The Witch's Knight by Paula Brackston and Trevor Brackston

Stacey Irving • May 9, 2022

I just reviewed The Witch's Knight... You are in for a ride

I just reviewed #TheWitchsKnight by #PaulaBrackston and #TrevorBrackston

When William the Conqueror became king of all of England, Wales didn’t escape his clutches and he set about conquering the home of Lady Gwen. Tragically she not only loses her parents, her home and close to losing her life, she discovers she is a hereditary witch and not just any witch, a witch of the white shadow. With this knowledge she must make the ultimate commitment to not only keep evil at bay, but to be able to find her true love, the knight sworn to protect her again.

As Lady Gwen becomes Rhiannon, Queen Witch, she has to learn to leave the person she thought she was behind and learn the ways of her ancestors to be ready to fight for humanity in a battle so fierce it could rock the whole world to its core.

Can she learn her craft and protect the people who have now become her family? Will her agreement with her coven be too much for her and will she ever find her knight again?

This book was a slam dunk for me. The magic the authors weaved on the page had me so enthralled, I couldn’t put it down.

The book straddles the past and present time in such a way that it doesn’t feel like two separate stories. It flows gently like a river over its rock bed with a natural rhythm and elegant class. The pace was exactly how a good historical fiction should be and the characters had so much depth and richness I could feel my heart racing to find out what would happen next! I am not usually one to be dramatic but when I got to the end I squeaked out loud and actually turned my iPad over to see if there was more… The climax will have me biting my nails until I can get my hands on the next book. This book ticks every box, will fill all the pieces of your soul and have you on a monumental rollercoaster ride that will have your whole body screaming for more.

If you love supernatural historical fiction that will have you feeling the welsh winds on your face and drawing your sword to battle for the good of humanity in your head, then this book has to be your next read.

5 stars isn’t enough to portray the gravity of excellence this book has pouring from its pages

Thank you to Paula and Trevor for sending me this ARC in exchange for my honest review

