The Witch Queen

From Publishers Weekly British author Siegel offers stylish, satisfying fantasy-horror fare in her third installment in the story of Fern Capel, a cute London PR whiz and fledgling witch. In the first two novels, Prospero's Children and The Dragon Charmer, Fern became aware of her magical powers and acquired a crew of mortal and supernatural allies. This time, an old, once-dead witch queen, Morgus, invades her home turf to seize control of the world and to take sadistic revenge against Fern, who now has to destroy an unkillable foe while protecting her friends. This may sound like Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a U.K. accent, but Siegel does some distinctive, startling things with an apparently trivial form. For one thing, she writes in a quiet but uncommonly witty style that can soar into eloquence or mute into dread as needed. For another, she uses myth and legend in daringly eclectic ways, combining offhand but authoritative-sounding references to, say, Atlantis and King Arthur in the same breath. The author is particularly good at seeing past the actions surface to grapple with what really matters. In this case, as Fern realizes, the goal is not simply to defeat her rival. Morgus has dedicated herself utterly to mastering magical lore, so that in gaining power, she has also wound up grandly alone and insane. So how can Fern beat her without imitating her? How, in other words, can she avoid becoming the new witch queen? The answer is not only disturbing but also tough-mindedly convincing, leaving readers anxious for the next Fern Capel novel. Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library Journal Modern-day witch Fern Capel strives to piece her life back together after her imprisonment by the ancient sorceress Morgus only to find her dreams disturbed by intimations that her battle with her captor is not yet over. Following Prospero's Children and The Dragon Queen, the third installment of a series featuring a young, resourceful practitioner of magic in the modern world draws upon Arthurian legends and Atlantean myths to create a new twist on an old tale of passion rekindled and love betrayed. Siegel creates complex, believable characters caught in a web of treachery and intrigue. For most fantasy collections. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. Jan Siegel has created one of the most compelling fantasy series in recent memory. What began with Prospero’s Children and continued with The Dragon Charmer now comes to a dazzling conclusion with The Witch Queen. Magnetically gifted Fern Capel has at last come into her own with her magical powers—and just in time. . . . It is a fearsome world of witches, dragons, and goblins, where a gnarled tree bears fruit of human heads. Fern Capel believes she has left it all behind. But now that world is seeping into modern day England: The witch-queen Morgus, who had imprisoned Fern in the ghostly Otherworld, has returned from countless years of exile beneath the gruesome Eternal Tree. Stalking the twenty-first century in her Prada stilettos, Morgus has the mindset of the Dark Ages and vows to rule the ancient kingdom of Logrez, now modern Britain. Most of all, Morgus wants revenge on Fern Capel. Rejuvenated through sorcery, neither charm nor weapon can harm the witch-queen. She has planted a cutting from the Eternal Tree in the real world and awaits with impatience the ripening of its terrifying bounty. When Fern learns that her enemy cannot be defeated through conventional means, she turns to her best friend, Gaynor, her brother, Will, her old mentor, Ragginbone, and Maldo, the goblin-queen. Together, they track Morgus through London’s high-society parties and seedy, sinister contacts, until they finally draw a magic circle in a Soho basement. Fern Capel knows that survival is not enough: This time she must win. But she does not yet understand how high a price she will have to pay. In this thrilling final novel of her acclaimed trilogy, Jan Siegel takes advantage of her greatest strengths as a writer—weaving magic into a modern-day world and bringing vivid life to a host of characters that readers will not soon forget. Rejuvenated And Reincarnated Through Sorcery, The Witch-queen Morgus Returns After Years Of Exile, Stalking Modern England As She Concocts A Devious Scheme To Rule Present-day Britain And Seek Revenge On Her Nemesis Fern Capel. Jan Siegel.