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Wicca #7-8
The Calling / Changeling
Morgan and Hunter travel to New York City, Morgan to seek out information about her birth parents and Hunter to continue his quest to end the deadly Woodbane conspiracy. But in their search for answers, they find themselves in terrible danger.
- GenresFantasyYoung AdultMagic
384 pages, Paperback
First published July 2, 2009
2 people are currently reading
245 people want to read
About the author
Cate Tiernan
107 books3,812 followers"was born in New Orleans, LA, in 1961. New Orleans is one of the most interesting American cities, and it has an incredibly rich and exotic culture that had a profound influence on me. Kids in other cities have lemonade stands; we sold voodoo gris-gris and made wax dolls in the likenesses of our enemies. It's a very beautiful city, and the constant heat and humidity make gardens grow out of control. There's an air of lassitude there, a general acceptance of eccentic or flamboyant behavior--the heat simply makes people do crazy things.
I went to school in New York, and after school went back to New Orleans. Then I went back to New York (Manhattan) and got a job in publishing and started writing. My first book, a young, middle-grade chapter book, was published in 1990.
Living in Manhattan was incredible, even though I didn't have a lot of money. There was so much to do and see, and so many interesting people to watch. There was a lot of frenetic energy there, and sometimes that felt very wearing and hard to live with. After eight years I was ready for a change, and my husband and I moved back to New Orleans. (Are you seeing a pattern here?)
(While I was in NY, I helped edit "The Secret Circle" by L.J. Smith. I thought it was great.)
We stayed in New Orleans five years. By the time we had two small children we knew we had to find someplace safer to live. I was glad my children were born in New Orleans--I had been born there, and my father had, and his father had, and his father had and so on. There was something about the connection of generations of blood coming from one place that I found very primal and important.
Now I live in a cohousing community in Durham, NC. This is the most suburban place I've ever lived, and it's very different from living right in the middle of a city. For one thing, there aren't enough coffee shops. However, it's incredibly safe, and the community is very important to me. There are a lot of strong women here, and I find them inspiring.
Am I a witch? Well, no. Even Wicca is too organized a religion for me. I'm much more idiosyncratic and just need to do my own thing, which is kind of new-agey and pantheistic. It's not that I don't work or play well with others, but I need to decide for myself when I do a certain thing, and how I do it. However, I can really relate to Wicca, and I so appreciate its woman-centeredness and its essentially female identity. I love those aspects, among others.
I have several favorite writers. Barbara Hambly has been the biggest influence on how I describe magic. She's an incredibly imaginative and empathetic writer with a gift for creating a rich, sensual world. I love Barbara Pym, an English writer whose books came out mostly in the fifties. She was a master at describing the thousand tiny moments that make up a woman's day; how the seemingly small and inconsequential thing can suddenly take on a huge emotional importance. I greatly admire P.D. James. She's one of the very few writers who makes me actually look up words in the dictionary. She has a beautiful, precise, educated command of the language that leaves me in awe. I love Philip Larkin's poetry. I read a lot of nonfiction and also have some favorite romance writers. Before anyone groans, let me say that these women write really well about women trying to achieve emotional fulfillment, and that's kind of what we're all doing, right? I also just like reading about sex. Anyway, Jennifer Crusie, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, and early Linda Howard are my faves.
And then of course there's my dark side, but more on that later.
" -Source
Cate Tiernan is a pseudonym for Gabrielle Charbonnet
I went to school in New York, and after school went back to New Orleans. Then I went back to New York (Manhattan) and got a job in publishing and started writing. My first book, a young, middle-grade chapter book, was published in 1990.
Living in Manhattan was incredible, even though I didn't have a lot of money. There was so much to do and see, and so many interesting people to watch. There was a lot of frenetic energy there, and sometimes that felt very wearing and hard to live with. After eight years I was ready for a change, and my husband and I moved back to New Orleans. (Are you seeing a pattern here?)
(While I was in NY, I helped edit "The Secret Circle" by L.J. Smith. I thought it was great.)
We stayed in New Orleans five years. By the time we had two small children we knew we had to find someplace safer to live. I was glad my children were born in New Orleans--I had been born there, and my father had, and his father had, and his father had and so on. There was something about the connection of generations of blood coming from one place that I found very primal and important.
Now I live in a cohousing community in Durham, NC. This is the most suburban place I've ever lived, and it's very different from living right in the middle of a city. For one thing, there aren't enough coffee shops. However, it's incredibly safe, and the community is very important to me. There are a lot of strong women here, and I find them inspiring.
