Where the Moon Has Been

Judith Lepore

Sep 2021 · The Magic of Miraven Book 1 · Judith Hutchinson

About this ebook

A beautiful young Healer flees from two lethal sorcerers. One is smitten with her. The other wants her dead...

Tekoah wants a quiet life, but instead is hurtled into danger when she attracts the attention of two rival shapeshifters. Zant’s sole aim—eternal power. But Tekoah’s clan of Anniste healers defy him, so he targets them in his deadly plan for domination.

Moody Braith is younger, but his abilities already surpass that of any sorcerer ever spawned. His one vulnerability: a hopeless passion for Tekoah, who wants nothing to do with him.  A momentous clash between the wizards becomes inevitable, deciding the fate of the world.

As the final battle looms, Tekoah discovers her own magic. And she must make a choice:

Save herself, or help her clan.  

Set in the mythical land of Miraven, Where the Moon Has Been is a haunting epic fantasy tale of obsession and revenge—and one girl’s fight to save the ones she loves, amid a violent struggle between dark magic and light. 

Ratings and reviews

'Where The Moon Has Been' is a poignant and dextrously penned novel. Honestly, I cannot recommend this book enough. Fantasy has always been one of my most favorite genres & this book just quadrupled my love for it. Despite the hefty length, the book just whizzed by like the breeze. The prologue was enough to lure the reader into the exquisite, rich & mystical land of Miraven. The story build-up was descriptive and gradual. The world building was flawless. The author has a vivid writing style, one that sucks the readers in. While reading the book, I could feel myself experiencing the same emotions as that of the characters & I could feel my heart pounding in anticipation of what would happen next. The pace was perfect & the story line was pretty unprecedented. I found that the author is a pretty gifted writer. As I mentioned before, the book is pretty hefty BUT there is absolutely NO information dump anywhere in the novel. The characters are lucidly penned, and the fact that they bear significant resemblance to reality made them ten times more relatable to me. Because of the beautifully sketched characters, the story was gripping. It was hard to put the book down once I started reading it. The author was successful in bringing to life a world full of magic, lore, shape shifters, much much more! It goes without saying; I'd definitely be recommending this book to all the Fantasy fans out there. Trust me when I say, people, this book has made its way among my top five Fantasy reads of all time. “𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 𝒄𝒐𝒑𝒚 𝒊𝒏 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘.”

I was fortunate to receive an advanced copy of this book. Have you ever noticed that the first time you experience something; it could be a place, a taste or a sound, how it can leave you with a feeling of wonder? I believe that one of the most exhilarating first experiences anyone can enjoy is when you choose to enter into a world created by a gifted story teller. Judith Lepore's initial offering "W here the Moon has Been" is one of those first encounters that will transport the reader into a fantasy world that is uniquely tied to the characters that inhabit it. This genre will always require the ultimate battle between good and evil and this book does not disappoint. This story reinforces the concept that everyone's journey is unique and that the influences on experiences, either internally or externally will, eventually, allow us to play our part in the greater scheme of things. We may not end up where we imagined but we will end up where we belong. One of my favorite parts about reading a new book is meeting the characters and developing a picture in my mind of who they are and what they look like. I know the author has a clear vision in mind when she creates the characters, but let's face it; it's rare that two people see things the same way. Judith has created a plethora of unique personalities and I would prefer to not influence the reader's imagination, so I will only say this, Sorcerers are cool. I strongly believe that this book will appeal to a very wide demographic from adolescents to adults. The underlying theme that we can all be healed and we can all be healers, is not only a profound message, but is something we should all be striving for everyday, especially in today's world.

I was given an advanced review copy of this book…and I was delighted, Before I started to write this review, I reread the Prologue, and in an instant I was there again, in the mythical land of Miraven, all my senses engaged, seeing, hearing, tasting and feeling that world. The exquisite writing is stealthy – it is woven so tightly that the warp and weft of it seemingly disappear beneath the pictures they are carrying. But make no mistake: the language shimmers and shines as it lures you deeper and deeper into the characters and relationships, the story, the lore, the action, the magic. The Prologue foreshadows the embrace of the story to come. The action and world-building start immediately and vividly. We meet our heroine Tekoah, a young villager who just wants to be left in peace, but whose destiny is as a healer, and also, perhaps, as the thumb on the apocalyptic scales balancing good and evil, dark and white magic. And we watch with her as she witnesses for the first time the hypnotic and brutal powers of Braith, the third, youngest, and most enigmatic Sorcerer to hold power over the land. His love of Tekoah means that he must make a potentially fatal choice as The Mantling, which will end the Age of Sorcerers, hurtles toward them. This love puts him in direct conflict with the Sorcerer Zant, whose every action is aimed at stopping The Mantling, and achieving eternal power. The story is rich with lore – shapeshifting sorcerers, the Anniste healers, rifts in space-time – as well as intrigue and battle. Characters are multidimensional and engaging – sometimes heroic and endearing , sometimes misguided and deeply flawed. There is a world here – a world I found myself caring about, and hoping to enter again. I just read that Lepore is writing a sequel, Mirror of the Sea. Can’t wait!

About the author

Judith Lepore is an emerging fantasy author hailing from Vancouver, B.C., Canada. She worked for a number of years writing and editing for film, radio and television. Judith has been an avid reader of speculative fiction since childhood, and is an animal lover, wife and mother, and outdoor enthusiast. She spends much of her creative time in the interior of B.C., communing with the stellar blue jays and deer, and gaining inspiration by gazing at the ever-changing waters of Lake Okanagan.