Book Review: The Devil on Lammas Night by Susan Howatch

The Devil on Lammas Night, in a single volume with Susan Howatch's other novel The Waiting Sands, is a book I picked up at a library used book sale simply because it had the word "Lammas" in it. I've had it for years, but only recently decided to read the dual novels. The Devil on Lammas Night was the better of the two.

This is what the cover design of my edition looks like, but it also includes the novel 'The Waiting Sands.'  My copy, a book club edition, is undated. 

Susan Howatch, an English author who lived in the U.S. for a number of years, is a Gothic suspense and historical fiction author who enjoys using the far corners of the British Isles as settings. These two fall into the Gothic suspense category. Lammas Night is a contemporary novel, but it's a little bit older, so it has a bit of a "vintage" feel. The Waiting Sands is set in a Scottish castle so remote it doesn't have a telephone (these books were written in the 1970s); Lammas Night is set in a country home in Wales, near a ruined church.

The ruined church is a strategic location. Colwyn Court is the family home of young doctor Evan Colwyn, his  mentally fragile sister Gwyneth and their father. The father has rented out a wing of the enormous manner house to a natural foods society - or so he believes. The leader of this society is Tristan Poole, and he's the leader of a coven of twelve young female witches. The coven uses mind control to get their way and keep outsiders from finding out their true purpose.

"Outsiders" include Colwyn relatives who show up to occupy the guest house for the summer holiday. Mr. Colwyn's cousin Benedict Shaw, a middle-aged college professor, and his slightly younger wife Jane Shaw show up with their albino cat Marble. They're soon followed by Jane's sister, Lisa Morrison. Lisa was a young widow with twins who married her late husband's brother, Matt. Matt and the twins come with her.

The character with whom I most identify is Jane Shaw. Lisa is a rigorous dieter; Jane has a softer, more rounded figure, which Matt not-so-secretly admires. I'd be the softer, rounder sister. Jane is somewhat obsessed with her cat - again, that's me. Jane dotes on and spoils her niece and nephew, the twins. I - well, I don't so much spoil my nephews, because they're adults (and one is currently stationed in South Korea), but I do spoil my 7- and 9-year-old nieces.

Jane, the twins, and Evan are the main protagonists of the novel - all very likable - along with the woman Evan loves, Nicola. Evan and Nicola almost got engaged, but then he decided to go do charitable work in Africa first. When he came back, she was somewhat ambivalent about renewing the relationship.

Sidebar: Shaw is the name of the most prominent character (played by Noomi Rapace) in the 2012 movie Prometheus. I've seen a blogger or two speculating (er, maybe it's just VISUP) that there's some folkloric significance to the name "Shaw," but it all seems sketchy at best. On Person of Interest, we learned this season that an agent named Sam (Sameen) Shaw is the "Reese" of the Relevant list - a complete and total badass like her male counterpart. 

I mention that Tristan Poole and his twelve female adherents are a coven of witches. I like books about witches, and I do not insist that the witches necessarily be the protagonists of the story. In this novel, they are the clear villains. Tristan Poole is a creepy sociopath (he reminds me of the coldblooded Michael Garfield in the Agatha Christie novel Hallowe'en Party). In addition to being witches, Poole's coven are also Satanists who call up demons to do their dirty work.

Just so we're all clear: "witch" and "Satanist" are not equivalent and interchangeable terms. Some witches are Satanists, and some Satanists are witches, but not all witches are Satanists and not all Satanists are witches. Most - but not all - Satanists believe in a literal devil, similar to the one mentioned a few times in the Jewish and Christian Bibles, only Satanists seem him (usually him, sometimes she or it) as the hero of the story rather than the villain. Witches may believe in a literal Judeo-Christian devil, or they may believe in pantheistic/NeoPagan deities (Dianic witches, for example, worship an all-powerful supreme Goddess) instead - or they may be atheistic or agnostic. There's a wide range of belief and folkloric practice under the big umbrella of the Craft. But in Susan Howatch's book, the witches are Satanists.

Clear? Good. I also mentioned that Poole and his coven have a true purpose. That purpose is twofold: to get the material fortune of Matt Morrison, and to use the ruined church for a black mass on August 1st, which is the Neopagan holiday of Lammas. (Lammas, technically, is a contraction of "Loaf Mass," the Christianized version of the holiday at the beginning of harvest season, celebrating the ripening of many of the grain crops in the Northern Hemisphere. In Europe this would typically be the wheat harvest; in North America, wheat and also corn. The harvest season ends with the harvest of winter meat -i.e. slaughter of animals - on October 31, Halloween or Samhain. Lammas is sometimes given the Celtic name Lugnasadh.)

The novel correctly identifies four of the major Neopagan celebrations of the Wheel of the Year - Imbolc, Beltane, Lammas and Samhain - but leaves out Winter Solstice/Yule, Spring Equinox/Ostara, Midsummer Night/Summer Solstice and the middle harvest festival that falls between Lammas and Samhain, which is called Mabon by modern practitioners (though that's not a historical name).

Tristan Poole is planning to marry Nicola as part of the ritual and then, at a later time, murder her. It's implied that he also plans to sacrifice Lucy, one of Lisa's twins. I believe the twins are about seven years old. Poole has a distinct aversion to the male twin, Timothy - and in the end, Timothy (in all innocence) proves to be his undoing. Like The Waiting Sands, it all ends happily (for the most part - a few characters die, including Matt, who does nothing to deserve this), with the villains punished, the innocent children unharmed and the young heroine marrying her true love. I'm not too familiar with the somewhat antiquated genre of Gothic suspense (which is why these books were a nice change of pace for me), but I gather that its readers expect it to end happily just as romance novel readers do.

