DNF Review – The Pool of Two Moons (Witches of Eileanan, Book 2) by Kate Forsyth (3/5 stars)

Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 560 pages
Publisher: Ace
Release Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN-13: 978-0451456908
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd volume in the Witches of Eileanan series
Source: Swapped through Paperbackswap.com
Rating: 3/5 stars

“It has been 16 years since the Day of Reckoning, when magic and witchcraft were outlawed throughout all of Eileanan. And though rumors say that she is dead, the Arch-Sorceress Meghan of the Beasts still lives. Traveling with her are the true heir to the throne and the red-haired warrior Iseult. Their fates are woven together in a quest to bring magic back to the land.

As Eileanan nears its darkest hour, Meghan must gather rebel forces to move upon the city of Lucescere. There, the Rìgh lies near death, and his Queen, Maya the Ensorcellor, and her babe stand to inherit his power. To end Maya’s brutal reign and bring magic out of the shadows, what was broken must be brought together: twin sisters who have never met, three parts of an enchanted key, and the winged man with the powers of the lost Lodestar.”

This is the second book in the Witches of Eileanan series. I read the first couple hundred pages of this book and then stopped. I just could not get into this book. There are so many characters and so much jumping around that I started to keep notes on who was who and who was involved with what.

The above coupled with the phonetically spelled out speech was driving me nuts. I loved the first book and the world it built, but this book just jumps around between too many characters. Additionally the phonetic spelling of the dialogue is hard to read.

I don’t understand why authors have to rune perfectly good books by phonetically spelling out speech patterns. It is just as effective to day “they talked with a Scottish accent” or “they spoke with rounded consonants” or something else that tells you how the speech sounds without making you struggle through reading it phonetically.

Overall I was disappointed in this book and will not be continuing the series.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Mount TBR Reading Challenge
– Goodreads Reading Challenge