Fantasy

Witches Steeped in Gold

Witches Steeped in Gold

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-25 12:51:05
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Ciannon Smart
  • ISBN：1471409589
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Summary

Trust no witch 。 。 。

Iraya Adair has spent her life in a cell。 Heir of an overthrown and magically-gifted dynasty， she was exiled from her home on the island nation of Aiyca when she was just a child。 But every day brings her closer to freedom - and vengeance。 Jazmyne Cariot grew up dressed in gold， with stolen magic at her fingertips。 Daughter of the self-crowned doyenne， her existence is a threat to her mother's rule。 But unlike her sister， Jazmyne has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother's power。 Sworn enemies， the two witches enter a deadly alliance to take down the woman who threatens both their worlds。 But revenge is a bloody pursuit， and nothing is certain - except the lengths Iraya and Jazmyne will go to win this game。

Two witches。 One motive。 And a very untrustworthy alliance。

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Reviews

Breanna Stanton ，

DNF @ 125 pages。

magsevie ，

{04。23。21}This just came in my Owlcrate and wow it’s more beautiful in person I can’t wait to read it！

Diana ，

This was one of my expected reads， but i struggled a lot with it and dnf'ed at page 114 because- I was still confused by the magic system， the politics and the names of the diverse classes- the two main characters were like。。。 One wanta to destroy and wreak vengeance （Ira） and the other wants to fix things （Jazmyne）。 If it weren't for those differences it would be easy to confuse them。- i needed a better grounding on the story， on what happened before as it is still very relevant （the war， the u This was one of my expected reads， but i struggled a lot with it and dnf'ed at page 114 because- I was still confused by the magic system， the politics and the names of the diverse classes- the two main characters were like。。。 One wanta to destroy and wreak vengeance （Ira） and the other wants to fix things （Jazmyne）。 If it weren't for those differences it would be easy to confuse them。- i needed a better grounding on the story， on what happened before as it is still very relevant （the war， the usurpation）， the different clans and their magic abilities。Maybe it was all there and it was me that wasn't able to ground myself on the world， as everyone else seems to have enjoyed it quite a lot。 。。。more

Marte ，

This the closest I’ve gotten to DNF’ing a book in a long time。 “Nana would say that unlike storms， trouble doesn’t give signs like rain， so we must always be ready for it。” Let’s start with the obvious。 That cover？ 10 out 10; Stunning; Flawless。 The book and story itself however， I had to force myself through。 I recently read another YA 2021 fantasy debut; The Gilded Ones。 And to me there could potentially be a big overlap between the audiences for these two。 Both of these debuts are This the closest I’ve gotten to DNF’ing a book in a long time。 “Nana would say that unlike storms， trouble doesn’t give signs like rain， so we must always be ready for it。” Let’s start with the obvious。 That cover？ 10 out 10; Stunning; Flawless。 The book and story itself however， I had to force myself through。 I recently read another YA 2021 fantasy debut; The Gilded Ones。 And to me there could potentially be a big overlap between the audiences for these two。 Both of these debuts are filled with immense potential and much-needed representation for their respective cultures and communities。 As a very white， very Norwegian， reviewer I obviously can’t comment on the accuracy of the representation。 I’ll just say that both Witches Steeped in Gold and The Gilded Ones were breaths of fresh air when it came to their worlds。 That being said， I gave both 2 stars。 Their issues are very similar。 In both cases I found myself incredibly frustrated by the pacing and how underdeveloped everything felt。 In Witches Steeped in Gold specifically the beginning is very much an info-dump。 And combined with a lot of weird word choices in the writing style， this left me very confused and not situated in the world whatsoever。 The information-dumping is less prominent later in the book， but there is still a lot of telling rather than showing。 And the way this information was given just when the plot needed it made me go well， that’s convenient more times than I can be bothered to count。 In terms of the plot and characters， nothing/no one really stood out。 Everything pretty much fit into what you would expect from a typical YA fantasy。 There was one scene though that had me properly taken aback by its’ brutality and lethal consequences。 But that was retconned later on， so who cares？ Overall， I’m just disappointed。 The share length of this – why is it nearly 600 pages！？ – had me on the verge of a reading slump too many times。 And if I have to force myself to read more than I actually want to， just to avoid giving up， then you know something isn’t right。 。。。more

