I NEED MORE.
I need it NOW.
Seriously, how can we be expected to wait for book 3 after a book like this???
It's cruel, that's what it is.
Torture.
I really loved this installment of the Witch's Child series (obviously) - it builds off of book one and gives us more of the characters we were already in love with. I love love love this little band of criminals and misfits. And the story just gets better x10000000 in Juila Defiant. If you were lukewarm about book one (which I was) than trust me - give this one a chance! It really ramps up and delivers.
If you like witches this is the hot new series for you.

*published on Page Turners Blog on 6/14/2017*
ulia Defiant is the second book in the Witches’ Child trilogy and as a new reader to this series, I found myself immersed in a detailed, magical world full of sights, sounds and characters like I’ve never quite experienced. One of the first things I noticed was how beautifully Catherine wrote descriptive passages:

The smaller branches of the trees are wrapped in twists of paper, and some of these little slips are blowing along the street, having come loose from whatever branches they were fastened to , bearing somebody’s dearest wish written out in elegant Yongwen characters. It’s still odd to me, seeing customs long banned in Freyne flourishing out in the open in Yongguo — like the little shrines to the elements along the roads, or men walking about with tattoos visible on their hands, necks even faces. I walk along the canal, which is full of narrow, painted boats, their gunwales hung with charms, everything slightly blurred by the haze of my vanishing, while the slender trees loose swirls of petals as well as wishes onto the breeze.

See what I mean? Catherine’s writing has a lovely, lyrical quality that paints a perfect picture of the scene before you. Also, the worlds felt distinctly familiar. I wanted to refer to my Ancient Civilizations class for comparison. The setting felt like something I’ve read before in that class. It felt that real.

One of the other elements I enjoyed was the plot — danger and surprise lurk around every page. Although to be fair, at times, the story appeared a little drawn out in tension. While its 464 pages may be average for fantasy stories these days, I have to admit that my mind did wander a few times. I think this is more symptomatic in second books of a three book series, and as a big fan of them, I’ve learned to be a little patient.

The lore intrigued me. It felt familiar and yet, it wasn’t. Julia’s powers and their growing strength were interesting to read about. I really enjoyed how Catherine explained her power to vanish and how that power grew into something more forboding.

This story is one that Marie Lu fans will thoroughly enjoy. It combines a strong heroine, a mythology that feels old-worldly and a plot that twists away from fantasy tropes just enough for you to stay interested. If you enjoyed The Rose Society series, this should be your very next read.

Julia Defiant is the second installment in author Catherine Egan's Witch's Child series. 16-year old Julia is an orphan who found a home among a group of criminals (Esme, Gregor, Csilla, and her own brother Benedek) after her mother was drowned in the Cleansing for being a witch. Julia and friends live in a fictitious country known as Frayne, where hunting down and drowning those suspected of practicing witchcraft is as normal as breathing. After all, if you can't burn a witch, why not drown them?

In this story, Julia and her gang of misfits, which now includes Professor Baranyi, Mrs. Och, Frederick, Bianka, Wyn, and Theo, travel to Yongguo where the search for a man known as Ko Dan continues. Ko Dan worked a terrible spell that ended up putting part of the Book of Disruption into Theo. The book is the first written magic, and the origin of magic in the world. Something that Casimir would burn the world to the ground in order to have.

Julia has an unusual ability. She can step into another place and disappear. This makes her the perfect spy since nobody can see her. The twist becomes where did she get this ability? Can Julia save Theo who is being hunted across the world, or will Casimir and his pet assassin Pia win when all is said and done? Also, one has to be curious and weary of who Julia really trusts in this book. There are so many twists, surprises, and down right what the hell just happen moments that keep the book flowing smoothly from page to page.

Tianshi, the capital of Yongguo, reminds me a bit of Peking in the early 19th century. There is the Heavenly City, the Imperial Gardens, and a secretive library hidden deep in the mountains. The country is run by the Empress Dowager, and Si Tan, who shows too much interest in Julia, and what she is able to do. I am curious as to Pia's intentions as well. While she came across as the ultimate villain in the previous installment, I don't think we've dug deeper into what her plans really are, and why she is drawn to helping Julia. Could she be the one ally that Julia needs to survive?

In the end, Julia Defiant exceeded my expectations. It was much more entertaining and devious than the first book. I do look forward to book # 3 which is currently untitled while also releasing in 2018.

JULIA DEFIANT by Catherine Egan is the exciting sequel to Julia Vanishes and readers of that adventure will be quickly engrossed in this latest tale. Its setting, while still infused with magic and witchcraft, is somewhat less European – there's more of an Asian flair, with a large monastery and, once again, plenty of spies, danger and betrayal.

In order to better appreciate the relationships and world building, this series does need to be read in order. Mrs. Och, Wyn, and Frederick are all still seeking Ko Dan with Julia's help in order to keep baby Theo safe. The characters are many (but there is a helpful guide at the book's beginning) and the action is complex and violent at times. Julia's power of vanishing seems to be increasing and she struggles valiantly to understand what is happening in the more-fiery other-world, called Kahge, that she can now enter. Booklist gave JULIA DEFIANT a starred review, calling it "beautifully imagined."

