Title: A Witch in Time
Series: Stand-Alone
Author: Constance Sayers
Format: Hardcover
Summary: A young woman in Belle Epoque, France is cursed to relive a doomed love affair through many lifetimes, as both troubled muse and frustrated artist.
In 1895, sixteen-year-old Juliet LaCompte has a passionate, doomed romance with the married Parisian painter Auguste Marchant. When her mother — a witch — botches a curse on Marchant, she unwittingly binds Juliet to the artist through time, damning her to re-live her affair and die tragically young lifetime after lifetime as the star-crossed lovers reincarnate through history.
Luke Varner, the worldly demon tasked with maintaining this badly crafted curse, has been helplessly in love with his charge, in all her reincarnations, since 19th century France. He’s in love with Nora, a silver screen starlet in 1930s Hollywood. He’s in love with Sandra, a struggling musician in 1970s Los Angeles. And he’s in love with Helen, a magazine exec in present-day DC who has the power to “suggest” others do her bidding.
In this life, Helen starts to recall the curse and her tragic previous lives. But this time, she might have the power to break the cycle…
Review
I had a hard time getting into this book to begin with, but having genuinely liked the premise, and let’s face it, the cover.. I kept at it. The middle of the book changed everything and I couldn’t put it down despite having to go on with life as usual. I was taking it with me to work, I was staying up late in bed. I even told my boyfriend that I had to force myself to go to bed so I didn’t stay up until 3am trying to finish the book when I had to be in at 630am the next morning.
Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed the middle of the book, specifically the latter part of Juliet’s story, and that of Nora (her story was my favorite), I couldn’t get into Sandra’s story as well and there just wasn’t really enough interaction between Helen and Luke for my tastes so towards the end of the book I fell off a bit again.
Overall, Luke was a good character, even if he wasn’t great.. Juliet and Nora’s storylines were nicely written with plenty of detail, Sandra was a bit too boring for me (though now I think about it it could be because I have absolutely no fondness for the 1970s era or lifestyle), and Helen was just eh. Without too many spoilers I can safely admit I was also very disappointed in the actual ending.
Not my cup of tea, not going into my reread pile, but I’m glad I went ahead and took a chance on it.
xoxotawnydee 