Night of the Witch

Witch and Hunter #1

by Sara Raasch, Beth Revis

A witch and a hunter. Vengeance is their mission. Love is their destiny.Fritzi is a witch. A survivor of a brutal attack on her coven, she's determined to find her only surviving family member and bring the hexenjägers—zealot witch hunters—to justice for the lives they ended. To do this, she will need to take down their leader—Kommandant Dieter Kirch.Otto is a hexenjäger and a captain, the second in command to Dieter Kirch—but that's just his cover. Years ago, the hexenjagers burned his innocent mother alive and since then, he has been planning a move against the witch hunters that tore his family apart. And now the time has come for them to pay for what they've done.When Fritzi and Otto are unexpectedly thrown together, neither is sure they can trust the other, despite their common enemy. But all they have is one another, and they both crave revenge. As truths come to light and trust shifts, Fritzi and Otto uncover a far more horrifying plot at the center of the hexenjäger attacks . . . but their own growing feelings for each other may be the most powerful magic of all.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Witches, Young Adult, Romantasy, Historical Fiction, Fiction

416 pages, Paperback

First published October 3, 2023

About the author

Sara Raasch has known she was destined for bookish things since the age of five, when her friends had a lemonade stand and she tagged along to sell her hand-drawn picture books too. Not much has changed since then — her friends still cock concerned eyebrows when she attempts to draw things and her enthusiasm for the written word still drives her to extreme measures. Her debut YA fantasy, SNOW LIKE ASHES, the first in a trilogy, came out October 14, 2014 from Balzer + Bray. It does not feature her hand-drawn pictures.

Reviews

[rae ✿ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

After surviving an attack on her coven, Fritzi is determined to take down the witch hunter's leader Kommandant Dieter Kirch.
Meanwhile, Otto, as a witch hunter, also wants to kill his leader Kommandant Dieter.
Fritzi and Otto will team up to give Kommandant Dieter justice for the lives he ended.

I was so intrigued by the plot but boy I didn't expect the story to be so boring. The plot is just all over the place and things just happened without further explanation and I was just so confused the whole time. The villain's backstory is so odd and doesn't make any sense. Everything just feels so forced like the relationship between Fritzi and Otto; I don't feel their chemistry at all.
It's such a shame that I actually expected more, but this one just didn't work for me🥲

[Celestina1210 · Rating 5 out of 5]

C’est une romantasy classique mais j’ai adoré. J’ai trouvé l’histoire bien emmenée, je tournais les pages sans m’en rendre compte. J’ai beaucoup aimé la relation entre Fritzi et Otto, je l’anime trouvée saine et bien écrite. L’histoire se déroule dans l’Allemagne du XVI siècle et se passe à l’époque de la chasse aux sorcières. C’est un thème qui me plaît énormément. Toutefois je conseille cette romantasy à un public jeune si vous cherchez des intrigues politiques passez votre chemin si vous aimez les histoires d’amour contrariées, les histoires de sorcières foncez

[Ali Mohebianfar · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for ARC. I received my copy in exchange of an honest review.

Witches and Witch Hunters, Enemies to lovers, Roamn Empire, Serpent and Dove vibes, these are some factors that made me fall in love with this book!
We have a duel POV here: One of them is Fritzy's POV. A witch that has lost her Coven (including her mother) when some Witch Hunters burned them down. Now, she wants to take revenge but her path crosses Otto's. Otto is a Witch Hunter. Or it seems to be! Because in fact, he just became a witch hunter to penetrate among them and take revenge upon them for killing his mother years ago.
At first, When I started reading this book I wasn't thinking that at the end I'd be in love with it! But now I can say, I love Frittzy and Otto and their love. I love how they started as enemies, but trust's seeds grew between them and a beautiful romance blossomed.
And I have to say that the writing style is beautiful. I had read Snow like Ashes series by Sara Raasch before, so when I picked up this one I knew I'm going to read a book with a beautiful writing style. At the end, I just want to say that I really enjoyed reading this book. I loved characters, plot, plot twists and even that cliffhanger! I'm excited to read about Frittzy and Otto again!
Can't wait for book 2!
❤

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting reimagining of the European Witch Trials. Fritzi and Otto at first meeting are enemies on principle. Witch and witch hunter quickly learn there is more to the other than they originally thought. As enemies turn into allies, something more blossoms between the two. As they focus on stopping Kommandant Dieter Kirch and saving magic, you will be left standing at a cliffs edge as you wait for the next book.