Candace ，

I cannot get over the adventure I just finished。 What was this？！ I’m so glad I picked up this book because this is a story I would regret missing out on。 So amazing。

Banan ，

For such a great piece， a lot of audience must read your piece。 You can publish your work on NovelStar Mobile App。

Ashley Reading Stewardess ，

Witches Steeped in Gold has been on my radar since last June and so I was beyond excited when I had to opportunity to take part in a book tour for it。 I found that the book initially got off to a slow start as I was being introduced to the world and the politics of the island and its various groups。 I also initially had a hard time deciphering between Ira and Jazmyne in the beginning。 Thankfully as I continued making my way through and became more immersed in the story， I found that the flow pic Witches Steeped in Gold has been on my radar since last June and so I was beyond excited when I had to opportunity to take part in a book tour for it。 I found that the book initially got off to a slow start as I was being introduced to the world and the politics of the island and its various groups。 I also initially had a hard time deciphering between Ira and Jazmyne in the beginning。 Thankfully as I continued making my way through and became more immersed in the story， I found that the flow picked up and I was able to separate between each perspective。 I look forward to reading the next book and can’t wait to see where these characters go after the ending of this one。 My full review can be found on my blog: https://readingstewardess。wordpress。c。。。 。。。more

Re • ，

Review to come as Im V behind on updating books here haha

Trish-Antoni Baker ，

I want to like this book。 The premise sounds amazing， right？ Jamaican。。。 witches fighting together against a common foe。 I desperately wanted to like this book， and yet， I don't。 I actually really don't like this book。 I didn't finish the book， I am going to try to but I find this book so offensive as a Jamaican， born and raised in Jamaica that it's hard to read。 I can't tell what this book is trying to be， it feels like a punishment， the worlding building is a slugfest， the characters thus far I want to like this book。 The premise sounds amazing， right？ Jamaican。。。 witches fighting together against a common foe。 I desperately wanted to like this book， and yet， I don't。 I actually really don't like this book。 I didn't finish the book， I am going to try to but I find this book so offensive as a Jamaican， born and raised in Jamaica that it's hard to read。 I can't tell what this book is trying to be， it feels like a punishment， the worlding building is a slugfest， the characters thus far uninspiring and uninteresting。 To be honest I can't tell them apart。The language of this book bothers me， the phrases used， the way patois is integrated is strange。 I want to be clear， you can't sprinkle the word "mon" into sentences like parsley， and call it patois。 I felt like this was majorly a clinical version of patios for international audiences and that is fine but the way it is implemented is very clunky which is strange。 In Jamaica， you have various types of patios spoken by the people and you actually have a version that is typically used by persons where standard English （the Queens English） is their first language that is pretty sanitized and easy to understand that could've been used throughout the novel。 The book has a good plot， but the execution leaves much to desire。 Wouldn't recommend it if you're Jamaican （born in Jamaica）。 。。。more

Emani Glee ，

I’ve been hype for this book since last year。 I mean Jamaican-inspired fantasy about two enemy witches。 YES sign me up！ But I’m so disappointed to say that it just didn’t give what I needed it to give Outside of the scenes where there is action， the story is pretty one note。 The main characters are very similar， so sometimes I had to return to the beginning of the chapter to see whose POV I was readingThe story really is a lot more reacting and planning than action。 For the book to be 560 pages， I’ve been hype for this book since last year。 I mean Jamaican-inspired fantasy about two enemy witches。 YES sign me up！ But I’m so disappointed to say that it just didn’t give what I needed it to give Outside of the scenes where there is action， the story is pretty one note。 The main characters are very similar， so sometimes I had to return to the beginning of the chapter to see whose POV I was readingThe story really is a lot more reacting and planning than action。 For the book to be 560 pages， it feels like the plot didn’t move forward as much as I expected which to me signifies that 1） the pacing was off because the first half of the book was very slow and 2） it maybe didn’t need to be 560 pages。 By the time the story actually picks up， it’s rushed and then boom cliffhanger。 While the “ending” is a great set up for book 2， I just felt like the payoff didn’t match the build upI found it a challenge to get fully immersed into the story because there’s a lot of info to keep track of and understand。 There are many characters， covens， powers， backstories and it’s just a lot going on。 I often found myself confused as to what was going on and who did whatThe world building in Raybearer kept coming to mind while reading this story because Raybearer proves that a world can be deep and complex yet easy to digest。 I wanted Witches Steeped in Gold to be on a similar level， but it’s just a more challenging read， and maybe that’s not a bad thing。 I think I’ll have a better experience re-reading。 Hopefully I’ll be able to make connections that will make it easier to keep up with what’s going onI do love the strong female characters and seeing a world where there are women ruling。 I also loved the addition of pirates。 I definitely wasn’t expecting that。 The betrayals in the story are good and they carried the story for me。 Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced digital copy2。75⭐️ 。。。more

