Daughter of Witches

Lyra #2

by Patricia C. Wrede

Two sorceresses and a mercenary soldier join with the bond servant, Ranira, in the attempt to break the power of the wicked Temple of Chaldon

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Ebooks, Science Fiction Fantasy, Adventure, Magic

215 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 1, 1983

About the author

Patricia Collins Wrede was born in Chicago, Illinois and is the eldest of five children. She started writing in seventh grade. She attended Carleton College in Minnesota, where she majored in Biology and managed to avoid taking any English courses at all. She began work on her first novel, Shadow Magic, just after graduating from college in 1974. She finished it five years later and started her second book at once, having become permanently hooked on writing by this time.

Patricia received her M.B.A. from the University of Minnesota in 1977.
She worked for several years as a financial analyst and accountant, first with the Minnesota Hospital Association, then with B. Dalton Booksellers, and finally at the Dayton Hudson Corporation headquarters.

Patricia finished her first novel in late 1978. In January, 1980, Pamela Dean, Emma Bull, Will Shetterly, Steven Brust, Nate Bucklin, and Patricia Wrede -- all, at that point, hopeful but unpublished -- formed the writer's group that later became known as "The Scribblies." Several years later, they were joined by Kara Dalkey. In April of 1980, Patricia's first novel sold to Ace Books. It came out at last in 1982, which is the year she met Lillian Stewart Carl (who introduced her to Lois McMaster Bujold by mail).

In 1985, shortly before the publication of her fifth book, she left the world of the gainfully employed to try winging it on her own.

Her interests include sewing, embroidery, desultory attempts at gardening, chocolate, not mowing the lawn, High Tea, and, of course, reading.
She is a vegetarian, and currently lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with her cat Karma. She has no children.

Reviews

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short entertaining tale. Interesting is that this book two of the series is not really a sequel to the first, but a stand alone. However, there are a few mentions of things that happened in the first book, but no dependency.

Interesting magic. I did think the use of the word "witch" was over used. The bearers of magic were in fact not witches, but the doubting Thomas 'es could only relate to witch as the dark side.

Onto book three.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three and a half stars. Definitely better than Shadow Magic. I did like Renira, she was a better developed character than Alethia in Shadow Magic. But the ending seemed rushed, the Shadow-born seemed too easily defeated. Everything was tied up a little too neatly.

[Eliška · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought the ebook of this on sale for $2 the other day, since I like Patricia C. Wrede's other works. I'd already read The Harp of Imach Thyssel and not been terribly impressed, but I'd liked the world it was set in.

The introduction to the ebook edition was worth the purchase price alone, for not only an introduction to the world of Lyra, but also a mini course in revising one's writing.

The protagonist in this one is...well, a little dull at times, and certainly obstinate and repetitive, but I still wanted to like her - and she redeemed herself by the end, so there's that. The plot reminded me quite a bit of Mercedes Lackey's The Robin the Kestrel, but shorter and less fleshed-out.

I do really like the "indirect sequel" format of this series, though, because it gives a much broader view of the world than would otherwise be possible in so few books of such short length, and Lyra is a great example of a well-built high fantasy setting that deserves to be shown off.

All in all, this is very clearly one of Wrede's early works, and while not quite up to the standards of her later work, it's still an enjoyable read.

[Gina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sometime between the ages of 12 and 16 I read a book that had something to do with a teenage girl in an icy world who was able to channel an internal fire--maybe something to do with underground fires--I can't remember. She and a male companion are banished or lost or something and at some point I think she uses this power to save him. I've been trying to find this book for ages. I think it was probably written during the early 90s.

Anyway, in my quest to find this book, I posted a stumper on loganberry and it was suggested that this was the book. I didn't recognize the cover, but the description sounded right, so I read it. And it's not the book. Some parts seemed vaguely familiar, but I think that it's because this is a pretty formulaic YA fantasy novel. Not my favorite genre, and I certainly wouldn't have finished it if I hadn't been trying to figure out if it was the book I was looking for. Also, I paid $8 for it, so I felt a certain obligation.

I probably would have enjoyed this book when I was 13. Oh, well, the quest continues.