Thanks to Netgalley and Knopf Books for a copy of the eARC in exchange for a fair review.


Julia and the gang are back, although there are some new characters and new location. Wyn is still on the outs with Julia, but he is hanging around. Julia is searching for Ko Dan in order to get the book out of Theo.


Unfortunately, assassins are after them because they want Theo and Julia trying to keep ahead of them. Also, there has been changes with her ability to vanish, now she seems to disappear completely and appear in a hellish world in which the creatures seem to recognize her.


What does this mean? Will she be able to find Ko Dan? Will she be able to save Theo?


I was a bit disappointed in this one, I don't know if it was the length of time between reading the first one and reading this one or just the change in location, but I couldn't connect with the characters this time around. I couldn't remember who half of them were to be honest. I really enjoyed the first one, but this didn't appeal to me as much.


It dragged on without too much happening and was kind of confusing at points. Sigh, I wanted to love this as much as the first one, but Julia has some bad luck in the romance department, in fact I feel like the love interests could have just been left out. I did love her relationship with Theo. That was the highlight of the book, but I did get a bit of the mother vibe from that.


There is supposed to be a book 3 so I will be interested to see how she ties this all up.

**4.5 Stars**

Book 2 picks up a few weeks after the events at the end of book one, with Julia and her crew now working as body-guardish types to Mrs. Orche and her charges to try and protect baby Theo from the people looking to claim him. This is not a standalone story, but instead the second book in a fantastical series, and desperately needs to be read in order for the world building and relationship dynamics to really make sense.

I found book one to be a very slow start, taking me almost half the story before I was invested in the book, and boy did I get invested! The second half the book was am amazing supernatural adventure full of danger and surprises, so I could not wait to jump right into the second book to see what would happen next to Julia and her hodge-podge group. Well, book 2 started almost as slow as book one for me, with some more, yet different world building before the action really took off. I was afraid that I was going to have a repeat of book 1, but luckily it took only about 60 pages into the story before the tension and the action built until I just could not handle it anymore. People say that the second book in a trilogy generally suffers from a sophmore slum, but this book blew book one out of the water for me.




The world the author created was magic- and yes, the book is about witches and supernatural creatures, but I still feel like that is the best word to describe what the author created. It is another world, most similar to England in the late 1800s (add in a feudal-like China-ish land for book 2), but with witches being real and hunted down, strange "others" lurking about, making pawns out of the average man, and a secret deadly war being fought on the fringes, right under man's nose, which could destroy the world. I loved every little nuance the author created, be it unique creatures, odd special powers, an alternate scary firey reality to escape to, children who have a lost shadow inside them, spiders who recognize if a person belongs... I had no idea what to expect next and I loved that. I felt like if I put the book down, or even blinked, I would miss out on something important, even if it was just a small detail, so I ate up the story in one sitting.

I struggled with Julia in the first book, not genuinely liking her until the second half of the book, but in this story she shined for me. She was strong, determined and resolute, not letting anything stand in her way in her pursuit of what was right. She had a hard go of it, but she tried and I could not fault her for it. My favorite parts of the book were her interactions with Theo, how sweet and careful her she was with him, and her wonder at how she came to care for the impish child she had originally thought was a burden. But to be honest, I loved Theo too, so it made sense to me. She was so young to have so much responsibility thrust on her, but she had a maturity most teens could never even imagine. And the questions about who she is and where she comes from are never-ending.

The ending! Oh my geez, the ending was so surprising and left me wanting to get my hands on the last book as soon as possible! I could never have predicted where the story was going to go, and who was involved made it that much worse. Betrayal, surprise and danger, wrapped up the story, and led to the start of Julia's next journey to get revenge. This series is a must read for any fantasy lovers who are looking for an entirely new world to disappear into.

I received this title in return for my honest review.
Visit my blog at http://smadasbooksmack.blogspot.com/ for a chance at the blog tour giveaway

4.5 out of 5 Stars

Julia Defiant by Catherine Egan is book two in her Witch’s Child series and like its predecessor, Julia Vanishes, it is filled with wonderful world-building and rich developed characters.

The novel takes places months after Julia Vanishes ends and ten thousand miles from Spira City, in Tianshi, capital of Yongguo. Where Julia and her crew are looking for Ko Dan, who is the only one who can help save Theo by removing the fragment of the Book of Disruption that is bound to his essence. As Julia searches for Ko Dan, she comes to realize her powers have grown and she can now slip into a fiery world filled with creatures infused with magic, known as the Kahge, at will. Soon Julia is also in search of answers on why she is able to go there and what she is.

Ms. Egan’s short chapters and detailed descriptions pull us into her world, where these two main plots run their course and collide in an action-packed climax that’ll leave you at the edge of your seat with a whopping cliff-hanger of an ending. As a second book in the series, there are some slow moments as it prepares to bridge to the next novel, but I did not find it to deterring from my overall enjoyment of the novel.

