Do You Believe in Magic?
June 28, 2026 by Alina K. Field in category Quarter Days by Alina K. Field tagged as Bluestocking Belles, fantasy, paranormal fiction, Regency romance, romantasy, Speculative FictionApologies if the post title triggers a Loving Spoonful earworm!
The Magic of Books
It’s Midsummer and I’ve been thinking a lot about magical stories.
Paranormal, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Speculative Fiction, Romantasy, not to mention all the Star Wars-type stories. Have you read any? Do you have a preference?
My daughter is currently working her way through Rebecca Yarros’ Romantasy series. With a busy mom’s schedule, it’s been a slow go snatching time to read those lo-o-ng books.
Being an anglophile and writer of Regency-set romance, I like a familiar fantasy world, like Regency-era England, albeit populated with magical creatures and occurrences.
His Majesty’s Dragon, by Naomi Novik, is a speculative fiction story with talking dragons who fight for their respective armies in the Napoleonic wars. Not a romance, but fascinating and well-done. Another book I loved is Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, by Heather Fawcett. The story world is not Regency England, but there is a romance angle and there are lots of magical beings.
Among my Regency romance writer friends, Barbara Monajem has some beautiful stories with ghosts and paranormal creatures; Meara Platt has a Regency Dragon Shifter series; and Jude Knight has just launched Unexpected Magic, the first book in an alternative Regency world Romantasy series.
Magic in the Works
Precognition has played a role in my Macbeth series, but this fall I’ll be releasing my first actual ghost story, The Duke, the Diamond, and the Ghastly Ghoul, appearing in Moonlight Madness, a Bluestocking Belles Collection. I’ll tell you more about that in my September post here.
There’s more magic coming from the authors of the Bluestocking Belles. We’ve launched a multi-author series called Forevers in Fenwick, a stand-alone romance arriving each month (except for the months when we release a collection of stories). All of the stories take place in the fictional town of Fenwick on Sea, which was the setting for the Storm & Shelter collection from the Belles. And there’s magic, or at least a rumor of it: a fae blessing upon the well water leads to finding one’s true love.
The talented Elizabeth Donne starts off the series with The Legend Begins.
After this year’s Moonlight Madness collection, the Belles have more stories coming in June 2027, all set in a magical part of England, the Lake District. I’ll tell you more about that later in the year.
Dragons or Fairies?
What’s your preference? Do you have a recommendation? Tell me about it in the comments!
Until next Quarter Day, happy reading, and enjoy the rest of the summer!
2 2 Read more
New Release: Fifteen Keys by Peter J Barbour
June 3, 2025 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Spotlight tagged as action-adventure, adventure, becoming an adult, coming of age, ethics, family values, fantasy, Fifteen Keys, journey, Life Lessons, middle grade, Mussar, new release, odyssey, Peter J Barbour, quest, right of passage, self-reliance, survival, Travel, virtues
Fifteen Keys
Written and Illustrated
by
Peter J Barbour
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-954675-06-3
Print ISBN: 978-1-954675-05-6
Blub
In the year 1890, from a remote village in the Pacific Northwest, three teen-aged boys undertake a challenge, a rite of passage, to find fifteen “keys” that will help them grow into responsible adults and enable them to return home to become leaders in their community. They face challenging terrain, untamed wilderness, hostile weather, and a host of odd characters, any of which might delay or defeat them in their quest. But each experience has a lesson to teach the boys—a key to their development as young men.
Meanwhile, their cousins, too young to join them on their journey, wait at home, caring for their livestock, learning lessons of their own, and hoping they will see their kindred again. Will the boys be able to surmount their obstacles and return home, or will the dangers they face get the better of them, forever separating them from their families and the community they hoped to serve?
Fifteen Keys is an action-adventure fantasy for middle grade and young teens.
Amazon listed Fifteen Keys as the #1 Hot New Releases in Teen & Young Adult 19th Century Historical Fiction eBooks.
More Praise for Fifteen Keys
Set in the Northwest at an earlier time than today, the book, so well written, presents a totally original story, and it is filled with life lessons, well told and well taught.
It is a book to be read by each of us, and more importantly it will be a wondrous read for our children and grandchildren, at just the age when they begin to face these ethical concerns in their own lives.