[Therhoda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is actually the first fantasy book i ever read. Oh what it started.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

A stronger book than the first in the series as regards the writing and plot, but I did not like the characters nearly as much and found this entry somewhat grim without much humor to lighten the mood.

[Misty]

Putting this on the DNF shelf for now, because not only have I not felt the need to pick it back up in two months, but I keep completely forgetting I was even reading it. It's not that I don't like it, because I think I will like it when I'm done, but if it's not holding my attention, I'm not going to force it.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and will probably eventually read some of Wrede's other books that take place in this world. I particularly liked the variety of strong female characters, but I wanted more depth. The characters had a lot of potential that just wasn't quite realized for me. I wanted to know more about Mist, the healer, and less about Renira, the main character because Renira's obstinate refusal to accept her magical abilities became very repetitive and annoying. She did eventually accept them in the end, but I would have liked her character more if she had chosen to grow earlier in the story. I also found the street urchin Shandy a bit off putting because his judgmental attitude just didn't seem to fit with his choice of living on the streets. So overall, I enjoyed the world and felt that the characters were interesting and had potential, but I didn't love the book because the characters all ended up feeling a little too flat by the end.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable, if predictable medieval fantasy. Better plotting and character development than his first Lyra novel, but Wrede still suffers from the lack of editting. This book should have been edited by someone who wasn’t a good friend.
Whatever you do, do not read the Foreword where she demonstrates how bad the first draft was.

[Joanna · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one felt a little like an RPG novel, with lots of explaining, and LOTS of resting to recover from various wounds and spellcasting exhaustion. Despite that, I did like the characters enough to continue reading the cycle.

[Brenda Lower · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, stayed up WAY TOO late one night this weekend finishing it. Sigh... Good book.

[SophiaGhastly · Rating 3 out of 5]

After enjoying her other works this series is definitely from a younger and less experienced author. Characters are flat and unbelievable love plots. Not terrible but not my favorite.

[Julie Nichol · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was, surprisingly, actually my favorite in this series so far. I had been told bad things about it and I was nervous going into it. I thought that it was actually very intriguing because this society is all about a set social order and it is almost a dystopian society. I thought it was very interesting and liked how much the main character changed. She didn't stand at a different place like most characters do, but she managed to change from an oppressed slave into someone that I almost liked more so than just to pity her. I thought that it was interesting how much more....this isn't going to make much sense... grimy than Wrede's other books in this series. I mean, in the other books she is talking about princesses and lords and minstrels and all of the middle class people, but she doesn't address the people who were treated like property. The people who dwell on the streets. The characters also seemed to be more dirty than in the others because you have the part in the river and the bit with the snakes and everyone always seems like they are coated in mud and scratched and their clothes are ripped. Wrede seems to dwell on that a lot more than in the other books in this series. Maybe that is just because I have only read three of the books so far, but that's what I felt like.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Patricia C. Wrede has written some of my favorite books (Mairelon the Magician, Dealing with Dragons, etc.). Daughter of Witches is one of her earlier works, and it definitely feels generic and a bit amateur. I think I read the first Lyra book Shadow Magic many years ago, but I don't remember anything about it other than being very disappointed in it. That said my expectations were in check this time, so Daughter of Witches wasn't a painful read, just bland fantasy with fairly stock characters (spunky main character, mysterious magic woman, warrior woman, obnoxious child, mwahahaha villains, etc.). It kind of reminds me of the stories my friends and I tried to write in high school. I do kind of love the cheesy 80s fantasy cover. I know the Lyra books got good by Raven Ring (which I would recommend), so I may still read the rest eventually just for the full experience.

No romance in this book, as far as I could tell (Jaren and Arelnath are "swordmates" but I have no idea what that means and their relationship read as platonic battle buddies to me).

[Deborah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved so many of Wrede's books growing up...and I always wanted to read the rest of this series. This book was fine, but you can tell that she hasn't quite figured out how to make characters feel alive, or how to write realistically enough to get the reader involved. This book was a quick read, but I would recommend The Raven Ring or any of her Dragon books over it.

[Elentarien · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad. Did not realize it was part of a series until I looked here. So it's stand alone.

