THE WITCHFINDER’S SACRIFICE by Rande Goodwin is full of energy and heart-pounding action from beginning to end, with only a bit of explication needed in order to follow the story (the second in the Witches of Windsor series, after The Witchfinder’s Serpent). The story moves back and forth from the Salem Witch Trials to the modern era, in which the same battle is being fought between good and evil. Except the witches are the ones who use their magic for good, while the Witchfinder General (the same Matthew Hopkins who made a name for himself during the English Civil War, his life extended by demonic contract) works for evil. In the modern era, Hopkins, having been trapped in a witch’s bottle along with his daughter Alexandra, seeks to promote witch-hunting hysteria by using his power to raise the dead and his reluctant daughter’s power of illusion.

Teenager Nate Watson, descendant of Alse Young (one of the first witches hanged in the New World), his Aunt Celia, Alse’s daughter, their friends, and their magical allies are the only ones stopping him from raising havoc; but can they break through his protections and send him to Hell where he belongs? The older story, woven through the modern one, is the tale of how Celia, then known as Allie Young, managed to trap Hopkins in a witch’s bottle in the first place. The two stories, simultaneously told, may confuse a bit at first, but quickly they resonate with each other—providing clarity and depth to each other as they intertwine. The characters are lively and sparkling with personality, including a former slave who wields more power than her “master” ever guessed, a local science teacher who turns out to be a crow, and cheerleaders who show up in battle wielding pink bows and arrows. The plot never stops moving, from an attack at the local high school to the final confrontation.

Alexandra’s emotional conflict—stemming from the ties that bind her, her manipulative and controlling father, and her growing conviction that what he’s doing is wrong—is well-presented, and she becomes a deeply sympathetic character. The magic is believable, with its own limits and boundaries, and the story’s resolution is both poignant and satisfying. All in all, this is a solidly entertaining read for a teenager or young adult.

Rande Goodwin’s THE WITCHFINDER’S SACRIFICE is a fierce, adrenaline-filled, high-stakes battle between good and evil that brings historical quarrels and figures into the modern day.

~Catherine Langrehr for IndieReader