Becoming Crone (The Crone Wars Book 1)

Lydia M.
Hawke
Genre: 
Fantasy-Urban-Fantasy
While celebrating her sixtieth birthday, Claire Emerson is given a pendant by her grandson. After the party, Claire can’t figure out what is going on with herself. Claire notices more menopausal symptoms than ever before. When she sees a hidden message in the newspaper, her curiosity is triggered, so she follows the message leading her to a hidden cottage in the woods which she learns is also her home. Claire is tasked with saving her world, so she is accompanied by a gargoyle-Keven, who is her trainer and Lucan, a handsome wolf-shifter, as her protector. Claire resists training of any kind, resisting the very notion that she even has powers—because magick shouldn’t exist. Claire learns that she is a crone with powers and yearns for her old ordinary life despite the dangers it causes.
 
This extraordinarily diverse paranormal fantasy by Ms. Lydia Hawke is marvelously written and quite unique! The action-packed story moves along quickly, never slowing down, bringing all sorts of paranormal creatures together seamlessly! The malevolent characters are horrifyingly frightening despite little descriptions of them. The imaginative world-building is stunning and very easy to visualize! Claire Emerson, the sixty-year-old protagonist, does act immature at times, especially in her infatuation with Lucan. Still, the author manages to pull off an older heroine convincingly. How Claire became a crone and her history with witchcraft could use more explanation, though this really didn’t detract much from the story. Claire is easy to like and relate to. The book holds the reader engaged in the tale and never lets up until the very end!
 
Roslynn Ernst