Clara disappears on her birthday. Exceptionally wealthy and exceptionally lonely, she requested that a puppeteer and his two orphan helpers stage a spellbinding show for her in the vast empty house. But then the curtains close and darkness falls ... The puppeteer, Grisini, kidnaps Clara and uses his sinister powers to imprison her body and mind in the form of a marionette. His two young assistants realise what has happened, and all three children find themselves caught up in a terrible struggle for supernatural eminence between Grisini and a dying witch of extraordinary power. The bewitching and brilliant magical adventure Fire Spell, published in the USA as Splendors and Glooms, was awarded the Newbery Medal Honor and is a New York Times bestseller.
Being a forty-something, newly divorced, single mom comes with its challenges. Finding out I’m a witch is just another one of them. As a new practitioner of tru-craft, I’ve been told that every witch is called to a single element, and they are sent down one of two paths, the Fade or the Bright. Of course, every rule has an exception, and in this case, it’s me. My grimoire has revealed a new element I have to learn, and I am walking the ditch between the two paths. I’m going to need the help of a grouchy gnome, a cuddly imp, a fiery ifrit, and a hottie druid to keep me from burning down my life and everything around it. My new reality is nature's cruel midlife trick. Surviving Earth magic without blowing up my entire world has been hard enough. If I don’t master Fire, I’ll go down in flames. Literally.
Newbery Medalist Laura Amy Schlitz brings her sorcery to a Victorian gothic thriller — an enthralling, darkly comic tale that would do Dickens proud. The master puppeteer, Gaspare Grisini, is so expert at manipulating his stringed puppets that they appear alive. Clara Wintermute, the only child of a wealthy doctor, is spellbound by Grisini’s act and invites him to entertain at her birthday party. Seeing his chance to make a fortune, Grisini accepts and makes a splendidly gaudy entrance with caravan, puppets, and his two orphaned assistants. Lizzie Rose and Parsefall are dazzled by the Wintermute home. Clara seems to have everything they lack — adoring parents, warmth, and plenty to eat. In fact, Clara’s life is shadowed by grief, guilt, and secrets. When Clara vanishes that night, suspicion of kidnapping falls upon the puppeteer and, by association, Lizzie Rose and Parsefall. As they seek to puzzle out Clara’s whereabouts, Lizzie and Parse uncover Grisini’s criminal past and wake up to his evil intentions. Fleeing London, they find themselves caught in a trap set by Grisini’s ancient rival, a witch with a deadly inheritance to shed before it’s too late. Newbery Medal winner Laura Amy Schlitz’s Victorian gothic is a rich banquet of dark comedy, scorching magic, and the brilliant and bewitching storytelling that is her trademark.
'This book gently leads the reader into a new and deeper understanding of the forest and our ancient and intrinsic connection with the trees, that has been largely forgotten in this modern age. If you wish to develop and nurture a true affinity and knowledge of trees, then Tongues in Trees will most definitely help you to do that.' Luke Eastwood, author of The Druid Garden and The Druid's Primer Trees occupy a place of enormous significance, not only in our planet’s web of life but also in our psyche. A Spell in the Forest - Tongues in Trees is part love-song, part poetic guidebook, and part exploration of thirteen native sacred British tree species. Tongues in Trees is a multi-layered contribution to the current awareness of the importance and significance of trees and the resurgence of interest in their place on our planet and in our hearts. FROM THE BOOK: 'Trees have always figured in human consciousness. I believe that when we walk among trees, or notice a particular tree, a kind of exchange happens. Trees love to be met.' 'Trees somehow mediate between ourselves and a different reality, a different order of consciousness – pre-verbal, post-verbal, trans-verbal, non-verbal – such a relief, sometimes.' 'Trees in a natural forest mirror and speak to something of the wild soul in a human. As we visit, we encounter and are supported by the elemental powers that reside in such places, and can more readily connect with our own instinctual natures and the wild soul.' 'Wildness is not to be confused with a state of chaos, being out of control, savage. It’s a question of relinquishing the ego’s grip to larger natural rhythms, cycles, surroundings: an essential aspect of thriving. When one does this, one is more receptive to one’s environment, physical or more numinous.' 'Woodland, forest, strikes me as a perfect example of the individual and the community being gracefully, harmoniously and inextricably part of each other.' 'I walk the forest, listen for birds, rivers, cascades, stories of the wildwood rustling in the leaves... try and stay aware of the great mycorrhizal web beneath my feet connecting us all...' '[T]he ancients knew that spending time among trees is one of the best approaches to health and healing. Recently, Japan has spent millions researching the health benefits of shinrin-yoku, forest-bathing.' 'In the forest I step into a different kind of time. It's not simply that it so clearly stretches back so far into the past, but also that it allows me what Thoreau described as a ‘broad margin’ to my day.' '‘Mother trees’, we know from work by Suzanne Simard, will reduce their own root competition to make room for their own offspring. Trees will also help neighbours of their own species if necessary.' 'Forests are liminal places, thresholds into a meeting of the physical and metaphysical, where we’re on the cusp of another reality...' 'In our past, our physical survival and some of our sense of meaning came from an awareness and direct experience of our connectedness with the more-than-human. We need that awareness more than ever now.' 'Our being here, our walking on this earth, is a co-creation, a mutual belonging. How to live, if not in reciprocal affinity?'
