LEGACY OF THE WITCH (The Portal Series 0.5) by Maggie Shayne-a review

LEGACY OF THE WITCH (The Portal Series0.5) by Maggie Shayne

LEGACY OF THE WITCH is the prequel novella to the new PORTAL series by Maggie Shayne. Released September 1, 2012 Legacy of the Witch introduces the backstory to 3 witch sisters born in the Middle East over 3,000 years earlier and their re-birth into a modern time.

In the 1970-80’s Amarrah was a young 13 year old girl from Iraq who was fascinated by the stories told by her aging grandmother. Since the time she was 5, Amarrah has listened to the tales about three beautiful sisters- Indira, Lilia and Magdalena-and their love for a young slave girl with the same name as Amarrah. And these stories were all too familiar, as though she had lived the life alongside the young girl. On her death bed, Amarrah’s grandmother would admit that the tales were not false, but the memories from a long line of women who have protected a sacred object that at some time in the future would be returned to its’ rightful owner and Amarrah would vow to keep the object safe. But it was during the first Gulf War that Amarrah was sent to live with relatives in America and the object was confiscated by airport security. It would be 10 years before Amarrah would ever see the object again.

Throughout the years, Amarrah would continue to dream about a slave girl who had fallen in love with a young Iraqi soldier named Harmon, but the dreams seemed all too familiar. The dreams became more life-like when one of the three witch sisters was rumored to be involved with a man outside of her relationship, and the sisters were suspected of being witches, and the young slave girl would be told a story of a sacred object that would one day hold the key to the witches return.

Today’s Amarrah would find the object on a television broadcast of antiquities and oddities. Tracking down the owner would bring Amarrah face to face with a former US soldier who had been stationed in Iraq during the war. But there is a familiarity between Harrison and Amarrah that cannot be denied, and it is with the familiarity that the past will meet the future, and the lives of the three witches will be put into the hands of another for safekeeping.

LEGACY OF THE WITCH is a short story that introduces the premise behind Maggie Shayne’s new PORTAL series. The story is told through a series of dream sequences, visions and first hand experience from 3000 years ago to the late 1990’s. An interesting storyline that could only come from the mind of Maggie Shayne.

Reviewed by Sandy