I adored Ms. Egan’s novel especially because of her attention to detail in her descriptions especially when Julia would go into Khage or when she’d vanish as she did her spying. Basically, bringing us more into the scene by giving us a more intimate picture of what was happening. I also loved how Julia is such a strong female character. Julia’s resolve and determination in the end has me excited to see what will be in store for her in book three.

Overall, Julia Defiant by Catherine Egan is a great fantasy novel that is filled with excitement, danger, and very well-written. I very much recommend and can’t wait to read the next book by Ms. Egan.

(I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book I received from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my open and honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.)

When I started Julia Vanishes a year ago, I was reading out of obligation. I'd won the book through the Goodreads First Reads program, which I'd entered and won both by chance. I've never been a big fan of witch books, but the Witch's Child series has proved once again that I shouldn't underestimate the genre.

Julia Defiant was truly unlike anything I've ever read. The story is set in such a magical but realistic world, one that pulls from various mythologies and twists them into something new and unique. It's the authenticity of Julia's world that made the book impossible to put down. In a way, it reminds me of Game of Thrones in its intensity. I find most books skimp on the worldbuilding or only focus on the continent the main character is inhabiting. Julia Defiant occurred in a fleshed-out world, one I could easily imagine.

Like with the first of the series, Julia Defiant ends with an almost-cliffhanger that has me craving the sequel. The story was a fast-paced, fun adventure, and I hope the conclusion is just as exciting.

This book just wasn't for me. The plot was confusing and the characters were uninteresting. I think it would be better for younger readers. Sorry.

I requested this book off NetGalley not knowing it was part of the Witches Child series. I don’t generally make a habit of entering a series in the middle but honestly, I just haven’t had the time to read the first book in the series before I started this one. So unlike other reviews I have read, the extensive recaps throughout the book really did help.
I finished the book in a couple of days. Honestly… it wasn’t the greatest I have ever read but it was a good book. As I am sure you will realise my whole review is kind of MEHHHH!
Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t an awful book. The characters were strong willed and believable. I love seeing female heroines fighting their own battles. I enjoyed the storyline, it kept me captivated however it wasn’t particularly thrilling. I didn’t find myself thinking about it during the day, as I so often do with a great book.
There wasn’t a great deal of world building (however I understand huge amount can be found in the 1st book). Personally, I was thrilled by the lack of serious romance, I find that love stories can get in the way of a good action adventure.
However, I did enjoy the ending. I’m a little mad that I read 400ish pages for a couple of chapters of greatness, but they did their job, I can’t wait until the next book. Obviously, I don’t know about the first one but it felt although the story line was building up to something… the third book I presume.
Overall it was a strong 3 STAR read.

Love the cover! I requested this book but was not aware that it was a sequel. Will be reading book one first.

I still couldn't connect to the characters even though I find it a little better than the first book!I felt like the plot didn't move and this was another reason why I couldn't love it as much as I wanted!

I was so excited when I was approved for this book. I read a few reviews and saw how it was similar to The Rose Society and it had witches. That's my kind of book! I didn't realize that it was not the first book in the series, so I went ahead and found the first one to read before beginning this one. Julia is back again and she is still the awesome teenage heroine that she as before. The writing style moves at a faster pace in this book and the whole book is action packed. The passion and the world building is amazing and as you follow Julia on her adventures you will long for the next book to already be in your hands.

This is the second in the Witch Child Series, a sequel to Julia Vanishes, by Catherine Egan. Despite it being part of the same series and by the same author the writing style is different which is a good thing because it shows Egan stretching her literary legs proving she’s got more than the one book in her bag of tricks.

You have to love a female teenage heroine who has been created to adeptly handle what life keeps throwing at her. It’s wonderful when an author shows a girl fighting for herself rather than playing the helpless victim in need of a guy to fight all her battles. It’s even better when it’s a teenager so young girls can be reminded of the power they have inside.

It moves at a much faster pace with tons of action packed scenes so it made for a very quick read, shorter chapters also gave the illusion of blowing through it quicker than I did with the first. Her scene development is much better in this one as she has provided much more details about the world the characters live in so you get a better feel for the shape their lives take.

Even through all the positives it still has a bit of a feel of being a ‘sandwich’ book; you know kind of like Two Towers from Lord of the Rings. The early foundation has been set but you have to string some of the story along before you can get to the juicy meat of the conclusion. It’s not a bad thing because you obviously can’t appreciate the conclusion without understanding the journey.

Egan has some true writing talent by being able to juggle multiple stories and subplots but making them all feel equally important and fulfilled. Too often when authors try this there ends up being plot holes, inconsistencies or characters contradicting each other. Thankfully she managed to escape the pitfalls by writing a well thought out book.

Very much looking forward to her third book so I can see where she’s taking us on this journey full of exciting escapades, passion and secrecy.