Dorothea, Volume 3 by Cuvie

Having agreed to pretend to be a witch for the commander of the Landsknecht, Dorothea is targeted by soldiers of the separatists for death. During the battle, she is attacked by a knight who is certain that she is a witch, and who is the witchfinder general for the area.

But the things he says about witches make Dorothea believe that she has done the right thing in pretending to be a witch. However, this man rea;izes she comes from Naulders and threatens to go against all she holds dear. And he's just as good or better a swordsman than Dorothea, who is unable to overcome his skill. When Gyurk arrives to save her, the knight retreats, saying the fight is no longer fair. However, he promises to make Dorothea, "the perfect witch", the 100th witch he has killed.

But when the man rides back to the noble who is supporting him and his crusade, the nobleman reveals that he cannot continue to fight the Landsknechts and is going to surrender. When Konrad the Witchkiller tries to hearten the man, he realizes it is a hopeless task, and kills him instead when the Nobleman tries to attack him.

Dorothea and Gyurk arrive in town and discover that Dorothea's grandmother, the leader of the White House, has been arrested and imprisoned to save the other members of the house. The leader of the Kingdom has waited to declare war on EMS because he wants them to do something that can serve as more than a pretext. Dorothea, of course, wants to save her grandmother and her friend Princess Else. But can she convince the Prince to Declare War now, and thus save her grandmother from the stake, along with the other inhabitants of the White House? And Konrad may be gone for now, but he's still out there, and fixated on making Dorothea his 100th victim. Can she increase her skill in time to bring down Konrad and save herself, while continuing to fight the politics that want to destroy her family? And when she finds out of Gyurk's attraction to her as a woman, will that distraction prevent her from doing either of those things?

This volume certainly ramped up the excitement in the series as we found out about some of the many threats ranged against Naulders by the church and those who seek to bring down the White House and those who live in it. Dorothea has also met a man, Konrad, who will probably end up being her Nemesis, at least for the near future. And yeah, he comes across as very scary, being completely fixated on witches and the killing of them, which he views as "holy work".

But politics also comes into it, as Dorothea learns of Princess Else's mother and how she didn't wish to marry, but did so for the good of her Kingdom. When she died in childbirth, it deprived Princess Else of her mother's strength, wisdom and guidance. With the help of the Neighboring kingdom declaring war on EMS, perhaps Dorothea will be able to save the people she loves. The question is, can she do it before it's too late?

Well, I've enjoyed the story so far, and I'll keep reading, as I am sure there is much, much more to come.