Sarah Avery’s Tales From Rugosa Coven is up for preorders today, and to celebrate I thought I’d share this lovely review from folklorist Dr. Ceallaigh S. MacCath-Moran:

“The world loves all things witchy; lit candles, flowing robes, black eyeliner, silver jewelry, and spooky secrets. It’s a costume to safely slip into when the cool kids are watching and stow in a cupboard when the neighbours come ’round for tea. But real Wiccans, Druids, Heathens, and other Pagan practitioners bear the stigmatization of those neighbours, make hard decisions about whether or not to be “out” at work, and learn to navigate in a society built for other people’s religions. Sarah Avery knows this, and in Tales from Rugosa Coven, she thoughtfully represents Pagans and our communities in three magical novellas. Avery’s characters show up for grieving coven mates on a weekday afternoon with a casserole in the car. They go to therapy for help with obsessive compulsive disorder only to be told the beliefs and practices that sustain them are part of the problem. They throw the tarot for one another like they mean it. But beyond these graceful character sketches and others, Sarah Avery demonstrates a nuanced understanding of contemporary Pagan folklore. The language and enactment of various rituals, the use of astrological calendars in day-to-day planning, the belief structures of different Pagan denominations, and many other folkloric elements are woven into stories that accept the ways we enchant the world and ask what would happen if the world enchanted us right back. I wish I had known about this perfect collection of novellas when it was first released so I could have recommended it to you then. But better late than never. I am delighted to recommend the second edition of Tales from Rugosa Coven, a book I love all the way down to my Heathen bones.“

Oh, and Publishers Weekly liked it, too! “The magical elements are subtly woven throughout, balancing the more mundane aspects, and the unbreakable bond between coven members adds emotional heft. There’s much to enjoy.” (Full review here.)

Preorders are up at all the usual locations (Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble, bookshop.org, Kobo, Smashwords, and more), and the book will be released August 1, 2026!