Here are 91 books that Burn a Black Candle fans have personally recommended if you like
Burn a Black Candle.
Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.
Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.
It’s not an exaggeration to say that finding a path toward a spiritual belief that accepted me for who I am was a lifelong pursuit for me. As someone who felt pushed out by the Catholic Church for my transness, I wanted to find something that kept some of those traditions but built on them in a way that made sense to me and included me. Italian-American folk magic had room for people like me in a way that organized religion never did. The magical memoirs of contemporary writers inspired me to synthesize what I’d learned into my own grimoire/memoir.
People throw around the phrase “this book changed my life” far too easily, in my opinion, so when I say it about this book, please know that I mean it with all my being. I found this book while I was in a mental health crisis, and it helped link me to my ancestors, the good life they would wish for me, and forgiveness through intricately detailed rituals and folk traditions.
A must-read if you’re Italian-American–or even if you’re not–this book helped me structure my life in a way that felt true to who I am.
In this fascinating journey through the magical, folkloric, and healing traditions of Italy the reader learns uniquely Italian methods of magical protection and divination and spells for love, sex, control, and revenge.
"Mary-Grace Fahrun's Italian Folk Magic is an intimate journey into the heart of Italian folk magical practices as they are lived every day. Having grown up in an extended Italian family in North America and Italy, the author presents us with the stories, characters, saints, charms, and prayers that form the core of folk religion, setting them in context in an authentic, down-to-earth, and humorous voice. A delight…
It’s not an exaggeration to say that finding a path toward a spiritual belief that accepted me for who I am was a lifelong pursuit for me. As someone who felt pushed out by the Catholic Church for my transness, I wanted to find something that kept some of those traditions but built on them in a way that made sense to me and included me. Italian-American folk magic had room for people like me in a way that organized religion never did. The magical memoirs of contemporary writers inspired me to synthesize what I’d learned into my own grimoire/memoir.
I love this meditation on magic, parenting a child with a medical condition, and intimate partner violence for its honesty and bravery.
Hillary Leftwich doesn’t shy away from discussing traumatic events and her own decisions that left her life feeling unmoored and the magical pathways that helped her come back to herself. Fearless and insightful, this was one of my favorite memoirs in recent years.
AURA is more than a memoir-- it's a spell book for survival, a powerful promise from mother to son, and an intimate examination of power, spirituality, and the abuse of both.
"AURA is more than a memoir-- it's a spell book for survival, a powerful promise from mother to son, and an intimate examination of power, spirituality, and the abuse of both. Hillary Leftwich weaves together the stories of her life to create startlingly raw memories that are both personal and profoundly universal. She explores the devastating impact of patriarchy in her own life while searching for answers in witchcraft,…
It’s not an exaggeration to say that finding a path toward a spiritual belief that accepted me for who I am was a lifelong pursuit for me. As someone who felt pushed out by the Catholic Church for my transness, I wanted to find something that kept some of those traditions but built on them in a way that made sense to me and included me. Italian-American folk magic had room for people like me in a way that organized religion never did. The magical memoirs of contemporary writers inspired me to synthesize what I’d learned into my own grimoire/memoir.
I was amazed and inspired by the places that Elissa Washuta went with this book. Not only is it about living in a potentially haunted home and the magic that the author engages with, but also, somehow, about historical markers, The Oregon Trail, and indigeneity.
I felt like I was traveling along with Elissa Washuta’s brilliant mind as she made her way through all these seemingly disparate but ultimately very connected topics.
A TIME, NPR, New York Public Library, Lit Hub, Book Riot, and Entropy Best Book of the Year
"Beguiling and haunting. . . . Washuta's voice sears itself onto the skin." ―The New York Times Book Review
Bracingly honest and powerfully affecting, White Magic establishes Elissa Washuta as one of our best living essayists.
Throughout her life, Elissa Washuta has been surrounded by cheap facsimiles of Native spiritual tools and occult trends, “starter witch kits” of sage, rose quartz, and tarot cards packaged together in paper and…
It’s not an exaggeration to say that finding a path toward a spiritual belief that accepted me for who I am was a lifelong pursuit for me. As someone who felt pushed out by the Catholic Church for my transness, I wanted to find something that kept some of those traditions but built on them in a way that made sense to me and included me. Italian-American folk magic had room for people like me in a way that organized religion never did. The magical memoirs of contemporary writers inspired me to synthesize what I’d learned into my own grimoire/memoir.
I have a fraught relationship with my ancestors, but I still wish for their blessings and the hope they had for me. This book, with its magical rituals for elevating ancestors and paths to forgiveness, helped me come to peace with the people who’d come before me and with myself.
