Eva Evergreen and the Cursed Witch by Julie Abe

Summary from Goodreads:

Eva Evergreen has fulfilled her dream of earning the rank of Novice Witch, and discovered the chilling truth behind the mysterious Culling -- the violent magical storm wreaking havoc across Rivelle Realm.

Revealing the truth, however, proves to be a difficult task and soon the culprit is at large. To make matters worse Eva learns what might be the horrible truth behind her pinch of magic and her mother's own mysterious connection to the Culling and rogue magic.

With her spirits at an all-time low, Eva must muster up the courage to prove her mother's innocence and learn to believe in her own magic, if she wishes to put a stop to the Culling once and for all.

Review:

I saw this book going through the delivery at my library and I hadn’t realized it had already come out! I really enjoyed the first book. I even attended a virtual library panel and watched the author do a reading from this sequel. I was super excited for it’s release. And then all of a sudden it surprised me! I of course ordered it right away.

The first book was like a sweeter version of Kiki’s Delivery Service mixed with Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and a little bit of Pokemon. It just made me feel good. I wish it was a Netflix series I could binge. I remember thinking the sequel would probably be a cute companion or I’d probably enjoy it just as much or maybe not quite as much. I was wrong. I liked it more!

This one has all the sweetness and fluff of book 1. But, it’s also deeper! There’s more darkness. There’s more bravery and rescue to this one. It’s more about saving people then about saving the world and I know this doesn’t like it, but it felt more dramatic. The characters were more developed. The world felt more real. There becomes a point, about half way through, when it’s just impossible to put this story down. You have to know what’s going to happen! The stakes are just so high.

All in all, I loved this. Julie Abe is an author to keep your eye on, for sure. I can’t wait to read more from her. I give this one a 10/10.