Who will dare to face the Dragonwitch?
Submissive to her father’s will, Lady Leta of Aiven travels far to meet the future King of the North Country and a prospective husband she neither knows nor loves.
But within the walls of his castle, all is not right. Vicious night terrors plague Lord Alistair. Whispers rise from the family crypt. The reclusive castle Chronicler, Leta’s tutor and friend, possesses a secret so dangerous it could cost his life and topple the entire nation.
And far away in a hidden kingdom, a flame burns atop the Citadel of the Living Fire. Acolytes and priestesses serve their goddess to the limits of their lives and deaths. No one is safe while the Dragonwitch searches for the sword that slew her twice … and for the hero who can wield it.
I have a score to settle with this book …
When I cracked it open for the first time, it gripped me fast and I couldn’t break free. I can honestly say that this book was to blame for quite a few sleep-deprived nights this summer.
So I would like to issue a warning to all of you thinking of picking up this book, or any of the Tales of Goldstone Woods series: it is dangerous … but marvelously so.
The characters (especially dear Eanrin) ran away with my heart and now refuse to give it back. Eanrin the bard — immortal faerie, cat, and knight of the Farthest Shore — deserves a place in the Character Hall of Fame. Witty, brave, equal parts selfless and selfish, and so incredibly cat-like, Eanrin is one of those characters that you simply can’t forget.
As a writer, I have the utmost respect for the world that Anne Elisabeth Stengl has imagined. Deep, oftentimes dark and dangerous, and yet filled with a holy light, the world, like a dangerous Faerie path, drew me in until I had a hard time finding my way out again.
Anne Elisabeth Stengl’s prose is exquisite as always and I especially love the way that her stories contains hints of the fairy tales we read as children. There are dashes of Beauty and the Beast in Dragonwitch. Yet though there are familiar elements, each story is completely fresh and new and entrenched in Anne Elisabeth Stengl’s world.
Honestly the only fault I could with the book was that, at times, I felt like it jumped around a wee bit or glossed over certain events leaving me wondering exactly what had happened. Also, the relationship between two characters seemed to progress just a wee bit too fast.
Overall, I loved Dragonwitch and eagerly await the next installment in the series.
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Find Dragonwitch on Amazon.
Check out Anne Elisabeth Stengl’s website.
Want to find out more about the Tales of Goldstone Woods series? Check out my review of Starflower.
Note: Thanks to Anne Elisabeth Stengl and Bethany House publishers for the chance to review a free copy of this book! The thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.
Note: Thanks to Anne Elisabeth Stengl and Bethany House publishers for the chance to review a free copy of this book! The thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.
Hannah says
Yay!!! I'm glad you loved it! I read it in one day…and cried three times near the end. :)
Maria Rod. says
As soon as I read this I hopped over to Amazon and read the preview. It looks like a masterpiece! I'm going to look into it. By the way, how would you rate the theology? Like, how to they portray magic? Or the different races?
Gillian Adams says
It is an excellent book. The Tales of Goldstone Woods contain Christian allegorical elements — I won't go so far as to call them outright allegories(though the first one is certainly more so than the others), since so often people feel that allegories sacrifice story for message. But there is a Christian message in the story and I believe it is beautifully portrayed.
Jenelle Leanne says
I'm in the middle of Starflower right now… having devoured the first three in no time flat (Just discovered this author erm, about two weeks ago). And have Dragonwitch on request at the library.
In response to Maria, I actually felt that the third book (Moonblood) had more outright allegory to it than the others. The Christian elements and parallels are definitely there throughout the series, but they don't smack you upside the head or anything, which I appreciate.
I've been too busy reading to review… but I'll probably have a blog post about each of the books coming soon. :) Glad to hear Dragonwitch lives up to the rest of the series (not that I was worried!)
Ysa Rivas says
I am going to admit that I haven't read any of these! :o ( But Dragonwitch is among my fave books before I've even read it … if you know what I mean… ;o ) lol I have heard SO many good reviews about it!
This is a great review, Gillian!
Rebeka B. says
Wonderful review! I loved "Dragonwitch"–it was perhaps my favourite of the series so far! :)