Review: The Springsweet

The Springsweet by Saundra Mitchell

Summary: Heartbroken over the tragic death of her fiancé, seventeen-year-old Zora Stewart leaves Baltimore for the frontier town of West Glory, Oklahoma, to help her young widowed aunt keep her homestead going. There she discovers that she possesses the astonishing ability to sense water under the parched earth. When her aunt hires her out as a“springsweet” to advise other settlers where to dig their wells, Zora feels the burden of holding the key to something so essential to survival in this unforgiving land.Even more, she finds herself longing for love the way the prairie thirsts for water. Maybe, in the wildness of the territories, Zora can finally move beyond simply surviving and start living.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed The Vespertine and was quite excited at the prospect of a sequel – or in this case, a companion novel. Instead of Amelia, we focus on Zora, her best friend. I remembered enough of The Vespertine to remember that there was a lot of tragedy. And while not remembering much of the story (it’s been over a year, and probably close to 200 books, since I read it), I remembered enough to understand references made to the events therein. Especially Thomas’ death. Poor Zora lost her fiance, her best friend (who is believed to be dead), and others in a short time. And now she’s reeling. She finds a way to get sent to Oklahoma, and finds herself.

First, this is when she fully discovers her “gift.” Yes, there are some hints before she leaves, but it’s not clear to her in the city. With the help of a boy named Emerson, she discovers it in full, and finds herself along the way.

There’s a small love triangle, but no one is strung along. It’s quickly dealt with, and other events are central to the story. I did feel like, with the exception of this part, that much of the events were glossed over. Everything was interesting, but I think there could have been more depth to the story.

That aside, I enjoyed The Springsweet and am looking forward to the final book in the trilogy, Aetherborne. When it’s all said and done, I do think I might read the series as a whole when I have all three books available to me.

Source: Received through Around The World Tours for review.

Read It: The Springsweet is scheduled for release on April 17, 2012. You can pre-order your own copy HERE. (This is a Book Depository link, and purchase through this link will result in my receiving a small commission at no cost to you. Your support is appreciated!)

Challenges: Counts for the Speculative Fiction Challenge 2012 and the 2012 Sensational Seconds Challenge.

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FTC Disclosure: All items reviewed were either obtained by me for my own enjoyment or sent (from the author, publisher, publicist, via tour sites, etc.) in exchange for an honest review. I receive no monetary compensation for my posts. All opinions expressed are my own.

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