A funny thing happens when Susan Howatch goes to describe the black mass itself. She wants us to follow along with her narrative, of course, and she wants us to know how evil and obscene these characters actually are - they are her villains, after all. The full extent of their obscenity is implied rather than stated explicitly. For example:

"Agnes was the first to pay homage. Phrases from the book on witchcraft tumbled through Jane's mind and she felt the color rush to her face as she recalled her own voice reading about the obscene kiss of a millenium of witches' sabbaths."

What Howatch is describing without describing is what medieval witch hunters called the osculum infame, or "infamous kiss." According to the Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, the kiss was:

"...Supposedly bestowed on the devil's anus by his worshipers as an act of homage. Pagan rituals, however, contained no such act; it seems to have been one of the inventions of the inquisitors. Scatological fantasies and excrement often figured in churchmen's visions of the activities of witches."

So, in other words, they all kissed Tristan's ass. (Sidebar: the oblique reference may be similar to what the writers of The Matrix Reloaded meant to imply when Persephone tells the Merovingian he still has traces of lipstick, but not on his face.)

Actually, Tristan Poole is himself the victim of demonic possession, not acting in his own right. For a time, Marble the albino cat is also possessed by a demon and causes the car accident that kills Matt. However, when all the evil spells are reversed, Marble goes back to being a normal, if slightly bad-tempered, house cat.

One of the prettiest passages occurs when Nicola is under Tristan's spell:

"He kissed her. At first it was just like any other kiss a man might have given her but then it changed and it was like nothing she had ever experienced before. Senses which she had not even known existed flared to life until she saw the world expanding into an unknown and mystical dimension which existed without beginning and without end in a wilderness of time.

"He stopped kissing her. The world tilted back to normality and the room spun around to meet her. The evening light was streaming through the window to slant across the panels of the closed door.

"'Take me back,' said Nicola. Where we were before. Take me back.' And she reached up and pulled his face down to hers so that she could touch his mouth again with her own.

"She felt his fingers sliding over her skin and realized for the first time that her bathrobe was on the floor and she was naked. But then his mouth closed hers and all the conventions of a petty decaying world were lost amid the velvet darkness of a hundred solar systems and the heat was blazing down upon her from a vast and invisible powerhouse.

"'Oh God,' said Nicola, 'I'm in heaven.'

"He laughed." 

The other day I shared a passage about magical sex. Here I think Susan Howatch had hit upon a truth most of us have probably experienced - that the first throes of falling in love are exactly what it must be like being under a magical spell.

Overall, I found this novel slightly quaint, very British, and highly entertaining. A few of Susan Howatch's novels have been reprinted as e-books, but I think this one hasn't yet. If you happen upon an old copy of it, you might want to pick it up. It's a worthwhile read.

Fantastic Beasts and How I Found Them

My hardcover copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay by J.K. Rowling arrived on Friday, November 18th. I didn't start reading it right away, because I wanted to see the film in the theater first. (Beware of spoilers if you keep reading below.) 

It has been many years since I last read J.K. Rowling's 2001 book titled Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, one of the two volumes she wrote for a charity project as Harry Potter's schoolbooks. I really had very little idea of what to expect when I saw the movie on Thanksgiving, other than a prequel to the Harry Potter series set in the 1920s.

The FBAWTFT film is set in 1926, to be exact.

We knew the main character was going to be Newt Scamander. When Harry Potter read Fantastic Beasts at Hogwarts, he knew Newt Scamander as the author of his textbook. We, the readers, had very little information about Newt - other than that he would be played by Eddie Redmayne. I remember Redmayne best as Marius Pontmercy in Les Miserables.  

He is absolutely adorable as Newt Scamander. 

Newt is a wizard visiting New York in the '20s. He has a suitcase with a virtual zoo inside, full of magical creatures. He's on his way to Arizona on a creature-related errand when he's distracted by an escapee: a niffler, a sort of platypus-mole that can't stop itself from hoarding shiny objects. 

The real trouble begins when Newt crosses paths with a Muggle - or, as they're known to American wizards - a No-Maj. He's Jacob Kowalski, a WWI vet who works in a canning factory but aspires to opening his own bakery with his grandmother's recipes. Jacob is played by Dan Fogler. I wasn't familiar with him before this film, but he's adorable too.

Jacob's briefcase of sample pastries gets mixed up with Newt's case of beasts, causing the intervention of an American auror (magical law enforcement officer), Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston). When Jacob is bitten by a murtlap and takes ill, Tina decides to take him and Newt home for the night. She shares a room with her sister, Queenie (Alison Sudol). 

Here, I swoon. American witches! JEWISH American witches! 

American witches and wizards have, rather than a Ministry of Magic, the MACUSA (Magical Congress of the United States of America). MACUSA doesn't allow witches and wizards to marry No-Majs, ostensibly so the witches' code of secrecy isn't broken, so they can't be persecuted. But Queenie and Jacob start flirting almost immediately. 

Newt and Tina have even more of a slow build. Newt is more socially awkward than Jacob. He does, however, keep a picture of Leta Lestrange in his creature case. We don't know how Leta is related to Bellatrix Lestrange - but presumably, she is. The actress portraying Leta in Newt's photo is Zoë Kravitz.

This will probably be explored further in the four sequels planned for this film. They're said to be taking us from 1926 all the way up to the end of World War II. Interestingly, Albus Dumbledore defeated Gellert Grindelwald in 1945, according to his chocolate frog card. Young!Albus doesn't appear in the FBAWTFT movie, but he is mentioned. He was Newt's teacher at Hogwarts and single-handedly kept Newt from being expelled over an undisclosed magical creature incident. 

Will Young!Albus appear in the prequel sequels? Fingers crossed for yes.

All of this, plus the amazing creatures, are very good. But wait, there's more! 

No-Majs aren't supposed to know that witches and wizards exist, but some of them suspect. The rough equivalent of Harry Potter's Aunt Petunia is Mary Lou Barebone (Samantha Morton). She heads the New Salemers, a religious group seeking to root out witchcraft in the U.S.A. 

