The Vine Witch by Luanne G. Smith Pages: 268
Published by 47North on October 1, 2019
Series: Vine Witch #1
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy & Magic, Paranormal
A young witch emerges from a curse to find her world upended in this gripping fantasy of betrayal, vengeance, and self-discovery set in turn-of-the-century France.
For centuries, the vineyards at Château Renard have depended on the talent of their vine witches, whose spells help create the world-renowned wine of the Chanceaux Valley. Then the skill of divining harvests fell into ruin when sorcière Elena Boureanu was blindsided by a curse. Now, after breaking the spell that confined her to the shallows of a marshland and weakened her magic, Elena is struggling to return to her former life. And the vineyard she was destined to inherit is now in the possession of a handsome stranger.
Vigneron Jean-Paul Martel naively favors science over superstition, and he certainly doesn’t endorse the locals’ belief in witches. But Elena knows a hex when she sees one, and the vineyard is covered in them. To stay on and help the vines recover, she’ll have to hide her true identity, along with her plans for revenge against whoever stole seven winters of her life. And she won’t rest until she can defy the evil powers that are still a threat to herself, Jean-Paul, and the ancient vine-witch legacy in the rolling hills of the Chanceaux Valley.
The Vine Witch is a paranormal fantasy by author Luanne G. Smith. It is the first book in the Vine Witch series, and I had a blast reading it. The Vine Witch takes on witches and magic and creates a world that is honestly unlike anything else in this genre that I have ever encountered. And that is no easy feat. The Vine Witch is a magical read, and I can’t wait for the second book in this series, called The Glamourist, which is set to release in June 2020.
In the Vine Witch, we meet our main character Elena. But when we first meet her, she is a toad I know, strange right? I was feeling a bit confused at the start of the story, but pretty quickly we watch her turn back into a woman, and we learn that she has been under a powerful curse for quite some time. And the world that Elena is introduced back into, is not the same world that she left behind. Elena and her fellow sorcière were tasked with the job of caring for the vineyards. Their magic made sure that the wine produced was the best in the region. When Elena awakens she returns to her beloved vineyard to find something dark afoot. The entire vineyard reeks of something evil and Elena wants to find out what is going on. I won’t say much more about the story, but the plot felt so magical and mysterious to me. I loved the world that Luanne G. Smith created, and I loved learning about it through Elena’s “new” eyes.
The Wine Witch combines nature magic and witches, in a very specific way. To have such a specific ability was really unique and interesting for me to read about. There is romance in The Vine Witch as well, and though I would have preferred it to be a bit more of a slow burn romance, I still enjoyed it. Romance pretty much always makes a story better in my book. If you are looking for a witchy read that feels fresh and different in a sea of witch books, I think the Vine Witch is going to be a book, and series that you will really love. It felt very special to me. I really enjoyed this novel, and can’t wait for the next one.
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About Luanne G. Smith
Luanne G. Smith is the author of THE VINE WITCH, a historical fantasy novel about witches, wine, and revenge set in early 20th century France, and the forthcoming second book in The Vine Witch series, THE GLAMOURIST. She’s lucky enough to live in Colorado at the base of the beautiful Rocky Mountains, where she enjoys reading, gardening, hiking, a glass of wine at the end of the day, and finding the magic in everyday life.
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