A magical tale of intrigue, danger, magic and young love

The House of Sapphire Magic: Breaking Glass, the second novel in John Booth’s Magic Series, focuses on an evil project of Max Drexel, a powerful business tycoon. On the surface, the project looks respectable; after all, it is presented to the public as an orphanage for children who have no relatives who could care for them. Under the surface, the project is much more sinister: the orphans are guinea pigs in an experiment.

It isn’t long before the two eldest Grange children, Mandy and William become involved, as Max Drexel is out to buy their property and tear down their house. Glass, one of the  magical house guardians, uncovers the plot when she accidentally stumbles into the real world, thus discovering the magic powers of the sapphire ring that Mrs. Grange gifted her.

This is a fast-paced, action-packed little novel. If you enjoyed John Booth’s The House of Silver Magic, you are sure to love this one. I understand his Gold Magic: Terror in Mind  has recently been published, so give that one a look also. 

John Booth is a magical writer, with several series of novels, all very much worth reading, and all involving magic in one way or another.

The House of Sapphire Magic is a definite 5 star read.

A magical thriller

One reviewer writes that The Prodigal’s Foole is “X-men plus Harry Potter for adults”, which I think is pretty accurate. Instead of Potter, we have Symon Bryson, Father Bill, the twins Eden and Eve, Symon’s friend Aaron, a native American shaman named Janice, Father Peter, and Monsignor Charles DuBarry as the good guys, Symon’s old nemesis Cardinal Maguire as questionable, and a host of demons on the other side who have kidnapped the Monsignor, bringing Symon back from a ten year self-imposed exile in Dublin. To top it off, the FBI is involved.

What has caused all this havoc? That takes us back ten years to .... you’ll have to read the rest of this fascinating, fast-paced novel to find out. There is plenty of magic here, spells to cast and zombies and devils to dispose of. And a sequel in the works that I’ll be looking for. 

R. B. Wood is an excellent story-teller, and this is a wonderfully fast-paced read.

A clear 5 start for this one.

Magical Poems and Legendary Tales

A review of Olivia Wells: “Stories and Poems in the Moment”. Night Publishing, June 2011.

“We are human beings,” writes Olivia Wells, “not human doings, and in every way we are made up of many colours, some dark, some light, some demanding, some gentle.

The dark and demanding are necessary for us to take action and the gentle and spiritual are for nurturing.

When we accept all that we are, then we can accept all that is in others.”

So begins a wonderful journey through simple, legend-like stories and beautiful, compassionate poetry like Take a Leaf

Take a leaf,

from the heart of a friend,

it is there to share with you

spend it wisely,

the love that it brings

is valid for time long

and a day.

Measure it and you will see

That it reaches beyond the

sunrise

and slips between your fingers

if you let it go.

Be gentle ..

it is intended

just for you.

There are also darker poems like “Mirror Me”, “Reflections on Alzheimer’s and Autism” and “Ode to a Son”:

Your demonic death

washed my soul in deep sorrow,

and yet, there is hope,

for you.

Now the child wraith can bloom

In gentle fields of soft sun,

and grow in the light of love

that I send to you.

Knowing that the life you lived

though short was a lesson

to be learned

the hard way.

May I thank you, and wish

that this song of love

will follow your every step

to a new place.

The stories, written like legends, are pure magic. “Silk, Ruby, Ebony, and Clover”, “Lao Tsu and the Tears”, and Doorinna the Snake Dragon are but three of them, each one the kind of story children will devour again and again and again.

I can’t really say enough about this wonderful little book. It is a gem.

A clear ***** read that will be a favorite for generations.