BookLooksbyB ，

This YA Jamaican-inspired fantasy debut story about two enemy witches joining forces and working together to seek revenge on a very powerful common foe was so thrilling to read。 The world was so rife with radiant Jamaican-inspired folklore， imagery， magic and-- what I appreciate the most-- Patwah！ Reading this lush and action pact vengeance filled book was so much fun， but I think what I enjoyed the most was researching and learning more about the Gods that play a role in this story and all the This YA Jamaican-inspired fantasy debut story about two enemy witches joining forces and working together to seek revenge on a very powerful common foe was so thrilling to read。 The world was so rife with radiant Jamaican-inspired folklore， imagery， magic and-- what I appreciate the most-- Patwah！ Reading this lush and action pact vengeance filled book was so much fun， but I think what I enjoyed the most was researching and learning more about the Gods that play a role in this story and all the Patwah words as I read。 I loved this first book & am so eager to read book two！ Would highly recommend！ 。。。more

julia ☆ [owls reads] ，

4 stars！* "You want something from me。" Witches Steeped in Gold captured my imagination right away and I was unable to put the book down！ I read this in one sitting， taking breaks in between， because Jazmyne and Iraya's perspectives were so engaging and the plot so intriguing that I had to keep reading until I reached the end。I loooooooved the writing style。 Smart did such a fantastic job creating and developing the world-building and it was so different from anything I'd read befor 4 stars！* "You want something from me。" Witches Steeped in Gold captured my imagination right away and I was unable to put the book down！ I read this in one sitting， taking breaks in between， because Jazmyne and Iraya's perspectives were so engaging and the plot so intriguing that I had to keep reading until I reached the end。I loooooooved the writing style。 Smart did such a fantastic job creating and developing the world-building and it was so different from anything I'd read before。 I also loved the premise surrounding the book and how it was executed: I was not expecting it to go the way it did and I enjoyed it a lot。Jazmyne was a pretty interesting character to me and her development throughout the book caught me quite off guard， but in a really good way。 I loved how Smart wrote her and her journey。 Iraya was。。。 a character I had an issue with due to her impulsive personality。 It was a bit difficult for me to connect to her when she frustrated me so much because she didn't often stop to think and/or listen to others。I could have done without the very small sprinkle of romance between Iraya and another character。 I didn't like it， I didn't believe it。 If it continues to be a thing， I hope it's developed better。The plot itself was wonderful！ It was engrossing and very well written and I didn't not， at all， expect so many of the twists at the end。 So many secrets were revealed and they brought up more questions and put all characters in reeeeeeeally interesting situations that I honestly cannot wait to read about in the sequel。*Series: #1 in the Witches Steeped in Gold series。POV: Told from Jazmyne and Iraya's POVs。Content Warnings: （view spoiler）[Mind control。 One character is muzzled。 （hide spoiler）]Cliffhanger: No。HEA: （view spoiler）[No。 （hide spoiler）]Up Next: Untitled。 。。。more

Robin ，

DNF @26 there is nothing particularly wrong with this， i’m just not vibing with it at the moment。 i always power through rather than DNF， but i’ve been trying to get better at simply putting a book down。 maybe i’ll get to this later

