An Interesting Magical World with Strong Women

I was drawn into the make-believe setting because basic human needs such as sufficient food to eat seem to be overwhelming the magical powers of the women in charge. Their resistance to the kingdom of an evil man is weakening as the 300 people under the rule of the Contessa are served smaller and smaller rations. Another appealing aspect of this plot is the secret twist that the woman posing as the Contessa is not the real Contessa. For some reason, the magical powers of the real and faux Contessa are not strong enough to restore their civilization to its former glory and oust the evil man.I found myself wondering if this story might be a magical, female-dominated version of some of Mexico's history, such as the Aztcs versus explorer/murderer/conquererCortez. I enjoyed the preview chapters but feel as if I needed a slightly longer preview in order to feel comfortable with my rating.