BOOKS & BEWITCHMENT – Isla Jewell
Arcadia Falls, Book 1
Del Ray
ISBN: 978-0593726631
February 3, 2026

Contemporary Fantasy

Arcadia Falls, Georgia – Present Day

Rhea Wolfe grew up in a normal family with loving parents and two younger sisters. Her parents are now gone, and her sisters look to Rhea whenever they have a problem. Rhea doesn’t hate her job, but her boss is boorish. One day, she is told that she is being laid off from her job so that he can put his daughter in her place. As a condition of leaving, Rhea asks to take the office cockatiel, Doris. That same day, she receives a letter from an attorney stating that she is the sole heir of her grandmother’s estate, a woman named Maggie Kirkwood, whom her mother told her to never contact. Curious, Rhea heads to Aradia Falls to find out what she’s inherited. She soon learns that the estate is in trust, which means that she cannot sell the property, but she can choose to do whatever she wants with the buildings. She also learns that she and her family are witches. Why didn’t her mother tell her this when she was alive? After meeting the first term of the will, which is to spread her grandmother's ashes in a specific place, Rhea discovers that Doris has been transformed into her familiar—and it’s the voice of her grandmother. But only Rhea can hear Maggie, who is mostly critical of the town. The feelings were mutual, as it seemed that many people in town disliked Maggie. 

BOOKS & BEWITCHMENT has a bit of romance, a bit of fantasy, and a lot of comedy. Rhea has lived a mostly mundane life, but now she’s thrust into a new life that she never expected. Sometimes it seems to her that the whole town is crazy. Many look at her as if they shouldn’t trust her, and after learning how hated her grandma was, she decides not to enlighten them about her relationship to Maggie. The estate left to her consists of a block of old buildings, one of which houses a video rental store that also sells boiled peanuts, all on the honor system and managed by a man who spends his time at work sleeping. Maggie the cockatiel telepaths to Rhea not to trust the Blakely family, but by this time, she has met Hunter Blakely. He is one fine-looking man, and he seems to be friendly enough. That is, until he learns that Rhea is a Kirkwood.

Rhea’s mother and Maggie were estranged long before Rhea was born. Will she learn why? Maggie isn’t forthcoming; she mostly just calls her daughter ungrateful. Maggie is a strange person. A bit of an eccentric, so it’s ironic that she ends up as a bird. Rhea has to deal with the knowledge that she can practice witchcraft, but that isn’t a big priority with her in BOOKS & BEWITCHMENT. Since she can’t sell the property in Arcadia Falls, she decides to open a bookstore. It will take much work, which she has Hunter help her with. Once the bookstore is up and running, then maybe she will have some money she can send to her younger sisters, who are being irresponsible once again. In this tale, she doesn’t mention to her sisters that they are part of a family of witches. Witchcraft and magical stuff aren’t big here, only dealing with the crazy stuff going on, such as the poltergeist haunting the building. Meanwhile, Rhea and Hunter continue their romance. Will they have a happily ever after?

A fun tale that will have you chuckling and entertained, don’t miss BOOKS & BEWITCHMENT.

Patti Fischer