe events. He refuses to believe in her visions, convinced that they’re nothing more than hallucinations caused by the maiden’s woe, a highly addictive river plant.

     The attack of man-shaped creatures made of packed brown earth makes Ryder realize that he was wrong about many things. Everything he’s ever believed about magic, witches and, most importantly, himself will change forever. Nothing will ever be the same again and the most shocking discoveries are yet to come. 

     Witchlanders is a beautiful and mesmerizing tale of friendship and brotherhood, revenge and betrayal, love and trust. It was the shortest 411 pages I have ever read and how I wish I could jump into reading the second part straight away. Waiting for the sequel has never been more painful! I loved every word of this book. Lena Coakley has a great talent for words, her storytelling is flawless, smooth and very flavorful. I am a huge fan of fantasy in general and there are plenty of great YA fantasy books out there, but this one really stands out. I enjoyed the original take on magic – weaving the spells through a song, throwing bones, visions, etc. The world building was superb and I was amazed at how much effort Cloakley put into developing both the setting and the characters. I loved the breath-taking mountain scenery! Lena’s descriptive passages really brought everything to life, I had no problem whatsoever imagining all the places – the village, the mountain covens, the snow-covered fields, the caves and secret underground passages. Most importantly, the characters were absolutely fabulous! I liked Ryder from the get-go. I liked that he was skeptical about the whole magic-thing and had trouble accepting his fate. It was very realistic and added a lot of depth to the story. I really loved Falpian, too! He is such a likable character! Not to mention the interactions between these two, they were fascinating, and often hilarious. 

     And what about the romance? Well, there is no romance, and thank goddess for that! Lena Coakley managed to write a very emotional, touching story without spoon-feeding us with cheap and forced love-at first-sight BS. There is a potential love story here, though, but thankfully Lena didn’t go there yet. It turned out to be a great decision and, in my opinion, it made this book even more awesome.  

     Overall, Witchlanders is a fantastic read. The writing is captivating, the story intelligent, deep and entertaining. I couldn’t bring myself to put it down and I can’t wait to get my hands on the next book in the series. It’s a must-read for any YA fantasy fan.