Mary Lou has two adopted daughters (one a child, one an adult) and an adopted son, Credence (an adult). Credence is played by Ezra Miller, whom I may remember from such series as Californication. [SPOILERS] Credence's biological mother was a witch, and Credence is both desperately trying to hide his natural magic from Mary Lou, who violently abuses him, and desperate to join the magical world. This is a recipe for disaster. 

Credence serves as an informant for Percival Graves (Colin Farrell), a high-ranking auror and Tina's boss. Graves is looking for a magical child with legendary powers. Only the "child" isn't a child, but turns out to be Credence himself!

(We can suppose that Credence is in his early 20s. Ezra Miller is 24.) 

And...MAJOR SPOILER HERE...Graves isn't actually Graves, but Grindelwald in disguise.

But oh! The interactions between Credence and Graves are so flirty. It seems Credence is repressing his sexuality as well as his magic. (Not such a stretch for Ezra Miller, who is pansexual.) And, I think, Grindelwald is using Credence's attraction to Graves for Grindelwald's own evil purposes. 

But can I help it if real!Graves and Credence would make an incredibly sexy couple? I mean...

Not my fan art. http://thatwritererinoriordan.tumblr.com/post/153820648360/para-dlse-i-want-to-eat-you

I can't get "Gradence" out of my brain. They have pushed my Sherlock obsession almost completely out of my head. 

And that was already starting to replace Destiel. By the way, as of today I can no longer say I've never watched a single episode of Supernatural. While babysitting my twin nephews this morning, I watched a 3-episode DVD with my 12-year-old niece. I learned God (a.k.a. Chuck) has a sister named Amara, a.k.a. The Darkness. Basically, the Supernatural universe is a duality, as in Zoroastrianism. Dean offered to sacrifice himself so God and the universe wouldn't die, and Castiel offered to go with him. That angel really does love that human. (Maybe in a platonic way. But maybe not.) 

I digress. Still, the movie will not leave my brain alone. I was glad to have the screenplay at home waiting for me. It helped me catch some of the bits I missed in the theater. Especially that part where I had to take my niece to use the restroom. The screenplay was beautifully written, and it made me appreciate how well-acted the movie was. 

And now I have read all of J.K. Rowling's books, except Very Good Lives. 

Real Feelings About Ersatz History

Sometimes I like to get lost on Wikipedia. I got lost the other day in the "pseudohistory" category, and it was fascinating.

It started with the Ourang Medan. Well, it started on YouTube. I wasn't signed into my Google Account, so I was browsing the home page. A channel with a series of "top 5" lists came up - in fact, the channel is called Top5s.

This is the video I saw.

[If you want to read more about the strange death of Canadian student Elisa Lam in Los Angeles, you may do so at The Vigilant Citizen.]

The evening after I watched the video, I went to bed thinking about the Ourang Medan, the "ghost ship" whose crew was supposedly found dead, with expressions of abject terror on their faces, shortly before the ship exploded and sank. I wondered if the story was true.

I looked it up the next day. According to Wikipedia, there's no evidence that a ship called the Ourang Medan even existed. If it did, it should be listed in Lloyd's Shipping Register, but it isn't.

The categories at the bottom of the entry caught my eye; this is where I noticed the word "pseudohistory." What a fascinating word, I thought: not history that actually happened, but "history" that circulates in human consciousness without apparent basis in fact. I had to know what else belonged to this category.

For the record, I should mention that Wikipedia, as a peer-edited source, doesn't have the same standards for reliability and accuracy that a source with a "gatekeeper"/editor has. Although it has guidelines, it has so many users that it would be virtually impossible to ensure that all the articles adhere to its guidelines at all times. We have to take Wikipedia entries with a grain of salt, but that doesn't mean the categorization itself isn't of interest.

Pseudohistory, it turns out, contains a great many fascinating topics. Some of it has to do with "ancient astronaut theory," as exemplified by Erich von Däniken's 1968 nonfiction book Chariots of the Gods?. (The question mark is part of the title.)

Another large subcategory of pseudohistory is labelled as Priory of Sion Hoax. This has to do with much of the background story that went into Dan Brown's writing of The Da Vinci Code. Another subcategory is the "Shakespeare authorship question." (There's also a Molière authorship question, but hey, I care much less about French literature than English. Cultural bias - sorry.)

Much of the pseudohistory category has to do with religion, much of it to do specifically with Christianity. Take, for example, the brief Babylon Mystery Religion article. Babylon Mystery Religion is a book, now out of print, by Ralph Woodrow published in 1966. Referring to an earlier (1853) book called The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop, Woodrow's book linked the Roman Catholic Church to ancient Babylonian rituals. Woodrow later recanted his anti-Catholic views in a second book.

Apparently there are quite a few factual errors in Hislop's book, stemming from misunderstandings about the historical Babylonian culture. Although scholars have subsequently pointed out these errors, the Catholicism=Whore of Babylon theme is still alive and well among some Evangelical Christians and Jehovah's Witnesses.

One of the modern-day adherents to some version of Hislop's ideas is Michael Hoggard, an American (Missouri) pastor with a relatively large following for his radio/YouTube show. The show has more than 20,000 fans on Facebook. He also curates the website http://666alert.net/, which collects uses of images linked to the number 666 as they appear in popular culture.

Hoggard is a Southern Baptist. A related pseudohistorical concept is Baptist successionism, which argues that the Baptist denomination is most direct line between the Christianity of Jesus and the Apostles and modern churches. The work most often associated with this view is The Trail of Blood (1931) by J.M. Carroll. It is not historically accurate, but it remained influential among Southern Baptists well into the late 20th century.