Lilly （Lair Of Books） ，

RTC。。。

Betty Maxine ，

Wow， just wow！！ We have two very different personalities who enter a deadly alliance to kill a common enemy。 Emphasis on the ‘deadly’ 🤪There are so many things I can say about this book。 It’s a Jamaican inspired YA fantasy with very rich world building。 It’ll take some focus to understand the world but once you get it， you get RIGHT IN！ It follows Iraya and Jazmyne as they both plot separately and collectively towards the assassination of Jazmyne’s mother。 Everyone is motivated by something impo Wow， just wow！！ We have two very different personalities who enter a deadly alliance to kill a common enemy。 Emphasis on the ‘deadly’ 🤪There are so many things I can say about this book。 It’s a Jamaican inspired YA fantasy with very rich world building。 It’ll take some focus to understand the world but once you get it， you get RIGHT IN！ It follows Iraya and Jazmyne as they both plot separately and collectively towards the assassination of Jazmyne’s mother。 Everyone is motivated by something important to them， but well the enemy of my enemy is my friend， right？ Or rather assassination partner 😅！ Even though they’re both in a bid for the same thing， nothing is certain and people can go as far as they want to win the game。 There’s drama。 Constant plotting between every character and the betrayal just gives such awesome high stakes。 Scheming never stops and the magic is 💫！！ In simple terms， everyone should read it and it should be MADE INTO A MOVIE。 。。。more

gauri ，

check out the full review along with an aesthetic on my blog！Witches Steeped in Gold is a refreshing， powerful fantasy debut that you should watch out for。 Jamaican inspired world， powerful witches， politics and a unique magic system， this book has it all。 One of the best things about reading it was finding out the reason behind the title。When you see a cover and synopsis like that， its hard not be intrigued and well Witches Steeped in Gold delivers on that note。 Jazmyne and Iraya are both stro check out the full review along with an aesthetic on my blog！Witches Steeped in Gold is a refreshing， powerful fantasy debut that you should watch out for。 Jamaican inspired world， powerful witches， politics and a unique magic system， this book has it all。 One of the best things about reading it was finding out the reason behind the title。When you see a cover and synopsis like that， its hard not be intrigued and well Witches Steeped in Gold delivers on that note。 Jazmyne and Iraya are both strong， ambitious characters apart but their tenuous alliance added flavour to the story。 They’re both willing to do whatever it takes， to go behind each other’s backs if it means achieving their goals。Where Iraya has quick wit and humour to her narrative， Jazmyne is related to her mannerisms （and terrible decisions）。 While they have a common enemy it’s their backstories that play an important role in their decisions which was very interesting to read。 They both go all out for their respective orders。 As a reader we realise there’s really no hero or villain here。 Morally grey characters are something， aren’t they？ Especially if they’re women。❛Spending a lifetime pinned， like a butterfly to a board， seems like a waste when I was made to fly。❜The magic system and the Jamaican folklore included in the worldbuilding is brilliantly written。 I always love reading about worlds inspired by different cultures so this was a major plus point for the book。 There’s gold， pirates， magical animals and rival orders。 I remember reading about Smart’s inspiration behind it in an interview which made it all the more fascinating to read about it。 We have two different orders， with different philosophies and ways of working， each believing that the other is wrong。It takes time to come to terms with the rivalry between the orders， the geography， the characters involved and what’s at stake as a whole， but as the chapters progressed I was looking forward to what would come next。 The worldbuilding in particular makes it easier to learn about the island it’s set in。I also liked the addition of the side characters， all equally important and well done。This book stayed true to its tagline: “Trust no witch”。Coming to what I didn’t like was the pacing， which remained same throughout the book。 The plot unravels rather slow， I was not engrossed as much as I’d like to have been especially because at times I couldn’t tell the two POVs apart。 I do think the length of the book， 500 pages， has to do with it。 It took too much time for me to delve into the plot。There’s also light romance， which also I wasn’t particularly invested in。 Though I must say Kirdan is a character I have my eyes on。All in all， Witches Steeped in Gold is a masterfully crafted debut by Smart and I’d recommend it to readers looking for intricate fantasies and scheming women （re: witches） characters。 I’m looking forward to what happens in the sequel！ Don’t let me deter you from reading this one。Thank you Colored Pages Tours for having me on this tour and the publisher for the ARC！ 。。。more

Alexis （Lexi。84。02） ，

Really really really wanted to like this book。 But man I just couldn't understand everything that was going on。 Really really really wanted to like this book。 But man I just couldn't understand everything that was going on。 。。。more

Louize ，

。。。 A promising opening for an intense fantasy series。 Read the full review from The Page Walker。 。。。 A promising opening for an intense fantasy series。 Read the full review from The Page Walker。 。。。more

