The Coven

The future queen awakens…

Newly single mother Stevie Lewis divides her time between raising Charlie, running a store with her best friend, and avoiding the meetings of her mother’s Beaufort Historic Society. Although her life has its challenges, it’s altogether average. Just the way she likes it.

When Vanessa, a ruthless dark witch, launches an attack against young Charlie, Stevie’s simple life derails, and her long-dormant powers awaken. A 300-year-old secret is exposed, revealing her destiny to one day rule the clandestine community of witches who hide in plain sight.

Now she must master her own magical powers before it’s too late. Because Vanessa’s on the warpath, and only Stevie can stop her.

*May Contain Spoilers*

After years of being locked up in a mental institution, without magic, Susan finally sees a path forward. With the help of her daughter Vanessa, she can get her powers back and her revenge as she takes on The Coven, by Chrissy Lessey. 

Stevie is about to realize very soon that she is a witch, in a family with a very long line of witches. She's also about to learn that with the discovery of Blackbeard's long lost treasure, she and her son are in danger. Stevie is the main character of this novel as well as a single mom (recently divorced) and the daughter of Beaufort, North Carolina's coven Queen. Stevie is an incredibly caring person who enjoys the peaceful nature of photography and would do anything for her son. Readers will connect with Stevie through her friendly personality and the love she has for her son, who was recently diagnosed as autistic. With the plot moving forward at a pretty quick pace, readers will continue to feel a connection with Stevie as her father suffers a physical ailment and Vanessa reappears to help her mother get revenge. 

The story begins with Vanessa's return to Beaufort, NC at the beck and call of her mother. More of Blackbeard's treasure has been discovered and Susan thinks that includes a very powerful necklace - a necklace that could break the binding the coven put on her magic. Vanessa is tasked with doing whatever it takes to get the necklace, including murder. With this new threat, Dylan, a love interest for Stevie, also returns to Beaufort from London. In a matter of days, Stevie learns that she has magical powers and is inducted into the Historic Society and the Coven. But she has to learn how to harness her energy and control it if she plans on taking down Vanessa and protecting her son. Because the stakes are so high right off the bat, this book feels fast paced. It's really enjoyable because not only is it thrilling, but there are also multiple relationship dynamics that play off of each other, lending the book humor, love, and annoyance. After I started this, it didn't take me long to finish. It's easy to read and I didn't want to put it down. I would definitely recommend this book to lovers of fantasy and romance and I hope I get the chance to read the next book in the series. 

Rating: 4/5 Cups

What's Next, Wednesday (70)

•  To play along share a book you've been looking forward to reading, whether it's new or has been on your reading list for a while.

I'm looking forward to...

Dark Designs by Stefanie Spangler. I guess I'm going on a little magic binge because this book has witches and mortal threats just like the last book. I'm excited to read this book because it puts two twin witches up against an evil man who learned magic just to get back at one of them. A little suspense, a little action. I'm really looking forward to this one. 

Teaser Tuesday (279)

Welcome to Teaser Tuesday, the weekly Meme that wants you to add books to your TBR, or just share what you are currently reading. It is very easy to play along:
• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! Everyone loves Teaser Tuesday.




The Coven (Kindle 67%)
    - Chrissy Lessey

But then again, anything was possible at this point. She now lived in a world where even the laws of physics had been reduced to mere suggestions. 

Magic, witches, and secrets.

A Life Removed

Detectives Bruce Marklin and Jocelyn Beaudette have put plenty of criminals behind bars. But a new terror is stalking their city. The killer’s violent crimes are ritualistic but seemingly indiscriminate. As the death toll rises, the detectives must track a murderer without motive. The next kill could be anyone… maybe even one of their own.

Officer Aaron Pimental sees no hope for himself or humanity. His girlfriend is pulling away, and his best friend has found religion. When Aaron is thrust into the heart of the investigation, he must choose who he will become, the hero or the villain.

If Aaron doesn’t decide soon, the choice will be made for him.

*Contains Spoilers*

Jason Parent takes a semi-used plot and twists it to new extremes in his novel, A Life Removed. When multiple murders are discovered in a small Massachusetts town, with the victims' hearts missing, the police force is pushed in an uncomfortable direction, one that uses the facade of religion to twist innocent people into murderers. 

Though Aaron isn't the leading detective in this crime thriller, he is the main character of the novel. Aaron is a mentally unstable police officer with a heart chilling secret. He suffers from depression and has tried to commit suicide twice, yet he goes on living, unhappy and unfulfilled. Though there's something distressing in his personality, readers will empathize with him as he struggles to find meaning and to enjoy his life. This creates a connection between readers and Aaron, as readers begin to understand Aaron's internal emotional turmoil. However, after Parent brings readers into Aaron's corner, he sets Aaron up in a tricky situation, one that could turn a man into a monster.

The story begins with Aaron as the first detective on the scene when a murder victim is discovered. The body count quickly rises and it's soon apparent that a serial killer is on the loose. It's revealed that the killer is using religious texts to justify his work just before it becomes obvious that this is not a one man operation. A Life Removed straddles the fence on various topics, utilizing religion and charismatic power to drive innocent people to play redeemer. Though none of the characters are very likeable or easy to relate to. As previously mentioned, Aaron has a dark secret which immediately pushed me away from his character, though I did root for him to resist the temptation so readily laid out for him. The two detectives, Bruce and Jocelyn, make a good team but Bruce is too desensitized to seem like a good person. However, Jocelyn is probably the character who offers the most in way of connection as a mother, an intelligent investigator, and the semblance of a balanced life and an honorable moral compass. 

Probably the most disturbing thing about this book was the true motive of the killers. This leads into the realm of spoilers, so feel free to skip this paragraph. The killers were murdering their victims in order to save their souls. However, after the removal of their hearts, the group would then eat bits of the raw muscle. This was supposed to allow them to take a part of their victim's soul into their own. This is disturbing by itself, but it's even more so because the killers were getting stronger after doing so. These details give the murders an even more eerie aspect as a medical aspect is added to the plot.

Though this novel was highly entertaining as a crime thriller, I don't know if it would be a good fit for everyone who enjoys the genre. There are some iffy ethics and religious motivations that I could see offending some people. I've read books before that involved murder in the name of religion and it's always a really tricky plot to pull off successfully. Though I think Parent does a good job in remaining neutral as the author, there are obvious marks against his characters that make them easy to dislike. There were also numerous uncomfortable situations with grisly detail, which is pretty common in the crime genre, but I still think deserves mentioning for future readers. Overall, this novel was a consuming crime thriller that bordered on the uncomfortable just enough to engage and entertain without stepping over any lines. I think I'd recommend it for most readers who enjoy the genre, but certainly not all. 

Rating: 3/5 Cups