Witches of dubious origin

Witches of dubious origin

Jenn McKinlay

Book - 2025

"When a librarian discovers she's descended from a long line of powerful witches, she'll need all of her bookish knowledge to harness her family's magic, in this enchanting cozy fantasy. Zoe Ziakas enjoys a quiet life, working as a librarian in her quaint New England town. When a mysterious black book with an unbreakable latch is delivered to the library, Zoe has a strange feeling the tome is somehow calling to her. She decides to consult the Museum of Literature, home to volumes of indecipherable secrets, some possessing dark magic that must be guarded. Here, among their most dangerous collection, the Books of Dubious Origin, Zoe discovers that she is the last descendant of a family of witches and this little black book... is their grimoire. Zoe knows she must decode the family's spell book and solve the mystery of what happened to her mother and her grandmother. However, the book's potential power draws all things magical to it, and Zoe finds herself under the constant watch of a pesky raven, while being chased by undead Vikings, ghost pirates, and assorted ghouls. With assistance from the eccentric staff of the Books of Dubious Origin department-including their annoyingly smart and handsome containment specialist, Jasper Griffin-Zoe must confront her past and the legacy of her family. But as their adventure unfolds, she'll have to decide whether or not she's ready to embrace her destiny."-- Provided by publisher.

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SCIENCE FICTION/McKinlay Jenn
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Location Call Number   Status
1st Floor New Shelf SCIENCE FICTION/McKinlay Jenn (NEW SHELF) Due Dec 16, 2025
Subjects
Women librarians > Fiction.
Witches > Fiction.
Libraries > Fiction.
Museums > Fiction.
Grimoires > Fiction.
Magic > Fiction.
Secrecy > Fiction.
Librarians > Fiction.
Paranormal fiction.
Fantasy fiction.
Witch fiction.
Novels.
Romans.
Genres
Paranormal fiction
Fantasy fiction
Witch fiction
Novels
Romans
Published
New York : Ace 2025.
Language
English
Main Author
Jenn McKinlay (author)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
372 pages ; 21 cm
ISBN
9780593819753
Contents unavailable.
Review by Booklist Review

More than 20 years ago, Zoe Ziakas promised her mother she would never dabble in magic again. Now Zoe, a reference librarian at the Wessex Public Library, may have to break that promise when she receives a mysterious black book in the mail. After taking the book to the Museum of Literature in New York City and meeting with the staff of the museum's Books of Dubious Origin department, Zoe learns she has a magical, maternal family connection with the book. However, to unlock the secrets of her little black book, Zoe must face some secrets of her own that she hoped would remain forever buried in the past. After proving her literary skills in the mystery and romance genres, McKinlay (A Merry Little Murder Plot, 2024) now embraces fantasy with the charming first installment in a promising new series. Deftly matching an ingeniously inventive plot with an engagingly quirky cast of characters, including an adorable bookish feline, and adding a hint of flirtatious romance as well as her signature snappy wit, McKinlay casts a spell readers will find impossible to resist.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review

Librarian Zoe Ziakas's quiet, routine life in tiny Wessex turns adventurous when her family's legacy appears on her doorstep. She loves books but not ones that refuse to open and make her dream of the magic she swore to forget. The grimoire that won't leave her alone leads her to the museum archive of Books of Dubious Origin, an intrepid crew of magical librarians and archives, and the quest of a lifetime: uncovering her family's powerful necromantic legacy. All she has to do is solve the mystery of her mother's and grandmother's deaths, kill the wicked witch, and let love--and magic--into her life and heart. Readers will feel for Zoe's conflict between hope and skepticism, her fear of letting anyone in, and her need to find out who she really is. VERDICT McKinlay's (Love at First Book) magically delicious contemporary cozy fantasy, with hints of The Late-Night Witches by Auralee Wallace, the "Mythwoven" series from Piper J. Drake, and Libriomancer by Jim C. Hines, will appeal to fans of the TV show The Librarians, as well as anyone who loves stories that combine witchcraft, mystery, and romance with compelling quests and fascinating adventures.--Marlene Harris

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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