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Here's my 5* book review of With This Witch, I Thee Dead by Bella Colby.

*****

More murder, magic, and wolves

This is the fourth Bella Colby novel in the Wedding Witch cosy mystery series and I’m still loving these books. There’s another whodunnit to solve, a magical mystery to investigate, and relationship woes/joys to handle.

The familiar characters just keep on getting better. The murder set-ups are believable and intriguing. And the backdrop of Tidewater and its castle is the icing on the cake.

Now I’ve finished this novel, I’ve got my eye on the fifth book in the series. Keep them coming, Bella.

*****

Here’s the blurb:

Skylar Blackwood’s days in the sleepy seaside town of Tidewater are a whirlwind in a cauldron. She’s loving the bustle of wall-to-wall summer weddings, the forgotten thrill of using her magic, and the fun of flirting with the dashing doctor who won’t take no for an answer. The shocking discovery of a dead body casts a jinx on all that.

Once again, Skye finds herself in competition with her detective ex-husband. Ignoring the handsome jerk while cracking the case before he does is one hex of a challenge.

But not everyone is as they seem. Can she muster enough magical mojo to stop herself becoming the murderer’s next mark?

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I explain why there are so many magical doors and thresholds in my novels in this month's blog post.

Read it here:

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With the third book in the Haven Chronicles YA fantasy series well on the way, I thought it was time to reintroduce the books so far. Oh, and drop a couple of hints about what you’ll discover in book three.

Find out here:

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You go on holiday to Stratford on Avon, home of Shakespeare, and what do you bring back? A baby Cthulhu and a magical mug of course!

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Where else would you find a fantasy author on holiday than in a library in a castle? This is the library in Warwick Castle.

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Here's my 4* book review of The Gaia Effect by Claire Buss.

****

This is the first novel I’ve read by Claire Buss, but it probably won’t be the last. The problem I’ve had with some climate fiction novels is that they’ve focussed on the concept rather than the characters, creating a disconnect for me personally. In the Gaia Effect, however, there are plenty of relatable characters.

The world building is well explained and developed. Without wanting to give anything away, the method of having/obtaining a child is a brilliant indication of what this world will be like.

The ending of The Gaia Effect perfectly sets things up for the next novel in the trilogy.

****

The blurb:

When Kira wins the right to a child, she thinks all her dreams have come true. But then the impossible happens, her friends become pregnant naturally and the truth of society under Corporation begins to unravel.

Confused, Kira looks to Gaia – a myth she barely believes in – for comfort and guidance, only to discover more lies. And when a terrorist attack undermines Corporation government and plunges City 42 into chaos and rebellion, she vows to protect her friends and family at all cost. Desperate, they flee City 42, racing into the unknown world outside the walls. There they find Corporation's subterfuge goes deeper than anyone realised.

Can Kira and her friends survive Corporation’s lies and expose the truth? Or will Kira become another Corporation casualty?

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Look what just arrived in the post!

These postcards are printed with the artwork from my website, Magic and Robots. I'll be popping one of these into every book and parcel I send out to readers.

Including ARC readers!

I need a cup of tea now to calm down.

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Want to know which scenes didn't make it into the final version of my third novel? Read 'Killing my darlings' to find out:

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One of the joys of going on holiday to Venice in June was being able to take photos of places that appear in or inspire the third book in the Haven Chronicles series.

Here are just a few.

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Book Review of ShockWaves

Here's my 5* review of ShockWaves by Suzanna Williams. ***

I ended up reading late into the night to finish Shock Waves by Suzanna Williams because I needed to know what happened to Lee and Paige.

From the very beginning, we have an insight into the villain’s mind which immediately creates suspense and the expectation that bad things are going to happen to our young protagonists.

This is a high paced novel from page one, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t get to know and understand the characters.

ShockWaves is a brilliant action read and I’ll be interested to see what happens to Lee and Paige in the follow up novel.

The blurb:

Sixteen-year-old Lee Banner spends his time free-running, and trying to forget about his foster home, his dead-end Saturday job, and the bizarre images that randomly hi-jack his head. (Because telepathy only exists in science fiction, right?)

Paige Harper has lived her fifteen years with doting, if somewhat paranoid parents, and every luxury money could buy. But her father’s testimony put ex-IRA terrorist, Conall O’Shea, in prison. Now he’s out. And he’s hell-bent on revenge.

When Conall kidnaps Paige, those visions that Lee dreads are her last chance at survival.

Will Lee’s telepathic ability, and that stubborn streak which gets him into so much trouble, be enough to find Paige before it’s too late?

ShockWaves is the first in a new fast-moving, action-packed young adult action thriller trilogy. If you like twisted villains, crazy fights and chases, and a touch of romance, then you need to read the ShockWaves series.

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So many readers ask me questions about my books and writing process. You can find the answers to the most frequently asked questions in my June blog post.

