#Review - Julia Unbound by Catherine Egan #YALIT #Fantasy

Series: The Witch's Child (#3)
Format: Hardcover, 480 pages
Release Date: August 14, 2018
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Source: Library
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy

In this heart-pounding conclusion to the Witch’s Child trilogy, Catherine Egan’s masterful world-building and fiercely flawed heroine will thrill fans of Graceling and Six of Crows.

Julia has been ensnared in so many different webs, it’s hard to see how she’ll ever break free. She must do Casimir’s bidding in order to save the life of her brother. She must work against Casimir to save the lives of most everyone else she knows.

Casimir demands that Julia use her vanishing skills to act as a spy at court and ensure that a malleable prince is installed on the throne of Frayne. But Julia is secretly acting as a double agent, passing information to the revolutionaries and witches who want a rebel princess to rule.

Beyond these deadly entanglements, Julia is also desperately seeking the truth about herself: How is it she can vanish? Is she some form of monster? Is her life her own?

With every move she makes, Julia finds herself tangled ever tighter. Should she try to save her country? Her brother? A beloved child? Can she even save herself?

Story Locale: Spira City—an alternate Paris

 

Julia Unbound is the third and final installment in author Catherine Egan's Witch's Child trilogy. The story picks up shortly after the end of Julia Defiant. Julia has been cornered like a wet cat by Casimir, a Xianren immortal who wants the remaining piece of the Book of Disruption. A piece that was hidden away by Julia in a place he has no access to. In order to save her brother Benedek, Julia agrees to be a spy and to be implanted with a parasite which will slowly make its way to her brain, and make her pliable to anything that Casimir asks her to do.

Julia only has 10 days to find a way to save her brother and remove the parasite before she loses. Thankfully, Julia has a friend of sorts in Pia Kos. Pia is a broken and mechanical assassin controlled by the villain, Casimir. Yes, that means that she has one of the parasite's in her brain. While she has some free will of her own, in the end, she has to stay particularly close to whatever Casimir orders her to do. Julia and Pia work together in a very curious manner. I am not saying that thee is any romance involved. There isn't. But, Julia definitely thinks of Pia as someone she can save. 

As a character, Julia has a pretty amazing ability to pull herself one step out of the world & into an invisible pocket. One of the places that Julia is able to visit is a place called Kahge where she changes into something monstrous and powerful enough to kill an immortal. She's been trained as a thief and a spy, so spying on the King and Duke Everard, the heir apparent. But, it is her role as a sort of double agent that has Julia stuck in the middle of a rebellion against the leadership of Frayne, including the Prime Minister who was responsible for drowning her mother in what the author calls the Cleansing. 

Julia's main concern becomes who can she really trust when it seems as though she is being lead astray? Since the beginning of this series, there has always been this question surrounding Julia and how she is able to do the things she has been able to do. I think readers who have read the first two books will have several emotions after she finds out why she is able to do what she does. Satisfied or Disappointed. I think when all is said and done, I was a bit let down, but the way the author explains things, really does make sense.

If you are looking for a book that is action packed, you've found that book. This is a book that has a dying king, a disputed and contested crown, a revolution that has found Julia with some curious allies, as well as allies she grew up with, angry witches, immortals, and political intrigue. You can say that the author walks a thin line between what is good and what is bad. There really is no good or bad options for Julia. There is only a grey area where she must do what's right for those she cares about while standing up to those who don't have Julia's best interests at heart.

Recommendation: Yes, but please make sure you read the books in the order as they were released and not skip over anything to get to the final chapter in this series.

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Monday #Review - Julia Defiant by @ByCatherineEgan #YALit #Fantasy @AAKnopf

Series: Witch's Child # 2
Format: E-Galley, 464 pages
Release Date: June 13, 2017
Publisher:  Alfred A. Knopf Books
Source: NetGalley/Publisher
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Julia and a mismatched band of revolutionaries, scholars, and thieves have crossed the world searching for a witch. But for all the miles traveled, they are no closer to finding Ko Dan. No closer to undoing the terrible spell he cast that bound an ancient magic to the life of a small child. Casimir wants that magic will happily kill Theo to extract it and every moment they hunt for Ko Dan, Casimir s assassins are hunting them. 

Julia can deal with danger. The thing that truly scares her lies within. Her strange ability to vanish to a place just out of sight has grown: she can now disappear so completely that it s like stepping into another world. It s a fiery, hellish world, filled with creatures who seem to recognize her and count her as one of their own. 

So . . . is Julia a girl with a monster lurking inside her? Or a monster wearing the disguise of a girl?
If she can use her monstrous power to save Theo, does it matter?

Julia Defiant is the second installment in author Catherine Egan's Witch's Child series. 16-year old Julia is an orphan who found a home among a group of criminals (Esme, Gregor, Csilla, and her own brother Benedek) after her mother was drowned in the Cleansing for being a witch. Julia and friends live in a fictitious country known as Frayne, where hunting down and drowning those suspected of practicing witchcraft is as normal as breathing. After all, if you can't burn a witch, why not drown them? 