But for me, maybe the most interesting article in all of pseudohistory is the Witch-Cult Hypothesis. Remember when I got my ass handed to me for over-relying on Barbara J. Walker as a source? (If not, you can always read about it here.) Well, Walker is probably an adherent of this theory. It states, essentially, that through the Middle Ages and into the Modern Era, ancient Pagan religions survived in such a way that worshipers of The Horned God of Paganism were mistaken by Christians for worshipers of the Christian devil and subsequently persecuted as witches. This theory came about in the 19th century and was perpetuated into the 20th century, even including the entry in the Encyclopedia Britannica for many years.

(Encyclopedias are them things we used to read before we had Google.)

According to the Wikipedia entry, the Witch-Cult Hypothesis found a champion in British historian/Egyptologist Margaret Murray*, who wrote The Witch-Cult in Western Europe. It is not historically accurate.

Despite its unreliability as history, Murray's book is said, in the Wikipedia entry, to have been influential in the development of the Wiccan religion. Murray's subsequent book, The God of the Witches, introduced the term The Horned God for the male deity worshiped by the alleged witch cult on Western Europe. (She acknowledged that the witch cult also worshiped a goddess, but in her opinion the witches regarded their male deity as the more important of the two.) Gerald Gardner, who was also English and is now considered the founder of modern Wicca (referred to as Gardnerian Wicca), claimed to have found a surviving coven of the kind of witches Murray described, and he started his own coven based on them, in the interest of keeping the religion alive.

But mind you, Wicca, modern witchcraft, and NeoPaganism are 20th century religions. While they revive certain aspects of ancient belief and worship, the rituals and beliefs of modern witches were created in the 20th century. And there's nothing wrong with that. People take what they need from their religions, and a religion doesn't have to be old to meet the needs of its practitioners.

The Wikipedia article on The Horned God states that Gardner, consciously influenced by Murray, borrowed his conception of Wiccan practice from Freemasonry, from the Theosophy movement, from other unnamed occult sources, and from Aleister Crowley's Gnostic Mass. (In 1913, Crowley wrote a mass for the Gnostic church, borrowing from the rituals of the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christian churches, but replacing Christian concepts with his own Thelema, his "do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law.")

By the way, Margaret Murray is also in part responsible for the association of Glastonbury, England, with King Arthur and the Holy Grail. I used this legend in Midsummer Night.

https://www.createspace.com/4657847

So dig in to pseudohistory if you like. If you're interested in history - and in the history of ideas - you may find it as fascinating as I did.

*That Madeleine L'Engle's fictional protagonist in The Time Quintet is named Margaret "Meg" Murry is coincidence, I think.

A Very Vintage Halloween

Happy Halloween Eve! Please enjoy some vintage Halloween pins.



"A full moon on Halloween night ensures that the powers of all forms of magick and divination practiced on this night will be at their greatest. A secret wish made at midnight will be realized within the coming year, and do not be surprised in an experience of a psychic nature awaits you in the very near future."



"In ancient Egypt, the goddess Bastet (also known as Bast or Pasht) was worshiped in the form of a lean, short-haired black cat, and sometimes as a female human having the head of a cat...She was a benevolent goddess, and the domestic cat was the animal most sacred to her. So sacred, in fact, that at one time, the very harming of a cat in Egypt carried the price of execution."

"The black cat is also associated with the Greek goddess Hecate (a deity with a strong connection to the practice of Witchcraft) and the Norse goddess Freya (who rode on a chariot drawn by cats...)."



"The ancient Greeks considered the owl to be a sacred bird, for it was the constant companion of Athena, the goddess of wisdom and the patron deity of the city of Athens. It was through this association that the owl came to be known as a 'wise old bird.'"



"Many Native American medicine men still consider the owl to be a messenger from the dead, while practitioners of Peruvian folk magick continue to utilize this bird in spells and rituals to combat black magick and to cure various ailments."







"The besom, another name for the broomstick, has long been associated with Witches--not so much because Witches were, at one time, believed to fly on enchanted broomsticks to from their Sabbats, but rather because the broomstick has played an important role in the handfasting and birth ceremonies of Witches and other Pagan folk since ancient times.

"In Greek mythology, Hecate, the goddess of the moon, queen of the underworld, and protectress of all Witches, possessed a broomstick that signified sexual union. If a woman desiring children jumped over three times, she would instantly become impregnated. It is believed that from this myth the Pagan custom of the bride and groom jumping over a broomstick evolved."



Many of these pins are from MyVintageVogue.Tumblr.com, from Halloween 2012. The text is quotes from The Pagan Book of Halloween by Gerina Dunwich.

This is an affiliate link:

Witchcraft Second Degree. Wiccan Themed. by Black Witch S. $29.97 from Smashwords.com
Witchcraft - A 2nd Year in the Craft. This course will introduce you to the basics of Witchcraft with a Wiccan fusion. Step-by-step beginner exercises are included to help you start your journey safely and to show you exactly what to do in order to achieve your full magical potential. Plus, you can apply for a Certification of Completion for 2nd Degree Witchcraft.

Walpurgisnacht

The eve of Beltane is traditionally known in Germany is Walpurgisnacht, the time for the pilgrimage to the tomb of Saint Walpurgis (or Walpurga) in Eichstätt. Walpurgis was born in England, but came to Germany as a missionary. According to legend, the 8th-century Germans were still largely practicing their indigenous Norse religion, but I don’t know how historically accurate this is. Her tomb is said to exude a holy oil that cures sickness, the original reason for pilgrimages to her burial place.

The 8th-century abbess was canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church on the date of the first of May. Her feast day is an excuse for a Halloween-like spring festival that often includes bonfires and/or fireworks and leaving out gift of bread spread with honey and butter for phantom hounds. The bonfires are said to ward off witches, the plague, whooping cough, and rabies. The 30th of April is considered to be a Hexennacht, or witches’ sabbath night.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote about Walpurgisnacht in Faust:

“Now to the Brocken the witches ride;

The stubble is gold and the corn is green;

There is the carnival crew to be seen,

And Squire Urianus will come to preside.” Brocken is the highest peak in the Harz mountain range. 

In Bram Stoker’s short story “Dracula’s Guest,” the Englishman visiting Transylvania (not given a name in the short story, but Jonathan Harker in the novel) arrives on Walpurgisnacht. The villagers warn him not to be outside of his hotel after dark.

Other European countries that observe some version of Walpurgisnacht tradition are Czechia, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Sweden. In Europe, the first of May is typically the Labor Day holiday; the U.S. is the oddball for having its Labor Day at the end of the summer.

Read more:

https://www.daimonologia.org/2018/05/saint-walpurga-and-witches-of-walpurgis.html

https://www.gaimn.org/2022/04/29/walpurgisnacht/

https://ko-fi.com/s/bff65e476b

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Producing The Hit Broadway Show 'Wicked'

Stopping by from Reading-Romances.com's Romancing the Valentine Giveaway Hop? Please find the giveaway post HERE.

The Vampires for Valentines giveaway post is HERE.

____________

A Guest Post From Brynn Alexander:

By now, most people have heard of the hit Broadway musical Wicked. Since its debut in 2003, Wicked has taken America by storm and entertained thousands of patrons around the country with its magical sets, inspiring story, and memorable songs. The Oz-ian tale of two witches (based on L. Frank Baum’s original characters of Glinda the Good Witch of the North and the Wicked Witch of the West) has found appeal in both adults and children, and continues to entertain theatergoers each night in venues around the world.



The story behind Wicked is loosely based on the 1995 Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, which itself is a parallel novel and prequel of sorts to the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and Baum’s original material. It sees two witches - Elphaba, whose emerald-green skin and fiery disposition sets her apart from the other residents of Oz, and Galinda, the beautiful, ambitious and popular blonde witch - develop an unlikely friendship. Throughout the story, the two witches struggle through opposing viewpoints and compete over the same love interest. As the plot unfolds, Elphaba becomes increasingly ostracized for opposing the corrupt government in Oz, while Galinda remains headstrong and is embraced by the people of Oz.

(Stacie Morgain Lewis and Kristy Cates in a Chicago performance of Wicked)

When interviewed in El Paso about her role as Galinda, Katie Rose Clarke described her character’s arc: "She starts out as a young girl going to school for the first time, away from her comfort and her family and then going through just difficulties of life." What follows is a tale of friendship between Galinda (who later becomes Glinda, the Good Witch of the North) and the misunderstood Elphaba. "I think it's known to be life-changing. People very much relate to the story, everyone can," said Katie Rose.

One aspect of the production that has received widespread acclaim from critics and fans alike is the sets. Galinda’s now-famous magic bubble is one of the key props, while other props, equipment and lights that feature onstage all come together to give a sense of magic rarely seen in other stage productions. It is because of this high level of production that fans have wanted to come back time and time again to see this spectacular show.

The costumes, too, are quite fantastic. With a reported $2 million spent on this part of the production alone, no expense has been spared in producing the best outfits for the cast. Describing the fitting process, Katie Rose said, "All the characters have the costumes made for their bodies. We go in. We get measured, so it's a work-intensive process to get costumes for every company." And what happens when one of the cast members becomes sick? “We try to get better hopefully before we do the show that night. And if not, then we have understudies that are amazing and they rehearse just like we do.”



Wicked tickets are available from various online outlets, including at the show’s official website. New dates have recently been announced for Salt Lake City in July, and further dates are expected for 2012 in locations around the US.

Love Spells, Courtesy of the Witch of Umbria

In a 1999 letter from the editor in Ms. Magazine, Maggie Ann Gillespie wrote, "I want to be a witch! Correction - I want to confirm the witch in me." She goes on to write that "when thousands upon thousands of women were labeled witches and terrorized, tortured, and murdered in all manner of barbarous ways, I probably would have been among them - and so would you." Her argument is that many of the simple freedoms we take for granted, from enjoying sex to speaking up, could have us (men and women alike) labelled as witches in the burning times.

That's probably true. As Nigel Cawthorne painstakingly explains in his history volume Witch Hunt: History of a Persecution (Chartwell Books, 2004), people as young as two were murdered in the European hysteria over witchcraft and heresy in numbers it's difficult to pinpoint or even imagine. The book is a veritable catalog of horrors and not for the weak of stomach.

Yet there's also a fanciful side to the book, in the descriptions of the powers attributed to witches. My favorite chapter is Chapter 8, "The Witch of Umbria." The Italian region of Umbria has been rather infamous in the news lately; it's the location of Perugia, where the American Amanda Knox was arrested, convicted and acquitted of the horrendous murder of her British roommate, Meredith Kercher. In the 15th century, Umbria was infamous for another trial, the trial of Matteuchia di Francesco, accused of being a witch.

According to witness testimony of that time, di Francesco was skilled with love charms. Some of her remedies included these.

Charm for getting a lover to pay you attention (at least for a few days)- give him/her an egg, mixed with her herb called Costa cavallina.

To remedy an uncaring lover - Make a wax figure of him/her and wrap it in a thread spun by a virgin. Place it under his/her bed. Reportedly, this worked for an Italian woman who was having an affair with a local priest. If no virgin-spun thread is available, you may wrap some of your hair in cloth and place this under the lover's bed.

To regain the favor of a lover with a wandering eye - Burn some of your hair and feed him/her the ashes.

To recover a cheating spouse - Capture a swallow, and for a few days feed it nothing but sugar. Kill the bird, burn it, and mix the ashes with wine and some water in which you've washed your feet.

To make someone fall in love with you - Capture a pair of swallows. Kill the birds, burn them, and stir the ashes into a drink. Give it to your intended lover.

To separate a pair of lovers if you desire one of them for yourself - bathe facing backwards with your knees bent. Take your bath water and throw it in the path of the couple as they pass. Soon, they will hate one another and separate.