This book was not a bad read. Fairly interesting, kept a good pace and did not drag. Sort of classic 80s/90s fantasy (not a bad thing. I happen to like the style. lol).

It is definitely not one of Wrede's best books. It's fairly obvious one of her earlier books and her style has grown and matured quite a bit through her career. However, it was not bad, either. I liked the concept. The characters were interesting. However. . .the book felt like a short story. There was not much detail, character growth was minimal - Ranira was really the only one who 'developed', Shandy got a little, but not much. The general story itself felt like. . .the start of a story - without actually giving us the story. I mean, it was all there, intro-plot-flight/quest-climax-resolution-wrapup. . .but it did not FEEL like it went anywhere for some reason. I'm not sure if this is because the whole thing took place over a few days - or whether there just was not a lot of detail, or there could have been more to the story - but it really did feel more like the START of a big adventure than a big adventure in it's own.

I agree with other reviewers that the whole 'veil' thing was handled a bit oddly. Perhaps given the times it was written in, but I do feel it could have been handled a bit better. Such a thing as women wearing veils/dressing a certain way COULD very well be a cultural thing as much as anything. (Yes, in real life it's OFTEN used to keep women down - but it's not always) Sometimes such a thing could just be the way fashions have developed in that area - for - whatever reason. This was not explained, or explored before the 'scorn' for the veil was displayed. It sort of felt like if someone came to our culture and declared that wearing shoes was horrible and 'backwards and something to be scored - yet. . .we always wear shoes, its normal, and we wouldn't really NOT want to. (Ok, maybe shoes is a little dramatic, but still. :D) So, yeah, I do think this could have been handled a little better.

The point where Ranira decides to remove her veil and not wear one was not as bad as I feel the other reviewers took it. I did not feel she removed it because of 'freedom' or scorn. . .so much as the last vestige of a culture/life she decided to cut ties with and leave behind. Her life in Drinn was hardly wonderful, and being ruled by a Temple that was rather sinister - this made sense, especially after all she went through. The veil, I felt, was just her last 'symbol' of what she was leaving.

But yeah. All in all an interesting read. Not impressive, but not bad. I might read the rest if I come across them. The world seems fairly interesting.

[William Leight · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Daughter of Witches” represents a huge step forward for Wrede. Though set, like “Shadow Magic”, in the world of Lyra, Wrede basically throws out everything from the first book, moving to a different time and place and discarding the epic fantasy template in favor of something more like a spy novel. Our heroine, Ranira, is a bonded servant at an inn in the capital of the grim Empire of Chaldreth, a theocracy run by the Temple of Chaldon, which, among other unpleasant habits, burns witches, like Ranira’s parents. The inn where she works happens to be the one chosen by three foreigners who intend to stay in the city during the Midwinter Festival, something that is forbidden, hoping to learn one of the Temple's secrets. As Ranira has offended an important priest by refusing his advances, she is arrested along with them when their location is discovered, and most of the book consists of them trying to escape in order to save the day, with the help of Ranira’s friend Shandy, a street urchin. Wrede handles the plot very capably, keeping the suspense level high with a series of narrow escapes. But the best part of the book is Ranira, who is not only trying to escape but struggling to overcome a bone-deep fear of magic, one that starts to literally burn her, as her parents were burned, if she tries to draw on her power. Ranira has no love for her old life, but to suddenly adapt to a new one is never easy, and Wrede does an excellent job of balancing Ranira’s inner conflicts and the exterior dangers of the plot. Shandy’s difficulty in adapting to his new situation is also well done, and if the other characters are not quite as well rounded — Mist is a caring and compassionate healer, Jaren a highly-trained warrior (and is anyway unconscious for about half the book); Arelnath is also a highly-trained warrior, but younger and less sure of herself — they are still sufficiently well drawn to provide support. Gadratch is less interesting as the villain, but then, he isn’t really the main one: instead, Wrede cleverly uses the options available in a fantasy novel to make the air of lurking menace that is always present in a spy story into the villain instead. I still prefer the Enchanted Forest Chronicles, but “Daughter of Witches” is one of Wrede’s best.

[Sarah Margolin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lately I've been low-key thinking about how writers evolve over time, and being invited to beta read a first novel really got me going. I looked at the bibliographies of some of my favorite authors to see if I could remember progression, and saw that I'd never read Patricia C. Wrede's first published works, a 5 book series (this series... duh). Opportunity!

