When you look forward to a book as much as I did with this one, you always have that little bit of fear that it might not be everything you wanted it to be. It’s almost a year since I read the last book in the series, and I will admit that it took me a few pages to re-engage with the large cast of characters, and to remember in any kind of detail that humdinger of a cliffhanger that had made me so desperate to read more. But that small element of uncertainty was soon dispelled – I very quickly became wrapped up in the author’s quite wonderful storytelling, leaving the world behind and caught up in a story that gripped me from the very beginning to its quite glorious end.
And now I have the challenge of reviewing a book that’s very much sixth in a series – and I really wouldn’t advise anyone to pick this one up as a standalone, because although the author does cover some of the background really well, I think it’s really important for your enjoyment to be familiar with the world she’s created so carefully and to understand the relationships and dynamics between its characters. Instead, if this looks like a book you might enjoy as much as I did, I’d thoroughly recommend you start earlier in the series – ideally from the very beginning, but I think you’d probably be fine starting with the fourth in the series, Will of the Witch.
I’m not even going to attempt to tell the story – I really don’t want to spoil this book’s surprises, or give away the plot points that are so perfectly developed and drawn together to their conclusion. The way the author weaves Arthurian myth and legend (Excalibur, the Round Table, the Lady in the Lake… goodness, it’s just wonderful!) and the bitterly feuding present day worlds of feydom and witchcraft into a story that’s very much her own is quite breath-taking – and stunningly original as she layers it with family drama and relationships, strong and believable romance, plenty of humour, and quite a few key moments that had me uncomfortably on the edge of my seat fearing what was to come.
The pace at which the story is told added to that feeling of slight breathlessness – and that’s most certainly not a criticism – with every quiet moment holding meaning and every exchange between the characters moving the story forward, the tension growing as the evil forces at play become increasingly real and the outcome becomes ever more uncertain. The individuals at the heart of the story will already be familiar from the earlier books – I felt I knew them all so well, although there were a few real surprises along the way, and a few unexpectedly emotional moments too. The characterisation is so excellent throughout – helped by telling the story from a number of different perspectives, the transitions well sign-posted and smoothly done, making you very much part of their individual experiences. There’s a multiplicity of threads to the story, all carefully unwound as the story becomes more and more complex but increasingly enthralling with every twist and turn. And the world she creates is never anything but absolutely real and believable – familiar in many ways, with well-drawn locations you’ll recognise, but seen through a lens that takes you wholly outside the realm of human experience.
When a book is over 500 pages long, I’ll admit I can sometimes be a little put off – but I’d honestly have been more than happy had this book been twice as long, as I really didn’t want to leave its world behind. It’s the product of a quite extraordinary imagination, backed up with an obvious depth of research, and the storytelling is superb in every possible way – I loved every moment, the perfect conclusion to a series I’ve so enjoyed and couldn’t recommend more highly.
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Unwell Hydration from Alex Cooper
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There are 6 books in this series.
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Top reviews from other countries
- Welsh AnnieReviewed in the United Kingdom on February 6, 2024
Extraordinary imagination, superb storytelling - the perfect series conclusion
- Maria BrennanReviewed in the United Kingdom on November 1, 2023
Wow, what a magical finale to the The Witches of Castle Clair
- Rhi.GReviewed in the United Kingdom on November 30, 2023
Loved this series of books
- Mrs K C CheethamReviewed in the United Kingdom on November 8, 2023
Wonderful last book - but now I want more
