The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst

 

The Enchanted Greenhouse literally be-spelled me. I couldn’t stop thinking about it when I had to set it down for mundane things, like work. Sarah weaves a wonderful fantasy tale and as she stated in an interview with fantasy-hive.co.uk —“Cozy fantasy is designed to be a refuge, an escape, and to say ‘Everything is going to be okay.’ I couldn’t leave Terlu not okay!”

Well, this refuge left me wishing I could actually enter the world in reality, not just in a beautifully written tale.

Terlu Perna, a lonely librarian in Alyssium was guilty of casting a simple spell to create a magically sentient spider plant. For her first and only crime she was turned to a statue, for what she had thought would be eternity. Apparently, not all is as it should have been…

Terlu awakens, cold and alone. Standing in the snow in a place she doesn’t recognize, with only a large and rather curious greenhouse in the area. Thankfully it isn’t locked and she enters only to run into a rather grumpy gardener, Yarrow Verdane. As she uncomfortably susses the details from Yarrow, she learns this is the Greenhouse of Belde, built by a sorcerer, and she is there to repair what is rapidly crumbling without the deceased wizard. Being a librarian and not a sorcerer, Terlu is rather confused and confuddled.  

What follows is a delightful and enchanting story involving magical greenhouses all linked together, providing different climates,environments and species. Terlu stumbles upon a sentient resurrection rose whose name is Lotti, and who was once a companion to the sorcerer. They’re joined by delightful characters including, Dendy the sentient philodendron, and a beautiful sea turtle in the ocean greenhouse. 

Immerse yourself in this not to be missed cozy fantasy, you won’t regret it, at all. I went with the Audio version, read by Caitlin Davies. A huge thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to review this piece of magic. Best novel by far in a very long time!

Spellshop #2

Macmillan Audio

Bramble 2025

SarahBethdurst.com

Coming up Spellshop #3 Sea of Charms (2026)

#sarahbethdurst

#cozyfantasy

#audiobook

#Spellshopseries

Brigands and Breadknives by Travis Baldree

This is a great rollicking tome of fiction … swords, fantasy, and all wrapped up in a rather cozy and even amusing tale! Baldree has done it again! Sadly, I missed Bookshops and Bonedust, but will make a point of hunting it down now.

Fern, the endearing rattkin bookseller (with a mouth to make a sailor blush), is accidentally swept up in an adventure after an extremely drunken night. She finds herself travelling with a legendary Elven warrior and her sentient sword, Nigel. Zil, is the Elf’s goblin prisoner, whose native tongue is most definitely unintelligible. Zil has a coat of bottomless pockets, within which is a sentient breadknife, and numerous other fascinating items.

Adventure abounds as the trio journey along, and as tends to happen when strangers spend time together, a friendship begins to build. 

This is a wonderful cozy tale for those who love sword and sorcery genre of adventure and don’t mind Fern and Zil’s expletives (which can be quite hilarious). 

I quite enjoyed the audiobook, read by the author himself, and managed to scare a couple of innocent shoppers at a store when I burst into laughter for no apparent reason. If they only knew… 

Do yourself a favour and INDULGE!

#Netgalley

#Brigands and Breadknives

#Travis Baldree

Volume #2 Legends and Lattes series

PanMacmillan

One of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole

OMG!!!! What a continuous mind twist! The plot slid about like a living thing, every time you thought you had a grasp, it slithered away again! Not only was I able to learn something about DID (dissociative identity disorder), but I was also introduced to one extremely kickass author - Alyssa Cole - whose other works I shall be searching for.

Kenetria Nash was hoping for a career as a historical preservationist. That is until a breakdown and a simple diagnosis shattered her life and dreams. Ken suffers from DID, Disassociative Identity Disorder. A rather fascinating disorder that had me falling into the black hole of the internet for hours as I learned about it. As it is with most disorders, life went on, although Ken vanished into the inner realms of her mind and let one of the ‘alters’ front for her. That is, a different identity led life for everyone within. 

When Ken suddenly finds herself back ‘in front’ after a six year ‘hiatus’, she is about to embark on what sounds like a wonderful adventure. Perhaps a second chance to make her dreams come true, which one of the alters had found a way to set up. A job as the caretaker of the historic home on the isolated Kavanaugh island in the Hudson River. Determined not to ruin what could be the opportunity of a lifetime, Ken speaks very little and listens much. 

She should have listened to her gut when it didn’t want to board the little boat taking her to the island. After all it did sound far too good to be true. With the help of the groundskeeper, Celeste, Ken is able to survive the first night. A night which apparently kills people. There’s numerous tales of goblins, ghosts and witches and death. Enough to arouse Ken’s interest and make her wonder just what she is stepping into.

A nor’easter blows in just as the home’s conservation trust comes to visit the island. Ken finds herself well and truly trapped on the supposedly haunted little island with a group of people who may well be dangerous, the leaders of which are faces from her past. The only person who could possibly be on her side is Celeste. Twisted tales of historical events blended with bloodlines and equally twisted minds set Ken and her alters on edge. They must actually find a way to come together and save themselves from the deadly ending that is closing in on them, both in the inner world and the outer world. 

I would love to say that I just couldn't put this novel down, but exhaustion from work and life had me reading in fits and spurts. However, IF l'd had a choice, it would have been a binge/marathon read!

This is a dark thriller and a mystery, with a very light sprinkle of romance. A tale whose very existence will haunt the darker corners of your imagination!

Alyssa Cole

William Morrow 2024

Harper Collins Publishing 

The Wicker Witch by Cheryl Low

 

 

Charlotte Crowe and best friend Rebecca Greenleigh were born and raised on the mountain, their ancestors having carved out an existence and built the town of Wicker within its stony embrace.

 

There had been a dreadful price to be paid all those generations ago. A price whose gruesome details had been all but forgotten. A price which hadn’t been kept up and was now overdue. An evil has now begun to walk the mountain. A relentlessly savage darkness which calls the mountain its own. An evil which has no interest in sharing what it claims to have created.

 

Charlotte and Rebecca are in for the battle of their lives if they are to have any hope of saving their loved ones, themselves or their beloved mountain home. How can they have any hope of defeating the seemingly invulnerable.

 

The characters are so well written they might well be living and breathing. Their families, friends and the town folk all come into play. More and more of them is revealed every time they pass through the pages, fighting to survive and escape the grasp of the Wicker Witch.

 

There is not one wasted word in this enthralling tale, each and every one feeding into a well-plotted culmination of adrenaline and terror.

 

Be prepared! This novel will bring a torrent of emotions while the tale hurtles along at harrowing speed, weaving through sunlit glades and the darkest of forest shadows towards an unanticipated end.

 

Rarely do I give 5 stars, but this is definitely one of the deserving. I could NOT put it down!

Crystal Lake Publishing

 

The Woman Outside My Door by Rachel Ryan

 

Secrets are never a good thing to keep from loved ones. Georgina finds this out all too well when someone targets her son posing as his ‘new granny’. She’s already dealing with the recent heart wrenching loss of her mother, and a confessed minor infidelity from her husband adds to the sense that there is danger lurking in every nook and cranny of her existence. Can no one be trusted? Neighbours, friends and even family all fall under suspicion as the plot unfolds, leaving Georgina completely alone and in fear for her son.

This is a new voice which cross-sects the suspense, psychological thriller and mystery genres. A great multi-level read that had me suspecting four different characters! I look forward to hearing far more from this talented writer.  

Simon and Schuster Canada 2020

Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey

I was more than intrigued by the publishing campaign for Greenlights. I am not normally interested in memoirs, but this is so much deeper and meatier than your standard memoir! Matthew McConaughey is a bit of a wild child, a throw back to a time when life was a little less frantic, and while not my favourite actor, he is perhaps one of the people I most respect in this world. He lays his entire life open for readers and listeners to share. From the laughter to the tears, the amazing leaps of intelligence that piece together an amazing philosophy on life make this book worth every cent and then some!

I treated myself and got the audiobook. Not only do I get all of McConaughey’s wisdom and life story, but he is actually narrating it. His warm and inviting voice wraps around you, holding your attention rapt while he divulges the priceless information on the business of living that he has gleaned over the years. Greenlights is filled with poetry, prescribed notes for living, bumper stickers and some good ol’ honesty that the world seems to be missing in spades! It is as inviting as the warm golden lamp that sits in the window during a snowstorm to light the way.

Matthew is a unique man, a "McConaissance" man for certain. Not only multi-talented but he excels at so many of those talents! A wild child, as I said, but a father, husband and man who lives freely within the many responsibilities he shoulders. Pick up the book in any of its forms and catch a greenlight or two with this magical man. I highly recommend the ride!

 

 Penguin Random House Canada

#penguinrandomhouse

#greenlightsbook

#matthewmcconaughey

 

 

How A Woman Becomes A Lake by Marjorie Celona

It has been quite a while since I have been sucked into a book so quickly and completely. Marjorie Celona has a gift for crafting characters of great such interest and such depth that they seem to belong in the non-fiction section; their emotions and reactions have an amazing realism about them. They are not easy to let go of once you put the book down... or, perhaps, it is the characters holding onto you.

When a woman takes her dog for a morning walk at the lake  in the morning on New Year’s Day, there are numerous directions, complete with various twists and turns the tale can take. These only increase in number when she finds a young boy standing in the snow, alone and freezing, and almost forces him into her car for warmth. Her gorgeous dog is an unwitting lure to the boy.

Neither of them knows at this point that the world is about to shatter and spin out of control in ways that nobody could have predicted. They will both be launched into a lifelong nightmare of silence, although for one of them, it will be all too short.

I honestly cannot see this title in the mystery genre, it is perhaps more fitting for thriller. It is a slow pace, but it is steady and unrelenting. I would highly recommend this title to those who like a good solid read! It kept me a little unbalanced throughout... just when you are sure you know what is coming - nope!

Born and raised on Vancouver Island, BC Canada, author Marjorie Celona’s debut novel, Y, won France’s Grand Prix Littéraire de l’Heroïne, and was nominated for the 2012 Scotiabank Giller Prize.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the ARC!

#NetGalley
#HowaWomanBecomesaLake