And boy did I get what I wanted, more even than I asked for. I borrowed copies from my library, and the third and fifth book had a foreword from Patricia talking about exactly this, about how she's grown as an author, with a revised and annotated version of the first chapter of the first book (Shadow Magic)... It was so perfect I didn't even notice at first, I was just so satisfied at getting an even closer look at the process than I'd expected. My luck here was astounding.

So, what do I think of this particular author's evolution? It was genuinely fascinating. I knew that she's good, I've read most of her other books and liked them, some enough to have physical copies in my strictly curated library (her Forest Chronicles, they're my most reliable cheer-up books) besides the ebooks that are what I actually read. Now I see how she developed her talents, through hard work and an openness to constructive criticism and learning. The progression was surprisingly stark, with the first book being something of a mess (the revised chapter in the aforementioned foreword shows what she could do with it later on, infinitely better) and every consequent book improved, with the last one (The Raven Ring) being truly great.

If you're only going to read one of the Lyra books, make it The Raven Ring. If you have a bit of interest in looking behind the curtain at a writer's evolution though, I enthusiastically recommend you read all five in publication order (and at least one being a later edition with the foreword). I probably wouldn't have continued past part of book one if I had only been reading for enjoyment, but reading them this way was deeply satisfying.

Because I read them as a group, with an eye to the evolution, I'm copying this as the review text for all of them. The only difference being the star rating.

[Benn Allen · Rating 2 out of 5]

While Patricia C. Wrede's writing kept me interested, "Daughter of Witches" is still a pedestrian novel. In some ways, it reads like a pale immitation of an Edgar Rice Burroughs adventure, but it sorely lacks ERB's flare. Part of the problem is Wrede focuses entirely too much on Renira, Mist, Arelnath, Shandy and Jaren, the story's heroes. Which wouldn't be so bad if their tribulations in escaping Drinn wasn't so boring. I think that's because the motivation of the tale's villain, Gadrath is never clear. There is never a feeling of any real threat for our heroes. True, we know the stakes (the Island of the Moon and its people may be killed), but why is never expressed. The threat feels hollow.

Of course, it would help if Our Heroes didn't escape so easily. Or at had more or even more difficult obstacles to overcome. As it stands, things are relatively too easy for them.

I should also say I don't mind the novel focuses exclusively on the three female protagonists, Mist, Renira and Arelnath. But it's to such an extent I question why Wrede even bother including any male characters. Jaren, because of a poisonous bite he received, spends the majority of "Daughter of Witches" unconscious while Shandy's presence is negligible. Pages go by without Shandy saying or doing anything. Almost like Wrede forgot the character was supposed to be there in the first place. If Wrede wanted "Daughter of Witches" to center on females only, then fine. Do so. Make Gadrath the only male character. But to have the only male heroes virtually non-existent for the most part is annoying and would be annoying no matter if Jaren and Shandy were female. Killing them off early might have been a better choice.

All in all, I wish I liked this novel better. Patricia Wrede's style is enjoyable. She's an excellent wordsmith. But ultimately, there's nothing special about the book to make me curious to read anything else by her, much less another book on the Lyra series.

[Cassandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are at least two ways of looking at this book.

Firstly, as a fantasy novel of its time: fairly mundane, nothing really happens, you almost have a nice quest but yeah, a bit bland. However solid mostly female cast - which is unusual for the time it was written! Yet it's similar in time (I think) to Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea series, which are sooooo much better in every way. Therefore I can't quite say that it is boring now but is 'of its time.'
Reading it in 2019, it is interesting to see a fantasy novel which follows the stereotypes so perfectly. These are almost rare now - everything is satirical or at least pokes fun at the older fantasy tropes.

Secondly, it is really interesting to read Patricia C Wrede's first novel. I've read quite a few of her books: some of them rank among my favourites (Dealing with Dragons, the Thirteenth Child series), and some were merely entertaining (the epistolary ones). Yet she's always been witty, funny, and clever. All things Daughter of Witches wasn't.

