The Northern Witch's Book Blog

The Seawomen by Chloe Timms 5 out of 5 Synopsis Esta has known nothing but Eden's Isle her whole life. Raised by her grandmother, after a fire claimed her parents and scarred her face, she's instructed to piety, to deference, and acquiescence by a religious society that will not suffer anything else. Cut off from the moral iniquity of the mainland, the island believes it can stay free of the Seawomen - creatures from the water that came upon land to corrupt God's creation and Man. The inhabitants fear the water and believe the only way to remain virtuous is to never enter it, and for the women to conceive within 12 months of their appointed motheryear. If they do not conceive, they're cast back into the ocean as a sacrifice in an act called the Untethering. Esta witnesses such an act as a child. Her childhood growing up on the island is fraught with tension as she comes to the terms with the prohibitive malaise of the culture she finds herself in. Before long, she gets ...

Mickey7 by Edward Ashton 3 out of 5 Synopsis A sci fi adventure tackling questions of who we are, what is human, and how far would we go to stay alive? Mickey7 is an Expendable: a disposable employee on a human expedition sent to colonize the ice world Niflheim. Whenever there’s a mission that’s too dangerous—even suicidal— the crew turns to Mickey. After one iteration dies, a new body is regenerated with most of his memories intact. Mickey signed on to escape from both bad debts and boredom on Midgard. After six deaths, Mickey7 understands the terms of his deal… and why it was the only colonial position unfilled when he took it. On a fairly routine scouting mission, Mickey7 goes missing and is presumed dead. By the time he returns to the colony base, surprisingly helped back by native life, Mickey7’s fate has been sealed. There’s a new clone, Mickey8, reporting for Expendable duties. While Expendables make most of the crew nervous, the idea of duplicates is universally loathed. If cau...

Last one at the Party  by Bethany Clift  5 out of 5  Synopsis  THE END OF EVERYTHING WAS HER BEGINNING It's November 2023. The human race has been wiped out by the 6DM virus (Six Days Maximum - the longest you've got before your body destroys itself). The end of the world as we know it. Yet someone is still alive. Alone in a new world of burning cities, rotting corpses and ravenous rats, one woman has survived. A woman who has spent her whole life compromising what she wants and hiding how she feels to meet other people's expectations. From her career to her relationships, to what she wears and where she lives, she's made a lifetime of decisions to fit what other people want her to be. But with no one else left, who will she become now that she's completely alone? Review  When a global pandemic hits, we follow a woman who may just be the last human alive. I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is set in the very near future....

J. Scott Coatsworth has a new gay post-zombie apocalypse Christmas book out: "Wonderland." And there's a giveaway! Zeke is a hermit in his late forties who lives a quiet life in a small cabin in the Western Montana mountains, a few miles outside of Thompson Falls. He’s gotten used to being alone since the end of the world, and has everything he needs. Everything but someone to talk to. Nathan is a younger man on a cross-country trek, searching the country for someone... anyone still alive. Saddled with a ghost from his old life and a case of OCD, he stumbles upon Thompson Falls and a pack of rabid dogs. Rescued by Zeke, he has to figure out how to be human again. And with Christmas just a week away, both men have to figure out if there’s something left to be hopeful for, and if they might have a future together. Get it At Amazon ~Review~ Giveaway Scott is giving away a $15 Amazon gift card with this tour OR a signed paperback trilogy of the Ariadne Cycle 1st Edition (The ...

Wonderland  by J. Scott Coatsworth  4 out of 5  Synopsis  Zeke is a hermit in his late forties who lives a quiet life in a small cabin in the Western Montana mountains, a few miles outside of Thompson Falls. He’s gotten used to being alone since the end of the world, and has everything he needs. Everything but someone to talk to. Nathan is a younger man on a cross-country trek, searching the country for someone... anyone still alive. Saddled with a ghost from his old life and a case of OCD, he stumbles upon Thompson Falls and a pack of rabid dogs. Rescued by Zeke, he has to figure out how to be human again. And with Christmas just a week away, both men have to figure out if there’s something left to be hopeful for, and if they might have a future together.  Review  Zeke and Nathan are two of last people surviving a zombie apocalypse, and by enormous luck, their paths are about to cross. I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review. Zeke has hunke...