[Em · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty quick read about a fairly familiar premise--witches hunted out of ignorance and prejudice. But in this case, there are a few interesting twists and reveals which keep the storyline fresh. My main issue is that the action scenes (of which there are many) are simply not written fluidly. The descriptions are staggered, disjointed, and what exactly is happening is unclear. The dialogue accompanying chase scenes is fractured as well. It's as though the authors knew exactly what was happening and what they had in there minds in terms of what they wanted to convey, and it just didn't translate into writing completely. It's hard to write vividly clear action sequences--I see this issue a lot--it's just highly noticeable here as so much of the plot involves the protagonists running away from pursuers. I still definitely enjoyed the book & it's worth a read.

[Laura Díaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

No ha estado mal, tiene un poquito de todos los ingredientes básicos de un romantasy. Además el malo es realmente malvado, eso es lo que más he disfrutado. Tiene bastante violencia y eso me encanta porque le da realismo. ¿Lo que menos me ha gustado? El tema amoroso 😖

[Cindy ✩☽♔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Love is never a sin."

I was a bit wary at the start, but this book wound up being far more compelling than I expected.

Let me start by saying this book dives right in. In the first chapter, we are immediately thrown into a battle between witches and witch hunters. We are learning the character's names, the setting, and some German terms all at once. But soon enough, like Fritzi, we take off running.

Everything about this is fast-paced. Secrets are revealed in a timely manner that I think works well to not leave the reader frustrated and forgetting about small key details.

Fritzi and Otto are likable protagonists, if at times misguided. But they always try to the best of their ability to do what is right. One thing I will say is they trusted each other far more quickly than I expected. Otto shared his plans with Fritzi, and she took what he said at face value and volunteered to help. It wasn't long after that they were ride-or-die for each other.

That being said, I really liked them together. They were sweet, honest, and understanding with each other. Their chemistry was fire. They avoided issues by actually communicating. A novelty sometimes. They just worked for me. Also the river scene hello 👀

I admit I'm more invested in their relationship than I am in the actual plot with the witches. However, the plot itself is engaging as well. I did not know much about the witch trials in Germany going into this, but it went about how I expected the witch trials to go: a bunch of innocent women burned at the stake for simply not abiding by societal norms. Dieter was an interesting villain in that he just seemed like pure irredeemable evil. All he cares for is influence and power. Fritzi and Otto made a huge mistake in letting the human authorities take him into custody.

The little cliffhanger made me angry because damn it I just want my babies to be happy but, it's clear this is far from over. All because they let a monster live.

Thank you to Sourcebooks FIRE for providing me with an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Nicholas Perez]

Apparently a pre-order perk of this book includes a picture of the two MCs kissing naked from the waist up (nothing is shown and the characters are confirmed to be in their 20s) in a lake and it set YA Book Twitter off.
Not saying that to cause drama or call out the authors, just saying that it lead me to knowing this book existed.

[sam (nesta's version)]

dnf

The premise of this book has so much potential. But, unfortunately, I didn’t love this book. The plot moved very slow, while the relationship moved fast. I feel like the slow burn would have been warranted here like a parallel to the plot. The world building—however— was definitely its strong point.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow… this book was everything I’d hoped it would be! I loved Fritzi - she was always concerned with doing the right thing, taking care of her family and others before herself. And Otto was a complete surprise!

The changing points of view with each chapter offered a unique perspective for each character. And this world, loosely based on historical fact, was so vibrant! I certainly hope this is only the beginning of Fritzi and Otto’s story!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the authors and publishers, for the advanced reader’s copy of Night of the Witch in exchange for my honest review. 5 🌟

[Soft Nectarine ~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

She is a witch.
He is a witch hunter.

