Mind-Body-Spirit Books
Hexing Exes
Spell casting is central to witchcraft and is the subject of a number of books in 2019.
In September, Hampton Roads will publish How to Make Bad Things Happen to Awful
People: Spells for Revenge, Power & Protection by Deborah Gray. Taking a humorous
approach to revenge, Gray shows readers how to take revenge on boyfriends who stray,
backstabbing gossips, and other miscreants using hexes, incantations, and spells such
as “Dragon Slayer,” “Nanny No Go,” “Dirty Rotten Scoundrel,” “Troll Stalker,” and
“Jinx Off.” Gray has written nine books, including How to Turn Your Ex-boyfriend into
a Toad (coauthored with Athena Starwoman).
Revenge is also the subject of Bitchcraft: Simple Spells for Everyday Annoyances & Sweet
Revenge (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Oct.) by Kerry Colburn, who writes, “Bitchcraft
is here to inspire every woman to use her own inner power to get back at all the people
who do her wrong in big or small ways.” She offers spells for many situations, including
this one intended for backstabbing coworkers: “May your computer act wonky/ And
same with your phone/ Until the only solution/ Is to just work from
home.” The book features two-color illustrations, inspirational quotes,
and group-cast spells for the bitchy witch to get her friends involved.
Mama Moon’s Book of Magic by Semra Haksever (Hardie Grant, Apr.
2020) is a magical handbook of spells intended to enhance work,
health, friendships, and romantic relationships. Also included are
seasonal spells for celebrating the equinoxes and solstices and instruc-
tions for manifesting magical intentions and creating vision boards,
learning the basics of palmistry, and using playing cards to read tarot.
Two-color illustrations and inspirational quotes are included.
Haksever was a fashion stylist before starting
Mama Moon, a collection of magical scented
candles and potions. She is the author of
Everyday Magic: Rituals, Spells, and Potions to
Live Your Best Life and Love Spells.
Book of Spells by Jamie Della (Ten Speed,
Oct.) collects more than 50 spells for all occa-
sions and describes tools and traditions of
witchcraft so that aspiring witches can use
them to manifest their desires and explore the
mysteries of magic. Della, a practitioner of
healing arts, leads workshops and retreats on
earth-based spirituality at the Northern California Women’s
Herbal Symposium. She is the author of eight books, including
The Wicca Herbal and The Wicca Cookbook, and writes the Herbal
Journeys column in Witches & Pagans magazine.
Along the same lines is Spellwork for Self-Care from Potter
Gift (Clarkson Potter, Dec.), which collects 40 spells for
different purposes, all under the rubric of self-care.
Spells with Seasoning
Another essential technique in witchcraft is the use of
herbs in spells and divination, an ancient tradition rooted
in paganism. In Herbal Magick: A Guide to Herbal
Enchantments, Folklore, and Divination (Weiser, Sept.),
Gerina Dunwich combines a spell book and an herbal
guide to teach readers how to tap the magical powers
of herbs using the roots, flowers, leaves, and bark of
common plants. The book includes an easy-to-follow“If you are
interested in an
authentic solution
to anger and
FRQŴLFWLQWRGD\ōV
world—read
this book.”
RICH PFEIFFER, MDIV, PHD,
President, National AngerManagement Association
978-1-68364-258-9On Sale October 2019
Available on NetGalley