"A powerfully magical story." —D. Donovan, Sr. Reviewer, Midwest Book Review
In this slow-burn Southern Gothic fantasy, award-winning author Laura Holt weaves witchcraft, folklore, and simmering tension into a haunting tale of memory and magic.
Featured on Goodreads' "10 Best Southern Gothic Fantasy Novels" list!
Some secrets refuse to stay buried…
When I fled Bristol's Edge, I swore I'd never return.
Not after the night the wells turned on me.
Not after the town branded me a liar.
Not after Sutton Fray looked at me like I'd ruined everything.
But destiny and death have a way of calling you home.
I return only to bury my mother and leave again. Instead, I find a town in decay. The wells are dry. The magic is starving. And people are going missing again.
Years ago, the first was Holden Fray, the boy I once loved. And his brother Sutton, now the chief of police, greets me with the same cold suspicion he wore the night I ran.
He wants answers.
I want nothing to do with him.
But this town won't let either of us leave. Not its dark magic, not its hungry spirits, not its secrets older than the mountains.
The deeper I'm pulled into the mystery, the more Sutton shadows my steps, demanding truths I can't give and offering help I don't want.
We clash at every turn over the past, over the wells, over the truth neither of us is ready to face. The tension between us burns hotter with every step, pulling us into an uneasy alliance neither of us trusts.
He's the last person I should rely on… and the only one who might help me survive what's coming.
Something in the depths remembers me.
And it wants me back.
A Spell of Shadows is an adult Southern Gothic fantasy steeped in Appalachian folk magic, small-town dark secrets, and slow-burn tension tangled with grief, guilt, and a history neither Kalon nor Sutton can outrun. Perfect for fans of Shea Ernshaw, Alix E. Harrow, and The Wicked Deep.
Tropes you'll find in A Spell of Shadows:
☑️ Enemies to uneasy allies
☑️ Slow-burn romantic tension
☑️ Small town with secrets
☑️ Witchy folklore
☑️ Haunted vibes
☑️ Atmospheric fantasy
