Book Review: Gracemarch by J.J. Barnes, with Jonathan McKinney & Cliff Thomas

I loved this book. It has fabulous characters, magic, a monster, ghosts, under-cover assassins and more, all out in plain sight in a contemporary setting. Jane has been dumped by her boyfriend, her mum and sister don’t have time for her, her flat is a mess and she drinks too much wine. Her sister is a famous and successful author, whilst Jane works in a bar. She’s not sure how she will keep going without the financial help she was receiving from her boyfriend. Everything is falling apart.

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Into the Mists: A Cosy Chat with author Serene Conneeley

Serene Conneeley is an Australian writer with a fascination for history, travel, ritual, and the myth and magic of ancient places and cultures. She’s written for magazines about news, travel, health, spirituality, entertainment, and social and environmental issues, was editor of several preschool magazines, and has contributed to books on witchcraft, history, psychic development and personal transformation. She’s studied magical and medicinal herbalism, bereavement counselling, reconnective healing, reiki and many other healing modalities, plus politics and journalism. She is the author of the Into the Mists Trilogy – Into the Mists, Into the Dark and Into the Light – the Into the Storm Trilogy – Into the Storm, Into the Fire and Into the Air.

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Under an Evil Star: A Cosy Chat with Author, Jane Holland

Under an Evil Star is a thriller based on horary astrology. What led you to choose this as a topic?

Since astrology is such a big part of my daily life, I wanted to extend that into my fiction. But how? Last year, eager to write for radio, I listened to Alastair Jessiman’s great radio plays about a Scottish psychic, The Sensitive, and kept thinking throughout, I need to use my esoteric knowledge in my fiction in the same way. Then I hit on the idea of making an astrologer my main character. But obviously, you need to know who the villain is to study their birth chart. But with horary, a much wider field of possibilities becomes open to you.

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Mabon thoughts from pagan photographer Kim Griffin

Slowly a dying hush like a blanket of mist falls across a sleepy earth. The descending darkness embraces the great mother and sleep calls her whispering on an autumn breeze. Trees bow down as she passes a last blaze of finery and coppery gold leaves slip gently floating to the ground a patchwork of a fading summer.

The best time of the year for me is autumn . A time to go inwards and reflect on the past year – roaring fires and darkness. Evenings lit by glowing candles and reading ghost stories. Walking in a silent woodland leaves crunching underfoot and the smell of the earth’s sleep. Spindly spiky boughs over head ghost-like against grey skies, always beautiful, somehow more evocative than summer.

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The Hidden Message in Fantasy Fiction

Writing non-fiction is relatively straight forward, a bit like teaching a class only you aren’t sat in front of them. You have a skill or a talent for a specific topic, and it feels right to pass on your knowledge so that others can benefit from your expertise/experience. When I wrote my non-fiction titles, I created them purely for a handful of people who I thought might find them helpful. At that time, I didn’t think that people across the world might also find inspiration in my written words. My book, How I Changed My Life in a Year, became a bestseller in self-help, and women’s biographies, and it helped me realise just how important personal reflection can be. Alongside my non-fiction work, I’ve always harboured a selfish goal to write a book series dedicated to the make-believe characters that run amok in my brain at any given moment.

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