BOOK NOOK: A Haunting in the Arctic by C J Cooke

 

"Sleep tight, be kind and do no wrong, lest mermaids wound you with their song, prayers and penance do not postpone, lest they trap you by their stone."

A Haunting in the Arctic by C J Cooke is a fantastically spooky story! It was the strength of the story that kept me reading and turning the pages, though it can be a tough one to get through at times. It's very dark and certainly not a cosy read, but it is gripping. It draws on old mariner folklore and tales of mermaids, sirens and selkies, so it has an ethereal tone that pulls you in. At times this novel reads like a fantasy and it does have some fantastical elements to it, but it isn't the high fantasy one usually associates with mermaid tales. The sea-maid in this book isn't a whimsical member of the Fey, but a dangerous creature gathering souls in her quest for revenge. 

Beginning in Dundee and then moving to the snowy coastal regions of Iceland, the novel follows a whaling ship and her crew. There are scenes of animal slaughter, so if you love whales, seals and so on, you might need to skip this book as it is quite upsetting to read about such beautiful creatures being hunted and brutally killed.  

The novel has three different timelines of 1901, 1973 and 2023, with the narrative moving seamlessly between them. This is so skilfully done that it isn't jarring, as multiple timelines sometimes are.  If anything, the time breaks give the reader a welcome reprieve from the trauma of the main protagonist, Nicky, a women who finds herself in a situation that is entirely beyond her control and who suffers the consequences accordingly. 

It's difficult to review this book without giving away spoilers. I will say that the twist at the end took me completely by surprise and I wasn't expecting the story to unfold in that way. It's always nice when a book surprises you. This one gathers pace as it goes along, with the final third of the book ramping up the creepiness and the plot reveals. 

Its a very atmospheric, chilling novel and not just because it is set in Iceland! It has ghosts and snow and ice-stunts, alongside wild sea-storms and the harsh life of the 19th century mariners who made a living hunting whales on the high seas. The trauma is a constant backdrop to the rest of the book and the next attack is never far away, maybe a chapter or two, so bear that in mind if you decide to pick up this novel as it can be quite a harrowing read. However, it has a moral centre which revolves around the premise that revenge only hurts the vengeful and this is played out very spookily indeed!

All I can say is, A Haunting in the Arctic will haunt me for a long time to come, because the story is truly memorable!

Blessed Be

Marie x 

AD: This book is published by Harper Collins and is available now in all formats. 

WRITER'S DREAM: My Classical Mythology Oracle Deck!

 

"The deck is designed to offer guidance as you venture out upon your own personal Odyssey, which is the journey of your life."

My latest card decks were released on the 1st of October and I am thrilled to say that The Classical Mythology Oracle Deck is one of them! I had such a lovely time creating this Oracle kit last year.  I have always loved mythology and folklore, so after the success of my Celtic Magic Oracle Deck, it made sense to continue with other aspects of world mythology.  We began with The Egyptian Book of the Dead Oracle, which was published in spring this year, and now my Classical Mythology Oracle, based on the legends of Greece and Rome, is out and it is gorgeous! 

Just look at that beautiful cover, featuring an angelic depiction of the goddess Nike! I love it. It is everything that I envisioned as I was writing the project last year. Working on these oracles kits is always such a pleasure. It is a privilege to know that people will be using my oracles to gain insight and guidance in their lives, so it comes with a weight of responsibility too.  I want my decks to be valued tools of magic and reassurance for my readers, so I try to avoid any scary interpretations or symbolism. This wasn't easy with the Egyptian deck as you can probably imagine, because the Egyptians were basically a death cult! But I think I managed it. That deck is certainly the spookiest I've created and written so far though.

