A Dream of Death and Magic
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Esta Anderson’s life is missing something.
She feels there should be… more to, well, everything, and her ambitions of being a photographer aren’t exactly going as planned, either. But she’s determined to change at least the latter this summer. She just isn’t sure how—inspiration has been a bit of a bitch lately.
She’s also a lucid dreamer who knows her dreamscape better than her actual neighbourhood. So, when one day she finds a strange obsidian void lake in her dreams, she can’t just pretend it isn’t there. Something has to happen if she jumps in… right? It wouldn’t make her feel so seen and strangely whole if it were nothing.
Except, that’s exactly what happens: nothing. At least at first. But then…
Who knew the world was so full of fairies and vampires and werewolves and demons and— Magic? Well, obviously they did, but Esta feels like she’s finally seeing the world as it really is. And with that new insight comes all the photography inspiration she’s been waiting for.
Except the Veiled are hiding for a reason. They’ve seen war before, and if Esta isn’t careful, her enthusiasm and curiosity could start a new one. Some of the Veiled are ancient, they remember the last battle against humanity…
And they know just how to turn Esta’s lucid dreams into her worst nightmares.
A Dream of Stars and Curses | Release Day: 23rd August 2023
Alright, so, maybe taking photos of people who don’t want to be noticed was a bad idea. Esta knows this now, and she’ll never forget the promise she made the Mara and the Dreamcatcher:
Stay out of the Veiled’s business unless they say otherwise, and learn everything—the many different types of Veiled so she can help rather than accidentally destroy, and all about Magick 101 from Kate, her friendly witch neighbour.
Only, as it turns out, not all Veiled are easy to spot, and soon Esta has every reason to believe she’s been cursed: There are growing tensions between her and handsome vampire bookseller Leverett, and not all of them pleasant (and those are not helped by some very vivid dreams); her sisterhood with her life-long BFF Bonnie is suffering; and the huge power imbalance between her and the Veiled grows ever more obvious when a jealous and deluded friend from Leverett’s past decides to deal with Esta for good.
Can Esta find the source of the curse and break it before she runs out of time…
And before she loses everything and everyone she cares about—including her life?