When we first met Savannah Levine in Stolen, she was a twelve-year-old orphan, and the daughter of a black witch and ruthless sorcerer. Nine years later, twenty-one-year-old Savannah is ready to prove her worth in the detective agency run by her guardians. When she's given her an opportunity to run a solo case, she jumps on her motorcycle and heads over to a small town called Columbus. Here she will investigate multiple murders, a suspicious commune that may be a cult, and befriend a young girl who is suffering over the loss of her mother, much like Savannah once was.

Waking the Witch is the eleventh novel in the Women of the Otherworld series, now titled The Otherworld Series. This change is due to a new publisher, and will hopefully open up the series for the possibility of male narrators. This time around the narrator is Savannah, and I found I quickly clicked with her. She's smart, sexy, confident verging on cocky, and even a little reckless. Armstrong did a great job in crafting her voice, and I could hear it very clearly in my head. The mystery plot line really kept my attention, and I didn't see the ending coming at all. Although I didn't like is quite as much as the previous Otherworld novel, Frostbitten, Waking the Witch was really exciting and well put together. I think that fans of the previous novels will enjoy and understand this book better than newcomers, due to some developments which heavily rely on past events. There are cameos from other Otherworld characters like half-demon Adam and necromancer Jamie, but for the most part the plot is focused on Savannah and the large cast of characters she meets in Columbus. I had hoped that we would get to see Sean Nast, Savannah’s half brother. I was sad that he didn't get to make an appearance, but I see how he wouldn't have really fit into the book.

One thing I enjoy so much about this series is that Armstrong is not afraid to shake things up. Waking the Witch has many of the elements you've grown to expect from the Otherworld novels such as a thriller plot, and a tough heroine. At the same time, there are significant changes. Romance plays a smaller role than usual (it's there, but it's not as big of a deal), and the book does not tie up as neatly as previous volumes in the series. There are still plenty of loose threads to take care of in the second Savannah book, Spellbound. I have a feeling this will annoy some longtime fans of the series, but I think I can be patient enough. I have heard Savannah will be narrating the next two books. As Armstrong's never given a character three books in a row before, this makes me very curious about what's going to happen over the next two books.