The First Sister  by Linden A. Lewis  3 out of 5  Synopsis  Combining the social commentary of The Handmaid’s Tale with the white-knuckled thrills of Red Rising, this epic space opera follows a comfort woman as she claims her agency, a soldier questioning his allegiances, and a non-binary hero out to save the solar system. First Sister has no name and no voice. As a priestess of the Sisterhood, she travels the stars alongside the soldiers of Earth and Mars—the same ones who own the rights to her body and soul. When her former captain abandons her, First Sister’s hopes for freedom are dashed when she is forced to stay on her ship with no friends, no power, and a new captain—Saito Ren—whom she knows nothing about. She is commanded to spy on Captain Ren by the Sisterhood, but soon discovers that working for the war effort is so much harder to do when you’re falling in love. Lito val Lucius climbed his way out of the slums to become an elite soldier of Venus, but was def...

Love Gaia  by T.L. Clark  3 out of 5  Synopsis  The future is history! To avoid repeating the mistakes of the past, Aroha and her classmates must learn harsh lessons. Having led a sheltered life, their history is shocking. Nobody should have to endure what Dr. Rachel and her inmates were put through. Yet it was seemingly necessary. The burden of responsibility lies heavily upon their shoulders. Remember to maintain, “Honesty, Respect, Fortitude,” as you read this thrilling and agonizing tale of devastation, survival and hope. – A post-nuclear war, dystopian vs. utopian, environmental romance NB/ Mature content Not suitable for those with claustrophobia The events in this book are supposed to be fictional  Review  The time has come for Aroha and her classmates to learn of the trials, sacrifices and mistakes that were made; so history won't repeat itself. I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review. Aroha is living in a post-apocalyptic utopia, in...

Space Academy by Hannah Hopkins 2 out of 5 Synopsis It's the year 2100. Earth is dying. A young woman, Elsie, has risked everything to get her newborn son, Will, aboard 'The Mayflower' - a spaceship that will transport a select number of people to a new planet they can call home. Elsie’s luck takes a turn when she discovers the captain of 'The Mayflower' is an old friend. He allows her to board with her son, giving them a place on the luxurious Floor One, where they live amongst the most honoured of 'The Mayflower’s' passengers. Thirteen years later, and Will is ready to start school at Space Academy, an institute specialising in subjects such as Alien Studies, Technology, and Rocket Control. While a pupil there, Will starts to uncover secrets about his father's death, becoming wrapped in a mystery that he and his friends must solve if they are to have any hope of saving humanity from the threat that lies in wait. Lose yourself in this brilliantly addict...

Space Academy It's the year 2100. Earth is dying. A young woman, Elsie, has risked everything to get her newborn son, Will, aboard 'The Mayflower' - a spaceship that will transport a select number of people to a new planet they can call home. Elsie’s luck takes a turn when she discovers the captain of 'The Mayflower' is an old friend. He allows her to board with her son, giving them a place on the luxurious Floor One, where they live amongst the most honoured of 'The Mayflower’s' passengers.  Thirteen years later, and Will is ready to start school at Space Academy, an institute specialising in subjects such as Alien Studies, Technology, and Rocket Control. While a pupil there, Will starts to uncover secrets about his father's death, becoming wrapped in a mystery that he and his friends must solve if they are to have any hope of saving humanity from the threat that lies in wait.  Lose yourself in this brilliantly addictive novel as it takes you on a journ...

