Fairies, Myths, & Magic II

Let’s welcome a special guest to Entertaining Stories today. Coleen is a long-time friend and she has something to share with us today. This is her newest book baby, so feel free to use those sharing buttons. She also shares one heck of a great story hook. She also has a prize to be drawn from those who leave comments along her tour.

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Thank you, Craig for the opportunity to share the news of my new book, just in time for the winter solstice and Yule.

Every Halloween, Craig joins me to celebrate the holiday. I think we’ve done this for eight years now, so I couldn’t think of anyone better to share my spooky Halloween tale with from Fairies, Myths, & Magic II, called The Changeling.

In this second book in the series, I start with late autumn and work forward into winter and Yule.

What do you know about the scary fairies? Celtic traditions share with us the fey, or Good Neighbors, are nothing to mess around with. During the darkness of autumn and into winter, the Unseelie Court of fairies makes its appearance. The darkness and lack of sunlight during this time of year spawned many a myth and tale.

Here’s a short excerpt from The Changeling, in Fairies, Myths, & Magic II:

“Alyssa, it’s time to come inside. Daddy’s home.”

Trish stepped outside and shielded her eyes against the red glare of the setting sun. She surveyed the backyard in a tight squint. The play area revealed two empty swings swaying in their own rhythm in the hot desert breeze. The door to the playhouse stood ajar, and the tiny curtains fluttered against the windows.

“Alyssa? Did you hear me? Daddy’s home.”

In the afternoon heat, Trish pushed the hair off her damp forehead and walked to the side of the house. Her footsteps crunched in the loose gravel. In the far corner of the yard, the wrought iron gate yawned open.

“What’s the matter? Where’s Alyssa?” David stepped outside and loosened his tie.

Trish jumped at the sound of David’s voice. “I don’t know. She was here before you pulled into the driveway. She was trying on her Halloween costume to show you how cute she looked. She went out back to play until you came home. You know, Alyssa never leaves the backyard.”

Bile burned the back of Trish’s throat. She gagged. Her breath caught, and terror sucked the breath from her lungs. Something wasn’t right. She felt it in the energy that swirled around her in a dense, vibrating whirlwind. It was the same sensation she felt before a monsoon hit and when electrical charges filled the desert sky with bolts of lightning.

David pulled her into his arms. “Shhhh… I’ll look in the front yard and down the street. She can’t be far. Meanwhile, check with the neighbors. You know how Alyssa loves Mrs. Craymore’s cat. She could be next door.”

Trish wrapped her arms around David’s waist. Her tears soaked his shirtfront. “What if someone took her?” Her voice sounded small in the descending eventide.

“Don’t jump to conclusions. Come on, go check with the neighbors, and I’ll meet you out front in a few minutes after I look around.”

David gently wiped the tears from Trish’s eyes with his fingers.

“Find Alyssa. I’ll check with Mrs. Craymore.”

Trish hurried down the street in the opposite direction.

~ ~ ~

Do David and Trish find their daughter, Alyssa? And what do the fairies have to do with her disappearance? Learn the answers and more in Fairies, Myths, & Magic II.

About the Book:

In this second book in the Fairies, Myths, & Magic series, step into a world where dark fairies, and other magical beings converge in a collection of poetry and short stories inspired by winter and the celebration of the winter solstice.

From Autumn’s scary fairies to the forgotten female characters of Yule, prepare to embrace the magical winter solstice myths from around the world. Meet Frau Holle in the Wild Hunt, Befana—the Christmas Witch of Italy, and the Japanese goddess Ameratasu who controls the springtime. Prepare to embrace the Scottish trows, The Irish Goddess of Winter—the Cailleach Béara, and Snegurochka—the Snow Girl.

Learn how to make Yuletide rituals part of your celebration by embracing the symbols of Yule by decorating with evergreens and crystals.

Fairies, Myths, & Magic II Links:

Colleen’s Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Colleen-M-Chesebro/e/B01N9MV2RX

Amazon Universal Link: https://mybook.to/FairiesMythsMagicII

About the Author:

An avid reader, Colleen M. Chesebro rekindled her love of writing poetry after years spent working in the accounting industry. These days, she loves crafting syllabic poetry, flash fiction, and creative fiction and nonfiction.

In addition to poetry books, Chesebro’s publishing career includes participation in various anthologies featuring short stories, flash fiction, and poetry. She’s an avid supporter of her writing community on Word Craft Poetry.com by organizing and sponsoring a weekly syllabic poetry challenge, called #TankaTuesday, where participants experiment with traditional and current forms of Japanese and American syllabic poetry.

Chesebro isan assistant editor of The Congress of the Rough Writers Flash Fiction Anthology & Gitty Up Press, a micro-press founded by Charli Mills and Carrot Ranch.

In January 2022, Colleen founded Unicorn Cats Publishing Services to assist poets and authors in creating eBooks and print books for publication. In addition, she creates affordable book covers for Kindle and print books.

Chesebro lives in the house of her dreams in mid-Michigan surrounded by the Great Lakes with her husband and two (unicorn) cats, Chloe & Sophie.

Find Colleen here:

Word Craft Poetry: https://wordcraftpoetry.com

Colleen M. Chesebro, Author, Poet & Unicorn Cats Publishing Services: https://colleenmchesebro.com

Facebook Page: Colleen M. Chesebro, Poet & Author: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085941528913

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/colleen-m-chesebro-6b856b237

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