A WITCH’S BREW
Conquest of the Veil Book III
By Michael Scott Clifton
Publisher: Book Liftoff
Publication Date: April 14th, 2021
Pages: 318 Pages
Categories:
Sword & Sorcery / Magical Realism / Fantasy / Paranormal
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Intent on defeating the Dark Queen and destroying the Veil, Prince Tal and Alexandria arrive at Markingham to discover a city on the verge of collapse, its people starving, and children vanishing without a trace. Hopes of launching attacks from the city against the Dark Queen evaporate. To make matters worse, the tiny breach in the Veil allows only a trickle of soldiers and supplies to pass through.
Before the city’s defenses can be restored, the Baleful, a vast army composed of melded humans and animals led by a giant centaur, sweeps across the land like locusts, leaving nothing behind.
In the midst of turmoil and conflict, the love between Tal and Alex reaches white-hot intensity. But the leader of a ragtag militia group wants Tal for herself and will do anything to get him…even strike a bargain with a child-killing witch for a potion to make her irresistible.
But every witch’s brew comes with a price.
I jumped into this series with this, the third book. I read a synopsis to get caught up on the main points, but I didn’t have the advantage of ALL of the backstory. And you know what? It didn’t matter. A Witch’s Brew is a ripping good fantasy read, and I gather from the ending that there is more yet to come in the series.
Bring it on.
Clifton has absolutely roped me into the world he’s created here. He does an outstanding job of creating the world and the history, the people and the places.
My heart ached for Alex in the early part of the book. Here she is, in a world full of magic, and the man she loves is one of the strongest magic wielders around, and what magical talent does she have? None. (Or so she thinks.) Plus, she’s got Maggie, the exceedingly bold leader of just about the only real warriors around Markingham, making a move for Tal. That’s a lot for a girl to handle. But she isn’t one to just shrink away quietly. No magic? She finds other ways to make a difference for the people of Markingham, and I loved that about her. Even when things are hard, even when she has a wallow in the pity pit for a moment, Alex doesn’t let difficult circumstances get her down.
And while Maggie is cast as the bad girl, I felt some sympathy for her, too. By the end of the book, she finds herself in a royal mess of her own making. Let’s just say messing around with witches and potions isn’t the best idea, and with magic, you’ve got to be very, very careful what you request and how. I’m interested to see what her role in future books will be. Can she be redeemed, or will she go over to the dark side?
Love and jealousy. Magic and monsters. An epic quest to defeat the Big Bad and some booty-kickin’ battle scenes. This story has it all. Definitely a five-star read for me! The ending of the book is wide open for things yet to come. When it’s out, I will snatch up book four in a hot second and see what happens next. If you’re a high fantasy, sword and sorcery fan, you should give this series a read, too.
And don’t miss out on the giveaway! Who doesn’t like a free book that’s a blast to read? Scroll on down and enter. Share the link with your friends, so they can enter, too!
Multi Award-Winning Author Michael Scott Clifton, a longtime public educator, currently lives in Mount Pleasant, Texas with his wife, Melanie. An avid gardener, reader, and movie junkie, his books contain facets of all the genres he enjoys—action, adventure, magic, fantasy, and romance. His fantasy novels, The Janus Witch, The Open Portal (Book I in the Conquest of the Veil series), and Escape from Wheel (Book II), all received 5-Star reviews from the prestigious Readers’ Favorite Book Reviews. The Open Portal has also been honored with a Feathered Quill Book Finalist Award. In addition, Edison Jones and the Anti-Grav Elevator earned a 2021 Feathered Quill Book Award Bronze Medal in the Teen Readers category. Two of his short stories have won Gold Medals, with Edges of Gray winning the Texas Authors Contest, and The End Game, winning the Northeast Texas Writer’s Organization Contest. Professional credits include articles published in the Texas Study of Secondary Education Magazine.
GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
THREE WINNERS!
Grand Prize:
Signed copies of all three books in the Conquest of the Veil series
+ $15 Amazon Gift Card
2nd & 3rd Winners: eBooks of A Witch’s Brew.
Ends midnight, CDT, May 28, 2021.
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What a FABULOUS review! I am so glad you mentioned that you were able to jump in on this book without reading the priors. It sounds like an excellent book escape. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.