It is a must-read for anyone who has any interest in channeling the magic of their lineage.
Ancestor veneration is one of the most widespread spiritual practices in the world. This book shares techniques to help you connect to your ancestors and receive the benefits that come from veneration more love in your life, better outcomes in creative pursuits, and an improved sense of wellness. Discover how genealogical research, family recipes, gentle rituals, and even practices like music and dancing can help open a wonderful new dimension of your spiritual journey. Honoring Your Ancestors shares the important distinctions between working with blood ancestors, lineage ancestors, and affinity ancestors. You will also explore the topic of ancestral trauma…
I’m an information junkie who loves to dance. I fell in love with folk dancing at age 6, European archaeology at 11, linguistics and cognition at 21—and could never drop any of them. My scientist-father always said, “Follow the problem, not the discipline,” and I began to see how these fields could help answer each other’s questions. Words can survive for millennia—with information about what archaeologists don’t find, like oh-so-perishable cloth. Determining how to reconstruct prehistoric textiles (Women’s Work: The First 20,000 Years) then led me to trace the origins of various European folk costumes, and finally even to reconstruct something about the origins of the dances themselves.
I chose this book because it is such a wide-ranging compendium of Russian folk beliefs in general (in English!) as well as of Russian customs involved in trying to ensure the fertility and health of crops, farm animals, and women, all desperately needed for the survival of the community. It is these fascinating and picturesque customs that so often get incorporated into dances. Furthermore, the Dancing Goddesses were often pressed into service for divination of the future, especially by young girls worrying about whom they would marry and how many children they would have, or if they would die first. (I accidentally witnessed one of these ceremonies in Danzig in 1993—they have not died!)
The title of this book refers to the classic time and place for magic, witchcraft, and divination in Russia. The Bathhouse at Midnight, by one of the world's foremost experts on the subject, surveys all forms of magic, both learned and popular, in Russia from the fifth to the eighteenth century. While no book on the subject could be exhaustive, The Bathhouse at Midnight does describe and assess all the literary sources of magic, witchcraft, astrology, alchemy, and divination from Kiev Rus and Imperial Russia, and to some extent Ukraine and Belorussia. Where possible, Ryan identifies the sources of the…
I’m a foodie at heart and grew up working in a family restaurant. I currently live in Los Angeles, where I’m delighted to have access to all sorts of edible goodies. As a writer, I insert food into my books, specifically in my culinary cozy mysteries, which have murder—and recipes! I also adore the idea of the fantastical; as a kid, I often created entire imaginary worlds during playtime. I’m happy to combine both loves in my newest series, the Magical Fortune Cookie books.
I loved the echoes of culture I experienced with this novel, which has a Chinese American protagonist. The cultural expectations and even tidbits of language made me feel represented.
I also admired that Vanessa could tell fortunes through examining the dregs of a teacup; as a tea lover, I wholeheartedly endorsed the notion. I was already familiar with Lim’s storytelling and knew I’d be in for a treat of a read, especially one filled with vivid details of Paris and its excellent culinary ambiance.
From the critically acclaimed author of Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune comes a new delightful novel about exploring all the magical possibilities of life in the most extraordinary city of all: Paris.
Vanessa Yu never wanted to see people's fortunes—or misfortunes—in tealeaves.
Ever since she can remember, Vanessa has been able to see people's fortunes at the bottom of their teacups. To avoid blurting out their fortunes, she converts to coffee, but somehow fortunes escape and find a way to complicate her life and the ones of those around her. To add to this plight, her romance life…
Ever since I was small, I’ve been fascinated by weather magic. Whenever we visited our Shetland family, I’d spend the last few days trying to conjuring fog, to ground the planes, and keep us there a little longer. Reader, it worked! My parents were not happy. I was over the moon and thereafter, utterly convinced that I had magical powers. This is a list of magical middle grade books guaranteed to delight anyone who’s ever been told they have their head in the clouds. Up with sky gazing, daydreaming, and chasing rainbows!
This story sparkles with intrigue and winter magic—it has all the delight of the first fat flakes of snow falling on a December morning. I love that the story feels so utterly grounded in the real world, before the magic begins to creep in. What would you do if frost patterns appeared on your skin? Try to ignore it, or follow the call of adventure? A frosty tale with a huge warm heart—highly recommended.
A glittering story of frost and friendship, with writing full of magic and heart, the Branford Boase-longlisted A Girl Called Owl is a stunning debut about family and the beauty of the natural world.
