- Author: Shelby Mahurin
- Genre: YA, Fantasy
- Page Count: 528
- Date Started: August 9th
- Date Finished: August 14th
A Brief Description
Bound as one to love, honor, or burn.
Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.
Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou’s, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony.
The war between witches and Church is an ancient one, and Lou’s most dangerous enemies bring a fate worse than fire. Unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, a choice must be made.
And love makes fools of us all.
My Review
Alright. This is late. This is VERY late. Now that the semester has finally started to pick up some steam, I’ve been very busy with school and work, please bear with me.
Okay, so on to the review. I loved this book. This book started with Lou, a feisty, strong willed witch who is living in the city of Cesarine, which is the main hub for Chasseurs, or witch hunters. She is currently in hiding from… someone. Who that is, is a spoiler and you’ll have to read it to find out who that is. I love Lou. She’s a strong, foul-mouthed female character who knows what she wants and will not let others get in her way. In a time when women are not given the same opportunities as men and expected to fit into the small box of being a wife and a mother (and nothing else), Lou is different. She fights to be an independent woman at the risk of being burned at the stake.
Reid, the love interest and the witch hunter, is a cinnamon roll disguised as a prickly man. At first I didn’t like him, but once him and Lou start to warm up to each other I realized that he was a total softie on the inside. At first he is offended by Lou’s cursing and her independence. He has never been exposed to anything else and is shocked to see a woman who isn’t quiet and submissive. Once they are forced into holy matrimony, they hate each other. They fight and are at ends with each other at all times. Soon their romance blossoms and let me tell you, I wasn’t a fan of enemies to lovers before, but I sure am now!
The world was well built, and the witches in this were truly terrifying. There were different kinds of witches, Blanche witches and Red witches. Each had a different kind of magic and utilized it differently. White witches were a kind of elemental witch that felt for connections in the world around them. Using magic required a balance, so there were times that if Lou used magic she would become sick due to this. Red witches used blood magic and many times needed to use their own blood to use magic. I enjoyed the magic system and thought it was well thought out. I extremely appreciated the fact that it was a “hard magic system” that had limits for the user.
The twist at the end was… unexpected and I didn’t really see it coming. There was no foreshadowing and it seemed rather out of nowhere, but I still enjoyed the story nonetheless. Have you read this? Have you enjoyed it?
Let me know in the comments below! Have a wonderful day, and as always, keep reading! 🙂
~Cam
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