The Illuminated

Maggie Sunseri

Mar 2022 · The Lost Witches of Aradia Book 3 · Maggie Sunseri

About this ebook

The borders between the dimensions are crumbling, yet all Lucius cares about is making Áine his Queen.

After surviving Nathaniel’s violent plot, Áine is fiercely determined to travel to the Akashic Records and uncover the dark reality behind Lucius’s unnatural rise to power. As she strives to fulfill her destiny to free the truth from its binds and restore the natural balance of the Universe, Lucius only grows more adamant that Áine is his—a gift from the heavens that ordained him King. To make matters worse, Nathaniel may have succeeded in planting the seed of doubt into the King’s mind, casting Daelon and Áine’s relationship under harsh scrutiny.

Caught in an escalating, magickal arms race, Lucius and Áine plot against each other and send the entire castle into clashing turmoil in their wake. All the while, Daelon and Áine’s dangerous, secret affair only grows more and more volatile and all-consuming. Now everyone is forced to choose a side, and the list of deceits, subterfuge, and cosmic mysteries only grows longer. Who will be left standing when this ethereal castle of lies, pleasure, and magick comes crashing down?

The Illuminated is the addictive, fast-paced third installment in The Lost Witches of Aradia series. Grab a copy today and fall under Áine’s spell as she guides you through a compelling journey through her multidimensional reality.

Ratings and reviews

Beginning with learning Áine’s fate, The Illuminated picks up where The Coveted left off as she navigates Lucius’ influence and the emotional burdens of clairsentience, testing her resilience in the process. A favorite so far in the series, this book continues in the tradition of being astonishingly well-written while widening its psychological and philosophical reach. Notably featuring tributes to concepts within Greek mythology in addition to references to shadow sides and depressive realism, considerable depth is contributed to the story’s progression while remaining loyal to providing the escapist aspects of fantasy. There is discussion of suicidal ideation and domestic violence in this book, though rather than triggering I personally found it to be nothing but supportive and understanding in its compassionate reflection on what fosters suffering of this sort of nature. And like the others of the series, consolatory messaging, spirituality in the face of darker topics, and touching on the healing power of community ensure that unlike the outside world at times in which these subjects are less fleeting, they never seem to linger in the realm of Aradia hopelessly or for too long. While the wait for The Hunted seems difficult given where this book ends, I have no doubt it’ll be more than worth it.

Nope. No words. Once again, I have been left completely and utterly speechless at the end of one of the author’s works. Aradia is such a rich and detailed tapestry. One wrong thread pulled and the whole thing could unravel, irrevocably. I feel like that’s as much as I can say about Áine’s latest travails without giving away all the amazing (and evil genius-inspired) twists this book takes. The groundwork is being laid for what’s to come and I’m desperate to know how it will all play out. I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book from the author.

Áine’s story continues. It gets deeper and darker as our main heroine learns and does actually find her purpose, the truth of what happened to both King Lucius and Aradia, the origin of Aradia’s evil shadow and why it has caused a multidimensional imbalance ripple through all realms including Earth. She meets some interesting characters along the way: Hecate, a former college professor and talking trees to name a few. This particular part of the series has a lot of details that gives the reader much to process. It isn’t a light read. Good news is that it does not conclude with a cliffhanger but there is more to the story as Áine and her love Daelon head toward their next quest to correct the wrong and restore balance.

About the author

Maggie Sunseri is the author of The Lost Witches of Aradia series by day and a witch, tarot card reader, and astral projector by night. She has a bachelor's degree in Anthropology/Sociology, and when she's not spending her days dreaming up new worlds, she's imagining ways to make the world she's in just a little brighter and more magickal.

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