Still, every author has to start somewhere, and I reckon she had to write this, a straight fantasy, to be able to satiritise it so beautifully in Dealing with Dragons and the like.

[Debyi Kucera (Book&BuJo) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daughter of Witches is the second book in the Lyra series by Patricia C. Wrede. The first three books are considered standalone’s set in the same world around the same time period. There are some mentions of characters from the other books as well.

In a city called Drinn where magic not allowed, three magical strangers meet a servant girl named Ranira and offer her a chance of a new life. Ranira’s parents were burned at the stake for practicing magic and she has to live with that shame every day. The strangers arrive during the Midwinter Festival which is the worst time for visitors to come to Drinn. As the strangers try to save Ranira from her abusive owner, they reveal their magic and attract the temple guards attention. They must now all run for their lives and Ranira will need to unleash the power inside her that cost her parents their lives.

The overall pacing is a little slow with a lot of wandering/waiting, which was a bit odd as they were basically running for their lives. I also noticed that the term “witch” was used quite often. With that said, the ending of the book was rushed, it would have been nice to have had a bit more time in the story at the end.

Personally, I liked the first book in the series better but I also enjoyed this one and will continue with the series.

4 stars

I have a YouTube channel, 'BookandBuJo'. Check it out - BookAndBuJo - YouTube

[Lauren]

Dnf chapter 13

The writing was a bit better than the first book in the series, but this book just isn't doing it for me. The beginning had promise, but it quickly waned. I was hoping that after they got out of the city we would finally get some answers as to why this all matters, but the answers we got were rather weak, and didn't pique my interest. I didn't feel connected to the characters, and they didn't feel well fleshed out. I don't think we found out how old Shandy is; he seemed to me to be younger than Ranira. I wanted to know these characters, how Shandy and Ranira met, and get a sense of who they and these foreigners are, but they were all very flat characters and didn't feel real.

I found myself not wanting to pick this up, and I'm not even sure how much progress I made since I have the whole series as an ebook bundle, but I must be over a third of the way through, if not closer to halfway. I'm in a bit of a stressful period at the moment and I find myself just constantly scrolling YouTube and social media instead of reading this (which I tend to do anyway when I'm stressed, but this is getting ridiculous), and every time I force myself to read it, I have no interest. I might try one of the later books in the series to give it one more go before just completely abandoning it, since the books are more companion novels and not direct sequels.

[Patrick Seiter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like Shadow Magic, I read this book in 2003/2004 in the Shadows over Lyra compendium, remembering nothing of it for my current read.

I would compare Wrede's Drinn to Terry Goodkind's D'Hara, but she predates him, so I will instead say that the story takes place in the equivalent of a medieval Muslim empire. The priest class holds supreme authority as did the Sultans, virginity is highly valued, and women are required to wear veils.

The book is almost contemporaneous with Shadow Magic, taking place a few years after, but many leagues south of Alkyra. The characters are all written well and each has a very distinct personality. Every character acts as you expect each character would act. The entire book is a chase scene which I usually hate (see my recent House of Suns review), but that's a subjective nitpick.

The author hinted through another character that Ranira would have a heart-to-heart with Shandy but it never happened, though they do talk in the finale.

The finale was believable and the system of magic that Wrede uses, though not explained in full, made enough sense that the character did not win as a Mary Sue or with a deus ex machina. I was going to 4/5 stars the book, but since I read the entire thing in a 24 hour period and I don't have any real substantial issues, I'm giving it 5 stars.

[Brian Palmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second in Wrede's Lyra novels, this veers away from the pastoral peace of the first; where that book involved privileged folk almost strolling through the woods, this is a cramped novel set in a theocratic country where witchcraft is fiercely punished, and an orphan girl trying fiercely to live her life on her own terms has to keep her head down.

Needless to say, she is unable to completely do so here, and ends up involved with some outsiders passing through the city at a time of high religious ritual (and, eventually, helping them try to escape). Everything is compressed and stressful; this is not a novel about the clash of empires or godlike sorceries.

Some parts of this felt more YA-ish (orphan protagonists learning to accept themselves do that, I find); at spots this definitely felt like it could be in Mercedes Lackey's ouevre. The thematic big evil of the Lyra series (the Shadow-born) do make an appearance, but it's not an arc; just in the same world with similar rules and some shared historical events.

