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Magic of Claddare #1
The Captive Shifter
Concealing her own considerable magical powers, Caitlyn enters the service of the northern Witch Queen masquerading as a simple healer. Under order from her goddess, she’s searching for a magical gem stolen long ago from her own people, believed to be hidden in the massive castle. The task is daunting but Caitlyn is sure she can locate the gem and escape, bringing the prize back to the temple where it belongs. Until she meets the captive shifter and her loyalties become dangerously divided. In payment for her past services to his people, Kyler the leopard shifter has entered into a life of servitude far from his forest home, allowing the Witch Queen to tap his magic to power her ever darker spells. Factions at Court are threatening to turn the Queen to the Shadow. Her increasing demands for magic will cut short his nearly immortal lifespan. Kyler’s resigned to his fate until the day he crosses paths with the new arrival, whose secrets and magic entice and attract both man and leopard. Has he met his mate at last? The Queen will never willingly release him from captivity. Caitlyn’s goddess refuses to grant her any delay in accomplishing her own task. Can they locate the magical gem, fight the Shadow and win free of the Witch Queen to earn the right to be together?
218 pages, Paperback
First published March 19, 2017
14 people are currently reading
44 people want to read
About the author
Veronica Scott
91 books244 followersUSA Today Best Selling Science Fiction & Paranormal Romance author.
Veronica Scott grew up in a house with a library as its heart. Dad loved science fiction, Mom loved ancient history and Veronica thought there needed to be more romance in everything. When she ran out of books to read, she started writing her own stories.
MISC FACTS ABOUT VERONICA
Seven time winner ~ SFR Galaxy Award
Proud recipient ~ NASA Exceptional Service Medal but must hasten to add the honor was not for her romantic fiction!
Lean Six Sigma Black Belt – I’ll improve your process (mwahahahaa)!
Elvis Presley’s best friend once serenaded Veronica on a local TV telethon…now that could be a novel…
Veronica Scott grew up in a house with a library as its heart. Dad loved science fiction, Mom loved ancient history and Veronica thought there needed to be more romance in everything. When she ran out of books to read, she started writing her own stories.
MISC FACTS ABOUT VERONICA
Seven time winner ~ SFR Galaxy Award
Proud recipient ~ NASA Exceptional Service Medal but must hasten to add the honor was not for her romantic fiction!
Lean Six Sigma Black Belt – I’ll improve your process (mwahahahaa)!
Elvis Presley’s best friend once serenaded Veronica on a local TV telethon…now that could be a novel…
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 6, 2017
Shifters, witches and political intrigues, oh my! New to me author, Ms. Scott has me hooked. I do want to read the rest of this series. I can't recall how I came upon this book but I am glad I did. This is a new to my author who captures my attention with the world building and the plot. The characters were good too. This story does start out pretty slow. At first I'm thinking, will I get through this book? Do we really care about Caitlyn?
The answer is, yes, Caitlyn's heart and her need to heal is what makes this book good. Her entire village and religious organization have put everything into making sure Caitlyn is picked to be trained in the main city. This city is ruled by a Queen who should take care of them all. They all practice white magic. But it seems something corrupt has slid into this once good city. People are afraid and witches are dying. What's worse is there is a shifter held captive by the Queen. Since when do the white witches practice blood magic? Caitlyn finds out the history of Kyler and how a shifter came to be held captive. What Kyler and Caitlyn did not know, was the true bargain of Kyler's captivity.
The plot of this story works only because of Kyler's pigheaded stubbornness and Caitlyn's heart of gold. When they meet and sparks fly, it is the catalyst to bring down the evil power behind the throne. It is also the only way Caitlyn can fulfill her quest, at the behest of her goddess.
I found it interesting how the gods and goddesses actually appear and talk with their worshipers. It was also fun to see how the different gods and goddesses argued among themselves and tried to make bargains with each other in the interest of those they wanted protected. Getting caught in between feuding gods and goddesses can easily mean a shortened lifespan. It seems to be that way for Kyler and Caitlyn. This book does move much quicker in the middle all the way through to the end. By the time I'm done at the end, I'm wondering why the book isn't longer. I'm also eager to read the next book in the series. This paranormal romance is recommended to those who enjoy good and evil battling it out from the level of the gods down to the mere mortals.