Discover Ed Greenwood's first Forgotten Realms novel—a captivating Shandral's Saga tale about an ordinary woman bestowed with extraordinary powers Shandril of Highmoon, an orphaned scullery maid, dreams of a life of adventure and excitement far from the drudgery of her daily tasks. On a whim, she runs away to seek adventure, unknowingly setting a course for the grotto of the most feared creature in the Realms. The dracolich is shrouded in unspeakable evil that can be defeated only by a power equally as strong. Thanks to enchantments created by the great mage Elminster, the only magic strong enough to triumph must be channeled through Shandril’s own body. With the enormous burden of saving the Realms now on her shoulders, Shandril finds the adventure she sought—as well as death, terror, and love.
Help Your Magic Burn Brighter with the History, Lore, and Uses of Fire Bring the passionate element of fire into your practice with this captivating entry in Llewellyn's Elements of Witchcraft series. Featuring spells, rituals, recipes, and folklore, Fire Magic shows you how to fully harness the flame and add new meaning and energy to your life. Join author Josephine Winter on an illuminating exploration of fire and its many uses in witchcraft. Discover candle and bonfire magic throughout history, how fire is depicted in mythology, and fire-related celebrations for the sabbats. Learn about correspondences, sacred herbs and woods, and how to stay safe while honoring this element. Featuring guest contributors, fire deities, mythical beasts, crystals, and more, Fire Magic inspires you to reignite your passion for magic.
Werecougar Lily Mason has sworn off investigating crimes in Moonrise, Missouri. Now that she’s a college student with two jobs and officially the girlfriend of animal activist Parker Knowles, she’s too busy for drama and danger. Besides, the last case nearly cost her everything, including her life. At least until her friend, the elderly Opal Dixon, breaks a hip and must recuperate in a nursing home. Opal has been spending all her time complaining about her annoying roommate, her idiot doctor, and the laundry service that keeps losing her clothes. So, Lily is less than convinced when Opal insists a nurse’s suicide is really foul play. Still, to ease her friend’s fears, Lily agrees to look into the situation. With her loyal dog Smooshie at her side while she delves into the case, Lily soon learns that it’s not all Bingo and low-sodium diets at Moonrise Manor. And when Opal’s suspicions make her the next target, Lily realizes she’s running out of time to save her friend…and stop a desperate killer.
The final installment in Shandril’s Saga sees the fledgling spellfire-mage get one more chance to escape those who wish to claim her power All Shandril Shessair ever wanted was a taste of adventure—but she received much more than a mere taste. Now the wielder of a rare magic that could destroy the world, Shandril has enemies watching her every move, devising ways they can steal her power. Chased across the Realms by wizards, warriors, and priests more evil than she can imagine, Shandril’s last hope is to find refuge in the city of Silverymoon. The Gem of the North is known far and wide for its magic—and for being a sanctuary for those who use their power for good. If Shandril can just make it to the city's gates, will she finally be saved?
An NPR Best Book of the Year • A Buzzfeed Best Book of the Year On Halloween, 1991, a popular high school basketball star ventures into the woods near Battle Creek, Pennsylvania, and disappears. Three days later, he’s found with a bullet in his head and a gun in his hand—a discovery that sends tremors through this conservative community, already unnerved by growing rumors of Satanic worship in the region. In the wake of this incident, bright but lonely Hannah Dexter is befriended by Lacey Champlain, a dark-eyed, Cobain-worshiping bad influence in lip gloss and Doc Martens. The charismatic, seductive Lacey forges a fast, intimate bond with the impressionable Dex, making her over in her own image and unleashing a fierce defiance that neither girl expected. But as Lacey gradually lures Dex away from her safe life into a feverish spiral of obsession, rebellion, and ever greater risk, an unwelcome figure appears on the horizon—and Lacey’s secret history collides with Dex’s worst nightmare. By turns a shocking story of love and violence and an addictive portrait of the intoxication of female friendship, set against the unsettled backdrop of a town gripped by moral panic, Girls on Fire is an unflinching and unforgettable snapshot of girlhood: girls lost and found, girls strong and weak, girls who burn bright and brighter—and some who flicker away.