🔥🌳🔥⚔️🔥🌳🔥

Time: 1581, Winter
Place: Trier and Black Forest, Germany 🌳
Mood: pre-WW2 persecution vibes
Theme: wild magic, witch hunts, rebellion
Romance: endearing with a sprinkle of insta-love ✨

When Fritzi’s entire coven gets murdered she runs after the witch hunters to rescue her baby cousin. She actually does the exact opposite and accidentally foils a huge rescue plan organized by Otto aka Kaptain-Witch-Hunter ⚔️ Otto has no option but include her in his rebellion plan and the two become inseparable!There are trust issues of course but we have bigger demons to fry in this story. Otto and Fritzi embark on a rescue mission that quickly turns into a their destiny.

“I am no hunter. But dear God, in heaven, I think I shall be seeking the quiet peace I feel when she lies in my arms for the rest of my life.”


🌳🔥 brutal witch hunts

🌳🔥 mmc doesn’t believe in magic

🌳🔥 forbidden love

🌳🔥 wild magic, forest folk and the Origin Tree

🌳🔥 bonding potion between witches & mortals

🌳🔥 Maiden, Mother, Crone goddesses!

The persecution and fear of “the other” was so palpable! The story really conveyed the terror of being accused of witchcraft. Just like in real life witch hunts were used to prosecute innocent women when they spoke up or were simply ‘in the way’. Fritzi was just one of many to be accused…but unlike the others she was actually a witch lol

The romance feels a little like insta-love but I definitely didn’t mind it. Otto is so adorably smitten and loyal to a fault, which made me like him immediately! This is a relatively clean romance with one smutty scene that is quite tame 🌶️ but they are so adorable!


urban romanatsy
protective mmc
slow burn
green-witch fmc
family issues!
forest folk 🌳
small town Germany
HEA - but story has not finished yet

[Muffinsandbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

J'ai trop kiffé ! Okkkkk, le ennemies to lovers passe quand même très vite au lover. Okkkkk c'est donc un peu rapide sur la relation. Mais honnêtement, ça ne m'a pas du tout freinée car j'ai trouvé l'univers extrêmement riche, original et intéressant. C'est bourré d'action, de rebondissements et tout est bien exploité à mes yeux. Je me suis aussi beaucoup attachée aux personnages que j'ai, encore une fois, trouvé bien construit. Wesh Otto, what a man !!!! Leur relation, bien qu'un peu rapide au début, m'a carrément emballée et je suis extrêmement impatiente de voir ce que ça va donner par la suite : vu la fin de ce premier tome, le second opus promet d'être tout aussi explosif et épique... et j'ai hâte !

[dewi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

In Night of the Witch, we meet Fritzi, a witch, who survives an attack on her coven by hexenjägers (i.e., witch hunters). Not soon thereafter, Fritzi is captured by Otto, a hexenjäger captain. Set in a fantasy rendering of Germany, we follow the dual POV of Fritzi and Otto who uncover the truths of the hexenjägers and witches alike.

From the synopsis, this book seemed very appealing to me, but sadly, it did not live up to my expectations. What I enjoyed most was the world-building, but even that I found to be lacking. The lore of the book could have been very interesting but was very underdeveloped. It felt as though the witch mythology behind the story was more so to aid the story along than it served as a broader fantasy world.

The story itself felt very rushed. Personally, I enjoy a good slow burn, whereas this was nearly insta-love. I don’t even think this book could qualify as enemies-to-lovers. The pacing of not only the romance but also the plot development was all over the place. Many of the major events felt rushed and I felt that the reasons why certain things happened were not properly explained or brushed over as a means to advance the story. I had a hard time connecting with the characters because of the lacking world building and rushing of events. They were not compelling and the story became fairly predictable as it went on.