Manon the Malicious ，

I was provided an ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review。Jazmyne Cariot is the daughter of the doyenne of Aiyca and she hates how her mother is ruling， so she's been allied with the resistance for a while now and is planning to get her mother killed， but is she ready to reign？Iraya Adair has been in prison since her family was murdered and the throne was stolen from them by Doyenne Cariot。 But it's time for her to get out of there and go back to the palace。 She has a crazy plan to be I was provided an ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review。Jazmyne Cariot is the daughter of the doyenne of Aiyca and she hates how her mother is ruling， so she's been allied with the resistance for a while now and is planning to get her mother killed， but is she ready to reign？Iraya Adair has been in prison since her family was murdered and the throne was stolen from them by Doyenne Cariot。 But it's time for her to get out of there and go back to the palace。 She has a crazy plan to become part of the doyenne's army。 But the doyenne is a lot more ruthless than she thought and nothing goes as planned。。。A beautifully crafted fantasy entwined in Jamaican mythology， Witches Steeped in Gold is filled with twists and betrayals you'll never see coming。Its characters are so well written， filled with flaws and yet， so endearing。 I got lost into this world and ended up gnawing at my fingers。。。My main problem with this book is how slowly it started。 It was so very slow at first and there was some info dump that kept me from fully getting into it。 It really took some time for the story to pick up and I had to fight to keep reading。But， once things started， I truly got into it and I enjoyed it a lot。 I truly think book 2 will be even better and I'm really looking forward to it。 。。。more

Charlotte ，

audiobook narration is good

Monica ，

4/5Full RTC！

Alicia ，

Thank you to HCCFrenzy for sending me an ARC via netgalley to read and review。 3。5/5 starsI thought this was a really interesting story。 The descriptions were vivid， the magic system was pretty cool， and the world seemed well-rounded and thought out。 However， I was still left feeling a bit underwhelmed by the end of the book。 This one took me a while to get into， and I think it’s because I didn’t really connect with any of the characters。 Iraya was my favourite， but I didn’t necessarily feel 100 Thank you to HCCFrenzy for sending me an ARC via netgalley to read and review。 3。5/5 starsI thought this was a really interesting story。 The descriptions were vivid， the magic system was pretty cool， and the world seemed well-rounded and thought out。 However， I was still left feeling a bit underwhelmed by the end of the book。 This one took me a while to get into， and I think it’s because I didn’t really connect with any of the characters。 Iraya was my favourite， but I didn’t necessarily feel 100% invested in her journey and her success。 I liked Kirdan， and I thought he brought an interesting element to the story。 I would’ve loved to see some of his POV。 I didn’t really like Jazmyne at all。 I thought her character was well-written， but I couldn’t connect with her， and I just didn’t like the character that she became。 While I felt like this book had a lot of action， it also felt very character-driven。 A lot of the action began to feel repetitive at times。 While the ending felt more tense， some of the plot twists didn’t really do anything for me because I thought we’d already learned those things。 Overall， I thought this was an interesting fantasy with well-written characters and magic， but it left me feeling underwhelmed。 I’d recommend this one to YA fantasy lovers， and those who like books about strong females。 。。。more

Hayden （bookish。hayden） ，

What a gorgeous book， both inside and out。 This book is a stunning debut， packed with witches， strong female characters， and beautiful Jamaican lore。 If this isn't on your to be read list， it should be！Iraya has spent her life in a cell， but every day brings her closer to freedom - and vengeance。 Jazmyne is the Queen’s daughter， but unlike her sister before her， she has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother’s power。 Sworn enemies， these two witches enter a precarious alliance to take do What a gorgeous book， both inside and out。 This book is a stunning debut， packed with witches， strong female characters， and beautiful Jamaican lore。 If this isn't on your to be read list， it should be！Iraya has spent her life in a cell， but every day brings her closer to freedom - and vengeance。 Jazmyne is the Queen’s daughter， but unlike her sister before her， she has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother’s power。 Sworn enemies， these two witches enter a precarious alliance to take down a mutual threat。 But power is intoxicating， revenge is a bloody pursuit， and nothing is certain - except the lengths they will go to win this game。CW: Violence， murder， sacrifice， sexual assault （past， assault， blood， oppression， death。 Both of the main characters are incredibly strong， powerful females who take no shit。 I really enjoyed both characters and their perspectives， they were tonally different and both girls had strong motivations。 Jazmyne and Ira both have complicated pasts， and interesting relationships throughout the book。 I liked that they represent two separate viewpoints， and have a common enemy。 I enjoyed seeing how their perspectives came together， I think their interactions were great。 There is light romance in this that will definitely be fleshed out more in book two。 And I think the side characters were great。 The plot of this book was interesting， very character driven。 With Jaz and Ira coming together against a mutual enemy。 I think the backstories for the characters and the history of the world do sucha good job at setting the stage for the story。 The world building was incredibly gorgeous， the island setting of Aiyca felt very rich and vivd。 The Jamaican lore was beautiful， and learning about the island and the people on it was really fun。 The pacing of this book was not my favourite。 We started off a little slow， and slowly picked up the pace over time。 I don't necessarily think this is a bad thing by any means， though I did personally have a tricky time getting stuck into this。 But when the pace picked up it， boy did it never stop！ I could not put down this book once I hit the final third！ The ending was absolutely everything， and I am so ready for book two already！！Overall I think this book was a wonderful read， and one I really enjoyed and recommend。 If you loved other reads like An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir， Furyborn by Clare Legrand， or A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A。 Brown， you should check this book out！ 。。。more

