A Review for A Witch in Winter ( Witch in Winter #1) by Ruth Warburton

Posted by Donna
Expected Published Date: January 3rd, 2012
Finished Date: December 14th, 2011
Publishers: Hodder Children's Books
Source: ARC Copy for Review
Format: Paperback
Pages: 304
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The Blurb from Goodreads: Anna Winterson doesn't know she's a witch and would probably mock you for believing in magic, but after moving to the small town of Winter with her father, she learns more than she ever wanted to about power. When Anna meets Seth, she is smitten, but when she enchants him to love her, she unwittingly amplifies a deadly conflict between two witch clans and splits her own heart in two. She wants to love Seth, to let him love her - but if it is her magic that's controlling his passion, then she is as monstrous as the witch clan who are trying to use her amazing powers for their own gain.


The Review: A Witch in Winter is one of them novels that you can lose yourself in straight away. From page one British author Ruth Warburton has created an engrossing and captivating novel that is Young Adult Paranormal Romance at its best. 

The story follows the life of Anna Winterson, a young girl who moves into the small town of Winter with her father. The house they move into is known amongst the town people as a witches house but Anna is quick to shake it off, well that is until she finds a mysterious book hidden in the house. Anna soon finds out that it’s a Grimoire; a witches spell book. One night while having a sleepover with her friends Anna tries a spell but everything backfires when the hottest bad boy at school dumps his girlfriend and claims he is now in love with her. What can Anna do? All she knows is she needs to reverse the spell that she put on Seth and fast because she soon starts to fall for him and she doesn't want to become as monstrous as the witch clan that are using their magic for their own gain. 

I love British authors mainly because I'm British but most books I read are American authors and I do love them too but I just love reading books that are by British authors because they make me feel at home. The UK compared to the USA have so many different rules from the drinking age to the school years but A Witch in Winter sticks true to us British people. It was great reading about our characters going to Sixth Form and having girlie moments with her friends over a bottle a wine. It was so much fun because I could relate to it that much more. 

The story itself was fun, exciting and easy to read. One that I will look forward to reading more about. Anna was a great character and I really felt I connected with her and all her drama. She is thrown into a whole different situation that she has no control over and I believe she handled things very well. She quickly learns that she's a witch and she knows from the start that she doesn't want to do bad things with her magic, so she works hard at trying to right her mistakes. Her journey was enjoyable and emotional because you can see her battling with her feelings with for Seth. She honestly doesn't know how he feels and it was easy to get wrapped up in their romance. I'm so eager to see more. 

I also really enjoyed the backstory with the Witches and how Ruth bought in the Old English language. It was something new and refreshing and I think she did an great job with it. The ending was tied up nicely however we know it's not the end of Anna's journey so I'm super excited to find out what happens next. 

Overall, A Witch in Winter was a great debut by author Ruth Warburton. Any fans of Witches and Paranormal Romance will love this and I highly recommend it for 2012.

Thank you to Hodder Children's Books for providing me with an advanced readers copy for review.