#arc #bookstagram #5starread #books #booklover #historicalfiction #romanceread #supernaturalbook #witchs #booksofinsta #booksofig #bookreview #bookrecs #bookrecommendation #noshelfcontrol #readersofig #booktok #readallday #bookstagrammer #bookstagram #bookriot #bookworm #bookwormlife #bookalorian #yournextread #bookreviewer #bookblogger
By Stacey Irving January 29, 2026
Book review - Fiction - Audiobook - domestic fiction - found family Such a Bad Influence by Grace Demyan Felicity is still grieving the loss of her mother. So much so she still calls the phone and leaves messages on the voicemail. She spends her time running the small blueberry farm her mother left her… She never expects to receive a call from the number… The new owner is Alex, a teen aged out of foster care and in need of help. Felicity takes her in but she expects her to help her on the farm and the two of them needed each other much more than they realized. It’s funny because this book sounded cozy and sweet but there were some really excellent moments in the book that had me pulled right in! I love books that keep you guessing. I really enjoyed that Felicity and Alex band together to scare off vandals from defacing the farm and building a small business from it. Brilliant! I loved the plot, I enjoyed the characters too. I could really see how these two people could find a way to be a small family and I was totally charmed!! Honestly it was a brilliant book. I loved the audio and I will definitely look for more from the author. 4 stars Thank you @netgalley and @brillianceaudio for my gifted audio.
By Stacey Irving January 29, 2026
Book Review - Fiction - Magical Realism - Romance I just finished The Forget-me-not Library by Heather Webber and here are my musings. Juliet is unmoored.. An accident left her lucky to be alive but she has no memory… The same night her grandad died and her heart is heavy. She decides to take a roadtrip and she ends up in a town when her car breaks down… A town where the people know more than they let on.. Single mom Tallulah works at the library after the breakdown of her marriage.. Living with her grandad isn’t what she was expecting but when hers and Juliet’s lives crash into each other, Tallulah starts to see life is for living and she isn’t the only one who needs a second chance…. Oh man, I loved this book! I am a sucker for magical realism and second chances at life books. It was well written, charming and sweet. I normally don’t love 2 POVs but I adored both the FMCs so I wasn't salty about it. It had friendships in unlikely places… Sweet romances… A lost love… That one hit me the hardest… I won’t spoil it.. You will know when you read it. It was more light-hearted than I was expecting and that was a beautiful surprise for me. AND COME ON!! Set in a library… I’m all over that. It had some beautiful hallmark moments that made me swoon and it wasn’t just the romance parts. Juliet losing her memory and finding a place she never expected to find and a little girl is the reason she starts to feel like the town is home… OH MY HEART! I needed the HEA - happily ever after.. I needed the small town… I needed the found family. You need this book! 4 stars Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for my gifted copy OUT NOW!! #bookblog #bookcommunity #literaryinfluencer #bookrecs #bookalorian
By Stacey Irving January 28, 2026
Book review - Fiction - Audiobook - Romance Pick Me by Victoria Schade Brooke needs some inspiration for her writing so looking for a romance opportunity means looking in the weirdest places. She even learns to play pickleball to get close to a handsome man on the courts… She just needs to learn to play so when her friend pays for Owen to give her some lessons… Can she keep it strictly on the courts or will the attraction come off the page too? This one was a real surprise. I haven't ever played pickleball.. I've never seen a game either so it intrigued me. I might have gone to youtube to take a look at it and OMG there has to be easier ways to date haha. I really liked Owen. He was so grumpy and cute I wanted to eat him up with a spoon. I liked Brooke too and that's the magic for me. Their build up. The story was fine and the narration was good but the two of them were the wow factor for me. I liked how they connected. I thought it was really cute and I give it 4 stars Thank you @netgalley #netgalley #bookreview #bookishblog #pickleball #pickme #romancereader #bookalorian
By Stacey Irving January 28, 2026
I just finished Only Lovers in the Building by Nadine Gonzalez and here are my musings. Liliane quits her job as a lawyer after someone else got the credit for her hard work. Not willing to go home from the retreat just yet, she gets herself an air bnb and plans to read all summer. She finds herself bumping into her neighbor Ben and they discover a shared love for romance books and they spend the summer reading and critiquing books together while fighting the mounting attraction that neither wants to act on. This is one of the only beachy reads I did this summer and it was definitely the only one I needed. The thing this book had in spades was an eclectic group of characters. All unique and perfect in their imperfection. I loved Ben. He was refreshingly honest in how he dealt with people but had the biggest problem being honest with himself which really made for an interesting read. It was a realllllllllyyyyyyyyyy sssssssssslllllllllllllooooooooooowwwwwwwww burn. I mean really slow but honestly it worked for me. I liked the build up of their friendship and their mutual love of books. I liked their banter and how they started their podcast on their musings. It was very cool! 4.25 stars Thank you @harperaudio for my gifted copy You can find all my book reviews at thelionessofliteracy.com And my podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/5kKN96RNPNh4uNDZzpIE1A You can find all my book merch at Bookaloriandesigns.com and bookaloriandesigns.etsy.com #onlyloversinthebuilding #bookish #bookalorian #bookreview #audiobookreview #bookblog #bookpod #bookpodcast #litdulterous #booksbooksbooks #bookrecs #romancereader
By Stacey Irving January 27, 2026