All in all, I could not really immerse myself into the story. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more when I was younger, but the execution of all the parts together wasn’t impressive to me. I probably won’t be picking up the sequel.

[Mai H.]

Halloween TBR

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75/5 ⭐️

[𑣲 ezra ೀ · Rating 2 out of 5]

yeaaaah. DNF. too slow 🫠

[Nai's books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Durante los años 1581 y 1593 se llevó a cabo una de las masacres más grandes de Europa sin estar relacionada con la guerra. Con la excusa de la caza de brujas fueron asesinadas más de 1.000 personas, la mayoría, mujeres. Las autoras del libro toman esta base histórica para construir su libro dotándolo de la crueldad y el realismo que merece y por otro lado, mezclandolo con la fantasía de unas brujas que realmente sí lo eran.

El libro tiene doble POV: Por un lado tenemos a Fritzi una bruja real que ha visto cómo su familia ha sido asesinada por los cazadores de los cuales ahora tiene que huir.
Por otro lado, tenemos a Otto, un cazador que siendo niño vio cómo su padre acusaba a su madre de brujería injustamente y tuvo que presenciar como la quemaban en la hoguera. Ahora pretende destruir la orden de cazadores desde dentro.

No os hacéis una idea de cómo me ha gustado este libro. Aunque admito que los capítulos de Otto me han gustado muchísimo más porque el punto de vista de él me parecía más diferente e interesante. El de ella en ocasiones me parecía un poco incoherente y algunos se me han hecho pesados pero a rasgos generales también me han gustado.

No diría que el libro es romantasý porque no está centrado en la relación de estos personajes. Hay romance sí, como parte complementaria a la historia. Un romance muy bien llevado por cierto.

Hay otro personaje que también me ha gustado mucho porque me ha sorprendido. Tiene un plot twist que si bien se desvela sobre la mitad del libro hace que todo sea mucho más interesante.

En definitiva os lo recomiendo si queréis leer un libro sobre brujas diferente y original.

[Mia · Rating 2 out of 5]

From reading the synopsis, this book sounds interesting. However, the story and the romance didn't grab me like I wanted it too. I'm still interested with the ending that I'll definitely consider picking up the next book. But this one didn't speak to me.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Léa Germain · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 étoiles, mais c’était un bon livre quand même les filles! Perdu une étoile à la fin pcq ça m’a trop frustré.

[Jessica ❀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️ - While reading, I just kept thinking “they didn’t burn witches, they burnt women”. Because, let’s be honest, women have always been the villain in every man’s story and during the witch trials, what easier way to be rid of a woman who scorned you?

I loved this book, it was amazing. The story follows Fritzi, an actual witch, as a traumatic event occurs to her coven and she finds herself on the run to save her cousin. During her flight from home, she runs in to a witch hunter, Otto, and they quickly find themselves needing to work together to save each other and their world.

This takes place in Germany and I love the historical details they based the story around as the witch trials were a very real and very horrific part of our history when mostly women were burnt at a stake for being a “witch”. So I loved the accuracy here especially the parallels with the Catholic Church and their part in the trials. I especially loved the subtle jabs regarding “good” Christians. As an atheist who has religious trauma, I can respect the honesty and accuracy here. However, there was A LOT of info dumping throughout the story that sometimes it did read a lot like a history book.

I also loved Otto and Fritzi and their connection to each other and who they are separately and the growth throughout the story. But if they said Schiesse one more time, I was gonna lose it.

The book could have also used another round of edits as I found quite a few misspellings and punctuation errors throughout.

But overall, it was a good story with solid characters and world building and I will definitely be picking up book 2.

[Tabitha - · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, listen, I'll ready anything with witches. Even a romance. I know you're all shocked. I just love witches & magic. Duh, I'm named after a little witch. 🥰

Night of the Witch is set against the mideveil witch trials in Germany. I typically don't read historical.... BUT WITCHES. lol There is a LOT of world building, and there's a little enemies-to-lovers in there, and VERY tame for you gals. It is YA. However, I'd eat up an adult version. 👀 Hmm? WHAT? 👀🤣

It leaves you on a cliffhanger anxious for the second book!

Thank you so much for a signed copy! 💕💕💕

[Bang Bang Books · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 90%

Nominee for one of the worst of 2023

there is nothing new about the world or the MC or the romance. The authors, who are not new by any means, tried to do something with christianity but it was too preachy and not weaved into the plot.

The world was totally info dumped in the last quarter which means the authors only wanted to focus on their enemies to lovers romance and by then, I didn't care about the witch lore.

Don't waste your time; the Heartless Hunter is much better and has a similar plot.

[Jessica]

DNF: 44% – 2024 – 3⭐

Bin super enttäuscht, dass dieses Buch meinen hohen Erwartungen nicht gerecht werden konnte 😭 Nachdem ich Anfang des Jahres »The Crimson Moth« gelesen habe und total begeistert war, brauchte ich unbedingt mehr vom Hexe und Hexenjäger Trope. Und »Night of the Witch« lieferte mir genau dies. Es hatte auch stark begonnen inkl. enemies to lovers. Die Art der beiden Protagonisten sowie ihr Interagieren untereinander hat mich direkt an Nina+Matthias aus »Six of Crows« erinnert (natürlich im positiven Sinne).

Wieso hab ich es dann bei 44% abgebrochen? Ganz ehrlich, ich weiß es nicht. Der Plot und die Charaktere waren grds ganz nach meinem Geschmack. Nur war das Pacing extremst daneben. Der Plot geht so langsam voran, dass ich mich immer wieder zwingen musste, zum Buch zu greifen. Und selbst dann hab ich nur alle paar Tage 1 max 2 Kapitel geschafft, und hatte dann schon keine Lust mehr. Die Beziehung zwischen den beiden ging jedoch wie ne Rakete los. Ich vermute, es sollte wie slow burn wirken, stattdessen wirkte es wie das komplette Gegenteil. Dafür, dass bis zu der 44% Marke nur so 2-3 Tage im Buch vergangen sind, wirkten deren Gefühle viel zu schnell und komplett aus dem Nichts. So viel Zeit haben die beiden in diesen 2 Tagen nichtmal miteinander verbracht.

Super schade! Plot Twist mäßig gab es bisher zwei. Der erste hat mich total überrascht, lenkte die Geschichte aber in eine komplett andere Richtung. Ich konnte mich damit dann zwar anfreunden, aber glaube, dass dies auch eins der Gründe war, wieso mich das Buch so schnell "verloren" hat. Der zweite war super offensichtlich. Ich lag zwar minimal daneben, die Richtung war aber definitiv richtig.

Da ich merke, dass mich dieses Buch nur in eine Leseflaute stürzt und mich von anderen tollen Büchern abhält, breche ich es lieber an dieser Stelle ab. Ich muss aber erwähnen, dass es keinesfalls schlecht war! Leider funktioniert nur mittelmäßig + englisch bei mir nicht so gut in der Kombination 😅

[Montse #SeguiréLeyendo · Rating 2 out of 5]

No sé si el libro es malo o es un problema de la traducción.
Además, la corrección es espantosa: elije, encoje, desecho… a paladas.
Y que a finales del XVI hablen de rifles es para matarse.
Yo me bajo aquí.

[Caitlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yeah… I loved this. Jumping immediately into the second one!! That epilogue was so creepy that bumped it up to 5 stars for me damn this was sooo good!! 😱 🤯 👏 👏

[bookandachai · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The morning comes too soon, but I have been awake for hours. We were born to kill each other. And yet she tucks her body close to mine."

Fritzi is a witch who watches her entire world fall apart in front of her. Determined to rescue her cousin she travels to the capital to use whatever magic she has to stop it. Otto is a witch-hunter but that's only his disguise. He has a plan and with the help of his sister he plans to dismantle the witch-hunters from the inside. Until - the plan goes horribly wrong.

Otto and Fritzi find themselves needing to trust each other to defeat their common enemy and it's an unusual spot for each.

