you're going to be okay 🌌

Experienced Witch, Pisces Aquarius Gemini || Tarot Readings Slots Available || Commissions for Customized Spells and Runes OPEN || Emergency Same-Day Service available for Personal Spellwork! She/They

[nyxxhexx]

Last night, I finished My Lips, Her Voice, the debut 2025 novel from local AZ author L. L. Madrid.

If you're into books about grief, paranormal murder mysteries where the victim helps solve her own murder, a family of generational witches, or desert lesbians, then I think this book might be perfect for you.

No Spoilers:

What Worked:

• The paranormal mystery. Nearly all of it, especially the final showdown

• Mara, the 17-year-old who comes back to solve her own murder. She is both unlikeable and incredibly sympathetic in a way that can be very hard to achieve

• The overall pacing and layout of the book, especially the flashback sequences

• Shirley. You'll get it. Gods, I love you, Shirley

• The generations of witches with varying abilities (and willingness to believe in them)

What Didn't:

• The baddie reveal, which felt just a little too obvious

• The prose regarding relationship (or at least the beginning of it) between Zadie and Rhea; it felt a bit too clunky

• Audrey's baking hobby (and, in some parts, even Zadie's references to music); it just didn't mesh well with the rest of the story

Content Warnings:

Child Death, Stalking, Imprisonment, Abuse, CSA, Grief, Car Accident, Mental Illness, Possession-Related Boundary Violation

(I'm not really sure phrasing for that last one, so I hope it makes sense)

Rating: 4 Stars

Read my full review here!

Is My Lips, Her Voice by L.L. Madrid Worth Reading? - Vixal Plane ♥

Is My Lips, Her Voice by L. L. Madrid worth reading? Yes—if you like books about grief, paranormal murder mysteries, or desert lesbians!

[nyxxhexx]

"When people baptize you as expendable, they forget what it means: people with nothing to lose have every cause to wild out."

The All Consuming World (Cassandra Khaw, 2021)

(img cred: @alenagerashchenko)

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Maya cracks a smile like the death of true love.

“Let's go.”

The All Consuming World (Cassandra Khaw, 2021)

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No one teaches you how to hold your death in your head. As a species, humans have done their best to mitigate our own finitude, papering over and around the tenuity of our existence with myths, until we are a palimpsest of lies, a house of cards on an epileptic surface. We anthropomorphize Death; we create apocrypha in which he is conscious, compassionate, capable of reason; of being charmed into procrastinating; of caring, fuck us, do we want him capable of caring; of capitulating to powers that exceed his own.

The All Consuming World (Cassandra Khaw, 2021)

[nyxxhexx]

Usually, Maya has a laugh like something that needs to be put down. Today, though, it arrives in a casket, a few little croaks escaping the lid.

The All Consuming World (Cassandra Khaw, 2021)

[nyxxhexx]

CR: The All-Consuming World by Cassandra Khaw

My local library is doing a Summer Reading bingo card, and I'm officially on square three.

TECHNICALLY this bingo square says "Read a Book about Science". But surely a book about space, clones, cyberspace AI, and genetic modification counts even if it's fiction, right?

Either way, I'm excited to read another Cassandra Khaw book since The Salt Grows Heavy is my favorite book of all time

I'll be posting my favorite quotes from the book as I go!

[nyxxhexx]

Intuitive Card Pulls: The Alleyman's Tarot

Leave an emoji below for a card pull from this absolute gorgeous chaos deck, and I'll tell you what The Alleyman's Tarot wants you to hear. 💜

[nyxxhexx]

I've had a lot of people respond after the initial date of the post, but next time I'm feeling up to it, I'll do my best to pull for you!

[nyxxhexx]

Intuitive Card Pulls: The Alleyman's Tarot

Leave an emoji below for a card pull from this absolute gorgeous chaos deck, and I'll tell you what The Alleyman's Tarot wants you to hear. 💜

[nyxxhexx]

https://www.tumblr.com/nyxxhexx/819984304827482112/intuitive-card-pulls-the-alleymans-tarot-leave/replies/819987782329073664

(Unfortunately, I cannot tag the user)

Two cards for you: A rarity.

The first, Death (fire), and the second, Wound Man, Reversed

You are searching for something, but in doing so, you are inflicting wounds upon yourself again and again that you do not deserve. You are meant to burn it all down, not find a way through in the confines of what they expect from you.

Burn it all down. The alternative is just more pain.

As always, tips are appreciated here and here but absolutely never required. I do the work I love because I love it.

[nyxxhexx]

Intuitive Card Pulls: The Alleyman's Tarot

Leave an emoji below for a card pull from this absolute gorgeous chaos deck, and I'll tell you what The Alleyman's Tarot wants you to hear. 💜

[nyxxhexx]

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Book Review

★★★★★

Usually, the point of the villain's story is to humanize them. At no point during The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, however, did I feel bad for Coriolanus Snow. Suzanne Collins does not pull punches; both the overarching message of the book and its real life parallels are exceedingly clear.

Coriolanus Snow's control issues are established from the very start of the novel. The eighteen-year-old Capitol resident has lost so much in his short life that he is fighting to hold on to the little he has left. It would have been easy for Collins to make Snow's a tragic, sympathetic story:

Book Review: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Usually, the point of the villain’s story is to humanize them. At no point during The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, however, did I feel ba

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Companion

5/5

Everyone go see Companion. Stop what you're doing now; stop reading this review, stop scrolling, and go buy your tickets or find a place to stream it. (Make sure you come back here when you're done, though.)