Book Review - Fiction - Audiobook - greek retelling - Romantic Fantasy The Cafe of Inescapable Human Destiny by Elizabeth Hrib When Liv quits school she didn’t expect to find herself working in a coffee shop… Ran by the Fates! When her life thread becomes entwined with a beautiful man…. Nick, she has to get his life back onto track before the fates intervene. Well that was an entertaining read!! I loved the narration and the characters were the magic here. It was short and very entertaining little audio. Not my normal thing but dang the story was good! The book moved quickly and you will be just as charmed as I was. It was a clever little greek retelling and I can’t gush about it enough. 4 stars #novella #bookreview #booksbooksbooks #reader #reading #bookishblog #bookinfluencer
By Stacey Irving January 27, 2026
I just finished Dot Slash Magic by Liz Shipton and here are my musings. Seven Jones is in college… she just wants to get through it all. Walking into a secret underground magic club was not on the agenda. Learning she had magic is a big adjustment and the fact she doesn’t know what channels her magic is making everyone uneasy. When she accidently creates a magic computer program, an AI she calls dot… She keeps it a secret but someone is summoning terrifying creatures and everyone is looking at her to blame. This might be the weirdest plot of a book ever but dang I was hooked from the first chapter!! Seven has powers and she joins a group that can help her channel so the power doesn’t go bad.. She spends her time fighting the people in the group and working out how her magic works. I loved all the characters. It was a motley crew of magic wielders and they all connected so well. I loved the narration. The voice for dot was excellent. It made me giggle every single time. I liked how the book gave us the pitfalls of AI while showing us how it can make some things so much easier. I was really blown away with the plot! It was so different and fun! The ending threw me through a loop too! It was an excellent book! I love sci-fi’s and this one was unique and brilliant!! 4.5 stars! Thank you @tantoraudio and @netgalley #litdulterous #bookalorian #dotslashmagic #lizshipton #fantasybook #romancereader #dystopian #darkacademia #bookpodcast #bookreview #Urbanfantasy #sciencefiction #newadult
By Stacey Irving January 26, 2026
The body content of your post goes here. To edit this text, click on it and delete this default text and start typing your own or paste your own from a different source.
By Stacey Irving January 23, 2026
Book review - Fiction - audiobook - Thriller - general fiction Darkrooms by Rebecca Hannigan It was the eve of 1999 summer solstice that was the last time anyone saw Roison… just 9 years old… she went into the hanging woods and never came back out. Twenty years later Roison's sister DeeDee is now a cop and she is barely holding her life together. Roison's childhood bestie Caitlin… A petty thief is returning home for the first time in years… She was the last person to see Roison before she disappeared.. It took me a while to get used to the audio narration on this one but I am so glad I stuck it out because the story was fabulous. It was dark and ominous and the twists came together at the end for a beautiful heartbreaking conclusion. I never really connected with any character and I think that was on purpose… We were supposed to distrust them all and it was a seriously clever way to tell a tale. I found the pacing started out really slow… It was a build up I didn’t get until I got further in so keep going! It will make sense! The writing was very good! I have ordered a copy for my shelf! Definitely worth the read. 4 stars Thank you to @netgalley and @harperaudio #netgalley #audiobookreader #thrillerbook #bookpodcast #bookishpodcaster #bookblog
By Stacey Irving January 23, 2026
I just finished Joy Moody Is Out of Time by Kerryn Mayne and here are my thoughts Cassie and Andy were made to believe they were from the future and they would be going back there one day… Cassie the believer and Andy believing they are being lied to. On their 21st birthday, their adoptive mom Joy Moody is found dead and all the family secrets have come skittering to the surface. This is a weird story. Joy truly believed what she was telling them and watching the fall out between the three women was different. The more you learn about Joy, the more you should be angry at her but you never end up feeling that way. I liked the potential sci-fi plot that ran through it but the ending was really solid. I actually loved this book way more than I thought I would. It was a really unique and well structured story. I liked the characters and the narration was absolutely spot on! Joy is one of those characters that really steal the show and I highly recommend grabbing the audio of this one. 4 stars Make sure you check out my store Bookaloriandesigns.com Bookaloriandesigns.etsy.com Unique bookish merch for the book dragon connoisseur. You can find all my book reviews at thelionessofliteracy.com And my podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/5kKN96RNPNh4uNDZzpIE1A Youtube.com/@litdulterous #bookreview #joymoodyisoutoftime #bookalorian #booktok #booktube #funnybooktok #litdulterous #audiobook #audioreader #literaryinfluencer #bookishpodcast
By Stacey Irving January 16, 2026
Book review - Fiction - Romance - Ghost Story - Paranormal Fantasy I just finished the Seven Rings by Nora Roberts and here are my musings. Sonya MacTavish lives in a huge manor house at the behest of a man she did not know but hoped she could break a curse… She has seen the past.. The death of seven brides. The malevolent spirit will not break her.. She will find the secrets and piece it all together so she can finally free her ancestors… Her enemy is a ghost dressed all in black and her illusions are so powerful they are a real danger.. Can Sonya fight a battle across two realms while straddling the past and present? Will the fight for the house end in death? I have loved this trilogy since the first page of book 1 and I waited so patiently to get this book and it did not disappoint. I am sad it is over though. I fell in love with all the characters and my heart is heavy to know that I won’t see anymore from their adventures. The book finished off this trilogy with such gravitas though that I sped to the end. I really was fully satisfied with how it all panned out. The writing is exactly what you would expect.. Brilliant, clever and flawless. I can’t wait to know what you think of the trilogy because it's an easy 5 star for me. Such an epic book… such an amazing end to one of my fave trilogies. GRAB IT NOW!!!! Thank you to @stmartinspress for including me in this campaign!! #bookblog #readersofig #bookblast #bookish #smpearlyreader