The Midnight Witch

By: Paula Brackston

Narrated by: Marisa Calin

Length: 15 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's Summary

Midnight is the most bewitching hour of them all.…

From Paula Brackston, the New York Times best-selling author of The Witch’s Daughter and The Winter Witch, comes a magical tale that is as dark as it is enchanting. Set in high-society Edwardian England, The Midnight Witch is the story of a young witch who faces the choice between love and loyalty to her coven.…

"The dead are seldom silent. All that is required for them to be heard is that someone be willing to listen. I have been listening to the dead all my life."

Lady Lilith Montgomery is the daughter of the sixth Duke of Radnor. She is one of the most beautiful young women in London and engaged to the city’s most eligible bachelor. She is also a witch.

When her father dies, her hapless brother Freddie takes on his title. But it is Lilith, instructed in the art of necromancy, who inherits their father’s role as Head Witch of the Lazarus Coven. And it is Lilith who must face the threat of the Sentinels, a powerful group of sorcerers intent on reclaiming the Elixir from the coven’s guardianship for their own dark purposes. Lilith knows the Lazarus creed: Secrecy and silence. To abandon either would put both the coven and all she holds dear in grave danger. She has spent her life honoring it, right down to her engagement to her childhood friend and fellow witch Viscount Louis Harcourt.

Until the day she meets Bram, a talented artist who is neither a witch nor a member of her class. With him, she must not be secret and silent. Despite her loyalty to the coven and duty to her family, Lilith cannot keep her life as a witch hidden from the man she loves. To tell him will risk everything.

©2014 Paula Brackston (P)2014 Macmillan Audio

Ridiculously inane lead character

I am on chapter 21 of 29 and I can barely stand to listen further. The lead character is ridiculously self absorbed, young and silly and completely inappropriate for the role of coven leader! The entire premise of what could be an excellent story is made ridiculous.

The Midnight Witch was Ok.

I liked this book because it was cute with a good narrator. Probably better for YA . But I enjoyed the wholesome nature. As much as necromancy can be wholesome. But no gory details, language, or sex, even Lilith's little spirit helpers could've been Disney characters.

At times charming, but lacks something...

There were parts of this book that I found truly charming. I think it's a book with good writing, but the storytelling could have been improved upon. Too many conflicting events, too much milling and stalling without a good reason, too much internal machinations by the heroine over the same darn things. Nevertheless, an interesting iteration of witches.

Slow

Would you try another book from Paula Brackston and/or Marisa Calin?

Yes

Would you ever listen to anything by Paula Brackston again?

Yes

Which character – as performed by Marisa Calin – was your favorite?

None, the story was so slow, that you ended up not caring about any of them.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Midnight Witch?

About 50% of the story. It went on and on and on.

Any additional comments?

The first two books in this series were really good. Not this one.

skip this one

I have enjoyed many of Paula*s witcg books, but I couldn't finish this one. Too dark for me with necromancy. Not like her other books to me.

Disappointing!

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I would not recommend this book because it is boring. I forced myself to continue listening till chapter eleven and I had to stop. I was tired of listening to the slow developing romance between the young witch and the artist. There is no focus on the development of her as the head witch. The title is misleading. What started out interesting had digress into a mundane and pedestrian romance novel. The thought of continuing the book and see to the end was too painful.

Has The Midnight Witch turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, but it has turned me off reading this author's books. I did enjoy The Witch's daughter where there was development and progression of the story which kept your interest.

Which character – as performed by Marisa Calin – was your favorite?

None.

Was The Midnight Witch worth the listening time?

No, it was a waste of my time.

Any additional comments?

I would like to return this audio book.

It is what it is ... ok

Weak story not a very strong witch lacking to say the least. But I finished it........

Very slow, disappointed

I loved Brackston's Witch's Daughter, but this feels like a poor YAL substitute. Terrible protagonist.

the narrator ruined it for me

she was SO overly dramatic ALL THE TIME in the fashion of a ‘40’s movie drama queen. her voice was too childish for some the the strength she was supposed to be expressing at times. it was so distracting from my enjoyment of this story..

A Bit Too Fantastical...

I have read many of the reviews, and there are truths to many of them.
This story does not measure up to The Witch’s Daughter and its sequel in its structure or plausibility. The main character of Lily does make some difficult and different decisions, but I don’t find her to be rash. She generally acts out of love and to protect the coven.
It is not clear why the Elixir is so important until the end, as “its magic” IS “flawed” and appears to be counter productive... which was confusing to me. Why be a necromancer in the first place...?
I wanted Lilly and Brahm to be together, but their relationship is depicted realistically for the time period. The ending was unexpected, but also a bit too fantastical....

The narrator is a favorite of mine, and her performance definitely made the story more entertaining and palatable. Her accents and gender distinctions are spot on!

So, if you like mostly fantasy, mixed in with some historical grounding in the Edwardian period of England, and a strong dose of the frustrations of class societal restrictions, then this book is for you. It was worth the listen for me, but I probably won’t listen again.

excellent

I was not sure at first if this story would be as great as her previous book series. but I was not disappointed. excellent and fulfilling to the last ty

Just OK really

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The heroine is a bit wet. Meant to have power and knowledge but never demonstrates it.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

It was very abrupt. I prefer a bit of exposition at the end of a story but this just stops. It always makes me feel a bit short changed when that happens.

What does Marisa Calin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Marisa Calin is OK as a narrator. She doesn't mispronounce anything too egregiously although can't do accents very well.

Any additional comments?

I just found this a bit meh overall. The historical setting is not particularly convincing and the heroine doesn't have much agency. The lack of explanation is annoying. We are constantly told that what the coven does helps people but it's never explained in what way. They just seem to vaguely talk to spirits now and again.

Awful narration

Didn't enjoy this at all, probably because the narration was awful. Same narrator in the other witch books made them just about bearable. Would consider listening again with a new narrator.

Really good tale. very enjoyable series.

Having read the other books Paula wrote in this trilogy I just had to read this one. I was not disappointed!

Good Start - Boring from the Middle on

Would you try another book written by Paula Brackston or narrated by Marisa Calin?

I would try another book narrated by Marisa Calin but I would be wary of trying another Paula Brackston book

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

I thought the book got off to a really good start but soon got very boring. I put this down and picked it up again over several weeks generally because I just wanted to get to the end.

Exciting..gripping...terrifying... sensational

Any additional comments?

After having read Paula Brackstone's two earlier editions to the highly entertaining Witch series, I didn't think they could get much better. How wrong I was.

Not only is this book exciting and enjoyable, but there were parts if this book I listened to that sent an eery chill down my spine.
Lilleth is the main character in this novel, and besides being a witch she has a terrifying secret..her practice in necromancy.

There were moments in this book when Lilleth was plagued by a dark spirit that I actually found to be quite scary, especially as I was listening in the dark in bed in an empty hotel room at the time!

A tale of love, loss and spellbinding necromancy this book will have you wanting for more after each listen. Purchase this book, you won't regret it.