Witchmark (Kingston Cycle, #1)

by C.L. Polk

In an original world reminiscent of Edwardian England in the shadow of a world war, cabals of noble families use their unique magical gifts to control the fates of nations, while one young man seeks only to live a life of his own. Moving at a brilliant pace and pulsing with deadly intrigue and unforgettable characters, Witchmark grabs readers and doesn't let go until the thrilling conclusion.

Magic marked Miles Singer for suffering the day he was born, doomed either to be a slave to his family's interest or to be committed to a witches' asylum. He went to war to escape his destiny and came home a different man, but he couldn’t leave his past behind. The war between Aeland and Laneer leaves men changed, strangers to their friends and family. Even after faking his own death and reinventing himself as a doctor at a cash-strapped veteran’s hospital, Miles can’t hide what he truly is.

• ISBN10: 1250162688
• ISBN13: 9781250162687
• Publish Date: 1 July 2018
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 5 April 2024
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: St Martin's Press
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[layawaydragon]

Couldn't get into it. The setup isn't explained well from the beginning, so I don't know what's happening.

[bookperson]

dnf

[Danielle Ackley-McPhail]

What a wonderful read! So original and so disturbing. This book engaged me and kept me riveted. Not one turn of the page was predictable. I loved the magic system, even in it's corruption, because it was unique and visceral. Definitely add this author to you read pile.

[Beth C.]

Ok, I had heard about the book and thought it sounded interesting. Then *everyone* started talking about how awesome it was, and...I was hesitant. Is it *really* that good? Or is it just riding a wave and I'm going to read it and find that it just doesn't live up to my expectations based on everyone else's excitement? Short answer? I can see why everyone has been raving about it.

Here we have a man who is believed dead by his family so he won't be enslaved to them. His magic is considered second-rate, a toy. Nothing worth mentioning - so people like him are bound to more powerful mages so they can use them sort of like a battery. Instead, he ran away and joined the war. Became a doctor, kept his head down - until a dying man saw him for what he really was. Then he has a choice - keep pretending and watching his patients murder their families and themselves? Or "come out" and have a chance to find out what was causing it and maybe even fix it? This book has it all - magic, war, murder, mystery, and romance - and all of it done well. Such a beautiful debut, and well worth the accolades.

[Heather]

I heard about this book on Twitter and was intrigued by its cover.  I didn't really know what it was about when I picked it up.  I laughed when I realized that it is basically about treatment for war-induced PTSD.  I was reading this during a week when that was a frequent topic of conversation at my house and now my fantasy books were chiming in too.

The world building in this book is extraordinary.  It is vaguely steampunk.  Horses and bicycles are the main modes of transportation.  The super wealthy have some cars.  Just reading about the system of bicycle transportation was fascinating and shows how much the author thought about how the world would work.

In this world some of elite are mages who control the weather.  Other mages have different talents but they are bound against their will to weather mages to be used as an auxillary power supply for their magic.  Miles has healing magic.  He knew he was going to bound to his sister so he ran away and joined the army.  Now he is a psychiatrist working in a veteran's hospital and dealing with his own PTSD and that of his patients.  He doesn't want to use his powers because either:

• He would be found by his powerful family and bound - or


• People would think he was a low-born witch and he would be incarcerated in an asylum

His carefully planned secret life starts to unravel when a poisoned witch is brought to him by a stranger.  The witch knew who he was and now the stranger does too.

There is so much going on in this book. 

• There is a very sweet m/m romance with fade to black sex scenes.  (Thank you very much!  I want more romance books without sex scenes please!) 


• There is the mystery of what the dying witch knew and what he wanted Miles to do about it. 


• There is the drama with Miles' family. 


• There is an usual increase in the number of veterans committing violent acts when they come home.  Can Miles figure out the cause of that?


• There is hatred from Miles' colleague who suspects he is a witch and is trying hard to prove it.

This is the start of a series.  I'm looking forward to reading future installments.  Come for the magic.  Stay for the unfortunately-too-realistic treatment of post-war veterans.  This review was originally posted on Based On A True Story