The answer is, yes, Caitlyn's heart and her need to heal is what makes this book good. Her entire village and religious organization have put everything into making sure Caitlyn is picked to be trained in the main city. This city is ruled by a Queen who should take care of them all. They all practice white magic. But it seems something corrupt has slid into this once good city. People are afraid and witches are dying. What's worse is there is a shifter held captive by the Queen. Since when do the white witches practice blood magic? Caitlyn finds out the history of Kyler and how a shifter came to be held captive. What Kyler and Caitlyn did not know, was the true bargain of Kyler's captivity.
The plot of this story works only because of Kyler's pigheaded stubbornness and Caitlyn's heart of gold. When they meet and sparks fly, it is the catalyst to bring down the evil power behind the throne. It is also the only way Caitlyn can fulfill her quest, at the behest of her goddess.
I found it interesting how the gods and goddesses actually appear and talk with their worshipers. It was also fun to see how the different gods and goddesses argued among themselves and tried to make bargains with each other in the interest of those they wanted protected. Getting caught in between feuding gods and goddesses can easily mean a shortened lifespan. It seems to be that way for Kyler and Caitlyn. This book does move much quicker in the middle all the way through to the end. By the time I'm done at the end, I'm wondering why the book isn't longer. I'm also eager to read the next book in the series. This paranormal romance is recommended to those who enjoy good and evil battling it out from the level of the gods down to the mere mortals.
April 14, 2017
Originally published at Reading Reality
There is something very, very rotten in the state of Azrimar, but that isn’t what Caitlyn has come to the capital to deal with. Not that all roads and all missions don’t eventually lead that way – but that isn’t how they start.
Instead, Caitlyn has arrived at court just in the nick of time for the annual testing of potential sorceresses, only to discover that her preparation missed the key points of the ritual. It is crucial to her mission that she find a place at court – even if that mission is not what it appears to be.
She succeeds, just barely, but only by earning the enmity of the Crown Princess Bradana, and the intense curiosity of the Witch-Queen’s pet shifter, Kyler. Caitlyn knows she’s going to spend the rest of her time at court dealing with those two very opposite interests, just not in the way that she originally expected.
Because both Bradana and Kyler are much more than they appear. But then, so is Caitlyn.
That Caitlyn is some kind of spy on some type of secret mission is obvious from the beginning, but we don’t learn who, how, or why until we get a bit into the story.
This is a fantasy romance, so Caitlyn’s world is not our own, and not even in our past or future. As this world is set up, Caitlyn is from a kingdom to the south, and is a priestess of the nature goddess on a special mission. Because something is rotten in the central kingdom of Azrimar and apparently has been for quite some time.
Long ago, a relic was stolen from the goddess, and she needs it back. Caitlyn has one year to infiltrate the palace and find the missing article. And that’s more than long enough to figure out just how much has gone wrong, and for Caitlyn to fall in love.
Unfortunately for both of them, Caitlyn falls for Kyler, a leopard shifter who has been oath-bound to the Witch Queen for 10 years. He knows that the Queen has been gravitating towards the dark side of the force, but he also knows that he’s dying. Whatever is going wrong, it isn’t going to be his problem fairly soon.
Until Caitlyn comes along and shakes him out of the depths of his depression. Kyler can help Caitlyn find the relic. Caitlyn can beseech the gods on his behalf. And it will take both of them to even take a stab at all that has gone wrong.
Caitlyn, Kyler, the Witch Queen and her kingdom have all come to a crossroad. The choices they make will have dire consequences, not just for themselves, or even for the kingdom, but for their entire world.
They must choose wisely – or all will be lost in the conflagration to come.
Escape Rating C+: This is a mixed feelings review. There were some things about this story I liked a lot, and some that drove me a bit batty.
I liked both Caitlyn and Kyler quite a bit. Caitlyn is very focused. She has a mission to carry out with a very strict time limit, but she still finds time to make friends and to care for and about people. She’s involved with her world, even for the short time she will be in the kingdom, and her actions always trend towards good. At the same time, Caitlyn is in service to a nature goddess, attempting to conceal herself, her power and her mission in a place that seems to be the antithesis of anything natural. It’s no surprise that she befriends Kyler, as he is the only nature-oriented being in the palace.
Kyler’s situation is tragic from the outset, and only becomes more so as we learn more about it. His captivity began honorably, but as time has gone on the Witch Queen has broken all of her oaths and agreements about it. And he is not free to leave – she has bound him with her magic. He has freedom of thought and some free will, but he literally cannot leave the palace, nor can he refuse the Queen’s use of his magic. Caitlyn’s friendship is his one light in a very dark place, and yet he is afraid to spend too much time with her or show her too much favor. While the Queen needs him alive for his magical power, punishing anyone close to him has become a sport for her and especially for her sister Bradana.