The one where I answer reader questions: http://fiphillipswriter.com/2024/06/20/the-one-where-i-answer-reader-questions/

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Here's my 5* review of this brilliant, dark but funny, fantasy. ***

Demons, laughs, and scares aplenty

This is the second Spencer and Bart novel that I’ve read and it’s just as lively and entertaining as the first.

Tess is doing her best to forge a new life for herself as a professional demon hunter and investigator, with the help of Spencer and Bart, of course. But it isn’t easy. So when a new lucrative demon hunting job from a childhood friend drops into her lap, she jumps at the chance.

I’m already looking forward to the next book in this series.

The blurb

Victorian London's most incompetent crooks - turned demon hunters - are back.

When Tess Marchant gets a plea for help from an old childhood friend, The Great Big Demon Hunting Agency finds itself heading out to the countryside, to solve a mystery involving a Manor House and its wealthy family cursed by a malevolent demon.

Spencer and Bart find themselves in a world totally unfamiliar to them: of landed gentry, fearful poachers, and strange creatures which stalk the land at night. Not to mention unwelcome visitors in the form of the mysterious magician Thaddeus, and the ever-present Inspector Jones, just waiting for them to slip up.

Meanwhile, Tess finds herself struggling with a terrifying face from the past - but can this be the clue which unlocks the mystery of Flint Hall?

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Book Review

Here's my 5* review of All The White Spaces by Ally Wilkes.

Terrifying page turner

Many horror novels use gore, or jump scares, or outright violence to frighten the reader. All The White Spaces is much more about a creeping suspense that stays just out of reach, at the corner of your eye. It digs into real life human suffering and peril, and the strains that puts on a person’s mind, including feelings of paranoia.

At the start of the book, I wasn’t sure that Jonathan was the right person to tell this story through. By the end, I realised the wisdom of the author in placing him centre stage.

This brilliantly written, historical horror subtly tells the creeping terror of the expedition’s experiences, right up until the final, emotional showdown.

The blurb

In the wake of the First World War, Jonathan Morgan stows away on an Antarctic expedition, determined to find his rightful place in the world of men. Aboard the expeditionary ship of his hero, the world-famous explorer James “Australis” Randall, Jonathan may live as his true self―and true gender―and have the adventures he has always been denied. But not all is smooth sailing: the war casts its long shadow over them all, and grief, guilt, and mistrust skulk among the explorers.

When disaster strikes in Antarctica’s frozen Weddell Sea, the men must take to the land and overwinter somewhere which immediately seems both eerie and wrong; a place not marked on any of their part-drawn maps of the vast white continent. Now completely isolated, Randall’s expedition has no ability to contact the outside world. And no one is coming to rescue them.

In the freezing darkness of the Polar night, where the aurora creeps across the sky, something terrible has been waiting to lure them out into its deadly landscape…

As the harsh Antarctic winter descends, this supernatural force will prey on their deepest desires and deepest fears to pick them off one by one. It is up to Jonathan to overcome his own ghosts before he and the expedition are utterly destroyed.

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Here's my 5* book review of You May Curse The Bride by Bella Colby.

Murder and Magic

You May Curse The Bride is the third Bella Colby witchy cosy mystery that I’ve read, and the best so far. I love the mixture of whodunnit and the supernatural, but it’s the relationships between Skylar, her wolf, and her friends that really make these novels. The sleuthing is believable, with plenty of clues in the mix. And I definitely didn’t see that end coming.

Brilliant. Can’t wait for the next in this series.

The blurb:

A disturbing death threat. A baffling black veil. Without our magical sleuth to break the curse, will the next bride end her day wed or dead?

Skylar Blackwood is rediscovering the thrill of using her magical powers. And her grey wolf familiar is loving vanquishing the witch hunters who appear every time a spell leaves her fingertips. But when a guest is found murdered at the most flower-filled wedding of the season, it sparks more than a firestorm in a witch’s cauldron.

Skylar is shocked when her handsome detective ex-husband enlists her help on the case. Finally, he’s taking her and her sleuthing skills seriously. But the witnesses were wasted on mojitos and there’s more than one dead body in this mystery.

Will the magic party-trick spells Skylar learned as a young witch be enough to expose the killer before the case becomes a spellbinding murderous mess?

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I fancied a catch up this month, so here's what's been happening in the life of Fi. Plus my future writing plans.

A catch up in May:

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Sometimes, you've just got to treat yourself.

I've been wanting my very own ghost from the York Ghost Merchants for a while now, and look, it's arrived.

Even the packaging is gorgeous.

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At the beginning of the year, I set myself a challenge to read 12 books in 2024. Not a lot for some readers, but a doable figure for me.

Find out how well I've done so far and what I'm reading next in this month's blog post. There's some brilliant reads on my list.