About the book, A Witch’s Brew
- Series: Conquest of the Veil
- Publisher: Book Liftoff, April 14, 2021
- Categories: Sword & Sorcery / Magical Realism / Fantasy / Paranormal
- Giveaway: Scroll for entry information
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.
Buy, read, and discuss this book:
Amazon (Paperback) | Amazon (Kindle) | Goodreads
About the author, Michael Scott Clifton
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.
Connect with Michael:
Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter | YouTube | Instagram | Goodreads | Amazon Author Page | Bookbub
My Thoughts:
I jumped into A Witch’s Brew the third installment in Michael Scott Clifton’s Conquest of the Veil series having only read brief synopses of the previous two novels, but so good is the author’s storytelling that I never felt out of the loop, or like I’d missed a ton of crucial backstory. More importantly, I felt completely comfortable in the world Clifton built, which felt like a real place.
While I loved the story over all I really appreciated that both the protagonist, Alex, and the antagonist (I felt too much sympathy for her to label her an outright villain), Maggie, were both strong, self-possessed women. I was rooting for Alex, of course, but both characters were well drawn, dynamic women, and leapt off the page and into my imagination, where they’ll linger for a while.
I also loved Clifton’s use of language. So many fantasy authors conflate fantasy with medieval, and use antiquated language where it really isn’t necessary. Clifton understands the difference, and I enjoyed reading this genre-blending story of witches and potions, sword fights and romance, all the more because the author used contemporary language.
While I am a new reader of this series, I’m not entirely new to Clifton’s work, having reviewed his novel The Janus Witch in 2018. Then, I was impressed by his deftness at handling time travel. With A Witch’s Brew, I was struck by his prowess with both parallel world structures, and with writing romance that is poignant but never sappy. I’m also excited to know that there are more stories planned in this world. I’m completely hooked and I think anyone who is a fan of series like Shadow and Bone will be, as well.
This novel is a fantastic (no pun intended), immersive story that has something for everyone, wrapped in a perfect plot and enhanced by compelling characters and a truly original take on magic and its uses.
Goes well with: A grilled grouper sandwich, sweet potato fries, and a craft-brewed beer, nothing too hoppy.
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.
Visit the Other Great Blogs on this Tour
For direct links, updated daily, check out the tour page at Lone Star Literary Life
| 5/18/21 | Review | The Plain-Spoken Pen |
| 5/18/21 | BONUS Promo | LSBBT Blog |
| 5/19/21 | Review | Missus Gonzo |
| 5/19/21 | BONUS Promo | Hall Ways Blog |
| 5/20/21 | Review | Book Fidelity |
| 5/21/21 | Review | Reading by Moonlight |
| 5/22/21 | Review | Bibliotica |
| 5/23/21 | Review | The Clueless Gent |
| 5/24/21 | Review | The Page Unbound |
| 5/25/21 | Review | Sybrina’s Book Blog |
| 5/26/21 | Review | Forgotten Winds |
| 5/27/21 | Review | Chapter Break Book Blog |
| 5/27/21 | BONUS Promo | All the Ups and Downs |
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Fabulous review, and I love that you can jump in on this 3rd book and be pulled in and hooked without reading 1&2. (But I want to dive into the whole series.) Thanks for the post!
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