Fifteen Keys, even more than a great read, helps kids grow up more comfortably with their ethics sharpened.
~ Rabbi BergMiddle school students and young adults will immediately be hooked on this page-turner. This spiritual discovery reminiscent of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer, teaches patience, faith, humbleness, and maintaining equanimity, just to name a few. It is a must read for young people facing the challenges of daily life today.
~Stephanie Szilagyi, MEd Reading SpecialistFifteen Keys is an exciting, engaging adventure story about three teenage boys in the Pacific Northwest in the late 19th century. As the reader anxiously follows their experiences, the author seamlessly weaves valuable life lessons into the tale.
~Carol Marin, BA, MA History, high school teacher
The author’s skill in describing the beauty of the mountains, forests, plains, and waterways as well as the challenging weather conditions of the Pacific Northwest, puts the reader directly into the action. Highly recommended.
~John P. Linehan, retired high school teacher
About the author
Neurologist Peter J Barbour, M.D., retired his reflex hammer to become a full-time writer and illustrator. His works include a memoir, Loose Ends, three illustrated children’s books: Gus at Work, Oscar and Gus, and Tanya and the Baby Elephant, and over forty short stories that have appeared in e-journals and magazines. One of them, “The Fate of Dicky Paponovitch,” earned him “Raconteur of the Month” from Susan Carol Publishing Company. He belongs to the Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC, and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). He lives in Oregon with his photographer wife. They enjoy traveling and the outdoors. He is actively involved in Mussar, an ancient study of Jewish ethics, virtues, and mindfulness leading to character development. He participates in the process as a group facilitator and brings Mussar’s timeless wisdom to the writing of FIFTEEN KEYS.
A Sci-Fi/Fantasy Boxset Giveaway by Kitty Bucholtz
December 9, 2024 by Kitty Bucholtz in category Writing tagged as boxsets, fantasy, fantasy romance, giveaway, It's Worth It, Kitty Bucholtz, Sci-fi, Urban FantasyIt’s been a long time since I participated in a group promo, but I’m finally doing one through BookFunnel. My second one actually. I was thrilled to be able to sit with Jack from BookFunnel when I was at the Author Nation conference last month as he explained some things I didn’t know how to do. Hence, my second author promo!
It’s not as hard as I thought it’d be though it is a bit of work that I have to plan out. For instance, the rules for this one include mentioning the month-long giveaway at least twice in your newsletter as well as posting about it on three social media platforms twice a week for the four weeks. That’s more promo than I usually do in a month! But it’s probably helping me create better promo habits. Haha!
If you’ve been thinking about doing a BookFunnel group promo, give one a try! You can do it! It’s worth it!
And if you like sci-fi and fantasy novels, click here to check out all the free boxsets being given away during the promo.
In addition to the free books, the host of this giveaway loves gift-giving, so here are all the other things you can win between now and December 25 — a winner every day! [Note: I’ve cut and pasted what the host sent us so you can see how easy it can be to share all the information if you have a great host!]
Enter the “25 Days of Boxsets” Giveaway to be 1 of 25 winners to win AMAZING holiday gifts, incl:
- e-books, hardcovers, and paperback books!
- Amazon Kindle Fire tablets
- Gift cards
- Kindle Unlimited subscriptions
- Amazon Prime subscriptions
- Audiobooks
- Reader-centric stocking stuffers
- Super cool holiday gifts, and more!
ALSO, ONE LUCKY *GRAND PRIZE* WINNER WILL WIN A “CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE” MEGA GIFT SET, INCL:
- A drink maker (coffee, tea, soda, or hot chocolate) + supplies
- A snack maker (mini donuts, mini waffles, popcorn, or s’mores) + supplies
- A hobby supply set (for writing, reading, art (drawing/painting) or manga/comic creating), and,
- A “stay cozy gift set (a wearable hoodie blanket, cozy socks, cozy slippers).