The Girl and the Stars by Mark Lawrence 3 out of 5 Synopsis In the ice, east of the Black Rock, there is a hole into which broken children are thrown. On Abeth the vastness of the ice holds no room for individuals. Survival together is barely possible. No one survives alone. To resist the cold, to endure the months of night when even the air itself begins to freeze, requires a special breed. Variation is dangerous, difference is fatal. And Yaz is not the same. Yaz is torn from the only life she’s ever known, away from her family, from the boy she thought she would spend her days with, and has to carve out a new path for herself in a world whose existence she never suspected. A world full of difference and mystery and danger. Yaz learns that Abeth is older and stranger than she had ever imagined. She learns that her weaknesses are another kind of strength. And she learns to challenge the cruel arithmetic of survival that has always governed her people. Only when it’s darkest you can see...

Expendables   The Wall Series Book 1  by Alison Ingleby  Genre: YA Dystopian  One girl. A corrupt government. A secret that could shatter a country.  ★★★★★ “I haven’t been this hooked on a dystopian series since The Hunger Games and Divergent.”  What would you sacrifice to discover the truth?  For twelve years, Aleesha has survived as an illegal citizen in poverty-stricken Area Four. She lives by one rule – trust no one.  When her illegal status is discovered, Aleesha is forced to join a mysterious organisation intent on taking down the corrupt government. Then she’s introduced to Trey, an Insider who’s been brought up with everything she longs for: wealth, privilege, education.  An Insider who, like her, is being hunted by the government’s sinister militia.  Aleesha wants to hate him. But Trey may be the only person who can help her find her father – the man who could be her ticket out of pov...

Expendables by Alison Ingleby 5 out of 5 Synopsis Two societies. A London divided. A history lost. Aleesha is an Outsider. If the government find her they'll kill her. She survives each day by looking out for herself. And trusting no one. Trey is an Insider. He never knew what the Outside was like until he finds himself hunted by his own people for an unknown crime he didn't commit. Drawn together by forces outside of their control, Aleesha and Trey must learn to work together. It's not just their lives that are at stake. It's their country's future. Set in a disturbingly realistic vision of a future London, this fast-paced dystopian thriller will appeal to fans of The Hunger Games, Divergent and The Maze Runner.

Battle Ground by Rachel Churcher 2 out of 5 Synopsis Sixteen-year-old Bex Ellman has been drafted into an army she doesn't support and a cause she doesn't believe in. Her plan is to keep her head down, and keep herself and her friends safe – until she witnesses an atrocity she can't ignore, and a government conspiracy that threatens lives all over the UK. With her loyalties challenged, Bex must decide who to fight for – and who to leave behind. The Battle Ground series is set in a dystopian near-future UK, after Brexit and Scottish independence.

Emily Eternal by M.G. Wheaton 4.5 out of 5 Synopsis Meet Emily - she can solve advanced mathematical problems, unlock the mind's deepest secrets and even fix your truck's air con, but unfortunately, she can't restart the Sun. She's an artificial consciousness, designed in a lab to help humans process trauma, which is particularly helpful when the sun begins to die 5 billion years before scientists agreed it was supposed to. So, her beloved human race is screwed, and so is Emily. That is, until she finds a potential answer buried deep in the human genome. But before her solution can be tested, her lab is brutally attacked, and Emily is forced to go on the run with two human companions - college student Jason and small-town Sheriff, Mayra. As the sun's death draws near, Emily and her friends must race against time to save humanity. But before long it becomes clear that it's not only the species at stake, but also that which makes us most human.

Light Years by Kass Morgan 5 out of 5 Synopsis Reeling from the latest attack by a mysterious enemy, the Quatra Fleet Academy is finally admitting students from every planet in the solar system after centuries of exclusivity. Hotshot pilot Vesper, an ambitious Tridian citizen, dreams of becoming a captain - but when she loses her spot to a brilliant, wisecracking boy from the wrong side of the asteroid belt, it makes her question everything she thought she knew. Growing up on the toxic planet Deva, Cormak will take any chance he can get to escape his dead-end life and join the Academy - even if he has to steal someone's identity to do it. Arran was always considered an outsider on icy Chetire, always dreaming of something more than a life working in the mines. Now an incoming cadet, Arran is looking for a place to belong - he just never thought that place would be in the arms of a Tridian boy. And Orelia is hiding a dark secret - she's infiltrated the Academy to comp...