To prevent two people from having sex - Take a holy candle and light it. Carry it to the junction of three roads, where one of the lovers is certain to pass, and there bend the candle. Keep the bent candle in a safe place, and as long as no one disturbs it, the lover who passed by the crossroads will be unable to have sex.

To undo the curse your lover's lover has placed on you - look under your bed/pillow for a witch's charm, then burn it.

Perhaps because the Church feared the witch's power to aid and abet adultery, di Francesco was sentenced harshly. She was paraded through the town of Todi on the back of a donkey with her hands tied and a paper hat (apparently signifying shame in those days) on her head. There she was publicly burned alive. At least the trial of Amanda Knox had a less gruesome ending.

Got witch fiction?
Beltane by Erin O'Riordan
Midsummer Night: Pagan Spirits, Book Two (Volume 2) by Erin O'Riordan

Photo:
Démons et Merveilles by Edward Reginald Frampton (1872-1923). Public domain in the U.S.

New Covers, New Titles, Same Sizzling Paranormal Trilogy by K D Grace (@kd_grace) #erotica #romance #paranormal

K D Grace’s paranormal trilogy has had a makeover! The covers have been redone, along with a slight upgrade in the titles to better reflect their paranormal romance genre. The novels themselves are still both sizzling and chilling. And now they’re all dressed up for the summer heat.

The Lakeland Witches Trilogy

Book One: Body Temperature and Rising

American transplant to the Lake District, MARIE WARREN, didn’t know she could unleash demons and enflesh ghosts until a voyeuristic encounter on the fells ends in sex with the charming ghost, ANDERSON, and night visits from a demon. To help her cope with her embarrassing and dangerous new abilities, Anderson brings her to the ELEMENTALS, a coven of witches who practice rare sex magic that temporarily allows needy ghosts access to the pleasures of the flesh.

Buy links: http://kdgrace.co.uk/books/lakeland-heatwave-book-i/

Add to Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13064244-body-temperature-and-rising

Book Two: Riding the Ether

Cassandra Larkin keeps her ravenous and dangerous sexual appetite secret until she seduces Anderson in the mysterious void of the Ether.  Anderson is the sexy, insatiable ghost who can give her exactly what she needs.

But sex is dangerous in a place like the Ether…

When the treacherous demon, Deacon, discovers the truth about the origin of Cassandra’s powerful lust, he plots to use her sex magic for revenge on Tara Stone and the Elemental Coven, who practice their own brand of sex magic.

Cassandra must embrace the lust and sexuality she fears and learn to use its power. Will she stand with Anderson, Tara, and the Elemental Coven against Deacon’s wrath or suffer the loss of friendship, magic and love?

Buy links: http://kdgrace.co.uk/books/lakeland-heatwave-book-2-riding-the-ether/

Add to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13175174-riding-the-ether

Book Three: Elemental Fire

Obsessed with revenge, KENNET LUCIAN makes a deal with a demon, a deal he comes to regret when he meets TARA STONE, head of the Elemental Coven, and a powerful witch with a desire for revenge at least as great as his. Even though the attraction between the two is magnetic and the lust combustive, Kennet must betray her to accomplish his goal, which is ultimately her goal as well; to put a final end to the demon, Deacon’s, reign of terror. But can Tara trust the man who has wormed his way into her heart and the heart of the Elemental Coven? Can she trust LUCIA, the demon with whom Kennet is allied, a demon with her own agenda. The path to Deacon’s destruction is far from clear, and the price that must be paid to be free of him forever may be too high, even for Tara Stone.

DEACON, the demon Marie has unleashed, holds an ancient grudge against TARA STONE, coven high priestess, and will stop at nothing to destroy all she holds dear. Marie and her landlord, the reluctant young farmer, TIM MERIWETHER, are at the top of his list. Marie and Tim must learn to wield coven magic and the numinous power of their lust to stop Deacon’s bloody rampage before the coven is torn apart and more innocent people die.

Buy links: http://kdgrace.co.uk/books/lakeland-heatwave-book-3-elemental-fire/

Add to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16222404-elemental-fire

*****

Author Bio:

K D Grace believes Freud was right. In the end, it really IS all about sex, well sex and love. And nobody’s happier about that than she is, otherwise, what would she write about?

When she’s not writing, K D is veg gardening. When she’s not gardening, she’s walking. She walks her stories, and she’s serious about it. She and her husband have walked Coast to Coast across England, along with several other long-distance routes. For her, inspiration is directly proportionate to how quickly she wears out a pair of walking boots. She also enjoys martial arts, reading, watching the birds and anything that gets her outdoors.

K D has erotica published with SourceBooks, Xcite Books, Harper Collins Mischief Books, Mammoth, Cleis Press, Black Lace, Erotic Review, Ravenous Romance, Sweetmeats Press and others.

K D’s critically acclaimed erotic romance novels include The Initiation of Ms Holly and The Pet Shop. Her paranormal erotic novel, Body Temperature and Rising, the first book of her Lakeland Witches trilogy, was listed as honorable mention on Violet Blue’s Top 12 Sex Books for 2011. Books two and three, Riding the Ether, and Elemental Fire, are now also available. She was nominated for ETO’s Best Erotic Author 2013.

K D Grace also writes hot romance as Grace Marshall. An Executive Decision, Identity Crisis, The Exhibition are all available.

Find K D Here:

Websites: http://kdgrace.co.uk/

http://gracemarshallromance.co.uk/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KDGraceAuthor

https://www.facebook.com/GraceMarshallRomance

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kd_grace

http://www.twitter.com/GM_Romance

K.D. Grace, the Pagan Spirits Interview

How did you get started writing in this genre?

