The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows by Olivia Waite
Voting ended onJun 7, 2025
Book summaries and submitted endorsements below:
Whyborne & Griffin series (Widdershins, Threshold, Stormhaven, Necropolis, Bloodline, Hoarfrost, Maelstrom, Fallow, Draakenwood, Balefire, Deosil, and other stories) by Jordan L. Hawk
A reclusive scholar. A private detective. And a book of spells that could destroy the world.
Love is dangerous. Ever since the tragic death of the friend he adored, Percival Endicott Whyborne has ruthlessly suppressed any desire for another man. Instead, he spends his days studying dead languages at the museum where he works. So when handsome ex-Pinkerton Griffin Flaherty approaches him to translate a mysterious book, Whyborne wants to finish the job and get rid of the detective as quickly as possible.
Griffin left the Pinkertons after the death of his partner. Now in business for himself, he must investigate the murder of a wealthy young man. His only clue: an encrypted book that once belonged to the victim.
As the investigation draws them closer, Griffin’s rakish charm threatens to shatter Whyborne’s iron control. But when they uncover evidence of a powerful cult determined to rule the world, Whyborne must choose: to remain safely alone, or to risk everything for the man he loves.
Widdershins is the first novel in the Whyborne & Griffin series, where magic, mystery, and m/m romance collide with Victorian era America. Buy it today and join the adventure.
The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows by Olivia Waite (Feminine Pursuits #2)
Endorsement from the submitter: "Sapphic romances where the women have interesting jobs"
When Agatha Griffin finds a colony of bees in her warehouse, it’s the not-so-perfect ending to a not-so-perfect week. Busy trying to keep her printing business afloat amidst rising taxes and the suppression of radical printers like her son, the last thing the widow wants is to be the victim of a thousand bees. But when a beautiful beekeeper arrives to take care of the pests, Agatha may be in danger of being stung by something far more dangerous…
Penelope Flood exists between two worlds in her small seaside town, the society of rich landowners and the tradesfolk. Soon, tensions boil over when the formerly exiled Queen arrives on England’s shores—and when Penelope’s long-absent husband returns to Melliton, she once again finds herself torn, between her burgeoning love for Agatha and her loyalty to the man who once gave her refuge.
As Penelope finally discovers her true place, Agatha must learn to accept the changing world in front of her. But will these longing hearts settle for a safe but stale existence or will they learn to fight for the future they most desire?
Did you know that the energy in the Northen and Southern Hemisphere flow differently?
It wasn’t until I got Lucy Cavendish’s The Solitary Witch oracle deck that I learned about this! 🔮
Lucy Cavendish is an Aussie witch and in the guide book she actually mentions that the energy flows the opposite way in the SH to the NH! ✨
So for my Southern Hemisphere witches to promote positivity you need to be going Widdershins (anti-clockwise) and Deosil for banishing! (Clockwise) 💫
Of course this doesn’t mean that the magick you have been doing hasn’t been effective because the intentions were there! By using the correct flow of energy you will find that your magick will become more powerful. ✨
An intelligent witch: Deosil means clockwise and widdershins means counterclockwise. These terms are mostly used in reference to the direction in which one casts a magick circle. :)
Me, resident dumbass: Easy the first is a pokemon and the second is a character from the musical Cats.
Is a common "baby witch" question I see a lot. I also see it answered a lot, but I rarely see it stated that it's the opposite in the two hemispheres and I've never seen it explained. So here we go.
The powers behind clockwise and anticlockwise are whether you are turning with or against the direction of the sun:
East to West in the Southern Hemisphere (anti-clockwise)
West to East in the Northern Hemisphere (clockwise)
Witch use of these directions probably comes from the Scottish druidic practices and surrounding folklore where sunward, or clockwise in their neck of the woods, was known as deasil and the opposite direction was known as widdershins or tuathal.
Deasil was considered the auspicious direction, whilst traveling widdershins around a temple or conducting a business such as stirring an offering in this direction was bad luck. A tale even told of a boy dancing widdershins around a fairy circle 9 times and being taken by the fairy court as a result.
Now in common magic practice deasil is considered best for healing, drawing magic, and closing circles. Widdershins is used for undoing magic such as opening circles and breaking curses or banishing.
Similar sunward and away from sun rules are found in Tibetan and Hindu cultures, particulalry in the passing and construction of shrines and temples, however which direction is favourable is not consistent across practices even within the same country.
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If you're still struggling with recalling this on your own I highly recommend obtaining a sundial and getting highly acquainted with it so you're familiar with the suns movement and its translation onto a flat plane (you can make ones at home with paper plates) xoxo