Genesis of Light by D.M. Cain 3 out of 5 Synopsis Warring countries, fantastical creatures, beings of terrible power and journeys of epic scale. The legendary Book of Alcherys tells wild and unimaginable stories. But they are not mere fairy tales. They are true, every word. Callista Nienna is strong and independent, but nothing could have prepared her for civilisation being brought to a violent end. Now, she is forced to stay alive in a desolate wilderness with only her closest friend for support. She has two choices: give up and die with the wilting world around her or seize her destiny and make it to the only sanctuary left unscathed. At the end of her journey, something awaits Callista, something both terrifying and unbelievable.

Raiden Out the Storm by C.M. Moore 4 out of 5 Synopsis In the kind of rough and tumble life they lead, Raiden knows there is no place for love… Raiden refuses his connection to Ash Winsor. She’s mean. She insults him. And she carries a big gun. He won’t have her. He should get away from her, but how? As soon as they can find the man who tied their heartstrings together, they’ll go their separate ways. All they have to do is get to H.S.P.C. headquarters building and pay him off. Raiden hopes that once he’s free, he’ll be able to go back to trekking on the surface of the planet and sending money home to his dad. He should be able to forget all about Ash and her handsome shadow. Love has kept Stone as Ash Winsor’s shadow for two years. He can’t bring himself to leave her even though the relationship is painful and going in circles. When he finds out that Ash is now tied to another man, Stone wants nothing more than to see Raiden gone. Together they will both follow King Winsor...

The Stars Now Unclaimed by Drew Williams 3 out of 5 Synopsis Jane Kamali is an agent for the Justified. Her mission: to recruit children with miraculous gifts in the hope that they might prevent the Pulse from once again sending countless worlds back to the dark ages. Hot on her trail is the Pax--a collection of fascist zealots who believe they are the rightful rulers of the galaxy and who remain untouched by the Pulse. Now Jane, a handful of comrades from her past, and a telekinetic girl called Esa must fight their way through a galaxy full of dangerous conflicts, remnants of ancient technology, and other hidden dangers. And that's just the beginning . . .

Title: Blood Phase  Series: Book 2 of The G.O.D.s Series  Author: Kirsten Campbell  Publisher: Kirsten Campbell  Length: Novel November 12, 2052: Earth has lost two-thirds of its population to the Great War. Many more lives have been lost to earthquakes, the Clover Virus, and the Death Plague. Years later, survivors are clumped into factions. Two of those factions—the Brotherhood and the Guild Faction—have battled over medical supplies and food for years. The fight is coming to a head as manpower dwindles and the struggle becomes one to gain numbers, even if said numbers are children… Griffin Storm, an albino man kidnapped and dragged into the Brotherhood, has transformed into a G.O.D., a Genetically enhanced Omni-dimensional being. Two weeks in the brig, and Griffin’s released after it’s determined that he’s learned to control most of his god-like abilities. His abilities have grown almost as much as his love for Tassta Vinetti and his u...

  Book Title: Chameleon Uncovered Author Name: B.R. Kingsolver  Genre: Urban Fantasy, science fiction, post-apocalyptic dystopian Hosted by: Ultimate Fantasy Book Tours Blurb: The dark sequel to the best-selling Chameleon Assassin. Libby has a chance to build a legitimate reputation when she’s hired by one of the world’s most prestigious museums to bolster their security. The gig is in Chicago, where her heartthrob lives, so she hopes for a little romance. She's on a first-name basis with larceny, mayhem, and death, but Libby's not used to being on the receiving end. Chicago is far darker and more dangerous than her native Toronto. Amidst terrorist bombings, stolen treasure, and murder, a mutant prophet calls for revolution. Away from her family and friends, Libby has nowhere to turn as enemies assault her from all sides. Their mistake. Libby is a dangerous enemy.