Erich’s Plea: Book One of the Witchcraft Wars – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

‘Two months ago he had arrived at Ostland’s Zeaburg prison complex and been taken to this subterranean dungeon with its smooth stone walls, mazes of corridors, little or no lighting and the constant smell of death, blood, waste and decay in his nostrils. He had been alternately beaten and tortured for hours on a daily basis. His own screams blending with the cries, screams and moans of the other, unseen, sufferers in Zeaburg’s nightmarish torture chambers. The horrors here were so great that even the rats eschewed Zeaburg, although the fleas showed no similar scruples and were an additional constant torment. His body was covered head to toe with tiny bites from the multitudes of the awful creatures. Slade would not have believed it was possible for a place like Zeaburg prison to exist if he had not seen it with his own eyes. It well deserved its evil reputation. Zeaburg also had a reputation for being inescapable; no one, in all its long history had ever escaped from its confines, except in death. Slade had never believed half the rumors that had surrounded Zeaburg before, now he saw clearly they were all true and worse. He also knew why so many of those imprisoned here died and, it was said, were glad to, death being preferable to daily life in Zeaburg.’

Einreich Gudmundson is the second son of the High King Erich. Much to the disappointment of his father, he has renounced his life as the Crown Prince of Vestland and now calls himself Slade. He will now be a member of the druids of the Sacred Grove, dedicating his life to serve Freyita. That was all before he was captured and taken to Ostland’s Zeaburg Prison. His committed crimes are still a mystery to Slade but the punishment is completely real. Only when he sleeps is he able to find peace from the pain of the beatings he has endured in his two months of imprisonment but even sleep becomes disturbed by the dreams of his father begging for his help.

How can Slade possibly help his father the king while stuck in this hole of hell? He can only try to keep his mind as clear as possible and practice the training taught to him by the warrior-monks of the Black Lotus and pray for some form of help along the way. And help does come in the form of a being that calls himself ‘Trunk.’ In his dreams his father told him to follow the trunk and Slade is sure this is who he was referring to. So with the help of this larger than life ‘trunk’ as well as help from a few other unlikely allies, Slade finds himself attempting the impossible…an escape from the inescapable prison of Zeaburg.

This book is full of mystery, suspense, witchcraft, magic, dishonesty, espionage…I could go on and on. The characters are colorful not only in appearance but also in character. Author Tracey Alley has written a very enjoyable book and I really hope that Erich’s Plea: Book Two is just around the corner for me to read. I’ve gotten into the story and characters and can’t wait to see what will happen to them next.

315 pages
2010


Review Stir, Laugh, Repeat at Amazon.com Stir, Laugh, Repeat ( )

Erich's Plea is book one of The Witchcraft Wars by Tracey Alley. This fantasy novel introduces us to Slade, who has given up his right as the prince of Vestland to become a Druid. After learning of Slade, we realize that he is in prison and endures hours of torture on a daily basis. With all hope of escaping quickly slipping from Slade's grasp, he is startled when he starts receiving a plea for help by his father, Erich. Knowing that he must somehow help his father, Slade finds himself blindly following strangers and not knowing who he can trust. In a few spots throughout the book, the details seemed to get a little thick at times which caused the pace of the story to slow down a bit. However, I really enjoyed how the characters were built and the overall storyline of this story makes for a good read. Each chapter opens up with a small picture and I found this to be wonderful. You get to see the faces of characters who are in the story and even though some looked differently then I imagined when they were described, it was nice to be able to put a face with a name. All in all this was a good read that went quickly and is suitable for most age groups. The main thing that I didn't really like in this story was the ending. I felt as though it was suddenly cut short and I think it would have been beneficial to have a big ending rather than be cut off before the main event. The story builds and leads the reader up to this big life changing ordeal...only that event does not occur in book one. However, I suppose that is a good selling point as I will be getting book two just so I can see what happens next with Slade and the other characters involved. ( )

This was the first fantasy book I'd read in a long time, and surprisingly I found it enjoyable. There were a few passages that I found hard to get though, mainly due to some poor editing, but the characters were diverse, and the plot was intense. I think the part with the tunnel spiders was my favorite.