You’ve never read a shifter book like this before! Escape into a time of magic and sorcery, and lose yourself in a dark medieval fantasy with a difference.Queen, beggar… cat? Caitlyn is all three.Caitlyn has lost everything – her husband, her throne, her home.With her husband lying brutally slaughtered at her feet and with his enemies at her door, she flees for her life. Desperate, terrified, … her feet and with his enemies at her door, she flees for her life. Desperate, terrified, and plagued by visions of an evil woman performing dark rituals, Caitlyn seeks sanctuary with an English lord. But when the very man who she feels she can trust betrays her, she escapes – and runs straight into the clutches of the woman from her visions.
Herleva is a woman filled with ambition and greed; a woman who intends to be more than a commoner, and who gets what she wants by whatever means possible – even if she has to practice the dark arts to achieve her goals.
A woman who is a witch.
Using magic and evil to cast her spells, Herleva transforms Caitlyn into a cat, a witch’s familiar. Having no choice but to do the witch’s bidding, Caitlyn’s life is changed forever by the hideous enchantment.
Only death can free her. The question is, whose?
What readers are saying about Blood, Soul and Magic
“This is a really good mix of historical drama and supernatural. I read the whole book in one day.” (Goodreads reviewer)
“I had no real idea what to expect. Would it be historical drama or magical fantasy? Game of Thrones style political intrigue and violence, or Arthurian-style chivalry and witchcraft? The answer is, yes. All of the above” (Goodreads reviewer)
“What an unusual story of queens, kings, princes, dukes, lords, ladies, murder, death, danger, magic and witches” (Goodreads reviewer)
“This book is full or murder, mayhem, battles, treachery, witchcraft, and yes, even the occasional lighthearted moment just to keep the book from being too deep. I loved every word of it and cannot wait for the next book in the series. To sum this book up in one word…EPIC!” (Goodreads reviewer)
“This book was 100% not what I thought it was going to be; instead the story was unlike any I’ve ever read before & I ended up totally enthralled” (Goodreads reviewer)
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What an unusual story of queens, kings, princes, dukes, lords, ladies, murder, death, danger, magic and witches. The story is moderately paced. It has an unusual and interesting storyline. The plot of Queen Caitlyn ultimate capture by a spell of the witch Herleva and protégé Arlette. This book chronicles what Caitlyn had to endure after her husband King Rhain was slain. At his burial, she smelled thyme then she started having visions of Herleva and Arlette and what they were doing. Her kingdom was being seized by a ruthless ruler Seisyll. Her husband’s second in command, Idris, steered her away from making a stand and protecting her people. Idris told her she would be killed if captured by Seisyll. Idris said she was a great threat to Seisyll. Caitlyn was the rightful queen to her husband’s kingdom of Deheubarth and rightful heir to her father’s kingdom of Gwynedd. Idris told her she had to leave to stay alive so that she may garner the support of others and return to defeat Seisyll to reclaim that which was rightly hers. Caitlyn did not know what to do. She had to trust Idris. If her husband had trusted him, she had no cause to do otherwise. So she, Idris and his son Cai embarked on a very dangerous journey to the castle keep of Lord Wulfstan. As perilous as the journey was, Caitlyn was still plagued by these visions of Herleva and heard the evil, dark incantations she spoke. Caitlyn thought they were nightmares. But they were so real she thought she was losing her mind. Little did she know it was very real and all the visions were about her being summoned to Herleva. She started to hear Herleva speak to her when she did not have a vision. Herleva allowed her to overhear who killed her husband, King Rhain, and why. She realized she and her husband had been betrayed. After killing the person responsible for her husband’s death, she had to flee from Lord Wulfstan’s keep. With the help of the English Prince Alfred, she escaped. Again she did not know Alfred was also under the spell of Herleva to purposely lead Caitlyn to the keep of Lord Robert, Duke of Normandy and eventually to Herleva. At once upon their arrival, Alfred took Caitlyn to Herleva for safe keeping. However this put Caitlyn into a life of servitude. Herleva and Arlette drugged Caitlyn one night and cast other spells on her. The result was that Caitlyn was turned into a familiar, a cat. She would be able to change from woman to cat at will and always had to obey Herleva. One of the spells that was conjured would not allow Caitlyn to harm Herleva or Arlette. Herleva now had Caitlyn completely under her control. Caitlyn still had her own mind but her body was at the command of Herleva. She had to do whatever Herleva asked of her whether she liked it or not. Her life was not easy and she despaired wanting to kill the witch and her apprentice. Time went on and Caitlyn would never grow older than her three and twenty years and she would never die as long as the spell continued. Poor Caitlyn was in for a devastating shock. This kept my attention and I enjoyed reading it. I can’t wait for the next book “A Stain On The Soul” coming out in October 2018. I received an Advanced Readers Copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Wow! The thrills and adventures start from the very first words in this historical/paranormal read! Caitlyn has just lost her husband in a violent battle. You would think this would be the worst to happen to her, but you would be very wrong! This is only the beginning for her.
I can’t really write too much about the plot as I don’t want to ruin anything. Caitlyn is a strong woman in a time when women were seen nothing more than a bargaining tool for men, a way for them to gain and maintain power and control. Yet, this book not only has one strong woman but several, and they each represent good and evil.
This was an usual book in that combines both historical aspects with paranormal aspects which made it quite mesmerizing, casting a spell to keep you flying through the pages. The writer takes us back to the 10th century in Wales and the power struggle that was happening at that time. Make sure to read the historical note at the end. Elizabeth Davies gives readers an insight into the book and into the characters…very interesting.
The end of the book is not the end for our heroine, Caitlyn. Just when I thought she was finally going to get what she hoped for, Davies pulled the rug out from under me. I loved the ending that wasn’t an ending, and I am anxiously awaiting where she will go from here.