ale ♡ ，

hOLY MOLLY， LOOK AT THIS BEAUTIFUL AND POWERFUL COVER！ I'M TOTALLY IN LOVE， AHHHHHHHHHHH hOLY MOLLY， LOOK AT THIS BEAUTIFUL AND POWERFUL COVER！ I'M TOTALLY IN LOVE， AHHHHHHHHHHH 。。。more

belle ☆ﾐ （thisbellereadstoo） ，

rtc

Alexia ，

"Spending a lifetime pinned， like a butterfly to a board， seems like a waste when I was made to fly。"I wish I had something deep and meaningful to say about how much I enjoyed this book， but brain empty after this。 Ciannon crafted such a wonderful book。 The worldbuilding was next level。 I mean Jamaican-inspired fantasy！！！ Here are some highlights:- Names have power and meaning- Fantasy where the romance isn't the forefront （everything is more important to the mc's）- A moment in part 3 very akin "Spending a lifetime pinned， like a butterfly to a board， seems like a waste when I was made to fly。"I wish I had something deep and meaningful to say about how much I enjoyed this book， but brain empty after this。 Ciannon crafted such a wonderful book。 The worldbuilding was next level。 I mean Jamaican-inspired fantasy！！！ Here are some highlights:- Names have power and meaning- Fantasy where the romance isn't the forefront （everything is more important to the mc's）- A moment in part 3 very akin to Thanos’ "I don’t even know who you are"- Are the presumed dead actually dead？- Samson and Delilah- Big lizards- Bargains and loopholes- Constant threats- Major burns （literally and figuratively）- I want a man with swords now， possibly even a pirateIt's Team Ira over here。 24/7。 All day long。 I cannot wait until my physical book gets here， so run out and get this book y'all。 It's a must！ This is fantasy。 Black women have really been doing the thing。*I won an ARC in a giveaway from the author。 All opinions are my own* 。。。more

Leah ，

This was the sort of book which I really wanted to like but just didn't gel for me。 I appreciated the use of Jamaican culture， and the worldbuilding was clearly a priority as it felt rich and extremely detailed。 （Sometimes too detailed， though？ Most of the terminology isn't explained as much as it's meant to be inferred， and new vocabulary and concepts continue to be introduced throughout the book， making it a bit unwieldy to keep up with。） Overall， it seemed overly long to me， with the story no This was the sort of book which I really wanted to like but just didn't gel for me。 I appreciated the use of Jamaican culture， and the worldbuilding was clearly a priority as it felt rich and extremely detailed。 （Sometimes too detailed， though？ Most of the terminology isn't explained as much as it's meant to be inferred， and new vocabulary and concepts continue to be introduced throughout the book， making it a bit unwieldy to keep up with。） Overall， it seemed overly long to me， with the story not really pick up the pace until around the halfway point， and the characterization and relationships to be somewhat lacking - Jazmyne's sister， for example， is meant to have inspired her to action， but there's barely any mention of her actual personality and certain very fascinating-sounding parts of her life are only hinted at。I'm certain this will find its readers - and based on other reviews already has！ - but maybe I'm just not enough of an epic fantasy lover for it。Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC。 。。。more