I got started writing erotica when I submitted a short piece to the now defunct UK magazine, Scarlet, which ran a section called ‘Cliterature’ at the time. I had two pieces published with them, then went on to publish with Black Lace and have never looked back. I got into paranormal probably because of my love for mythology and for the wonderful cross-over novels of authors like Diana Gabaldon and Nora Roberts, in which the paranormal bleeds into an otherwise normal world completely oblivious to the dangerous otherness that threatens destruction while at the same time promises heightened lust. And of course, I had my love affair with Anne Rice and Laurell K. Hamilton.

Basically I love the idea that dangerous, exciting otherness can bleed into our world unbeknownst to the average person. It’s like imaginary friends coming to life. It makes all the ‘what ifs’ more intense and adds a new dimension to the road to HEA without taking it completely out of the everyday world. I like the fact that the two intersect, and when they do, dangerous, amazing, exciting things happen.

What made you decide to write Lakeland Heatwave: Body Temperature and Rising?

It’s a serious bit of magic that Body Temperature and Rising got written at all really. The story evolved out of a personal experience of being caught in the mist in a storm while walking the fells in the Lake District. That experience inspired the opening scene of a novel that was my NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) project three years ago. I knew it would be an erotic novel, and I knew it would be paranormal, neither of which I’d tried my hand at before. After I finished it, it lay untouched for two more years. In the meantime, Xcite Books published my first two contemporary erotic romances, The Initiation of Ms Holly and The Pet Shop. One day, on a lark, I dusted off the original manuscript that was then called Love Spells and decided it had some serious potential. On a lark, I sent Xcite the reworked first three chapters and a synopsis of what would become BTR, and within less than an hour, they responded with a yes!

I was a little taken aback by Xcite’s enthusiasm, and for the first time ever, I found myself with writer’s block. Usually once I set myself a task to write it just happens. The writing flows, the story takes shape, and that’s that. Not this time! I was really beginning to worry that I might not be able to do it after all. Finally, after a long hard walk, I realized the reason it wasn’t coming together for me was that the story was too big for one novel. It needed to be a trilogy. I proposed the Lakeland Heatwave Trilogy to Xcite, they said yes, and from there the book and the changes needed to make it publishable practically exploded onto the page, with the path to the rest of the trilogy clear ahead. I’m still amazed how it all came together as it has, and I have to say it has been an absolute blast to write.

If Hollywood made this book into a movie, who would you imagine playing Anderson, Marie, Tim and Tara?

People always ask that, and it’s one of the hardest questions for me because I never write my characters with anyone in mind. Since the second novel, Riding the Ether, is essentially Anderson’s story, I spent a long walk a couple of weeks ago thinking about who would play him in a film, while trying to get my head around Anderson’s darkness and his lust. Anderson is powerful, dangerous and yet the epitome of old world charm and sophistication. The closest I could come was Hugh Jackman, who seems to embody both in the rolls he’s played. Tim might be Sam Worthington. Marie could possibly be Olivia Wilde. Tara is hard. Tara is really hard, but at the moment I’m leaning toward Anne Hathaway. The last book, Elemental Fire, is ultimately Tara’s tale, so maybe I’ll change my mind by then. Hard to say.



Do you believe that sex magic is real?

I believe that sex is the only kind of magic, actually, and certainly the only kind of magic we all have access to. That’s why I write erotica. That being said, it was the perfect jumping-off place for my foray into paranormal erotica. Sex is the true creative force in the world, so it makes sense that the place where two people become one, the only place where we can actually get inside another person’s skin, the place where life begins with la petite mort would be the place where the magic is most powerful. That’s the premise for all three novels and the reason I chose to write about sex magic.

What project are you working on right now?

I’m working on the second and third novels of the trilogy right now. I’ve just finished the first draft of Riding the Ether, book two, and will go right into Elemental Fire. It’s easier for me to write the two books together because the events in the books lend themselves to it, and because I actually have the time to do it that way. I think the writing of the two, almost as one, will make for a much more powerful climax to the trilogy. It’ll also make the whole experience psychologically easier on me if I can just stay in the story.

Would you say your work has been influenced by any other erotica writers? Do you have a favorite erotica writer?

I actually started writing erotica on a lark before I’d ever read anything by anyone in the genre. It was only after I’d had a few works published that I started seriously reading other writers. I really don’t want to be influenced by anyone else too much because I want my voice to stay as unique as possible. However, I’m a great admirer of Charlotte Stein and Justine Elyot. There are lots I really enjoy, but these two wonderful writers consistently awe me with their work. I admire them deeply.

Do you have a favorite paranormal writer?

As I mentioned earlier, I’m a real fan of the paranormal crossover, for lack of a better word. I like the bleed-through into the real world to be subtle and therefore more dangerous because it can lend itself to denial. I love Diana Gabaldon’s mix of historical novel and time travel. I like the way Nora Roberts mixes romance with paranormal. I suppose her mix of witches and magic probably influenced me most. And the Lakeland setting so easily lends itself to witches and ghosts that it was perfect.

Where do you stand on the vampire issue: should they sparkle, not sparkle, or no opinion?

I’m definitely in the sparkle-free camp.

Other than sex and love, what subject most fascinates you?

I’m an avid long-distance walker. I love nature and being outside. My husband and I did the Wainwright Coast-to-Coast walk across England last summer, and have another stonking good walk planned for this summer. I walk most of my stories, and if I ever get stuck in the plot, a good walk solves the problem and offers the best inspiration for new tales. I’m a firm believer that a good walk will solve almost anything.

And if the walking doesn’t, vegetable gardening will. We grow our own vegetables, and getting my hands in the earth, then eating what I’ve grown myself, well, that’s a different kind of magic. I also find veg gardening inspirational. I have a reputation for writing garden porn.

