The Cahill Witch Chronicles by Jessica Spotswood (Born Wicked, Star Cursed, Sisters' Fate)

For a non spoiler review, this visit my goodreads page. I will be discussing spoilers without warnings.

 

Title: Born Wicked
Author: Jessica Spotswood
Pages: 330

Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they’re witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave.

Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word... especially after she finds her mother’s diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family’s destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra.

If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren’t safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood—not even from each other.

 My Rating:✰✰✰✰

This was my first witch book I've ever read and I found it very interesting and different. The story follows our main protagonist, Cate Cahill, who has a secret that she and her sisters are witches. Since her mother passed away, she has been the one protecting her younger sisters and has been very strict with it. But things stirs up as she discovers her mother's diary and the prophecy that strongly fits her and her sisters, and especially when she learns more about witchery.

I really liked Cate as a character because she was strong, but not in physical terms. She has been trying to hide the witchery in her as much as she can and has been trying to protect her sisters by doing so.

This society was very different and I could imagine it in my mind, a place in the 1890s where women had few privileges and had to marry, or offer themselves up to the Sisterhood. The writing was a mix of modern and historical which I liked.

I really appreciated the importance of sister relationships in this book. I really liked Tess and her sweetness and easiness, unlike Maura who I found quite irritating at times. She was stubborn when Cate tried to tell her about Elena. Elena somehow felt very malevolent to me and, like Cate, I wasn't too fond of her.

I didn't hate Paul, but I didn't love him either. Same goes for Finn although I prefer him more. I wouldn't call in a love triangle since it was pretty obvious that she was going to pick Finn. I felt that Finn and Cate didn't really know each other that well for them to say "I love you" pretty easily. Finn was sweet and I loved how nerdy he was in some ways, but it seemed very stereotypical for Cate not to see him in awhile and suddenly, now, he's handsome. But I think I will grow more fond of him in the next books. Everything felt a little too instantaneous.

The ending was a little bit sad, but I know that Cate and Finn will find their way back together again.

When I first begun reading this, I was slightly confused but most things cleared up as I went. This book wasn't fast paced or had action in it, but it was still enjoyable and had obstacles on its own. I somehow feel like this book was like a set up for the next two coming out.

Title: Star Cursed
Author: Jessica Spotswood
Pages: 384

With the Brotherhood persecuting witches like never before, a divided Sisterhood desperately needs Cate to come into her Prophesied powers. And after Cate's friend Sachi is arrested for using magic, a war-thirsty Sister offers to help her find answers—if Cate is willing to endanger everyone she loves.

Cate doesn't want to be a weapon, and she doesn't want to involve her friends and Finn in the Sisterhood's schemes. But when Maura and Tess join the Sisterhood, Maura makes it clear that she'll do whatever it takes to lead the witches to victory. Even if it means sacrifices. Even if it means overthrowing Cate. Even if it means all-out war.

 My Rating:✰✰✰✰

Star Cursed starts when Cate is in New London as a Sister. She at first has trouble making friends, but eventually she does. Something that I found difficult in this book and the first one was all of the names. There was a lot of characters and a lot of times I couldn't quite remember who was who and who did what.

The Sisters believe that Cate is the prophesied one and Cate feels as if everyone is waiting for her to get visions. Meanwhile, Brenna is in Harwood where they are torturing her to get information about the new oracle who is actually Tess.

I really like Tess and her relationship with Cate. But I do feel like Cate sometimes thinks that she is too young although she seems capable to do some things on her own.

Maura was more worse in this book than the first. She still claims to be the prophesied one and she wants to lead the Sisterhood. Maura was so difficult and irritating. She practiced magic on her friends and almost pushed Tess into a river. What she did to Finn in the ending was the worse though. If I were Cate, I would kill her.

I liked majority of the other characters besides Maura and Sister Inez because of her strong want for war. Cora's death didn't really affect me at all since it was so obvious. The other Sisters were nice although I don't remember most of their names. I'm also really happy that Sachi was rescued as well as the others.

Majority of this book was slow and a lot of build up to the end where most of the Sisters try to break the girls out of Harwood. It works but results in Zara, Cate's godmother, dying. It was very sad that we didn't get to her that well but it was reasonable since it seemed like so far this book has no deaths.

 

Title: Sisters' Fate
Author: Jessica Spotswood
Pages: 368

A fever ravages New London, but with the Brotherhood sending suspected witches straight to the gallows, the Sisters are powerless against the disease. They can’t help without revealing their powers—as Cate learns when a potent display of magic turns her into the most wanted witch in all of New England.

To make matters worse, Cate has been erased from the memory of her beloved Finn. While she’s torn between protecting him from further attacks and encouraging him to fall for her all over again, she’s certain she can never forgive Maura’s betrayal. And now that Tess’s visions have taken a deadly turn, the prophecy that one Cahill sister will murder another looms ever closer to its fulfillment.

My Rating:✰✰✰✰

After a while, I finally was able to pick this book up and read it. Overall, I did enjoy it. The writing was quality and the story was good. It was hard to rate this book since I didn't love it,  but I thought that it was pretty good.

This one was about the witches finally trying to prove something to the people and show them how helpful they are.

Cate finally adapts to how she must live and work now. Tess is the new oracle and see visions like how Brenna did. I was quite sad that she died.

Having Finn not remember Cate did bother me and made me dislike Maura. Maura's death left me in sadness surprisingly. Although I did not like her, I didn't want her to have to die to become good.

Inez became more of an enemy in this book as well as the Brotherhood. O'Shea died which was nice.
I think that the fever was kind of pointless but saw how it was just another way for the witches to look good.

But I did like the action present. As for my first ever witch series, I did like it.