Raquel ，

*Thank you Harper Collins Canada and Netgalley for sending me a digital copy to review。Please make sure to check out some own voice reviews！ I do not have knowledge on the Jamaican culture and cannot comment on the representation。If Goodreads did half stars this would be a 3。5 star read for me。Things I like/didn't like:Liked:*The cover is gorgeous*Unique worldbuilding， Jamaican influenced folklore*Two strong， ambitiously scheming witches！*Good use of morally gray characters*I liked the slang and *Thank you Harper Collins Canada and Netgalley for sending me a digital copy to review。Please make sure to check out some own voice reviews！ I do not have knowledge on the Jamaican culture and cannot comment on the representation。If Goodreads did half stars this would be a 3。5 star read for me。Things I like/didn't like:Liked:*The cover is gorgeous*Unique worldbuilding， Jamaican influenced folklore*Two strong， ambitiously scheming witches！*Good use of morally gray characters*I liked the slang and different terms that were used to describe certain things or events but perhaps a guide to refer back to would have helped as I had to search back for what certain things meant （some reviewers mention using a Jamaican dictionary which I think is a fun way to add to the reading experience）*I enjoyed the subplot with the pirates and was intrigued with that storylineDidn't like:*A lot of action didn’t happen until the last 1/3 of the story， I was abit bored as nothing was really transfixing me to the plot*Magic system was a bit confusing*Not enough difference between the two main characters POV （Jazmyne and Iraya）， I often forgot who’s POV I was reading from （more so near the beginning）*The motives for the characters didn’t match up with how they acted at the end of the story*The romance fell flat for me， it should have been more defined or it would have been fine with me if there had been no romance。This was an interesting debut novel and curious about where the story will go！ 。。。more

Amanda ，

Here's what you need to know: - Jamaican-inspired fantasy- Intricate and lush magic systems and lore- Nemeses forced together to combat a common enemy - Breakneck pacing and a twisty， gnarly plot- Witcheswitcheswitcheswitcheswitches！！！！！！That is what you'll encounter when you immerse yourself into Ciannon Smart's atmospheric， gripping， and cutthroat debut novel， 'Witches Steeped in Gold。'For fans of Tomi Adeyemi's Children of Blood and Bone， J。 Elle's Wings of Ebony， Namina Forna's The Gilded On Here's what you need to know: - Jamaican-inspired fantasy- Intricate and lush magic systems and lore- Nemeses forced together to combat a common enemy - Breakneck pacing and a twisty， gnarly plot- Witcheswitcheswitcheswitcheswitches！！！！！！That is what you'll encounter when you immerse yourself into Ciannon Smart's atmospheric， gripping， and cutthroat debut novel， 'Witches Steeped in Gold。'For fans of Tomi Adeyemi's Children of Blood and Bone， J。 Elle's Wings of Ebony， Namina Forna's The Gilded Ones， and Roseanne A。 Brown's A Song of Wraiths and Ruin！ These are the PREMIER voices in YA Fantasy right now！ I HIGHLY recommend picking up EACH of these tremendous novels！ Description and Summary: This Jamaican-inspired fantasy debut about two enemy witches who must enter into a deadly alliance to take down a common enemy has the twisted cat-and-mouse of Killing Eve with the richly imagined fantasy world of Furyborn and Ember in the Ashes。Divided by their order。 United by their vengeance。Iraya has spent her life in a cell， but every day brings her closer to freedom—and vengeance。Jazmyne is the Queen’s daughter， but unlike her sister before her， she has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother’s power。Sworn enemies， these two witches enter a precarious alliance to take down a mutual threat。 But power is intoxicating， revenge is a bloody pursuit， and nothing is certain—except the lengths they will go to win this game。"A thundering waterfall of magic， vengeance and intrigue。" —Samantha Shannon， New York Times & Sunday Times bestselling author of The Priory of the Orange Tree and The Bone Season。 。。。more

Leah ，

This was an absolutely outstanding debut！ From the worldbuilding and characters to the lore and magic system， I thought every aspect of this story was perfectly intricate and intriguing！ I loved the dual POVs and each voice felt very unique throughout the entire novel。 I was never confused as to who I was reading or when。 Breathtaking debut， and I cannot wait to see where this story goes from here！*Received an arc for an honest review*

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Witches Steeped in Gold

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Witches Steeped in Gold&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Witches Steeped in Gold&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0