Gillian and Kit team up again to stop a plot against the queen. I really enjoyed this little story and hope to see more of them in the future.

It was decent. Karen Chance wrote well again, as always, but I wasn't too invested in the characters or the story. Some funny stuff but nothing that amusing. There's something missing with this one I just can't put my finger on. Had trouble holding my interest.

Good story, but only a play on a "lost" piece of jewelry.

Oh, this story is a bit sad knowing what sate the covens are in, in the series!

*First read January 26th 2013*
Great to see these characters interact again, and yeah, great short story, where the Coven magic starts to gain back some of it's power with the Queen from The Circle!

reread.
free on authors website. http://karenchance.com/free_stories.html

marlowe rescues gillian again and she poses as a redheaded witch for him to help thwart a plan against the queen, gaining a new job for herself.

"it isn't fair, but we live in this world as it is, not as we would like it to be."

RTC

Nice companion piece to the Cassie Palmer series. Should be read after The Gauntlett. I got that wrong, but it doesn't really matter. I could see this setting as a fun spin-off of the main series. I like the Elizabethan age, supernatural shenanigans could work well. Kit Marlowe is a surprisingly nice guy in this.

"I am trying to decide whether to kiss you again, or throw you over my knee!"
"Let me know when you make up your mind, " I told him. I thought both had possibilities.

What's better than a fantasy spy story with a great protagonist? A story with 2 and that's just what I got here in the second novella featuring coven Elder Gillian Urswick and gentleman spy vampire Kit Marlowe.

Starting only a day or so after the first novella, we find Gillian still on the run from the dreaded Circle, a magical order seeking absolute power in England. There are few, if any, allies Gillian can turn to for help in getting herself and her young daughter safe passage from England. Enter Kit Marlowe with the answer to her prayers.

Separately, these characters are interesting, witty and formidable. Together, they're a powerhouse of sarcasm, stubbornness, intelligence, and palpable chemistry. They work well together, neither character overshadowing the other. Immediately, given what they'd just endured at the prison in the last story, they find a way to work together to achieve their respective goals and in the end they're the better for it.

The Queen's Witch is a short, but inspiring read that is imaginatively packed with history and charming characters that satisfy.

Off to read the next 26 books in this universe!

I won't repeat my review for The Gauntlet here verbatim, but I still love Gil and Kit and the glimpse into the conflict between the covens and the Circle. Perhaps more than I should, given they come out to something like 32k words together.

(I am still deeply curious about the early history of the Circle. And about how much of their push for a unified magical community was them being assholes compared to how much was... *waves hand vaguely at spoilers from Embrace the Night*. I am just... so curious... about so many things....)

I do hope Gil stole Kit's ring a few more times.