Sea Witch Rising Blog Tour: Review, Playlist, Giveaway

“The Little Mermaid” takes a twisted turn in this thrilling sequel to villainess origin story Sea Witch, as the forces of land and sea clash in an epic battle for freedom, redemption, and true love.

Runa will not let her twin sister die. Alia traded her voice to the Sea Witch for a shot at happiness with a prince who doesn’t love her. And his rejection will literally kill her—unless Runa intervenes.

Under the sea, Evie craves her own freedom—but liberation from her role as Sea Witch will require an exchange she may not be willing to make. With their hearts’ desires at odds, what will Runa and Evie be willing to sacrifice to save their worlds?

Told from alternating perspectives, this epic fairy tale retelling is a romantic and heart-wrenching story about the complications of sisterhood, the uncompromising nature of magic, and the cost of redemption.

Sea Witch Rising (Sea Witch #2)

by Sarah Henning

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Release Date: August 6th 2019

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Retellings

Book Links:

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42800505-sea-witch-rising

Amazon: http://tiny.cc/hmyo7y

iTunes https://books.apple.com/us/book/sea-witch-rising/id1441299835

B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sea-witch-rising-sarah-henning/1129708887?ean=9780062931474#/

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/sea-witch-rising-2

Google Books: https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Sea_Witch_Rising.html?id=2SV2DwAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y

Bookdepository: https://www.bookdepository.com/Sea-Witch-Rising-Sarah-Henning/9780008356064?ref=grid-view&qid=1559513162298&sr=1-3

Review:

Sea Witch Rising by Sarah Henning is a reimagining of The Little Mermaid. This story follows Alia and Runa, twin mermaids and daughters of the Sea King. Alia is in love with a human. Not just any human. She is in love with Niklas the grandson of Niklas from book one. We already knew this was coming. She decides to make a trade with the Sea Witch. The Sea Witch gives her four days. Four days to prove that the human shows true love for her. If Alia is unable to prove this true love, then she will lose her voice for forever. Sounds familiar right? Runa doesn’t understand why Alia would make this bargain. What is it about this human that is so important? Runa is concerned that her sister is throwing her life away for nothing.

Evie is trapped by the Sea King and she is desperate for her freedom. She struggles with her lack of power. Evie continues to make bad choices because she is struggling. As the reader we really get to discover who the Sea Witch is. How she became stuck and chained to her lair. We learn of all the pain and heartbreak she has gone through.

I found Alia to be a bit flat. She tended to be more annoying that interesting. I think her sister Runa really steals the show in this book. Runa show the reader what sisterly love looks like. She wants the very best for her sister and she wants her sister to be taken care of. Runa is really trying to find herself in this story. The Sea King is a greedy fool. He keeps his daughters close to him for their power and magic because he desires to have it all. He tends to be cruel and cold hearted. Who is the real Sea Witch in this story? He definitely had a much bigger part to play in this story than his counterpart in The Little Mermaid.

One of the things I really enjoyed in Sea Witch Rising was that Alia and Runa used sign language to communicate. They’ve known sign language since they were little so when Alia lost her voice, this was an easy way for them to communicate. I loved the use and creativity for this one.

This novel definitely served as a platform for some political issues as well. I felt like the push of politics was a little much for the story. I didn’t feel like it added anything but it focused on greed, invasions and the invention of boats a lot. How humans are harming the ocean. At least that is how I took it. I don’t think it is a bad thing to add your views into a novel, I just wish it flowed with the story better.

I think this retelling of the Hans Christian Anderson’s The Little Mermaid is a good one. I like the new perspective. I am really enjoying the backstory to one of the most beloved villains out there. These books really show why we should sympathize with the Sea Witch and I love getting to know her back story. I am interested to see if Henning will expand anymore on this world and these characters.

Playlist:

Sea Witch Rising Playlist – Sarah Henning

https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/sea-witch-rising/pl.u-RRbVvxDCmad2Re

1. Blank Space – Taylor Swift

2. All Our Lives – Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness

3. Cecilia and the Satellite – Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness

4. Cold, Cold, Cold – Cage the Elephant

5. Trouble – Cage the Elephant

6. Lovefool – The Cardigans

7. Sit Still, Look Pretty – Daya

8. Ship To Wreck – Florence + The Machine

9. Let Me Go – Hailee Steinfeld & Alesso

10. Rivers and Roads – The Head and the Heart

11. All We Ever Knew – Signs of Light

12. I Keep Going to the River to Pray – Julie & The Dreggs

13. Praying – Kesha

14. Rise – Katy Perry

15. Can’t Hold Us – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

16. Crazy for You – Madonna

17. Like a Prayer – Madonna

18. The One Moment – OK Go

19. This Too Shall Pass – OK Go

20. We Belong – Pat Benatar

21. I Want You – Savage Garden

22. &Run – Sir Sly

23. You Need to Calm Down – Taylor Swift

24. We All Die Trying To Get it Right – Vance Joy

25. Fire and the Flood – Vance Joy

About the Author:

Sarah Henning is a recovering journalist who has worked for the Palm Beach Post, Kansas City Star and Associated Press, among others. While in South Florida, Sarah lived and worked through five hurricanes, which gave her an extreme respect for the ocean. When not writing, she runs ultramarathons, hits the playground with her two kids and hangs out with her husband Justin, who doubles as her long-suffering IT department. Sarah lives in Lawrence, Kansas, which, despite being extremely far from the beach, happens to be pretty cool.