What I’m Reading: The Witch of Shadowmarsh

I didn’t realize when I picked up The Witch of Shadowmarsh that I had previously read another fantasy book by author Sara C. Roethle–Tree of Ages. I found that book to be a “moody, Celtic-influenced fantasy” with an intriguing premise, but was turned off by the fact that the book ended on a literal cliffhanger, keeping it from feeling like a complete story. Still, there was nothing wrong with the writing–far from it, the writing was superb–so I wasn’t sorry to return to this author.

The book opens in the hold of a pirate ship where several women have been taken captive, undoubtedly to be sold into slavery. Elmerah is an Arthali witch with magical powers, and she knows if she can only get her hands free she can beat the pirates. What’s more, she also has some pins hidden in her hair that could release her shackles. But she can’t do it alone. She spots a Faerune elf who is also being held, and believes that with her delicate hands, the Faerune elf may be able to free them from their bonds.

The elf is willing to help, and soon the captive women are all free. Elmerah, a loner, has no particular desire to help the other women, but she does want revenge on the pirates. To her surprise, the Faerune elf turns out also to be a decent fighter, and they soon have bested a pirate. As soon as Elmerah takes hold of the pirate’s cutlass, she’s able to infuse it with magic which allows her to release lightning with each stroke of the blade. The pirates are quickly dealt with, and Elmerah raids the captain’s cabin, searching for the contracts for the slave sales. After all, she’s a six-foot tall Arthali with bronze skin, unlike the other young and beautiful elf and human captives. Why should she have been taken captive?

The women escape the ship on several rowboats, and Elmerah ends up on a boat with the Faerune elf, whose name is Saida. When they reach shore, they find that they’re both headed toward Galterra, the capital of the empire. This is odd, since Faerune elves are little more than tolerated in the capital and Arthali have been exiled and hunted, so it is positively dangerous for Elmerah to head there. Both are curious about why the other should be going to Galterra, but too suspicious of one another to pursue it. Still, it makes sense for them to at least spend the night at an inn on the road together, using some coin that Elmerah took from the pirates to pay for it.

At the inn that evening, a hooded figure observes Elmerah and Saida, making them both nervous. The next morning, Elmerah tries to leave early without Saida noticing, only to be confronted in the inn’s dining room by four imperial militiamen who demand to see her papers. She fights them off, but they follow her and only the intervention of the hooded figure from the night before saves her. He turns out to a Valeroot elf named Alluin, and he’s headed to Galterra as well. Only, he explains that Elmerah definitely won’t make it through the city gates, but he knows a hidden way into the city. As they talk, Saida catches up to them.

Although Elmerah and Saida doubt Alluin’s good intentions, they don’t see much choice but to cooperate with him. It turns out that he’s as good as his word and does indeed know a secret route into the city, one manned by other Valeroot elves who will attack anyone in the forest who comes across their secret. In fact, Alluin knows a lot of secrets–all about the various gangs and political workings in Galterra.

As it turns out, he also knows about Rissine, Elmerah’s sister, whose name was on the slavery contract Elmerah found in the pirate ship. It seems Rissine is not only involved in the gangs of Galterra, but is their link to the corrupted emperor of the city against whom the Valeroot are conspiring. Together, Elmerah, Saida, and Alluin must uncover the emperor’s nefarious plans and Rissine’s role in them, but can they overcome their own distrust of each other long enough to cooperate?

The Witch of Shadowmarsh doesn’t have the moody, Celtic-tinged writing style of Tree of Ages, but is a fairly straightforward fantasy with various races of elves, witches, and amphibians populating a treacherous world. The engine of the plot is the distrust among the three lead characters, who each have good reason to be skeptical of the intentions of the comrades they’ve thrown in with, but who must overcome their prejudices and learn to trust one another to achieve their goals, if they can.