In this story, Julia and her gang of misfits, which now includes Professor Baranyi, Mrs. Och, Frederick, Bianka, Wyn, and Theo, travel to Yongguo where the search for a man known as Ko Dan continues. Ko Dan worked a terrible spell that ended up putting part of the Book of Disruption into Theo. The book is the first written magic, and the origin of magic in the world. Something that Casimir would burn the world to the ground in order to have. 

Julia has an unusual ability. She can step into another place and disappear. This makes her the perfect spy since nobody can see her. The twist becomes where did she get this ability? Can Julia save Theo who is being hunted across the world, or will Casimir and his pet assassin Pia win when all is said and done? Also, one has to be curious and weary of who Julia really trusts in this book. There are so many twists, surprises, and down right what the hell just happen moments that keep the book flowing smoothly from page to page.

Tianshi, the capital of Yongguo, reminds me a bit of Peking in the early 19th century. There is the Heavenly City, the Imperial Gardens, and a secretive library hidden deep in the mountains. The country is run by the Empress Dowager, and Si Tan, who shows too much interest in Julia, and what she is able to do. I am curious as to Pia's intentions as well. While she came across as the ultimate villain in the previous installment, I don't think we've dug deeper into what her plans really are, and why she is drawn to helping Julia. Could she be the one ally that Julia needs to survive? 

In the end, Julia Defiant exceeded my expectations. It was much more entertaining and devious than the first book. I do look forward to book # 3 which is currently untitled while also releasing in 2018. 

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#Wednesday Review - Julia Vanishes by Catherine Egan (Young Adult, Fantasy)

Series: The Witches Child # 1
Format: E-Galley, 384 pages
Release Date: June 7, 2016
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Fans of Marie Lu, Leigh Bardugo, and Kristin Cashore will be captivated by this stunning first book in a must-have new fantasy trilogy about a spy who can vanish at will and who discovers that monsters, mystery, and magic are also lurking—just out of sight.

Julia has the unusual ability to be…unseen. Not invisible, exactly. Just beyond most people’s senses.

It’s a dangerous trait in a city that has banned all forms of magic and drowns witches in public Cleansings. But it’s a useful trait for a thief and a spy.

And Julia has learned—crime pays.

She’s being paid very well indeed to infiltrate the grand house of Mrs. Och and report back on the odd characters who live there and the suspicious dealings that take place behind locked doors.
But what Julia discovers shakes her to the core. She certainly never imagined that the traitor in the house would turn out to be…her.

Murder, thievery, witchcraft, betrayal—Catherine Egan builds a dangerous world where her fierce and flawed heroine finds that even a girl who can vanish can’t walk away from her own worst deeds.

Julia Vanishes is the first book in author Catherine Egan's Witch's Child trilogy. 16-year old Julia is an orphan who has found a home among a group of criminals (Esme, Gregor, Csilla, and her own brother Benedek) after her mother was drowned in the Cleansing for being a witch. Julia and friends live in a fictitious country known as Frayne, where hunting down and drowning those suspected of practicing witchcraft is normal as breathing. After all, if you can't burn a witch, why not drown them? 

Julia has a bit of an unusual ability that others don't have. She has the ability to be unseen by nearly everyone around her. By stepping into another place, eyes of those she is spying on pass over her. This makes for a rather awesome skill to have while she is spying on a home owned by a Mrs. Och and those like Professor Baranyi, and Frederick. Julia aka Ella, finds herself deeply involved in the happenings of the home as a housemaid. When things get even more weird and strange, the mission becomes one of utmost importance. 

She knows that there is something highly unusual about those who live in the house, especially Mr. Darius who lives in the basement of the house where a steel door keeps everyone out. Julia's attempt at sniffing out the facts from fiction ends up putting her and her friends in places that not even she could ever guess. Something dangerous is afoot. Something even older is looking for a vessel that may have a whole lot of magic and power withing. And, something even more powerful may become Julia's ally against the former. 

Julia Vanishes, told in the first person narrative, is an intriguing start to this series. The story features adventure, intrigue, betrayal, and a new form of magic where witches may be powerful and strong, but not unless they put pen to paper. One could say that Egan twists several genre's in order to make this story plausible and entertaining. Those elements are Steampunk, Fantasy, Adventure, and Magic. 

The story features a cast of characters who are powerful, yet need their own puppets to get things they want. I must offer my support for Dek, Julia's older brother. I loved this guy! Seriously how cool were his inventions? How cool was it that he left let his disabilities slow him down? There more than a fair share of villains, and there are those like Julia who may be a spy, and a thief, but in the end, finds her own strengths and determination to cut through the facts and the lies to discover an entirely new truth. 

Julia Vanishes is a story that is slow to develop, but will absolutely grab you by the shoulders and demand that you finish the story to find out what happens next! 

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