Reading Something New
Thanks to WOW Blog Tours and author Sherri Dodd for a copy of Moonset on Desert Sands. In Book 2 of the Murder, Tea & Crystals trilogy, Arista and her aunt are temporarily uprooted from their California home for Arizona. Judging from the lush descriptions (that I sometimes had to read multiple times, just to relish in the images the language conjured up) Arizona must be a breathtaking place. Lately, I've been loosening up my "read a series in order" rule but I fell I must reinstate it for Murder, Tea & Crystals. I don't think you will fully appreciate Moonset on Desert Sand if you don't read Murder Under Redwood Moon first. And Moonset on Desert Sands ends on Halloween so if you start reading now you'll be enjoying this great book just in time for the spooky season! But today I'm writing about my introduction to magick realism and why we should all try new things.
Giveaway
Don't miss the amazing giveaway of Moonset on Desert Sands, a candle, oracle cards, gemstone, figurine & more. This is an amazing prize! Enter HERE by September 21.
Reading Something New
Like most readers, I've developed a book type over the years. I like mysteries. I don't like mysteries with talking animals. I like history and biographies. I don't like celebrity memoirs. Novels with a touch of romance? Yes. Novels that are all about the love connections? No.
Gardening? Baking? Yes and yes. Sci-fi? Poetry? No and no.
It's just like dating. First impressions (in the form of book covers, titles and back cover copy) are everything when it comes to getting a book from the shelf into my tote or shopping cart. If you're like me, you gravitate toward the familiar. Familiar genres. Familiar authors. Authors that declare "Hey, if you like Book X you'll like my book!" Recommendations from other readers (the book equivalent of a blind date) were a way for new authors and genres to sneak into my TBR pile.
When Murder Under Redwood Moon first showed up on my radar, it was a fluke. Love redwoods. Love mysteries. A serial killer? This could be interesting. Wait...what? The main character is a witch? The second thoughts began. Magick realism? What even is that? And why is there an extra "k" (more on that later*)? No...this is not the type of thing I read. Okay, I'll give it a try but I don't think this is my kind of book. Not a good attitude on my part, I know. Very close-minded.
What did I find? There was a nail biting mystery. Richly drawn characters. But how to describe magick realism? Yes, the supernatural was an integral part of some (not all) of the characters but it didn't bring to mind pointy hats and flying brooms. It shaped some of their reactions and opinions but it wasn't the only part of their personality.
Thinking about it, many literary characters have a key aspect that shapes who they are. It could be anything from being from Key West to being a mother to being an octogenarian. In this series, it just happened to be that they had supernatural powers. The supernatural aspects of Arista and her fellow witches was naturally woven into their personalities but the book and their lives weren't just about that. Also, people with supernatural powers and those without supernatural powers co-existed peacefully (mostly) and accepted each other (mostly). It made me look at the world (as well as the supernatural realm) in a whole new way.
And after reading the entire Murder, Tea & Crystals trilogy, I realized that this is the type of
thing I read. I remembered a book...but the title? Finally, I dredged it out of the cobweb-y parts of my brain: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. Another magick realism book that I started reading because I like gardening and I like books about female relationships. The magick realism aspect didn't even register with me until I was well into the book because it wasn't the most important part for me. For me this was a book about family, regrets, facing obstacles - with some supernatural thrown into the mix.
If you find yourself returning to the same genres, authors and plots challenge yourself to try something new. Reading Murder, Tea & Crystals gave me a new appreciation of the fact that loving a book isn't about some anonymous editor sorting a book into a particular category. Reading is about enjoying the story, no matter what the genre. So break free from your expected reads and take a chance on something new. Search for great stories everywhere!
*What's With the K?
Magick with a "k" is a way some people distinguish supernatural or occult from the magic - no "k"- of Houdini and parlor tricks. Not everyone feels it's necessary to clarify the difference using the word magick. In fact there seems to be quite the brouhaha between some groups about magick vs. magic. But in case you were wondering (I was), there it is.
More About Moonset on Desert Sands
In Moonset on Desert Sands, with a traumatic year of fending off a serial killer behind her, Arista has settled contentedly into her temporary home with Auntie in Sedona, Arizona. She enjoys her new job selling all things metaphysical and even has her eye on the hot security guard, Dakota, after her recent breakup with Shane.
But a series of new fainting spells has her worried, and when Auntie witnesses one, they decide the answer lies in her home of Boulder Creek. However, returning means not only dealing with her breakup and its heartache but also the possibility of drawing her bloodthirsty Uncle Fergus to her once safe haven in the redwoods. And this time he has recruited an even more dangerous alliance.
Arista's closest bonds will be strengthened, but the mounting tension of a death in the desert, a stalker on the streets, and the relentless pursuit of Fergus puts her in dangerous territory, and escaping sorrow proves impossible.
More about Sherri Dodd
Sherri grew up in southeastern Texas walking barefoot and catching crawdads as they swam the creek beds. Her childhood ran rampant with talk of ghosts, demons, and backcountry folklore, inspiring her first short story about a poisonous flower that shot toxins onto curious children. Her classmate bought it for all the change in his pocket. Not long after, her mother packed the two of them up and headed to the central coast of California. She has explored the vast area ever since, using it as a catalyst to her writing, from journaling to fitness articles to fiction. She holds a bachelor’s degree, and is pursuing her master’s, in holistic theology and believes this helps her to see the world through a more colorful and accepting lens.
In writing, her publisher labeled her 2024 debut novel as a paranormal thriller. She would have described it as a cozy murder mystery with generous dashes of magic realism, showing that she loves to merge genres. Her trilogy — Murder, Tea & Crystals — released book one - Murder Under Redwood Moon in March 2024; book two - Moonset on Desert Sands in March 2025; and the final book in the series- Hummingbird Moonrise released October 2025! All three books became an Amazon #1 Best Seller in the Occult Supernatural genre.
Follow the author at:
Website: www.sherridodd.com
Instagram: @Sherri.Dodd.Author
Ready to Read
This is an amazing article! So true that we get caught up in our boilerplate idea of what we like to read. In my twenties, I had read nothing but fiction, then a boss gave me 7 Habits of Highly Successful People which started a trend of self-help that continues to this day, hundreds of books later! In my forties, as a Catholic, I read my first buddhism book and set the trend to another seventy-three books read. Breaking out of our self-prescribed genre opens a whole new world of discovery, one that we never knew existed. While it is comfortable to fall back on the familiar, it is enlivening to try something new. You have my interest with the…