[Anna Hepworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is rare these days that I pick a random unread book from my collection and read it through as fast as I can. I acquired this and other of Wrede’s works in an ebook bundle some time ago, and had no idea what I was getting myself in to. The book has aged, in that some of the fantasy tropes are very much of their time (the early 80s), but it still works as a fascinating full-steam ahead adventure. I find it interesting that this is very much an ‘escape the dystopia’ book, and yet despite the casual violence and the creepy controlling religion (obvious in the first few pages) it manages to be far lighter than the average recent dystopia.

Also, the version I have has two additional details that might be of interest - the introduction that reworks the opening chapter for one of Wrede’s other books, and the collection of photos from throughout Wrede’s life. Both very personal touches, and yet so very different. I’m not sure I would be all that interested in such offerings from most authors, but it worked in this situation.

[Kira Nerys · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read, because I generally enjoyed the first of the series, but I also agree with other reviewers that this is a better book, objectively. A much better balance of show vs. tell, of being present in the moment with the characters. However, I also found this...more forgettable? I don't know, maybe I was just more excited about Shadow Magic?

Honestly, this was one of those volumes that felt like a D&D game. Not in the sense of characters' choices directly impacting the world and each event as a consequence of the previous choice—although, yes—but more in the sense that you could reverse-engineer this into a one-shot of an unlikely group of allies trying to escape a town and then play it. As a story, it didn't aim for the epic scope of the first Lyra story, but instead shrunk its focus into a contained, action-focused arc.

Not a book I'd widely recommend, and not my favorite of Wrede's, but I'd happily re-read this story someday.

[Jo Oehrlein · Rating 3 out of 5]

Featuring two bad guys of the really bad variety.
One is her bond-owner. He physically abuses her and emotionally? abuses her (keeps her from getting her half-day off, etc.).
The other is a priest. He takes a creepy interest in her, trying to get her as a temple prostitute. He also has a total disregard for human life, drugs her, and is going to let the shadow-born take over. He's using magic without understanding it, while harnessing other magic users for his own purpose.

Does anyone else wonder who reported the foreigners at the inn? I really thought it would turn out to be Shandy.

Of all the characters, I think I liked Jaren the most and would have been interested to learn more about him.

Somehow Renira never fully became flesh & blood for me. Shandy was just a stock character who popped in and out.

[Evan Þ. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Once again, I regretfully found a Wrede book to not draw me into the plot. Our protagonist has been rescued from slavery to the oppressive church, by a group of foreign mages who inform her she has magic of her own unbeknownst to her, and together they must fight the oppressive church that turns out to be have been deceiving people all along.

It's a plot I've seen before, and none of the circumstances or characters grab my interest as original or unusually sympathetic. Most of them don't have unique character traits I noticed.

Wrede explains in the preface to this edition how she discovers her plots as she goes along, frequently ending up at variance from her original ideas. Sometimes it works out beautifully. But, I can't help wondering whether her failures would've been averted by thinking things through in advance more.

[Scott Wozniak · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book in the series and I could see how the author had grown since writing the first book. The characters were rich and nuanced, with internal conflicts and layers that got revealed throughout the book. That was much better than the first book.

The plot was smaller--a group of five people with one bad guy and his minions trying to escape from one city--and that was mixed for me. I prefer big plots in big worlds, so it was a little bit of a bummer to stay small. But it allowed her to get really close in on the characters. And she actually brought in a larger world to their small problems, escalating to the fate of two nations.

So, it wasn't my favorite of all time, but it was engaging and satisfying.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

https://wordnerdy.blogspot.com/2021/0...

Not a ton actually /happens/ in this second volume, but I enjoyed it just the same. It’s set in a different part of the world, with all new characters (though the protagonist of the previous book is mentioned). The main character here is a teenager in a fairly sexist/patriarchal society, whose parents were burned as witches several years earlier, and now she is a bondwoman to an abusive innkeeper. Until some foreigners come to stay, setting some magical adventures into motion. Most of the book involves all the characters hiding in the woods from the baddies while our heroine tries to decide how she feels about magic, but I kind of liked that? B+.