I’m a paranormal writer living on the buckle of the Bible Belt, but the hills are alive with witches and Magic, even here. People tend to say that witches don’t exist—until you ask for a strand of their hair. I’ve been on the witch’s side since I was young. If kids persist in eating bits of your house or stealing your rampion, what’s a wi–er– lady to do? Urban fantasy and magic realism in modern literature, take a more sympathetic view of witches. My book selections offer witches in all their glory—Some are good, some are bad, and some haven’t made up their minds yet.
How many Scottish witches does it take to destroy one small-town fortune teller? Granny’s dying, but Zoraida can save her with a magic crystal of smoky quartz. Too bad the crystal is in Scotland––in a haunted castle––guarded by mind-reading, psychopathic sorcerers.
Getting inside Castle Logan is easy. Getting out––not so much. Zoraida stumbles into a family feud, uncovers a wicked ancient curse, and finds herself ensorcelled by not one but two handsome Scottish witches. Up to their necks in family intrigue and smack-dab in the middle of a simmering clan war, Zoraida and her best friend Zhu discover Granny hasn’t told them everything. Not by a long shot.
My mom used to give me a lot of propaganda to read like Little Women and the Bobbsey Twins. Good books but obviously intended to form me into a well-behaved and compliant little angel. I preferred MAD Magazine, Captain Blood, and anything I could get my hands on about magic and witches. While witches were almost always the villains, the wicked witch of the west never scared me—I thought she was totally justified in her pursuit of Dorothy and her gang of thugs. My own sister and I have our differences, but if someone dropped a house on her I’d be out for revenge, too. Wicked takes another look at Elphaba and how she became the Wicked Witch of the West. I’ve waited decades for this story.
An astonishingly rich re-creation of the land of Oz, this book retells the story of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, who wasn't so wicked after all. Taking readers past the yellow brick road and into a phantasmagoric world rich with imagination and allegory, Gregory Maguire just might change the reputation of one of the most sinister characters in literature.
I won this book in a contest, put it on a shelf, and forgot about it for months. When I finally got around to reading it, I was captured! Urban fantasy is supposed to take the normal world and twist it like the focusing bits on a pair of binoculars. The results are that what you were looking at gets blurry, but something else becomes crystal clear. Widdershins did that for me. The normal world blurred and suddenly I could see the magical world that was all around complete with alliances and enemies.
In Widdershins, fantasy author Charles de Lint has delivered one of his most accessible and moving works of his career.
Jilly Coppercorn and Geordie Riddell. Since they were introduced in the first Newford story, "Timeskip," back in 1989, their friends and readers alike have been waiting for them to realize what everybody else already knows: that they belong together. But they've been more clueless about how they feel for each other than the characters in When Harry Met Sally. Now in Widdershins, a stand-alone novel of fairy courts set in shopping malls and the Bohemian street scene of Newford's Crowsea…
I‘m cheating a bit here and recommending the trilogy. Nora Roberts is a storyteller par excellence and this trilogy from early in her career pre-curses (see what I did there?) the fantastic tales she will pen later. The trilogy is about three sisters—witches, of course, and their quaint New England hometown. Romance is only part of these stories, but if you like romance, you’ll be happy. Magic and curses abound, all tied up neatly in three books by Queen Nora.
When Nell Channing arrives on Three Sisters Island, she hopes she has finally found refuge from her abusive husband. But even in this peaceful place, she feels haunted by fear. Then she discovers the island is suffering under a terrible curse and that she must find the power to save herself. Pbk: ISBN 0749932775.
Anything by Terry Pratchett is going to fly! One of my favorite quotes is Pratchett’s “A witch ought never to be frightened in the darkest forest, Granny Weatherwax had once told her, because she should be sure in her soul that the most terrifying thing in the forest was her.” The Colour of Magic is the first in the Discworld series and was recommended to me by a student who was trying to curry favor in a college composition class. Pretty sure he got a C because he couldn’t write, but I owe him something for turning me on to this series. Magic and fantasy and snarkiness fill this series.Witches aren’t always the main characters, but they are forces to be reckoned with in this fantasy world.
On a world supported on the back of a giant turtle (sex unknown), a gleeful, explosive, wickedly eccentric expedition sets out. There's an avaricious buy inept wizard, a naive tourist whose luggage moves on hundreds of dear little legs, dragons who only exist if you believe in them, and of course The Edge of the planet...
I’m cheating again and giving you a recommendation for forty-four books instead of just one. This series takes the main character on a journey of discovery into her witchy heritage and solves murders along the way. I’ve read several, but not all, of the series and I find them funny and engaging. Nothing earth-shaking here, but lots of magical fun. Very pleasant to read by the light of the moon after you’ve cast your spells and put away your potions.
(Suitable for teens and seniors and all ages in-between)
What would you do if you discovered you were a witch?
That's exactly what happens to Private investigator, Jill Gooder. And as if that wasn't enough, she has a serial killer to catch. More magic, mystery and laughs than you can shake a stick at.
Wendy Lee Hermance was heard on National Public Radio (NPR) stations with her Missouri Folklore series in the 1980s. She earned a journalism degree from Stephens College, served as Editor and Features Writer for Midwestern and Southern university and regional publications, then settled into writing real estate contracts. In 2012 she attended University of Sydney, earning a master’s degree by research thesis. Her books include Where I’m Going with this Poem, a memoir in poetry and prose. Weird Foods of Portugal: Adventures of an Expatmarks her return to feature writing as collections of narrative non-fiction stories.
Weird Foods of Portugal describes the author's first years trying to make sense of a strange new place and a home there for herself.
Witty, dreamlike, and at times jarring, the book sizzles with social commentary looking back at America and beautiful, finely drawn descriptions of Portugal and its people. Part dark-humor cautionary tale, part travel adventure, ultimately, Hermance's book of narrative non-fiction serves as affirmation for any who wish to make a similar move themselves.
"Wendy Lee Hermance describes Portugal´s colorful people and places - including taxi drivers and animals - with a poet´s empathy and dark humor. Part travel adventure, part cautionary tale, Weird Foods of Portugal is at it´s heart, affirmation for all who consider making such a move themselves."
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