Arcane Circle by Linda Robertson
Series: Persephone Alcmedi #4
Published by Pocket
Published on: December 28th, 2010
Genres: Urban Fantasy, Werewolves
Pages: 401
Format: Paperback
Source: Borrowed
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Even magic can’t solve everything. . . . After facing down the forces of Fairy in mortal combat, Persephone Alcmedi still must deal with the aftermath. Not only does Seph now possess deadly secrets she must hide from the arcane and mundane world alike, but the dozens of magical creatures who’ve taken up residence behind her cornfield need food and shelter, and there’s still her foster daughter Beverly’s tenth birthday party to plan.
And that’s not all. . . . Seph’s boyfriend Johnny has revealed himself as the wærewolf Domn Lup, and the ruler of the wære world is en route from Romania to make sure Johnny really is the “king” he claims to be. But Johnny’s hiding a dangerous secret: his magic is locked in his mysterious tattoos. He and Seph must find a way for him to reclaim it—fast—despite those who have no intention of letting Johnny gain his full powers. Seph knows that, in the arcane world, strength is always a necessity and power must be constantly proven, but how far is she willing to go to succeed . . . and at what cost?
Arcane Circle deserves a couple of candles to be lit and the invocation of a couple Nordic and astronomical powers before I start reviewing. Here’s a yellow candle dedicated to the perspicacity of Venus. And here’s a red candle to the steadfastness of Mars. Why go to such ends before reviewing? Well, we are dealing with a circle. No real ending and all that.
But, to get to the point (a little too geometrical), Persephone’s witchcraft world makes Harry Potter look like Dora the Explorer. To be fair, the magical boy was written for a different market than that of Alcemedi, but, that complication aside, it’s the elaborate preparation for spellcasting in this series that sets it apart.
For some it will be a strain to read through dozens of pages or so describing a particularly intense ritual, and even for myself, it would have been a strain if Persephone were not a character with such heart or if there weren’t about a couple dozen threats pointed at her at any one time as the Lustrata, bringer of justice and balance in a world with corrupt were kings and injured griffons.
The plot picks up immediately where it left off previously and leaves off at precisely a point where we would want it to continue (plenty of unanswered questions and special events pending). Its perspective benefits from not including the vampire near as much as before. As a were-heavy entry in the series, everything’s a lot closer to the Earth (I believe the last had a lot more to do with prophecy).
We get to see more of Persephone’s domestic life, always a pleasure, and learn much more about a seemingly unimportant episode from her past. Don’t get me wrong. The vampire does get in a good feeding that raises the question, as it should always be raised in these types of books, which supernatural being is more stimulating. This scene kind of swayed me. I can easily be bought off with cinnamonlike smells and complexity.
Pretty much you know the drill. If you like this series, then you’ll like this one. Although I would say this book, book four, is more a return to form as seen in book one since book two and three relocated much of their actions to settings other than Persephone’s twenty acres.
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| Recommended: | For those who just can’t choose were or vamp but just maybe kinda prefer weres |
| Like this, like that: | The Spellcrackers.com series by Charlaine Harris and the World of the Lupi series by Eileen Wilks |
Great review Josh! I’ve had the first book in the series on my wish list for a while, but after reading your review on Arcane Circle I’ll have to get it ASAP. I love detailed world building and am excited to read this series…and the covers are awesome too!
Thank you. You shouldn’t be disappointed by book one, at least, but be prepared for that fall-off around book two (it just gets super extra complex) then gradually simplifies.
Josh, I actually like the sound of the detailed rituals and the main characters. I need to look up book one. Love your review!
Thank you. I am glad I am not the only one.
This series sounds lovely! Like Kimba, I actually really enjou detailed witchcraft, so it sounds just like my cup of tea (: great review!
Thank you. Linda Robertson definitely knows her stuff. There’s a blog post somewhere around here…http://www.tyngasreviews.com/2013/02/when-im-not-writing-with-linda.html…where she talks about her wand making hobby. Fairly interesting.