#Poetryreadathon #Bookreview – Fairies, Myths & Magic: A Summer Celebration by Colleen M. Chesebro

I purchased and reviewed Fairies, Myths & Magic by Colleen M. Chesebro as part of the Poetry Readathon and Poetry Blog Promotion series I am currently hosting.

I follow the author’s blog and find her poetry to be beautifully written, diverse and intriguing. My enjoyment of the author’s blog led me to purchase her poetry book, released earlier this year.

Colleen runs a weekly poetry challenge where poets are encouraged to express themselves using different poetry forms such as haikus, tankas and cinquains. Colleen proves so excellent instruction on how to writes these poetic variations. You can experience Colleen’s blog here: https://colleenchesebro.com/

What Amazon says

Step into a world where fairies, dragons, and other magical beings converge in a collection of poetry and short stories inspired by the celebration of Litha, the Summer Solstice.

Meet Drac, a dragon cursed by his own poisonous deeds, and two pixies who help an old man remember a lost love. You’ll meet a pair of fairies with a sense of humor, and a young girl who fulfills her destiny after being struck by lightning. Learn what happens when a modern witch’s spell goes terribly wrong. Meet the Sisters of the Fey, a group of Slavic Witches who sign a pact with the Rusalki Fey to preserve their magic for the good of all.

Atmospheric and haunting, the prose and poetry, will rewrite the mythologies of the past bringing them into the future.

My review

This book includes a delightful array of short stories and poems with fairies, myths and magic as the central themes that link them all. The author provides an interesting introduction to fairies and shares her own personal thoughts and ideas about this subject. There is also an intriguing overview of myths and how they originated.

The poetry takes numerous shapes and forms and there are tankas, haibuns, double tankas, cinquains and freestyle poems all of which contribute into making this book an interesting reading adventure.

My favourite story was The Leaving – A Story of Supernatural Magic which features the elderly Miss Pensie Taylor as the main character. Miss Pensie has lived in her house in the same town all her life and is a well know character to the older residents. Her house overlooks a swamp and a graveyard and she has an intimate knowledge of the inmates of the graveyard as her father was the caretaker when she was a child. Miss Pensie is a brave soul with a gift that enables her to see the spirits of those long dead.

One evening, during a heavy thunderstorm, Miss Pensie notices something unusual about the graveyard and goes out to investigate after the rain has abated. She has an interesting experience alone in the darkness.

My favourite poem in this collection is titled The magical Tree and my favourite stanza is the following:

“In Autumn –

the Lady shows us her splendor

whose bright orange leaves herald

the darkness of another winter slumber.”

If you enjoy poetry and have an interest in myths, magic and fairies, you will love this beautiful collection. I rated it five out of five stars on Amazon.

Purchase Fairies, Myths & Magic: A Summer Celebration

Other books by Colleen M. Chesebro

The Heart Stone Chronicles – The Swamp Fairies

Fourteen-year-old Abigale Forester, recently orphaned and a ward of the State of Illinois moves from Chicago to Florida to live with her aunt, her last living relative. Magnolia Forester becomes her legal Guardian, and together they claim an ancient inheritance; land that belonged to Abby’s mother’s family for generations.

Holding onto the only piece of her mother Abby has left, a calcite pendant and her mother’s most sacred possession, she discovers the truth of her legacy. The pendant is more significant than she could possibly imagine. Forged from a giant mystical heart-shaped stone found on the very swamp land Abby now owns, it holds the power of her ancestors.

But with that power comes greater responsibility, one that pits her against Rafe Cobb, a greedy land developer, who will stop at nothing to own Abby’s swamp land.

As Abby learns to be part of a family again and explores her love of horses with friends, Savanna, and Blake, the swamp slowly gives up some of its secrets. She is summoned by a primeval nymph, who teaches Abby that her true destiny is to protect the nymphs from evil in an ever-changing modern world.

Can Abby save the swamp and the Naiad Nymph Clan from certain destruction before it is too late?

You can read my review of this lovely book here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R1SKYWJRXW8RHW/ref=cm_cr_getr_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B01MU69MXT

You can purchase The Heart Stone Chronicles: The Swamp Fairy here: