Seasons of the Fool by Lynne Cantwell

A Fool’s journey begins with a single step… 

Julia Morton Michaud has fled Chicago for her grandparents’ summer home in Michiana. She believes the cottage near Lake Michigan will be a refuge – a quiet place for her to pursue a writing career while her spirit heals from a string of failed relationships. But her past keeps intruding. Her ex-husband, Lance, is under investigation for defrauding his wealthy investors, and the specter of having to testify at his trial hangs over her. She begins a new relationship with a man she hardly knows. And her neighbor and former lover, David Turner, is trapped in his own troubled marriage. 

Julia discovers a labyrinth in the woods near her cottage. It belongs to Elsie and Thea, the elderly ladies who live at the end of the lane. Julia wants to use it for meditation, but she doesn’t know the risks. For the women have their own agenda, and it’s tied to the rug Elsie is endlessly weaving. The truths Julia learns in the labyrinth have the potential to change all their lives – if only she will take them to heart.

Goodreads description

I really enjoyed this book. Lynne Cantwell is a good example of an indie writer who is as professional in her approach as any traditionally published author. Indeed she is more so, because she has a hand in all stages of her books' production. Her commitment to writing can be measured by the fact that her Goodreads page lists some 30 book credits. And her commitment to helping others is evidenced by her involvement in a number of Indie author groups. 

Most of Cantwell's books would be categorized as (Urban) Fantasy. This book however is not - being contemporary romance with an element of magic realism. I got the impression that this was a very personal book for the author. It is set in northwest Indiana, where she grew up, and so in a way Julia's homecoming is also Cantwell's. Then there is the presence of the two older women, who play an important part in Julia's "fool's journey". It is implied in the book that the rug has a magical quality to it and that the two women are wise women. A visit to the author's blog http://hearth-myth.blogspot.com reveals an interest in knitting and the production of textiles and in Wiccan beliefs. 

I say in the paragraph above that the magic is implied and indeed it is. The reader is left to decide how much of what happens is influenced by the older women and how much would have happened anyway. Julia is susceptible to their influence, because she is at a point in her journey where she has lost everything and must start again. Like the Tarot fool that she sees when she enters the labyrinth, she must step into the void and fall. I have recently read and reviewed several magic realist books, which use this symbol. 

But don't let my talk of Tarot and symbols mislead you. This is a book which is well-grounded in the real modern world and it is perfectly possible to read this book as a jolly good romance. One of the things I liked about it was the fact that Julia's love interest is not an Alpha male, indeed she has had enough of them, but is instead a gentle caring man, who is torn between his love for Julia and his responsibilities as a father, and as a husband to a mentally ill wife. 

This book works in many ways and on several levels. Another excellent example of indie magic realism. 

I received this book free from the author in return for a fair review.

The Dress Shop of Dreams by Menna Van Praag

Since her parents’ mysterious deaths many years ago, scientist Cora Sparks has spent her days in the safety of her university lab or at her grandmother Etta’s dress shop. Tucked away on a winding Cambridge street, Etta’s charming tiny store appears quite ordinary to passersby, but the colorfully vibrant racks of beaded silks, delicate laces, and jewel-toned velvets hold bewitching secrets: With just a few stitches from Etta’s needle, these gorgeous gowns have the power to free a woman’s deepest desires.

Etta’s dearest wish is to work her magic on her granddaughter. Cora’s studious, unromantic eye has overlooked Walt, the shy bookseller who has been in love with her forever. Determined not to allow Cora to miss her chance at happiness, Etta sews a tiny stitch into Walt’s collar, hoping to give him the courage to confess his feelings to Cora. But magic spells—like true love—can go awry. After Walt is spurred into action, Etta realizes she’s set in motion a series of astonishing events that will transform Cora’s life in extraordinary and unexpected ways.

From Goodreads Description

I reviewed Menna Van Praag's  The House at the End of Hope Street in March 2014 and found it enjoyable women's magic realism in the tradition of Sarah Addison Allen. The Dress Shop of Dreams is in many ways similar to the author's first work: set in the English university-town of Cambridge, a story of a young woman finding herself, a magic-wielding older woman who helps her, a magical place, and the predictability that this sort of romantic book always has. And yet I found this book much more enjoyable. Menna Van Praag is getting better at her art. 

The book weaves together several feel-good romantic tales: of the emotionally stunted and orphaned Cora, the widow Millie longing for love, Etta's long heartbreak, and the detective's broken marriage. Van Praag manages to weave them together into a whole very successfully. The point of view shifts between the various romances unusually occur several times in a chapter and this may upset some readers, but they were clearly done and effective in producing dramatic tension and counterpoint. 

The magic in this book is lightly done - Etta simply sews a small star into the target's dress to cast her spell. And it raises the question of how much of the transformation is down to the star or to the character seeing themselves differently. Most of us will know that what we are wearing can have a profound influence on how we feel about ourselves. And then there is the wisdom of Etta's words or the seeds they sow (sew?) in the other characters' minds. 

One of the reasons this book held my attention was the inclusion in it of a mystery. Before Cora is able to experience love she must first find out whether her parents' deaths in a fire were the result of an accident or murder. I enjoyed this element of the book and whilst it could only be a part of the whole it gave the book more substance. Readers of this blog will know I like a bit of grit in my magic realism. Obviously the grit content of The Dress Shop of Dreams is limited, but Menna Van Praag has written a good book of its type and will add more fans as a result. 

I received this book free from the publisher via Netgalley in return for a fair review.