This is the third book in the witches of Eileanan series and like the fist two it doesn't disappoint. It continues the quest of Isabeau, Iseult, Meghan, Lachlan and their army of followers as they seek to regain power of the land after being dispossessed and forced into exile along with other 'magical' creatures. In this book, Iseult and Lachlan, now Righ and Banrigh, must assert their rule and put down the rebellions of the various enemy armies across the land. Isabeau flees to the Skull of the World with the daughter of Maya the Ensorcellor and learns about the family she never knew. Meanwhile, Maya and Margrit of Arran plot to bring down Lachlan and his new rule. Now if you haven't read the books, everything I've just written will make absolutely no sense. So the only solution now is to start reading the books. Then you can come back to this blog post and say 'Ah, now I know what she's talking about.'
I was never a reader of fantasy until I stumbled across this series. Forsyth, an Australian author does a great job of creating an entire new land complete with it's own history, politics, magic and mythical creatures. The writing is detailed and at times complicated but this is the essence of fantasy and it has the ability to draw the reader in so that you can escape from the real world for a while. I think what interests me the most are the characters of Isabeau and Iseult - twins born into the world when witches were in hiding. They are now only just discovering their own power and sense of belonging as 19 year olds.
I also love the action scenes - especially when they use magic, though I recommend reading these books with a strong stomach as they can be quite graphic at times.
My biggest criticism of The Cursed Towers is that it seems to be a little drawn out with no major plot twists. I'm hoping that this is just the third book and not a reflection on the rest of the series. Overall, however, I'd highly recommend it to anyone thinking of trying out a fantasy book.
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