TODAY, WE ARE THRILLED TO WELCOME OUR GUEST AUTHOR, KATE KENZIE, WHO IS SHARING AN EXCERPT FROM HER NOVEL, A BLEND OF MAGIC' #RWRTeamBlog #ReadWriteRepeat
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
EXCERPT
'This is an extract early on in A Blend of Magic where The Enchanted Emporium in its restored state is introduced and Willow’s life is about to be thrown into turmoil with one customer.'
The golden glow from a traditional gaslight acted as a beacon to all who stumbled down Black Cat Alley. It guided them to their reward for walking off the beaten track and following their instinct rather than any advertisements. The cream-painted compact building stood proudly between its encroaching neighbours, and the worn flagstones in the small courtyard still glistened with frost and ice. The Enchanted Emporium, painted in silver followed by a sprinkling of stars, stood out against the midnight-blue shop frontage, and a sign with a silhouette of a large cat sitting on a crescent moon swung in the gentle breeze. Two small trees stood sentinel to the entrance, and their twinkling fairy lights bounced off the crystals hanging in the bay window as part of the winter display while the A-board declared the shop’s wares: Lotions, Potions, and Tea.
Rosa approached the recent arrival, a young woman in an expensive red coat who scanned the store with her nose in the air. Great, a snobby customer to end the day. But the shop would work its magic. It always did. Especially this time of year when it was dressed to impress inside and out with glossy green foliage and red berries, which complemented the lady’s shoes perfectly. A tiny fir tree sat on the counter decorated in natural cones, orange slices and cranberries adding to the festive aroma. Its fairy lights reflected in the surrounding glass jars, polished until they gleamed.
‘Can I help you?’ asked her assistant.
‘No, thank you,’ came a curt reply.
The American drawl Willow detected surprised her. Not by the accent, but why a sophisticated, high-heeled-Jimmy-Choo-shoe-wearing tourist would be in the small coastal town in the depths of winter so close to Christmas. Summer, yes, but in winter it was unheard of. Besides, those shoes were a health hazard on the cobbled streets in normal weather, never mind when it was icy. She must have a death wish. Willow realised she was the only one to think so as she saw Rosa’s glazed expression when the woman barged past. Shoe envy. At five foot three, her assistant had an unhealthy obsession with any shoes that could make her taller. She would add those to the top of her virtual wish list.
The woman walked around the Emporium, and Willow wondered what would make her stop and widen her eyes with glee. There was always something, a moment when the store performed its magic and drew the person in: a candle, trinket, wand, or crystal ball, and it revealed more about the customer than talking ever could. This customer ignored most shelves but lingered at those devoted to a range of tea. She trailed her fingers across the rows of jars containing unique blends personally selected by Willow for their taste, herbal properties, and ethics.
‘You can try some if you like.’
Rosa collected a glass pot full of amber liquid warming on a teapot holder and poured some into a small espresso cup with a saucer. No plastic cups for Willow’s clients.
‘How can a customer have the full tea experience from a plastic cup?’ Willow explained when Rosa moaned at the washing-up. At their first meeting, Willow knew her employee considered tea as just tea. It was something you grabbed a box of at the supermarket, and when you fancied some, you threw a teabag into a mug of boiling water before adding milk minutes later. There was no finesse in her tea-making technique as evident when, as part of the job’s interview process, Rosa made Willow a brew. Only politeness made her not splutter.
‘You have a steep learning curve ahead of you when you work here,’ she’d said. ‘Your tea is atrocious.’
Rosa’s hard work and determination paid off to become a valued employee and she now readily accepted the truth in Willow’s favourite saying: ‘Tea is a little bit of magic, available to everyone.’ There was still much for her to learn. The intricacies of tea were an art form she’d yet to master. The Emporium’s unique selling point was the complimentary sachet of tea given with every purchase and hand-picked from the small old drawers running behind the counter. The opportunity to discover what they needed in life via the tea chosen drew even the reluctant customers in. Some locals remained afraid of the Emporium’s owner due to the folklore surrounding the once-abandoned shop. Both tingled with magic, and while the witchcraft products, proudly and elegantly displayed, encouraged some visitors, others told
themselves it was a quirky gift shop while buying their herbal remedies and birthday cards.
For Rosa, the knack and ability to match tea with the customer remained elusive, so she stuck to the more generic messages. Everyone needed happiness, calm, and hope.
The aroma of cinnamon and cloves wafted up from the tea Rosa held—Christmas in a brew. It relaxed even the most stressed customer, and they’d had many over the last week. ‘It’s perfect on a day like today. It will help you warm up.’
‘No. Thank you.’
The woman moved on to the collection of beauty products. It was there Willow saw it. The lady in red reached for a jar from the Wishing Spell range, her eyes wide and expectant.
The magic was complete.
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BLURB for 'A Blend Of Magic'
A witch cannot exist on potions and tea alone.
Hiding in the shadows, staunch singleton Willow Anderson is content running her successful business, The Enchanted Emporium. With Christmas days away, she’s eager to exchange selling bespoke tea blends and spells for extended bubble baths and binge-watching festive movies snuggled next to her Maine Coon, Vincent.
Nate never usually runs away from his problems, but drunk and disorientated, he finds himself in a small fisherman’s cottage in the Yorkshire coastal town of Whitby. After discovering his girlfriend’s affair, he is in no rush to return to the City. His wish for time alone in a Christmas-free zone comes true until an uninvited feline guest arrives.
Neither Nate nor Willow want company, especially from each other, but they have little choice when concussion means they must spend at least twenty-four hours together. Sparks fly and not just the romantic kind. When darkness from Willow’s past returns and threatens to destroy all she has worked for, pursuing a love affair is the last thing she needs.
With meddling ghosts and a teenage apprentice with her own matchmaking agenda, love and change are in the air.
But can Willow face her fears and the past to capture the happiness she deserves?
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Order link: Amazon UK bit.ly/45DlbO1
Amazon US https://a.co/d/8KQ5tza
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Author Bio
Kate Kenzie may not be Yorkshire born and bred, but it’s where her heart is and why her fictional worlds are set in the Moors and the Yorkshire coast including her favourite place, Whitby.
Part-time writer, and full-time dreamer, if she’s not reading from her overflowing TBR pile, she is writing or drinking tea. Like many, she always dreamed of being an author but notebooks of half-finished novels and children’s stories were pushed aside in adulthood until a random Facebook conversation rekindled her passion for world building. By receiving a bursary for the RNA New Writer’s Scheme, she found her tribe.
Awarded the Katie Fforde bursary in 2023, she writes contemporary romantic fiction and paranormal fiction, especially witch lit.
Her short stories are available in the anthology Byline Legacies by Cardigan Press and Laws of Consequences by S Gowland. Her new book, A Witch’s Guide to Practical Magic, will be published in September and is the first book set in Cackleshore Academy.
PRE-ORDER LINK: Amazon UK
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Social Media Links –
Website: katekenzie.com
Newsletter: http://subscribepage.io/katekenzie
Instagram: @kakenzie101
Facebook: K A Kenzie Writer
Threads: @kakenzie101
Bluesky: @kakenzie101.bsky.social
Substack: https://substack.com/@kakenzie101
Amazon author page: Kate Kenzie Author Page
The Enchanted Emporium links:
Blog: The Enchanted Emporium Bookshelf
Instagram: @witch_of_whitby
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COMING SOON: On Monday, 23rd March, our team member, author Lorraine Carey, is sharing an insight into her 'bad boy' character, Dylan Anderson, from her time-travel novel, 'Between The Realms'.
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