I tore through this book. Loved the dual POV. Witches. Enemies to lovers. German curse words. Magic.

[Billie's Not So Secret Diary · Rating 2 out of 5]

Night of the Witch
by Sara Raasch, Beth Revis
YA Fantasy Paranormal
Ages: 16+
NetGalley ARC
Publication Date: October 3, 2023
SourceBooks Fire

Fritzi is one of a few survivors of an attack on her coven by the hexenjager, witch hunters, led by Kommandant Dieter Kirch, who branded then burned those they caught.

Otto is a hexenjager, second in command to Dieter Kirch, but Otto is planning to destroy the hexenjager because they burned his innocent mother alive, and as he poses as one of them, he finds that his mother isn't the only innocent they are killing, and Dieter Kirch and those of the church know it, but don't care.

When Fritzi gets tangled up in Otto's plan, Otto is shocked to discover that witches are real and some have real power, but they are not all evil as portrayed.


Another story based around the witch-burning times that puts good against evil, and those traits are in the eye of the beholder and those with power to threaten and instill fear into others.

It wasn't a bad story, I think it was influenced by the 'Serpent and Dove' series, but it was slow, and sometimes it seemed as if it was backtracking so to give it more word count. And while the wild magic was a change, there wasn't really anything else added to the world to bring it out from the widely known shadow of the witch hunts of the past.

This is a violent story, and the descriptions, while not highly detailed, could still bother those under 16, and there is also the romantic aspect that while tame, might not be that suitable for younger readers.

While it was an okay of a read, and the cover is cool, it will be a toss-up if I pick up the second book in this series.

2 Stars

[Mariana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Este libro lo empecé a leer por la cruda lectora, que me dio después de leer un MARAVILLOSO libro de brujas.
Y terminó siendo un gran decepción, terrible, lloremos.

Fritzie una noche pierde a todo su aquelarre que es su familia contra los cazadores de brujas. Pero sabe que su prima sigue viva, y va a partir para rescatarla. Sin saber que en el camino va a conocer a Otto, un cazador de brujas, pero no uno cualquier, sino, el segundo al mando.

Tienen que ser enemies to lovers ¿no? Pero, en realidad, así te lo venden cuando no lo es. Ya que Otto no es un verdadero cazador de brujas, solo está infiltrado para agarrar venganza contra los que mataron a su madre diciéndole bruja (no, no es spoiler, está en la sinopsis).

Así comienzan una alianza que van a formar, pero no pueden confiar del todo el uno en el otro. Porque siguen siendo desconocidos. Pero equis, porque su insta love fue legendario, y digo eso porque no sentí ni una sola gota de química entre ellos.

Eran pareja porque así querían los autores, pero en realidad no me pudieron dar más igual. La historia también bien sacada de la manga, no compré nada, casi ningún personaje fue de mi agrado. Y honestamente esperaba encontrar algo similar a Heartless Hunter pero no, nada que ver, uno es oro y este es... solamente es.

[Kara DeLorey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started The Night of the Witch with high expectations due to its rave reviews, and for once I wasn’t disappointed by the hype.

Fritzi was very well written and I enjoyed her resiliency and determination; I think the authors did a fantastic job at providing depth to her character. The true strength to this novel, however, was Dieter. I’ve gotten used to books where the villain is more morally-grey than evil, but that was certainly not the case here; Dieter is 100% a psychopath and there is nothing even remotely redeeming about his character. I loved it.

My only real complaint about the book is that it’s touted as an enemies-to-lovers romance, but in reality… it’s a very instant-love type of book instead.

Now on to the sequel!

[Rose]

Yeah, I think I'm going to make an executive choice to avoid this one because it's very much an adult book that's being marketed wrong under YA. It's going to be telling when this book releases as to how people react to it, but *winces at marketing campaign*.

Not cool, y'all.

I also think this might've been part of the longer discussion people were having on social media that books, though it wasn't directly cited, meant for older teens (18+) be labeled New Adult or Adult if they're going to do what this book's trying to do.