It's bad enough having a mum dippy enough to name you Owl, but when you've got a dad you've never met, a best friend who needs you more than ever, and a new boy at school giving you weird looks, there's not a lot of room for much else.
So when Owl starts seeing strange frost patterns on her skin, she's tempted to just burrow down…
I especially love reading fantasy stories and stories based on actual historical events. I've been an avid reader since I was a little girl; while my siblings were playing outside or inside with toys I was the one sat curled up in the corner reading. I've also worked hard and gained qualifications in creative writing. I've also had a passion for writing and have written my own fantasy novels; being an author is simply amazing because you can create characters that are unique and special as well as true to life, plus you get to create worlds that are entirely different to our own.
Chosen is an incredible action-packed book that had me on the edge of my seat throughout. From the strong heroine, fantastic hero, and a whole group of crusaders banding together as they fight the very thought out and realistic villain. The depth of the characters is intriguing along with the way the author has set the scene throughout the story. The fight scenes are graphic which adds the extra ‘wow’ factor to the entire story. I personally loved this as a book that you can truly sit back, relax, and be pulled out of this world into the world the author has created.
This series is what K.F. Breene does best - strong heroine, incredible hero, and a community of underdogs that never say die! Binge this completed series!
"What an incredible action packed adventure!" ★★★★★
"If you like a strong female, great plot, awesome characters, sexy alpha male who is gonna be more complex than you first thought...and a great villain. Then READ THIS SERIES. ★★★★★
It is said that when war threatens the world, one individual will be selected by prophecy to lead the Shadow Warriors out of the Land of Mist and reclaim the freedom which has been stolen. ~~…
Hi there! I am a children’s author, illustrator, and designer living in MA. I spend a lot of time thinking about how important friendship is to me; both the good and bad times, and how I could have handled certain scenarios differently. Books give us the opportunity to act out scenarios without having to live them. Books can teach us mannerisms and coping skills, making us more prepared for life. They also give us an opportunity to take a break from reality and sneak off into other worlds from time to time. Every book on my list highlights the importance of friendship and the thrill of adventure, I hope you enjoy them!
Stephanie Graegin’s art is warm and welcoming. I was already familiar with the adorable anthropomorphic characters in her other books when I discovered Little Fox in the Forest. She seems to have created an entire world all her own that translates so well from book to book. You can always expect caring, kindness, and friendship in Stephanie’s world.
The wordless story introduces two friends, a girl and a boy. When a cute little, sweatered fox snatches the girl’s favorite stuffed animal from the playground, her friend helps her try to find it. They run into the woods together and happen upon the most amazing alternate universe.
The girl and boy locate the stuffed animal only to discover that the little fox who found it seems to need it so much more. Through a happy ending, we learn that sharing can feel rewarding too.
Fans of Aaron Becker’s Caldecott Honor winner Journey will love this utterly enchanting wordless picture book in which two friends follow a young fox deep into the woods and discover a wondrous and magical world.
When a young girl brings her beloved stuffed fox to the playground, much to her astonishment, a real fox takes off with it! The girl chases the fox into the woods with her friend, the boy, following close behind, but soon the two children lose track of the fox. Wandering deeper and deeper into the forest, they come across a tall hedge with an archway.…
I’ve been fascinated by time travel and speculative stories since I was a child. I grew up with The Tomorrow People and then later was captivated by Sapphire and Steel. While I love reading most genres and have a book blog and book column in the local press, I feel speculative fiction has just that little extra edge. It answers that clichéd questionwhat if? And transports you into magical visions of slightly different worlds. I hope you enjoy the books on this list as much as I have. And perhaps, one day, The Storytellers might appear on someone else’s. What a joy that would be!
This book is heartbreaking and magical. I thought at first it was a romance novel, but a speculative twist took me by surprise. I became enthralled in those chapters not wanting to leave them. Not quite believing the brilliance of the premise. My daughter had gone through a very similar situation, so every emotion felt raw, and I completely engaged with Anna’s dilemma. How could she choose what to do? I tentatively told my daughter about it and after reading it, she agreed it was amazing too. The ending, which brought me to tears, is hopeful and poignant. It is such a unique story, but I won’t spoil it by mentioning the theme portrayed in it.
From the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author comes an emotional romance that is "beautifully written and plotted" (Candis).
This is not a typical love story, but it's our love story.
When Anna arrives in a Spanish beach town for a much-needed escape from real life, she isn’t looking for love. Until Adam sweeps her off her feet. There’s no denying their connection, and what begins as a beautiful romance soon becomes a vow to love each other . . . forever.
Years later, cracks have appeared in their marriage. In an attempt to rekindle their fire, they…
