REVIEW by Dolly: Assassin’s Curse (Witch Stone Prophecy Vol 1) by Debra L Martin (@dlmartin6, @fidget 78)

When elite assassin Jeda received his assignment to kill a witch and deliver her twin daughters to the Countess of Berkshire, he had no idea it would be his last. The witch stuns him with an elemental blast, but not before he’s able to throw his knife. When Jeda regains consciousness, the dying witch is performing a compelling spell between him and her twin daughters. Now bonded to the girls, Jeda’s old life is forfeit. His only thought is to take the girls and run as far away as he can. He has no idea that the twins are the ones spoken of in the long-lost prophecy of The Witch Stone. Forces are gathering: the white witches want to teach them; the Countess wants her grandchildren back, and the guild has sent their best assassin to bring Jeda back, dead or alive. Jeda must use all of his assassin skills to stay one step ahead of them all, but will it be enough to save himself and keep the children of prophecy alive?

I received a Kindle version of this novel from the author for a fair and honest review.  Why do we say that?  Oh well.

I have never to my knowledge read anything by this author but was ready for something new.  Assassin’s Curse was something quite different from anything I had read over the last several years.  The synopsis gives a very accurate description of the contents without all the highs and lows.

I was a little thrown at first because the protagonist is male and with the storyline the way it is, I would have thought the authors would have used a female.  So, unique.  You really want to hate Jeda but the whole compulsion spell completely changes his character and actually makes him quite likable and sympathetic.  The good and bad characters, with the exception of Jeda are evident and very well created.

I really enjoyed Assassin’s Curse.  Was it a best seller waiting to happen, no.  I thought is was a well developed storyline, the characters were nicely portrayed and the descriptions were extremely well written.  I learned quite a bit about knife throwing and sword play.  The fight scenes kept me wholly engrossed.  The twins just about stole the novel but I believe that was the point as we can tell by the ending, there is more to come about their adventures.

As you know, we all have different tastes in our reading material.  As usual, after forming my review and having my rating in mind, I read some other reviews.  I was surprised Assassin’s Curse wasn’t better rated.  Maybe I received a newly edited version or my standards aren’t quite so high but I didn’t find bunches of editing problems.  Maybe I enjoyed the story so much, I didn’t pick up on them thus making them a non-player in my rating.  The premise of the novel was much different from most of the novels I’ve read recently.  I love vampires and shape shifters but this novel centered around witches and magic.  It was not a light read.  You had to commit yourself to the story to fully enjoy it.  I did.  I sincerely hope the next volume is published quickly.  I want to know what happens to the twins and the journey they will take.

My rating:  4 Stars

ASSASSIN’S CURSE
The Witch Stone Prophecy Volume 1

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