Dreams Of The Witches Three – A Promising Debut

Eric Linke’s Dreams of the Witches Three was published by “Eric’s Golden Dragon Publishing.” This fact has exactly nothing to do with my review, but what a cool name for an indie publisher. Dreams of the Witches Three is an interesting take on fantasy from a promising new author. 

Radnor Magnusson is feared across the realm for his deeds. On his warpath of vengeance, Radnor leaves a wake of destruction. The citizens of Neugeld learn this firsthand. When Radnor seeks refuge in the town for an evening of rest, an innocent stop-in turns violent. Neugeld is attacked by wretched demons Radnor knows all too well. The town is razed, and Radnor agrees to escort the survivors to Wulfgeld, a multi-day journey that promises to be treacherous. Along the way, Radnor starts to feel affection for the Neugeld people—one in particular, wink wink—even as he questions his commitment to keeping them alive. Upon arriving in Wulfgeld, Radnor and his comrades must deal with a new threat looming larger than any small town could imagine. 

I thoroughly enjoyed Linke’s story. There’s something charming about a fantasy tale that both subverts typical tropes and pays homage to them. Linke walks that tightrope with a delicate grace. The book’s first third reads like an escort mission, with Radnor plucking his companions from various scrapes and disasters. The warrior is a fish out of water, trying to ingratiate himself with a group of people with every reason to distrust him. Still, they need his help to survive. It’s fun to watch Radnor build relationships and work in direct opposition to his history as a thing of god-killing terror. 

Just when Linke lulled me into a sense of “oh, this is a journey book,” he snagged me right out of that mindset and plopped the characters into Wulfgeld, where politics and outside threats came to the forefront. This was for the better, as I was teetering on the edge of boredom, wondering where the journey would take me. By the time Radnor and company arrived in Wulfgeld, I felt like the trek had given me a good character foundation to build on, and part two started to expand on it. 

The lore ramped up, too, adding the Hexverat—a triumvirate of healing witches—into the mix as mysterious characters with their own motives. Radnor and the people of Neugeld and Wulfgeld had to face more significant threats than the ghouls they encountered on the road, upping the stakes. 

My quibbles with Dreams of the Witches Three are small and mostly due to the book’s indie status. Little grammatical issues, misplaced or underused commas, awkward turns of phrase, and pacing problems are all here, but none of them were enough to shatter my experience with the book. I note them here just in case potential readers would be turned off by small copy issues. 

If you’re on the hunt for an intriguing and unique fantasy adventure, Dreams of the Witches Three has you covered. 

-Cole