The Burning of Isobel Key by Jen McConnel (Review)

Welcome to my stop on the The Burning of Isobel Key book tour. Brought to you by Bewitching Book Tours. Here you can read a synopsis of the book and my review. I also have a bio of author Jen McConnel. Don’t forget to visit the other blogs on this tour by going to Bewitching Book Tours for more information and other reviews about this book and author.

The Burning of Isobel Key
by Jen McConnel

Pages : 290
Word Count : 64k
Genre : Contemporary, New Adult
Publisher : BrightFish Press
Release date : October 2012
Cover Artist : Heidi Sutherlin

Amazon Paperback | Kindle | Nook

Book Description :

When Lou travels to Scotland, she's a mess. She is twenty-six, unemployed, and unsure of herself. It doesn't help that she's traveling with Tammy, her best friend, who is everything Lou is not.

At first, the trip pushes Lou towards the brink of depression, but then she meets Brian, a handsome local tour guide. When Brian tells the tourists about the countless witches burned in Scotland, Lou starts to listen. And when she discovers information about Isobel Key, one of the victims of the seventeenth century, Lou finds renewed purpose.

She sets out to learn the truth of the condemned witch, but she isn't prepared for the knowledge that waits for her. Lou must face her demons if she has any hope of righting the wrongs of the past.

Book Trailer

Author Bio

Jen McConnel first began writing poetry as a child.  Since then, her words have appeared in a variety of magazines and journals, including Sagewoman, PanGaia, and The Storyteller (where she won the people’s choice 3rd place award for her poem, “Luna”). She is also an active reviewer for Voices of Youth Advocates (VOYA), and proud member of SCBWI, NCWN, and SCWW.  She lives in North Carolina, where she teaches writing at a community college. Links :

http://isobelkey.com/

http://jennifermcconnel.wordpress.com/

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6451403.Jen_McConnel

https://twitter.com/ProDeaWriter

http://www.facebook.com/jenmcconnelauthor

After finishing The Burning of Isobel Key, I am hoping that I can explain how I feel about this book in a way that you can understand because honestly it was simply amazing. It is hard to find the right words because there are so many emotions flowing through me right now. This book has made me angry, laugh, and cry and even made my heart flutter in anticipation.

The Burning of Isobel Key is about a young woman named Louisa and her quest to find the truth about the witch trials that happened in Scotland. The beginning of the book however starts with her quitting her job and then joining her friend Tammy, which has gotten a promotion at her job, on a business trip to Scotland. On their trip, Tammy and Lou learn about the witch trials and Lou wants to find out more about what happened and to try to clear the witch’s name, if she can. While on a tour, they meet the handsome Brian, which is their tour guide. He helps Lou and Tammy learn more about the trials and the history of St. Andrews. Lou finds papers about a woman named Isobel Key and she starts to feel some type of connection with her. She starts learning more and more about the trials and the witch Isobel Key which begins Lou on the journey to self discovery, love and learning about her rich heritage that she didn't even know she had.

The one thing that I really loved about this book is the amount of knowledge the author used when writing about the different things to do with Wicca. Weather the author herself is Wiccan I have no idea but to read a book that talks about Wicca and it being correct is a thing with me. I hate to read books that seem like the author took no time to do any research on the subject and just use stereotype information that really has nothing to do with true Wicca or Witchcraft. I have much respect for Jen McConnel for this one thing alone.

When it comes to the book overall, seriously it was, for lack of a better word, amazing. It broke my heart with what happened to Isobel and what lead up to her death. I feel so connected to Lou and can understand her struggles throughout this book. McConnel is able to write characters that a person can relate too and understand in ways that you could not possibly imagine. Reading this book, I felt what the characters felt and for me, that is a hard feat to accomplish but McConnel knows what she is doing. Another thing that made this book really great for me is the changing from Lou to Isobel to Lou and then back. You would think it would complicate things but honestly it flowed together so seamlessly that it all tied together.

The only really bad thing about this book is that I finished reading it and there isn't any more to read. I want more! I would love to see this story continue and see what happens with the characters in the story. I am sure that is how most everyone feels after reading a book that they loved but it would be awesome if this story did continue into a series.

This is one book that I am so grateful that I had the pleasure of reading and honestly, it is worth every penny. I expect much more great books from this author and can't wait to read them.

I give this book :

Disclosure Notice I received a free copy in exchange for my personal and honest review. I was not compensated in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are my own.