Mark of the Witch by Maggie Shayne

Description:

A lapsed Wiccan, Indira Simon doesn't believe in magic anymore. But when strange dreams of being sacrificed to an ancient Babylonian god have her waking up with real rope burns on her wrists, she's forced to acknowledge that she may have been too hasty in her rejection of the unknown. Then she meets mysterious and handsome Father Tomas. Emerging from the secrecy of an obscure Gnostic sect, he arrives with stories of a demon, a trio of warrior witches-and Indira's sacred calling. Yet there's something even Tomas doesn't know, an inescapable truth that will force him to choose between saving the life of the woman he's come to love-and saving the world.

My Review:

Mark of the Witch by Maggie Shayne

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

So, I had read a couple of Maggie Shayne’s books, and had really enjoyed them.  Unfortunately, after getting ½ way through this book, I can’t say the same thing.  I had quite a few issues with this book, so let me explain why I didn’t finish this book.

Issue #1:  After 30 pages of knowing each other, Indira acts and feels like she “knows” Tomas and vice versa.  Uhm… that doesn’t happen.  I mean, I know this is paranormal, but event that is a bit beyond even the unbelievable.  Plus, when you are getting to know someone, the repeated phrase “I didn’t know that” is OBVIOUS! 

Issue #2:  I had no background for this book.  It kick starts with the regressive dreams, and I pretty much floundered through the book.  I did discover after putting the book down for the final count, that there was a prequel short story that I could have read to get a better understanding.  Unfortunately, it was too late by the time I discovered this, as I had no desire to read this book anymore. 

Issue #3:  Tomas’ lack of faith was not inspiring to trust him.  Why in the heck would you choose to believe anything a doubting priest says, I don’t know… And, honestly, it was just irritating. 

Issue #4:  (this is more of a personal issue, but it is still an issue for me).  I don’t like past life novels.  Keeping the stories straight between the previous life and the current life is difficult, and most authors do not write it in a way that is understandable and just not confusing.  This is just one more case here. And for those of you who are then asking yourself why I even read a book that had past life issues to it, I will tell you that the synopsis was misleading.  I didn’t think it was about a past life/destiny thing. 

Now, to the good things about this book:

•  Easy read, with good flow and pacing.  I think that is why I got so frustrated that I wasn't enjoying the book, just because it was written well. 
• Great use of flashbacks when there were some… Though, at first they were a bit confusing between current/modern life and past/ancient life.
• I found Indira’s questioning of the situation and skeptic perspective towards the whole ordeal to be extremely understandable and relatable. 

As I said before, I didn't finish this book.  It became more irritating than enjoyable.  I won’t be picking this book up again to try and read it anytime soon… I don’t recommend it, but if you enjoyed it, let me know why. 

Happy Reading!

Cana