The palace intrigue is nasty and the methods of it feel a bit too predictable. And the characters of evil are a bit too much of evil for evil’s sake, which doesn’t work well as motivation. Or rather, that’s Bradana’s character, the Witch Queen’s motives are entirely too clear. She’s her sister’s pawn, and has let herself be manipulated into the darkness. In spite of her being queen, there just doesn’t turn out to be a lot of there, there. She’s an empty shell. To say that Brandana is evil because she was made that way (and she quite literally was) doesn’t give us much insight into the evil that made her. Hopefully we’ll get more of that in later books in the series.
I don’t expect to like the villains, although occasionally one does, but I need to understand them. And I didn’t here. On my other hand, there’s a tendency in fantasy for the West to represent good and the East to represent evil. The Lord of the Rings isn’t the only story where this happens, and it plays to some very old stereotypes, right along with white hats and black hats. In this series it looks like the West is where evil has its kingdoms, and the center and East are where the good, or at least neutral, kingdoms are. It’s always nice to see stereotypes turned on their heads a bit.
I end where I began, with mixed feelings. I liked the heroine and hero a lot, but found the plot to be on the predictable side and the villains a bit cookie-cutter. And while there were hints at interesting worldbuilding, it felt like too many of the details were left on the cutting-room floor. Hopefully things will be become clearer in later books in the series.
There is something very, very rotten in the state of Azrimar, but that isn’t what Caitlyn has come to the capital to deal with. Not that all roads and all missions don’t eventually lead that way – but that isn’t how they start.
Instead, Caitlyn has arrived at court just in the nick of time for the annual testing of potential sorceresses, only to discover that her preparation missed the key points of the ritual. It is crucial to her mission that she find a place at court – even if that mission is not what it appears to be.
She succeeds, just barely, but only by earning the enmity of the Crown Princess Bradana, and the intense curiosity of the Witch-Queen’s pet shifter, Kyler. Caitlyn knows she’s going to spend the rest of her time at court dealing with those two very opposite interests, just not in the way that she originally expected.
Because both Bradana and Kyler are much more than they appear. But then, so is Caitlyn.
That Caitlyn is some kind of spy on some type of secret mission is obvious from the beginning, but we don’t learn who, how, or why until we get a bit into the story.
This is a fantasy romance, so Caitlyn’s world is not our own, and not even in our past or future. As this world is set up, Caitlyn is from a kingdom to the south, and is a priestess of the nature goddess on a special mission. Because something is rotten in the central kingdom of Azrimar and apparently has been for quite some time.
Long ago, a relic was stolen from the goddess, and she needs it back. Caitlyn has one year to infiltrate the palace and find the missing article. And that’s more than long enough to figure out just how much has gone wrong, and for Caitlyn to fall in love.
Unfortunately for both of them, Caitlyn falls for Kyler, a leopard shifter who has been oath-bound to the Witch Queen for 10 years. He knows that the Queen has been gravitating towards the dark side of the force, but he also knows that he’s dying. Whatever is going wrong, it isn’t going to be his problem fairly soon.
Until Caitlyn comes along and shakes him out of the depths of his depression. Kyler can help Caitlyn find the relic. Caitlyn can beseech the gods on his behalf. And it will take both of them to even take a stab at all that has gone wrong.
Caitlyn, Kyler, the Witch Queen and her kingdom have all come to a crossroad. The choices they make will have dire consequences, not just for themselves, or even for the kingdom, but for their entire world.
They must choose wisely – or all will be lost in the conflagration to come.
Escape Rating C+: This is a mixed feelings review. There were some things about this story I liked a lot, and some that drove me a bit batty.
I liked both Caitlyn and Kyler quite a bit. Caitlyn is very focused. She has a mission to carry out with a very strict time limit, but she still finds time to make friends and to care for and about people. She’s involved with her world, even for the short time she will be in the kingdom, and her actions always trend towards good. At the same time, Caitlyn is in service to a nature goddess, attempting to conceal herself, her power and her mission in a place that seems to be the antithesis of anything natural. It’s no surprise that she befriends Kyler, as he is the only nature-oriented being in the palace.
Kyler’s situation is tragic from the outset, and only becomes more so as we learn more about it. His captivity began honorably, but as time has gone on the Witch Queen has broken all of her oaths and agreements about it. And he is not free to leave – she has bound him with her magic. He has freedom of thought and some free will, but he literally cannot leave the palace, nor can he refuse the Queen’s use of his magic. Caitlyn’s friendship is his one light in a very dark place, and yet he is afraid to spend too much time with her or show her too much favor. While the Queen needs him alive for his magical power, punishing anyone close to him has become a sport for her and especially for her sister Bradana.