The Classical Mythology Oracle on the other hand is light and bright, featuring some of the fine art and Pre-Raphaelite style prints, that I love, as part of the deck imagery. This is something of a dream come true and to have my work partially illustrated by the works of John William Waterhouse and similar artists, is something I have dreamt of for years. When I first suggested the idea to my editor, she was non-committal, saying that it would make the deck very expensive, due to paying licensing fees, if we were to use all fine art images, but I'm delighted that we got to incorporate a few of them in the deck, with other cards being the silhouette art that I like too. Now some of my favourite Waterhouse witches, such as Circe and Medea are in my Mythology deck and I couldn't be happier. I've had Waterhouse prints hung on my bedroom walls for decades so I'm thrilled to have such beautiful and well-known examples of his art incorporated into my own work. It feels like such an honour. 

I took a fairly scholastic approach to creating this deck, because I wanted it to reflect the Homeric and Ovidian texts that are so closely associated with Greek and Roman mythology. To that end I did a lot of reading and research, looking for ways to lend the deck the same mysticism as these ancient texts. I chose to incorporate several quotations from the Homeric texts, specifically The Iliad and The Odyssey.  These epigraphs help to make the past feel that much closer, bringing an ancient echo into the deck, almost as a guiding spirit. 

Another reason I love this deck so much is because it is the very first project I have worked on where I have not included any magical spells or rituals. I felt that it was far more important to give an overview of the folklore itself, rather than assuming that all readers who pick up the deck already have a sound knowledge of classical mythology. To that end, this is the project where I got to indulge my love of storytelling, and I was able to recount the myths and legends in my own words. Writing prose is something I love to do and it was great fun exploring legends such as Eros and Psyche, Hero and Leander, Boreas and Orithyia, Apollo and Daphne, Persephone and Hades, Perseus and the Gorgons, Artemis and Actaeon and so on, re-telling them in my own authorial voice.  In addition I have touched on the legends of Medusa, King Midas, Pygmalion, Pandora and the Minotaur.  It was tremendous fun to write and to lose myself in the rich world of ancient mythology. I had a great time creating this Oracle and I'm delighted that it is finally published and people can enjoy it, just in time for their Samhain divinations. 

My only gripe with the deck is that there is a typo on the interpretation of the last card. The first paragraph has been printed twice! This is an error that happened in typesetting, and when the proofs were ready for correction, I was lying in a hospital bed recovering from a riding accident, so I couldn't go through them myself. It just goes to show though, that a copy editor will never care as much about a project as the author does! My apologies for the error, but there's not much I do about it now. Hopefully it will be corrected for future editions. Other than that, it is a gorgeously evocative and mystical oracle deck and I hope that you all enjoy performing readings with it, as much as I enjoyed writing it. 

The second deck I had published on the 1st of October is The Practical Witchcraft Book and Card Deck. This a collection of spell cards, featuring all new spells and it is perfect for neophyte witches and those who are new to the Craft. As part of this kit, I also created a handy poster of correspondences that you can hang on the wall in your ritual space, so if you need to make a quick adjustment to a spell's ingredients, you can use the correspondence tables to help you. The poster also features moon phases, crystals, colours and magical days of the week too, so it's a great beginner's kit to get started with. 

Finally, I hope you like the new look to my blog. It's been the same for a few years now so it was time for a refresh. I wanted to create a more ethereal, whimsical place that you can escape to and enjoy spending time in, and I think that the stunningly beautiful new background does just that! It certainly makes my heart soar when I see it, from the pastel pink and mauve colourway, to the Gothic arch surrounded by my favourite pretty pink roses, the burning candle and the gentle, pure white dove coming in to land - it's just so me! It's perfect and I love it. 

I also added the image of Pegasus at the top of the side bar too, as a nod to the triumph of my Classical Mythology Oracle, but also because I've been dreaming of winged horses and unicorns a lot since my riding accident. I feel like they are watching over me. They're definitely my spirit animals, so I wanted to give them a space on my blog. Winged horses are meant to be lucky too, so its nice to have Pegasus looking over my posts and watching over us all, as we spend time in the magical, ethereal space on the internet that is ShimmerCast Dreams.

I hope that you enjoy spending time in the pink, feminine, whimsical world I have created, and that you take comfort and joy in my books and oracles. 

Bright Blessings

Marie x

AD: This post features my own products and books. 

        The Practical Witchcraft Book, Poster and Spell-Card Deck

      The Classical Mythology Oracle Book and Card Deck

       The Egyptian Book of the Dead Oracle Book and Card Deck

BOOK NOOK: The Book Of Witching by C J Cooke

"But the book is on the ground, rough to the touch. The cover is made from a tree, and inside the pages are black. The pages are peices of night, for the book is from the dawn of time, before humankind, before love, and death." 

In the past few years, ever since I reviewed The Lighthouse Witches, C J Cooke has fast become my favourite Gothic author and I have been lucky enough to review a few of her more recent novels on this blog. Her work is very atmospheric and often set in Scotland, which is what drew me to her novels in the first instance, so I was delighted when her publisher, Harper Collins, sent me an ARC of her latest novel.  I fell on it immediately, putting everything else on hold until I had read the book. 

The Book of Witching is a story of the witch trials that swept through Scotland during the 1500's.  Set on the Orkney Isles, it follows the fate of Alison, a woman who is a skilled healer and herbalist who is inadvertently drawn into the political intrigues of the islands at that time. King James VI is on the throne of Scotland and he has recently made his feelings on witchcraft quite clear, having presided over the Berwick witch trials a couple of years earlier.  So this is not a great time for a wise woman to come to the attention of powerful men with a political agenda!  Even worse, Alison comes from a family known to be skilled at spellcraft, a family who hold a very special book of magic in their possession. 

Fast forward a few hundred years to the present day and Alison's fate becomes entangled with that of a young girl, Erin, who is found very badly burnt on one of the islands after a trip to Orkney with her boyfriend and best friend. When Erin comes out of a coma, she claims that her name is Nyx and that she doesn't know who Erin is. As the novel slips back and forth between these two timelines, we begin to unravel just how Erin is connected to a woman accused of witchcraft four hundred years ago. 

This is such a thrilling read! The chapters alternate between one timeline and the other so that you're never quite sure how it all fits together, but you know that it does. It skips along at a fast pace and the structural use of the turning points is designed to keep you invested in the story.  As with all of C J Cooke's novels, the Gothic atmosphere is dark and ominous, the threat building throughout the story. Her way of creating tension in the reader is second to none. In many ways, C J Cooke's style of writing reminds me very much of contemporary Gothic masters such as Victoria Holt and Virginia Andrews - her stories have that same undercurrent of mystery, secrets and tension, akin to the Flowers in the Attic series, but with witchcraft attached!

The Book of Witching held me in its grip from the opening paragraphs, which is something that I look for in novels - I like a book that starts on the very first page and this one certainly does, dropping the reader into the midst of the action and catastrophe right from the start.  It's the kind of story where you find yourself holding your breath as you read, because it does tackle some very dark topics such as torture, serious injury, incarceration, mock executions, and the powerlessness of women who were accused of something they didn't do, but who knew that the odds were stacked against them from the very first whisper of 'witch!' It brought tears to my eyes at times and I really felt for both the injured characters and their dual plight. 

This Orcadian novel has all the eerie vibes of a witchy thriller, with secret cults, a coven of witches, an enchanted and indomitable book of magic and powerful men providing lots of menace. I wouldn't describe it as a cosy read for autumn, because it evokes such a powerful and indignant response in the reader for the crimes that have been committed against women for centuries. Having read lots of books about the witch trials over the years, I thought that I had become somewhat desensitized to the topic, but this novel really drove it home to me once again how lucky I am to be able to practice my Craft in safety, without fear of being tortured and burnt for it.  There is the sense that Alison's fate could so easily have been mine, or yours, or our mother's and grandmother's. It is only the passing of time that keeps us safe. 

While it might not be an especially comforting novel, The Book of Witching is a wonderful and disturbing witchy thriller that will keep your heart in your mouth from cover to cover, so if you are in the mood to be scared to death by the plight of witches past this October, this is the book for you. It's certainly a great novel to curl up with on Samhain night, when the pumpkins are gleaming and it's dark and cold outside.  Light a candle in remembrance of the lost souls of  historical women who were burnt as witches, and enjoy the safety of modern practice this All Hallows Eve.  Blessed Be.

Marie x

AD: This novel was sent to me by the publisher, Harper Collins, for the purposes of review. It will be released on October 10th 2024 and is available in hardback, digital and audio formats.

The Nesting Review 

The Lighthouse Witches Review

The Ghost Woods Review

 

BOOK NOOK: The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells by Rachel Greenlaw

 

"I can hear scratching outside, and it follows me into my dreams. As though someone is tapping at the frostlaced window, bearing a warning to heed. 

Or trying to get in.

I toss and turn, wishing I'd sprinkled salt and dried lavender around the caravan. It's all too easy for a vengeful spirit, for something other and twisted, to slither in if a proper warding isn't in place. And in the space between dreams and waking on this cold, dark night, it seems real.

Frost steals over everything in my dreams like a spell."

Harper Collins very kindly sent an ARC of this book to me back at the beginning of September, when the first breath of autumn filled the air. I read it immediately, as I am always more drawn to witchy novels during the darker half of the year. It held me gripped for two days and I couldn't put it down.

The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells is a wonderful tale of magic, curses and romance.  The story takes place in the cosy, mountain town of Woodsmoke, where everybody knows everybody else, and nothing remains a secret for very long. In the midst of this town live the Morgan women - a family of natural witches, who pass their special book of magic down from one generation to the next. However, the book is more than a grimoire or book of shadows. It is a history of romance, of all the loves and losses of the Morgan women down through the ages, told in the style of a collection of fables, in the hope that future generations of women can learn from the losses of their ancestors. 

Into this environment sweeps Carrie, the youngest of the Morgan women and the only one who tried to break free and leave the town for good. But when her grandmother, Ivy, dies and leaves her everything, Carrie has to return to sort out the cottage and the shop that Ivy left behind, and to make her peace with her great aunt, Cora, the witch who currently holds the family book of spells.

The Morgan women aren't just run of the mill witches. They are mountain witches and the mountains and hills of Woodsmoke are sentient, the mountain trails populated by the spirits of winter, who prowl in the frost. It is the legacy of the Morgan women to keep the townsfolk safe from the threat of being taken by the mountains.  So when Carrie returns, tongues start wagging. 

This is a fantastic book full of winter's charm and the practice of witchery. It has all the cosy vibes of Stars Hallow, with the enchantment of Practical Magic and the insidious threat of The Village. The author even mentions the film, Practical Magic, in the novel, giving a nod to her inspiration and the obvious parallels between the two stories.  This book is just as magical, just as cosy and it's just as hard to put down. 

In The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells you will find a mysterious love interest, family feuds, cosy cottages, witchcraft, skate dates, blood magic and blood ties and the ominous mountains brooding over the frosty town.  It reminded me of the time I spent in Glencoe, where the mountains do seem to be sentient beings that will either protect you or kill you!  As Carrie attempts to find her place in the world and make up for past wrongs, I couldn't help but be drawn into her story, although Cora is my favourite character as she is so feisty! I sincerely hope that this novel kicks off a series and that there will be more tales of the Morgan women, because I enjoyed this one so much. 

If you like the Practical Magic series by Alice Hoffman, then you will love this book too. Just don't forget to ward the thresholds before you read. You never know what's out there, ready to come tap, tap, tapping at your window!  The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells is the perfect October read. Enjoy! 

Brights Blessings

Marie x

AD: This book was sent to me by the publisher Harper Collins for the purposes of review. It will be released on October 10th in hardcover, digital and audio formats and is up for Pre-Order now.