*****

American transplant to the Lake District, MARIE WARREN, didn’t know she could unleash demons and enflesh ghosts until a voyeuristic encounter on the fells ends in sex with the charming ghost, ANDERSON, and night visits from a demon. To help her cope with her embarrassing and dangerous new abilities, Anderson brings her to the ELEMENTALS, a coven of witches who practice rare sex magic that temporarily allows needy ghosts access to the pleasures of the flesh.

DEACON, the demon Marie has unleashed, holds an ancient grudge against TARA STONE, coven high priestess, and will stop at nothing to destroy all she holds dear. Marie and her landlord, the reluctant young farmer, TIM MERIWETHER, are at the top of his list. Marie and Tim must learn to wield coven magic and the numinous power of their lust to stop Deacon’s bloody rampage before the coven is torn apart and more innocent people die.

More info & buy links: http://kdgrace.co.uk/books/lakeland-heatwave-book-i/

*****

K D Grace was born with a writing obsession. It got worse once she actually learned HOW to write. There's no treatment for it. It's progressive and chronic and quite often interferes with normal, everyday functioning. She might actually be concerned if it wasn't so damned much fun most of the time.

K D's erotic romance novels, The Initiation of Ms Holly, The Pet Shop and Lakeland Heatwave Book 1: Body Temperature and Rising are published by Xcite Books and are available from all good paperback and eBook retailers.

Her erotica has been published with Xcite Books, Mammoth, Cleis Press, Black Lace, Erotic Review, Ravenous Romance, Sweetmeats Press and Scarlet Magazine.

Find out more about K D Grace on her website, http://kdgrace.co.uk. She's also on Facebook and Twitter.

Blessed Yule! and Welcome, Witches Yuletide Ballers

Rather than a Yule tree, I like to put up a large wreath, wrapped in lights and garlands, then suspended from the ceiling. I have a theme to many of my Yule ornaments. Many of them have to do with my favorite children's books.

First, there's Hedwig. She was a gift from the aunt and uncle who got me started on Harry Potter in the first place.

Did you know that J.K. Rowling chose the name Hedwig for the beautiful white owl because St. Hedwig is the Catholic patron saint of orphans?

Here are a few of my many Alice in Wonderland collectibles. I have many different editions of this book, one of my all-time favorites. I even brought back Alicia en el Pais de las Maravillas from Madrid.

A couple of my ornaments are from Dr. Seuss stories. The little bell has The Grinch and his dog Max on it, and the silver one is either Thing One or Thing Two from The Cat in the Hat. I've also included the adorable Pat the Bunny ornament - this was quite possibly my first favorite book.

I actually don't have a lot of my childhood Dr. Seuss books anymore - I donated them to a school where I used to work. I do have I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today, which wasn't originally mine, but which resided at my grandparents' house, in a book box on the enclosed front porch, for years. I have many pleasant memories of Christmas Eves at that house.

Next, we have Rainbow Brite. Okay, she's really more of a cartoon character than a book character, but as you'll see, I also have a Rainbow Brite book. (The read-along cassette went missing years ago.)

What girl doesn't want a horse with a rainbow mane and tail?

My newest acquisition (thanks, Mom!) is Hallmark's Twilight Eclipse ornament, depicting Bella Swan, Edward Cullen and Jacob Black.

If I could have an ornament from any kids' book in the world, I'd like to have one from Dianna Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle. They could be the anime versions of Howl and Sophie from the Studio Ghibli film, but preferably it would be right after Sophie cleaned up in Howl's bathroom, he tried to dye his hair blonde and it came out slightly pink. He's so vain about his hair!

But Howl and Sophie are the cutest fictional wizard-witch couple this side of Ron and Hermione. I want her power to make things happen to inanimate objects by talking to them. And he saw her once (on May Day) and fell in love with her - so romantic. Cheesy fan video? I think so.



My Yule wreath will look stylish and well-read this year. Thank you to the gracious hosts of the Witches Yuletide Ball!

http://witchofhowlingcreek.wordpress.com/
http://onthebroomstick.blogspot.com/

'A Discovery of Witches' Is Coming to TV (and Other Reasons I'm Happy Today)

One of my favorite books in the history of time, A Discovery of Witches, is becoming a TV series, as reported by Entertainment Weekly. 

Matthew Goode, who appeared in The Imitation Game* with Benedict Cumberbatch, will play my fictional boyfriend, vampire-scientist Matthew Clairmont. 

Badass witch heroine and mother of dragon (technically, firedrake) Diana Bishop is to be played by Teresa Palmer, the Australian actress I thought was very good in Warm Bodies. 

Quite nice. Another favorite getting a TV adaptation is Robert Galbraith's (a.k.a. J.K. Rowling's) The Cuckoo's Calling. 

It looks like Cormoran Strike - another of my fictional boyfriends, although I truly want him and Robin to get together - got a bit of an adaptational attractiveness upgrade, but no matter. Holliday Grainger looks like she'll be an absolutely perfect Robin Ellacot. 

Elarica Johnson, who made a brief but notable appearance in the film version of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, is playing Lula Landry. I still like to imagine that Lula is dating Fred Weasley in the afterlife. 

Grainger is also set to play the lover of Anna Paquin's character in Tell It to the Bees, a novel written by Fiona Shaw. Shaw did a stint on True Blood with Paquin, playing the lead witch of a coven, but is perhaps more famous for playing Harry Potter's witchcraft-phobic Aunt Petunia. 

"Telling the bees" is an ancient folkloric custom. 

Also adapted for TV was Charlaine Harris's Midnight, Texas series. I'm missing it because I don't have cable, but my parents are watching it. Maybe some day they'll put it on Netflix. 

*Which I never finished watching because sad LGBT+ history makes me sad. 

Recently Watched: Much Ado About Nothing at Notre Dame on Sunday, then my second viewing of Twelfth Night, with my niece this time, also at Notre Dame but on Monday. 

Currently Listening To: Wil Wheaton reading the audio book of Ready Player One.

 

Currently Reading: