Customer Reviews

Eternal Love (Berkley Sensation)

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~ETERNITY~

Raven St. James and her mother are accused of witchcraft one fateful evening, and summarily executed in the center of their village. One man stood alone against their accusers, trying to save them, but was doomed to failure in the face of so many.

Duncan Wallace never forgot his failure, nor could he forget the beauty that touched his heart so in the space of a mere moment. Her vision haunts him as if she were still alive and breathing even today.

But Raven is alive and breathing, and Immortal High Witch who is now immersed in the struggle for her very life as she flees from the mortals who would kill her out of fear and the Dark Ones who would take her very heart in order to prolong their own evil lives. Her flight lands her in America, where she and Duncan finally meet again and consummate their love all to briefly before he is killed trying to save her from a mob once again.

Having sacrificed himself to save another witch, Duncan will be reborn as an Immortal High Witch one day. If it takes an eternity, Raven will wait for him.

Having read some of Maggie Shayne's previous work, I expected to love this book. It had everything I wanted - an author whose work I admired, a plot that intrigued me, and characters who piqued my interest.

What unnerved me in the story was the fact that it moves back and forth between first person point of view and third person point of view. I am not a reader who minds either one, and I rarely notice which voice a story is written in, but having both in the same book was extremely distracting for me, and made it difficult to really immerse myself in the book, no matter how interesting the plot was.

Other than that, the plot stood up to my expectations, as did the character building. Were it not for the issue I had with the book constantly switching between first person and third person, I imagine I would have been able to enjoy ETERNITY much more than I did.

All that aside, I am glad I read the book, as it provided a basis for the later stories in this saga, which I was able to enjoy more from knowing the history behind all of the characters.

~INFINITY~

After the defeat of the Dark One who took the life of Arianna's lover centuries ago, she discovers the many secrets in his journals - among them the fact that an Immortal High Witch whose heart has been taken can be revived by replacing their heart.

This knowledge brings Arianna hope she never dreamed of, and she sets off on a journey to Nicodimus' resting place, to attempt just such a resuscitation herself.

It works. But Nicodimus has few memories upon waking, and those he has brand her a betrayer to him.

As with the first book in this collection, I fully anticipated this being a tale I would adore. Also like ETERNITY, I enjoyed the plot and characters in INFINITY immensely.

While it was not quite as prevalent as in the previous story, INFINITY also switched between first person and third person point of view, which disrupted the flow of the story and made it impossible for me to lose myself in it. I will say that there was less of this in INFINITY than there was in ETERNITY, however.

As with the preceding tale, I wouldn't recommend missing this story if you are planning to read those that follow INFINITY in this saga.

Series Order:
Eternal Love (Berkley Sensation)
Immortal Desire (Paranormal Romance (Berkley Sensation))

The book Eternal Love comprises two novellas, Eternity and Infinity, that are joined by mutual characters. These are both reprints of stories that were previously published in the `90s.

Eternity

In Eternity, we meet Raven St. James, a young witch sentenced to death by an evil priest named Nathaniel Dearborne. Raven is an immortal High Witch, which means that she cannot be killed and she gained her immortality because she died trying to save another witch in a previous life. Dearborne, however, is an immortal High Witch as well, but he is a Dark Witch who gained his immortality through stealing the hearts of other immortals. Since Raven is reborn the first time, her entire life is a struggle to keep her secret and escape Dearborne's desire for her heart. She also finds love with Dearborne's protégé, a young man named Duncan Wallace, who becomes immersed in the conflict between the two and whose love gives Raven the power to wait an eternity...

Infinity

The second novella, Infinity, tells the story of Arianna, who is first introduced in Eternity. Arianna lives in the Scottish town of Stonehaven centuries before Eternity takes place. She is also an immortal High Witch of the Light who is in love with a man called Nicodimus Lachlan. Nicodimus is one of the oldest and most powerful High Witches in existence and there are many dark ones who want his heart. He realizes what Arianna is, though he thinks she's too young to handle the import of her immortality so he keeps it a secret from her. When the townspeople begin to talk about Arianna, and her solitary ways, Nicodimus realizes something must be done to stop them before they brand her a witch. Though Nicodimus has sworn off love, he agrees to marry Arianna to save her from being persecuted by the people in their small village. Arianna swears that she will make him love her. Before she can, however, someone comes between them who wants to take the one thing that Arianna wants for herself'Nicodimus's heart.

Eternity and Infinity were two very different stories joined by secondary characters. Though they are reprints of previously published stories, if you've never read them before they are worth a try. Eternity is a sweeter story than Infinity. Raven is a more likeable heroine, in my opinion, since she realizes that her immortality comes at the expense of those around her and therefore tries to live a more peaceful and solitary life. Arianna, on the other hand, is headstrong and willful and will do anything in her power to get what she wants. I didn't really like that about her. I've never read a Maggie Shayne book before this one, but I liked Eternal Love enough to try some of her other work. These witchy stories aren't as good as say Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series, but they are just enough if you're in the mood for a simple romantic tale.

In the year 1689, when Raven St. James was twenty-one years old, Raven died beside her mother as a witch. They were hanged in the town square. Duncan Wallace had been a young Scot in training for priesthood. Duncan tried to convince his mentor, Nathanial Dearborne, that should he hang Raven and Lily it would be murder, not justice. When that failed, Duncan tried to reach Raven and help her escape. Alas, Dearborne had Duncan restrained until the two women died.

Raven is shocked to find herself breathing shortly thereafter. Raven returns to the only home she had ever known to find a note from her mother and a necklace. This was how Raven learned that she was part of an elite set of people, the Immortals. As a Light Immortal, Raven's crescent moon mark is on her right hip. In a previous life, she had died defending another Immortal. This was how Raven earned the Immortal gift. But there are Dark Immortals in the world too. Their crescent moon is upon the left hip. These witches have immortality by killing another Immortal and locking the Witch's beating heart in a small box. Whoever retains the box, retains the power. Problem is that the captured heart will eventually weaken and stop beating. The dark witch will begin to age and sicken. This is when the dark witch must kill another Immortal.

Raven leaves England and travels to America. In Sanctuary, Massachusetts, Raven is taken in by her aunt, who is mortal. This is where Raven meets Arianna, another Light Immortal. Arianna becomes Raven's friend and teacher. Raven must learn about dark and light witches and to how to defend herself. Duncan earns his Light Immortal crescent mark. Therefore, when he and Raven are reunited, it is Duncan who must learn. Biggest problem is that Dearborne is Duncan's father and a Dark Immortal. And if Dearborne cannot have Raven's heart, then he will just have to settle for Duncan's.

**** The old saying "Time is fleeting" is even more true for this story. From the Crusades, to American Indians, and onward, readers will witness time marching on as Raven's adventures continue. The author succeeds in creating a villain that readers will love to hate. Dearborne's character is evil personified. The author could not have done a better job. I can only hope that the next IMMORTAL book is as good as this one is. ****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

"Eternity". In England Witchfinder Priest Nathaniel Dearborne condemns mother and daughter Lily and Raven St. James to death for being witches. His apprentice Duncan Wallace tries to save their lives but he fails. Sometime afterward, Raven awakens and learns from her mother's notes that she earned her immortality in a previous life. Raven flees to America where she meets witch Arianna Sinclair who becomes her mentor. Duncan Wallace learns Raven lives in the New World and vows to join her there Nathaniel also knows she is there and as a dark immortal steals the hearts of his peers to remain what he is. A reckoning is coming to the Americas.

"Infinity". For five centuries, Immortal High Witch Nicodimus Lachan has been in a comatose death-like sleep interred in the Scottish Highlands as his heart was stolen by a mortal. Before his tragedy, Nicodimus figuratively lost his heart to his wife Arianna, also an Immortal High Witch. Nathaniel and Nicodimus' mortal betrayer Marten team up to con kind hearted Arianna, which leads to her husband losing his heart. She has vowed to risk her life no matter how long it takes to return his heart to him.

ETERNAL LOVE is a reprint of two superb Maggie Shayne romantic fantasies from the late 1990s. Both are superb tales of the heart with "Infinity" being a both a prequel and sequel to "Eternity". Ms. Shayne shows she was a force back and then and remains one of the top guns today.

Harriet Klausner

This book contains the two novels "Eternity" and "Infinity", first published individually in the late 1990s, which feature two sisters, both witches, who are part of a small group of immortal witches. They gained their immortality by giving up their lives for a witch in a previous life.

The first story, "Eternity", focuses on Raven St James, a young woman who is learning her craft as a witch from her mother. However when she and her mother are denounced by a priest to the local magistrate they are ordered to be hanged. A trainee priest, Duncan Wallace, tries to save Raven's life but is unsuccessful and she is hanged along with her mother. The shocking events of their trial cause a breach between Duncan and Nathanial, his training priest, and he decides to set out to the New World to see if people are more accepting of others in that country. However on the journey across he becomes ill and is tended by a woman he is sure is Raven although she doesn't admit to being the young woman he saw die and he loses touch with her as soon as they arrive in Boston.

The story continues with Raven making her life in Sanctuary, living with her aunt and trying to avoid the notice of the religious authorities. However when Duncan arrives at Sanctuary to be their priest she realises her past is catching up with her and that Duncan, who cannot be told what she is, may be in danger. The story skips forward three hundred years when Raven has another chance to have a relationship with Duncan, who has been reborn in this time, and she hopes this time to trust him fully. However their foe from three hundred years ago also has had his eye on Duncan for a long time and Duncan isn't going to want to believe the wild tales of immortality and evil and good witches; it's possible Raven may have to give her life to save Duncan's this time.

The story was well written with some interesting detail of the witch trials in England and America in the 1700s. An awkwardness was the way that parts written from Raven's point of view were written in the First Person but the other sections in the Third Person which made the story feel disjointed and odd. It's written with quite a new-agey feel and Christianity doesn't come across too well so those for whom this might be uncomfortable reading might do better missing it. However the overall plot was interesting and the supporting character, Arianna, who is the heroine of the next story, is a strong and feisty woman whose own life tragedy runs through the events of this story.

The second story in this book is "Infinity" and it follows Arianna, who featured in "Eternity", although the first person narrative is that of Nicodimus Lachlan, an Immortal High Witch whose wife and children died back in the 700s and from which loss he has never recovered. When Nicodimus returns to the village of Stonehaven in Scotland he realises that the young girl of fourteen he saw last time, Arianna, has grown to be a very independent woman on the cusp of her eighteenth birthday. She is also in a great deal of trouble with the other villagers suspicious of her as she spends time with the three women known as The Crones, who are thought to be witches, and some of Arianna's own behaviour is unusual. She is supposed to be betrothed to a local boy but refuses to submit and her family life is difficult since the death of her sister, Raven, some years before.

Nicodimus finds himself intervening a little, trying to warn Arianna to be careful but realising that her personality means that she feels like a free spirit. When frightening events take place in the village they end up betrothed, for her safety, and in due course married. But Nicodimus doesn't want to feel love again and Arianna doesn't yet know of her future as an Immortal High Witch. Before long the problems that have dogged Nicodimus throughout his long life come to find him at Stonehaven and Arianna is dragged into them, along with other villagers and another Immortal High Witch, Nidaba, who has been a friend to Nicodimus his whole life.

This story, like "Eternity", is in two parts, separated by hundreds of years. There is a short chapter which overlaps events in "Eternity" where Arianna and Raven free the hearts of trapped High Witches and Arianna believes one is that of Nicodimus who was imprisoned by Nathanial Dearborne hundreds of years before. However when Arianna is able to reunited Nicodimus's heart with his body he remembers her as his enemy, not his wife. This part of the story actually felt rather rushed and the happy ever after ending came perhaps too quickly, along with a revelation about Nidaba which I hadn't expected.

"Infinity" is a reasonable read and Arianna is certainly an interesting character, although one who tends to rush headlong into things and not consider others' opinions, finding it acceptable to lie to get her own way, and so she wasn't always appealing. However their love story felt tender, although I wasn't entirely sure what Nicodimus saw in her. Again, there is a high emphasis on new-agey mysticism and a negative view of Christianity in this story but it's an interesting read, not least in that it reminds us of the witch hunting trials and many of the awful things that were done at that time to those who were different.

Originally published for Curled Up With A Good Book, curledup.com. © Helen Hancox 2007