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Marieke Lexmond reads tarot cards, loves food, photography, and travel. She has three sassy little dogs that she likes to take everywhere and even have their own Instagram account @urbandogsquad. Her background in filmmaking enabled her to travel and live around the globe. Storytelling is in her blood, from saving her allowance from a very young age to buy books to her master's degree from the Dutch Film Academy. Fantasy and science fiction are her favorite genres. She prefers to write fun and mystical stories. Her attraction to nature and places with a magical history brought her to New Orleans and the West Coast of Ireland. As a pagan, she felt an instant connection to the land; it feeds her imagination and has become the inspiration for the Madigan Chronicles.
Reviewed by Liz Konkel for Readers' Favorite
The Wand by Marieke Lexmond is book three of The Madigan Chronicles. The drama around this magical family unfolds with more chaos that includes love potions, fairies, agendas, and fracturing relationships. It's time to choose the next Guardian of the Wand of Wisdom and Tara has already made her choice but circumstances that unfold could change her decision. Ceri thought she had the ideal life with her husband and children but Fairy and her role as Keeper of the Land keep drawing her back and pulling her from what it means to be human. The decision she makes for her future could unravel the life she has and divide her family while allowing her to start a new life, which pushes her daughter away and into the trust of Queen Mab. She's not the only member of the family facing a turning point. Maeve must face the trauma from her past in order to embrace her future while her twin sister faces her guilt for leaving years ago and her decision to take on significant responsibility. Meanwhile, Lucy has her own problems when she reaches out to her son Set for help, which puts a plan into motion that will have devastating repercussions that coincide with her grandson's search for his place in the family.
The story weaves between the perspectives of various members of this family and the drama that enters their lives primarily through the magical elements. The family drama reflects the dynamics of a real family with butting heads, divorce, affairs, and miscommunication, though with the added mix of fairies, love potions, and magic. Each family member has their own journey that coincides and draws them together as they must rely on each other for support, love, and help. These relationships also drive a majority of the drama that moves the story forward. The choice of the next Guardian of the Wand of Wisdom simmers in the background of the story and the striving to obtain power. Stunning tarot cards are incorporated throughout with vivid images that feature a variety of animals. These provide backdrops to the story with the meaning of the cards providing a foreshadowing of how each section unfolds. Several locations are seen throughout as the story weaves between the characters and uses the locations as poignant elements in their lives such as Fairy, New Orleans (the family shop, Under the Witches Hat), Nevada Desert, Big Sur, and the Astral Plane. These create a background to a story that dips between a human world and a fairy one with magical elements blended into both. The Wand by Marieke Lexmond is a family drama with a variety of voices that explore self-discovery, empowerment, growth, magic, and relationships.