Companion was absolutely incredible. I didn't have particularly high hopes for the film; I had hoped it would be good, but primarily I went because I love Sophie Thatcher, and I'm not afraid to admit that. When I walked out of the theatre, though, I was a full-blown Companion fan, ready to preach about the film to anyone who'd listen (even though that's a different Sophie Thatcher movie that I haven't seen yet.)

It's just dark enough, just funny enough. I had a brief moment of disappointment at one point because I thought the film was pulling punches on the gore, only to be ecstatically surprised when the big reveal came later, at an even more perfect time. And the film's underlying message wasn't one I expected, but it was definitely one I appreciated.

I was concerned, at first, that seeing the trailer had ruined the film's basic premise, since trailers these days sometimes feel like watching the entire movie flat out. But there was so much more buried beneath that initial reveal. There's so much more to Companion than you think there is, I promise.

Drifting into spoiler territory, (so quit reading here if you haven't seen it yet), I didn't expect the overt nice guy incel theming of Josh, but its reveal throughout Companion was nothing less than perfect. He exposes himself nearly all at once when things don't go his way, as so many "nice guys" do, and the film perfectly handles something women know all too well: So many men will ab*se anything they can just for the sake of it. We've seen it lately with AI robots and girlfriend apps, and women have seen it our entire lives.

This is exactly the type of good for her revenge movie we should be making: not graphic s*xual ass*ult scenes (because that, too, was handled better than the majority of the genre) followed by gory murders, but women reclaiming themselves completely and walking away changed for the better, not scarred for the worst. There's enough of that in real life, especially right now.

[nyxxhexx]

Since February is wrapping up, it's time for my monthly review of my favorite things! What did you enjoy last month?

Movies (All First Watches):

Companion

Heart Eyes

Tragedy Girls

Songs on Repeat:

Spiral by Agent Envy

Hypnotic by Zella Day

Games (I got a Steam Deck!):

Cyberpunk 2077

Balatro

Let me know if you check out my recs! Reviews for these films coming soon 💜

[nyxxhexx]

Manifestation Moodboard for the Pisces New Moon 🌑

This New Moon is all about REST for me. I'm letting things go, saying no when I need to, and taking time to recuperate so I don't overexert myself!

How are you resting this New Moon?

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Here are my favorite love stories in honor of Valentine's Day!

The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

A Mermaid and a Plague Doctor travel together and fall in love in spite of The Horrors™.

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield

Miri and Leah must navigate their relationship after Leah returns from a deep sea dive and Comes Back Wrong™.

Arrows and Apologies by Sav R. Miller

An EXTREMELY spicy entry in Sav R. Miller's Monsters and Muses series that unexpectedly, legitimately made me sob. A retelling of Apollo and Daphne (without the negative connotations of the original mythos).

A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas

Nesta they could never make me hate you.

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Vibes and Manifestations for the Full Moon in Leo 🌕

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Then Read This Book:

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield

5/5 Stars

I don't even know where to start with how incredible this book was. It was gorgeously atmospheric, filled with dread and sadness and longing in the most beautiful way; the writing was incredible, some of the best I've read in a novel in ages. I found myself gasping, notating, and reading aloud on more than one occasion. The turns of phrase Julia Armfield uses should truly be studied.

I should mention that I am absolutely terrified by the deep sea; I knew going into this book that I'd be horrified, that the deep-seated dread between the pages would stick with me.

I couldn't have predicted how true that was.

Despite coming back wrong, despite their relationship being thrown out of whack, despite everything the two main characters have been through, they have more love and longing between them than even the characters your average romance book. The relationship Armfield constructs through a series of flashbacks contrasted with the present tense atmosphere (in both ways) is palpable, and though you've never seen Miri and Leah while things were good, you are inserted so thoroughly into their love story that you reflect on their memories like you were part of them.

And, below it all, the horror; the strained desperation to know both what's happening to Leah and what already happened to her. I cannot express to you how masterfully this story is written and constructed.

I encourage you to pick up the book and find out for yourself.

[nyxxhexx]

Lush Bath Bombs + Witchy Rituals

I love combining self care and witchcraft, and I thought what better way to do that by making my baths ritual baths? You can use just about anything in a ritual bath, but here's a few ideas on how to use bath bombs to promote different witchy practices.

Sakura Bath Bomb 🌸

Cherry in general has traditionally been used for attracting or diving love; I'd use this Sakura bath bomb in a self-love ritual bath. If you're in the process of manifesting, you can also use it to attract a new love into your life!

Black Rose Bath Bomb 🥀

Black roses have always traditionally been associated with witchcraft (usually with "evil" witchcraft, but as we know, that's often blown out of proportion.) This bath bomb is perfect for maximizing your witchy powers or embracing shadow work!

Rose Jam Bubbleroon 🌹

Roses themselves fall in line with the feminine and are ruled by the element of water - which makes their use in ritual baths all the more powerful! You can also use this bath bomb to increase your own self love or manifest new love, or for healing rituals and rejuvenating baths.

S*x Bomb Bath Bomb 🫦

This bath bomb contains jasmine, ylang ylang, and clary sage. Jasmine attracts spiritual love rather than physical love, so if you're searching for a deeper connection (or to pursue s*x magic) this bath bomb is perfect! In combination with the clary sage and ylang ylang, it'll relax you to get you in the right stage of mind for whatever's next.

Let me know if you want more ritual ideas like this, or if you'd like me to design the ritual baths in full!