** There’s 1 Grand Prize Winner and 25 Runner Up Winners, but ALL ENTRANTS GET A *FREE* ENTRY PRIZE: 25 sci-fi and fantasy e-book boxsets! **
**Share on social media to get EXTRA entries and to increase your chances of winning!**
0 0 Read moreELDRITCH, INC by Christopher D. Ochs
December 8, 2024 by marianne h donley in category Spotlight tagged as Christopher D. Ochs, Eldritch inc, fantasy, Magical realism, new release, science fiction
ELDRITCH, INC
1st in the new Michael yeager Series
Christopher D. Ochs
Anigrafx, LLC
978-0998172637
December 5, 2024
After an alien intrusion mutates his fiancée into a monster, grad student Michael Avery Yeager is dragged into the world of magic, super-science, spirits, demigods, parallel realities, and amazing coffee.
He’s given the choice of joining Eldridge & S.Q.Amos, Inc. to find a cure for the woman he loves, or lose her—and the memory of her—forever.
Michael doesn’t expect that an out-of-the-way insurance company is Earth’s sole protector against the forces that crawl out of the darkness. Nor does he expect to uncover the unearthly secret within himself that ties him to Eldridge.
Who knew preventing Armageddon required so much on-the-job training?
The X-Files meets The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy in this science-fiction/fantasy/horror mashup!
Other Books By Christopher D. Ochs
Dry Run
July 30, 2023 by Dianna Sinovic in category Quill and Moss by Dianna Sinovic tagged as fantasy, short fiction, writing
What was July but sun and heat and more sun? Terina wiped the droplets from her forehead and wished for the crisp days of October. Grunting slightly, she pushed the wooden cart forward. In the noon warmth, she wanted to simply lie down in the shade beneath it and nap the afternoon away. But she was due in Ladenville before dark, to set up for the next day’s festival.
It had been more than two years since she’d attended the festival, and she didn’t recognize the harsh landscape that surrounded her: the dry grasses, the trees whose leaves were mostly wrinkled and yellow, the dusty creek beds. It should have been a verdant season, but a drought had sucked the life out of the countryside.
Her own hamlet, miles back, was a lucky oasis still green and lush.
Had the townsfolk of Ladenville not spoken to their resident merlin? Bade him summon the rain beasts?
A man carrying a burlap bag over his shoulder approached Terina on the path. Sweat soaked his shirt. He nodded at her and she nodded back.
“Sir, can you spare the time for a short question?” Terina wiped her forehead again.
“Aye,” the man said, but stood away from her, cautious.
“I am several years away from this land, headed to the Brine Festival. Why such dryness?”
The man frowned and spat at the ground. “Our merlin passed on more than a year gone now, and no one left has the knowledge to call the rain.”
Eyes wide, Terina tried to imagine such a scenario. “The Fates are often fickle. My sympathies, sir.”
He nodded again and went on down the path.
Rummaging in her pack, Terina pulled out a flask of water and sipped; the aridness made her thirsty. She contemplated her next steps: Maybe the Brine Festival was a bad idea. Drought made people irritable and less likely to spend their coins. When she slipped the flask back into her pack, her hand brushed the bottle of elixir.
Uncorking it, she sniffed the sweetness of ripe berries. She knew only a brief sketch of the rain ritual—not being a full-fledged merlin, but it was worth a try. She held the bottle above her head, letting the desiccating breeze lift the scent upward.
“Iniye ab-wo neq,” she recited. There was another step that she tried to remember. A tuft of sedge? A handful of creek mud? The small rill that crossed her path contained neither. Every creek stone she turned over yielded only hard, cracked earth.
Digging again in her pack, Terina located the peach she’d squirreled away for a snack. Soft with ripeness, the fruit might work. Holding the peach aloft as she had the elixir, she squeezed it until the juices ran down her arms and dripped to the ground.
She repeated the incantation and waited several moments.
In the deep blue of the sky, the smallest of cumulous clouds popped up.
She waited again, this time for the cloud to spawn more clouds. But the cumulous remained solitary.
With a sigh, Terina cleaned the juice from her arms and closed her pack. Pushing hard against the cart, she persuaded it to roll onward, to the north and east, toward Ladenville.
Behind her, as her one step became ten, and then stretched to a quarter mile, the water vapor in the blazing heavens condensed. Thunderheads mushroomed and spread, cutting off the sun. And the rain beasts rumbled long and low.
More of Dianna’s Stories
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