Am I a witch? Well, no. Even Wicca is too organized a religion for me. I'm much more idiosyncratic and just need to do my own thing, which is kind of new-agey and pantheistic. It's not that I don't work or play well with others, but I need to decide for myself when I do a certain thing, and how I do it. However, I can really relate to Wicca, and I so appreciate its woman-centeredness and its essentially female identity. I love those aspects, among others.
I have several favorite writers. Barbara Hambly has been the biggest influence on how I describe magic. She's an incredibly imaginative and empathetic writer with a gift for creating a rich, sensual world. I love Barbara Pym, an English writer whose books came out mostly in the fifties. She was a master at describing the thousand tiny moments that make up a woman's day; how the seemingly small and inconsequential thing can suddenly take on a huge emotional importance. I greatly admire P.D. James. She's one of the very few writers who makes me actually look up words in the dictionary. She has a beautiful, precise, educated command of the language that leaves me in awe. I love Philip Larkin's poetry. I read a lot of nonfiction and also have some favorite romance writers. Before anyone groans, let me say that these women write really well about women trying to achieve emotional fulfillment, and that's kind of what we're all doing, right? I also just like reading about sex. Anyway, Jennifer Crusie, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, and early Linda Howard are my faves.
And then of course there's my dark side, but more on that later.
" -Source
Cate Tiernan is a pseudonym for Gabrielle Charbonnet
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 2, 2019
Reading these was lovely, in a cosy nostalgic way. I'm also thrilled I can use this in the Sims-a-thon reading challenge! Win all round!
January 19, 2024
Does it count to have listened to this series vs physically read? I was sick w Covid & devoured it. The only reason why it’s 4 stars & not 5 is it’s about teens & I’m an adult. I wouldn’t read it (or listen again) but I enjoyed when I did.
December 9, 2009
The Calling continues Morgan's journey of discovery of Wicca and her true identity as a blood witch. She has been experiencing premonitions and travels with her friends to New York to try to stop her vision coming to pass. As with the other books in the Wicca series, I found The Calling really easy to read and a real page turner. However, I am now at the point where I am frustrated by the start of each book as Morgan tells us again all about her life. At this point we are reading tecnically the seventh book and it is becoming rather tiresome to be reintroduced to the things we already know. I understand the necessity of this for new readers but it is a real annoyance.
I also found the plot of The Calling highly predictable and was in no doubt as to how the book was going to end. This was a real disappointment as I love this series. I have to say I also found Tiernan's dialogue for her English characters irritating to the point where I wanted to pull my own teeth out. Contrary to popular belief we do not call people "love" all the time.
Changeling was a much more interesting and engaging read as Morgan reluctantly gets to know her biological father. It had me on the edge of my seat and I felt really satisfied with every page that I turned. Changeling completely lived up to my expectations of the Wicca series.
Overall, I really enjoyed Changeling and I am now yet again desperate for the next installment. I want to know whether Killian will reappear, whether Ciaran knows Morgan's true name and whether Morgan will truly open up to the gorgeous Hunter Niall. If you loved the other Wicca books, then definitely continue reading. Changeling will leave you wanting more.
I also found the plot of The Calling highly predictable and was in no doubt as to how the book was going to end. This was a real disappointment as I love this series. I have to say I also found Tiernan's dialogue for her English characters irritating to the point where I wanted to pull my own teeth out. Contrary to popular belief we do not call people "love" all the time.
Changeling was a much more interesting and engaging read as Morgan reluctantly gets to know her biological father. It had me on the edge of my seat and I felt really satisfied with every page that I turned. Changeling completely lived up to my expectations of the Wicca series.
Overall, I really enjoyed Changeling and I am now yet again desperate for the next installment. I want to know whether Killian will reappear, whether Ciaran knows Morgan's true name and whether Morgan will truly open up to the gorgeous Hunter Niall. If you loved the other Wicca books, then definitely continue reading. Changeling will leave you wanting more.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 18, 2010
Loved all these books but nights child was kind of a let down really wished she would not have skipped so much time and we would have had a chance to hear more about morgan and hunter. But hopefully she will keep it going with the daughter.
June 24, 2016
This series is pretty great until book 9 where in my opinion it gets a bit dry. No spoilers here, you'll have to read them yourself. Enjoy! Great for preteen witches, or parents who want their children to discover magick.
August 13, 2009
this book is just as good a the others cant wait to read them
May 6, 2011
See full series review here.
February 25, 2013
Read and loved as a teenager - not sure how I'd feel about it now but I remember devouring each of those in a day!
November 14, 2014
fun, light read
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews