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Enchanting New Releases: Perilous Enchantment and Enchanted Village

20 Oct
Cover of Perilous Enchantment: The True History of Faeries by Sarah Clegg. Illustrations depicts a group of men in robes and women in dresses some of whom have wings and one wearing a crown is riding a horse. It is night and above them fly birds and in two trees sit a figure in a red cap with pointed ears and a woman with an apron and a broom.
Cover of Enchanted Village by Lily Starling. Illustration of snow covered village with a castle in the background on a steep hill. The buildings are decorated for Christmas. Two small dragons fly overhead.

Perilous Enchantment: The True History of Faeries
by Sarah Clegg
Perilous Enchantment: The True History of Faeries is Sarah Clegg’s intriguing new nonfiction work about faeries and how their stories have evolved throughout European history. She also looks at various figures like elves and nymphs whose legends merged with those of fairies. Clegg visits various fairy related sights throughout the world and recounts legends and myths related to them. This brings alive what otherwise could have been a more dry scholarly account. It was a bit like reading the actual Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries if it were a nonfiction and not a fantasy work. Fans of Heather Fawcett’s novel and other fairy fantasy works will definitely want to check this out, but be warned Clegg looks at some of the darker aspects of faerie legends that can be intense. It gave me a greater appreciation of contemporary faerie fantasy novels such as urban fantasies and romantasies, and how they are a part of a larger storytelling history of faeries. A must read for Faerie fans!

Enchanted Village
by Lily Starling
Enchanted Village is the fun new grumpy/sunshine romance from Lily Starling. Margaret is from a magical family, but has no magical abilities herself, yet she continues to run the family’s tavern The Toasty Owl in the charming village of Hex Hollow. Margaret has a prickly disposition, but is still well thought of by her neighbors and can charm any magical creature and create the perfect cup of hot chocolate. When a new handsome Science teacher arrives from the non-magical world to teach at the nearby wizarding school, he attempts to help save Margaret’s business from the new competition, but he also might be the perfect match for her. The story alternates between the two love interests’ perspectives, something I enjoy since it gives a richer picture of their relationship. This is perfect if you were a Harry Potter fan as a child and as an adult now wonder what it would be like to teach at Hogswarts or live in the Hogsmeade. Fans of Travis Baldree’s Legends and Lattes and Sarah Beth Durst’s The Spellshop will enjoy this story. Hoboken Library Card Holders can borrow Enchanted Village from eLibraryNJ’s ebook collection on Libby.

Written by:
Aimee Harris
Information and Digital Services Manager

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Literary Travel: Haunts of New Orleans

6 Oct

New Orleans’ dark underbelly, supernatural superstition and witching practices are well documented, so in preparation for spooky season and perhaps as you choose something to read, perhaps with a beignet and chicory coffee, you might consider opening one of these titles that explore the city’s devilish dark history – from fires to fever mistreatment, and spiritual tradition mixed with paranormal presences. 

Beyond the French Quarter, Bourbon Street, Frenchman Street, the swamp lands surrounding, Café du Monde, Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop, and even a cemetery tour by day, New Orleans offers another bloodline to explore, one that continues to haunt and inspire today.

Once you venture off the touristy paths, you realize that New Orleans has much more intrigue behind hidden doors, windows shut and bolted from the outside, secret messages, and taboo rituals. So, if you find yourself there, these books could help you understand what ghoul is walking among you, what legend is pulling you in, or what spirit or occult practice is summoning your energy.  

Non-Fiction

Haunted New Orleans by Bonnye Stuart: A tour through the city’s most reputedly haunted addresses, from Garden District mansions to French Quarter courtyards – told through ghost stories from locals. In BCCLS catalog

Haunted New Orleans by Troy Taylor: ghost-lore historian Troy Taylor walks us through the fires, plagues, and violence behind the city’s most famous haunted sites, including the French Quarter, the cemeteries or “Cities of the Dead” History weaves with ghost story. Audiobook on Hoopla.

New Orleans Vampires by Marita Crandle: Written by the owner of the French Quarter’s Boutique du Vampyre, this traces how New Orleans became America’s vampire capital, from fiction works to folklore and real historical studies. It’s the origin story behind the city’s most successful piece of self-mythologizing. In BCCLS catalog. Ebook in Hoopla.

The Magic of Marie Laveau by Denise Alvarado: A hands-on spiritual guide built around the real Marie Laveau’s legacy, offering prayers, rituals, and practices drawn from the Voodoo Queen’s tradition rather than just her legend. Written for practitioners, not tourists. In BCCLS catalog. Ebook in Hoopla. Audiobook in Hoopla.

Witch Queens, Voodoo Spirits, and Hoodoo Saints by Denise Alvarado: A broader guidebook to New Orleans’ occult landscape, including its Voodoo queens, Hoodoo saints, and resident spirits. The title maps the city’s magical practices back to their cultural roots and tradition. In BCCLS catalog. Ebook in Hoopla. Audiobook in Hoopla

The Axeman of New Orleans by Miriam C. Davis: The true story of the early 1900’s axe murderer who terrorized the city’s Italian immigrant community and mailed a letter to the newspaper claiming to be the devil himself. This is a true-crime account of a case that was never solved. In BCCLS catalog.  

Fiction:

The Originals (TV): The Original vampire family – Klaus, Elijah, and Rebekah Mikaelson – return to New Orleans to reclaim their faction of the city they built centuries ago, but witches, werewolves, rival vampires await along with an unborn child prophecy. The Originals is a spinoff of The Vampire Diaries. In BCCLS catalog

Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice: Louis de Pointe du Lac recounts two centuries of his life to a modern-day reporter, starting with his transformation into a vampire on a Louisiana plantation by the seductive, Lestat. Their toxic bond results in their vampire-child Claudia. This novel begins Rice’s fictional landscape of New Orleans as the birthplace of American vampire fiction. In the BCCLS catalog.

(Movie and AMC series also available in the BCCLS catalog and Hoopla.)

The Witching Hour by Anne Rice: Neurosurgeon Rowan Mayfair discovers she’s the latest in a centuries-long line of New Orleans witches bound to Lasher, a spirit who has shaped her family since the 1600s. In BCCLS catalog.

(AMC series also available on Hoopla.)

Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson: Told as one long letter from Constanta to the ancient vampire, Dracula, who saved and then possessively remade her. It’s a gothic retelling that follows her from a peasant girl to an immortal realizing her “savior” is also her captor. In BCCLS catalog. Audiobook on Hoopla.

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Written by:
Sean Willey
Information and Digital Services Assistant

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