The Illuminated

Ok, I was not prepared for how many taboo topics Maggie was going to tackle head on in this one. Domestic violence, mental health, grief, suicide, and many more challenging concepts all laid bare and felt through the eyes of these beautiful characters. New characters and budding friendships as well as travels to exciting new realms have me excited for the next book to finally be released!! My only lament is the missed opportunity for a good redemptive arc… or rather, flat out denied opportunity. That’s okay. I still love a good villain and the players are assembling on the board for what will surely be a spectacular battle for the power to save or destroy the cosmos. Can’t wait to read more!!

As pieces of the bigger picture start to fall into place, you start to get an idea of just how intricately woven the backgrounds, history, and mysteries of each character in this reality are. Wisdom flows from these pages that leaves you questioning your own existence. Along with the rest of the magic awaiting you in this book/series, you’ll find it hard to put down!

I read this book a couple of months ago and was so completely enraptured, I blazed through these without having done a review. This is the third book in Maggie Sunseri’s The Lost Witches of Aradia series and it just gets better and better. The Illuminated was deeply enthralling, enchanting and enigmatic, and I’m here for it! The reread did not disappoint.

This book picks up right where we left off after the cliffhanger from the last book. Áine and Daelon are still trying to restore Aradia to the peaceful, free world it used to be. Maggie Sunseri has a gift when it comes to world building! She creates this beautiful, vivid, rich atmosphere that literally pulls you into the story. I swear this world is the world I think of when I think of all things witchy. Like she’s plucked the ideas from my head and brought it to life. Her writing is flawless and dare I say, magical.

We’ve been introduced to a few new characters in this installment and I love them all! Relationships change and deepen between Áine and Daelon, Lucius, and Taryn. Still living for Daelon and Áine in this one. I love their love! Sunseri also gives us more of the backstory with Lucius which brings so much light to why he is the way he is. This was a page turner that again, I couldn’t put down! Finished this book in 2 days because it’s absolutely captivating. So much happens in this book but it brings the story together a bit more and yet has you begging for the next one. Definitely recommend this series if you love all things witchy and magical with a lot of tension and an almost forbidden romance. Now time to reread the 4th installment The Hunted before The Scorned is released on Samhain, because how perfect is that!