The palace intrigue is nasty and the methods of it feel a bit too predictable. And the characters of evil are a bit too much of evil for evil’s sake, which doesn’t work well as motivation. Or rather, that’s Bradana’s character, the Witch Queen’s motives are entirely too clear. She’s her sister’s pawn, and has let herself be manipulated into the darkness. In spite of her being queen, there just doesn’t turn out to be a lot of there, there. She’s an empty shell. To say that Brandana is evil because she was made that way (and she quite literally was) doesn’t give us much insight into the evil that made her. Hopefully we’ll get more of that in later books in the series.
I don’t expect to like the villains, although occasionally one does, but I need to understand them. And I didn’t here. On my other hand, there’s a tendency in fantasy for the West to represent good and the East to represent evil. The Lord of the Rings isn’t the only story where this happens, and it plays to some very old stereotypes, right along with white hats and black hats. In this series it looks like the West is where evil has its kingdoms, and the center and East are where the good, or at least neutral, kingdoms are. It’s always nice to see stereotypes turned on their heads a bit.
I end where I began, with mixed feelings. I liked the heroine and hero a lot, but found the plot to be on the predictable side and the villains a bit cookie-cutter. And while there were hints at interesting worldbuilding, it felt like too many of the details were left on the cutting-room floor. Hopefully things will be become clearer in later books in the series.
November 12, 2017
Fascinating. While Veronica Scott's science fiction romance Sector series made me a fan of her stories, I'd not read her paranormal romances. With The Captive Shifter, I've become a fan of her treatment of this genre. What appealed to me in her SFRs, likable characters, strong plot, plenty of emotion, and pacing that heightened the tension is found in abundance in this story. Add magic for so much more.
Caitlyn is driven by her vow to her goddess. She's bold, adventurous, focused. Kyler is resigned to his fate. He's unable to free himself from the clutches of the Witch Queen. Not just because of the binding collar, but because of his sacrifice to protect his leader. Once he meets Caitlyn, he's torn between his contract to serve the Queen and his need for Caitlyn. She's determined to free him . . . after she fulfills her goal, retrieving the gem stolen from her goddess. Divided loyalties escalate their developing romance. Be prepared for a magical adventure.
Caitlyn is driven by her vow to her goddess. She's bold, adventurous, focused. Kyler is resigned to his fate. He's unable to free himself from the clutches of the Witch Queen. Not just because of the binding collar, but because of his sacrifice to protect his leader. Once he meets Caitlyn, he's torn between his contract to serve the Queen and his need for Caitlyn. She's determined to free him . . . after she fulfills her goal, retrieving the gem stolen from her goddess. Divided loyalties escalate their developing romance. Be prepared for a magical adventure.
December 26, 2019
Just what I expected
Veronica Scott proves again how reliably excellent her writing is. I wasn't planning on buying this book, but I'm glad I did. My one issue, and maybe I 'm just reading into things, is the obviously Mesoamerican name for the Shadow, when all the "positive" gods are European/Celtic sounding. It seems oddly unfair. I'm looking forward to more of this series, though. Perhaps the remaining sister's story?
Veronica Scott proves again how reliably excellent her writing is. I wasn't planning on buying this book, but I'm glad I did. My one issue, and maybe I 'm just reading into things, is the obviously Mesoamerican name for the Shadow, when all the "positive" gods are European/Celtic sounding. It seems oddly unfair. I'm looking forward to more of this series, though. Perhaps the remaining sister's story?
January 4, 2019
Twisting plots and hidden secrets
A great read. Veronica Scott has created a wonderful world with great depth. The characters make you want to keep reading just to see how they will conquer the day.
A great read. Veronica Scott has created a wonderful world with great depth. The characters make you want to keep reading just to see how they will conquer the day.
May 15, 2017
I liked it!
I really like the "sectors" series but this was pretty good also. Paranormal rather than sci-fi with likable characters. Good world building.
I really like the "sectors" series but this was pretty good also. Paranormal rather than sci-fi with likable characters. Good world building.
December 24, 2018
an easy entertaining read
recommended - i hope to read more in a series - an easy entertaining read well written with a fresh storyline
recommended - i hope to read more in a series - an easy entertaining read well written with a fresh storyline
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews