Hexborn has Launched!
Hexborn was officially released on Tuesday, August 4th. This is the second Thorne Witch novel and continues Adeline Thorne’s story which began in The Never Witch. And if the interest I’ve seen at my in-person events prior to launch week is any indication, Hexborn is already the popular girl in town!
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Witch by birth, warlock by trade. Adeline Thorne is a witch. The magic inside her is not. The warlock magic coursing through her veins is volatile, incompatible with her witch blood, and growing more unstable by the day. When Luke Churchwell, a powerful runecaster, returns and sees how far her magic has spiralled, he steps in to train her—but every lesson is a gamble, and his desire for her may take them both down.
Far across the country, the hexborn are tracking a killer whose trail leads straight to Adeline.
The hunter is closing in. And the secret that created him is deadlier than the man himself.
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Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer here. If you haven’t yet read the excerpt for Hexborn, you can download it now. Or watch the YouTube video of me reading the excerpt.
The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
My Wishing Shelf Book Award medals have arrived—real, hefty medals! One is for The Never Witch, and the other for the audiobook narration of Blood Mark.
Every book entered in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards is read by two reading groups: one in the UK and one in Stockholm. I proudly display the medals at my in-person events. Drop by and see them for yourself. Speaking of which …
My Next In-person Events
Campbell River Pagan Pride
Date: August 8, 2026, 11 am – 4 pm
Location: Robert V Ostler Park, Campbell River
Courtenay Farmers Market
Date: Saturday, August 15, 2026, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Location: Comox Valley Fairgrounds, 4835 Headquarters Road
Campbell River Farmers Market
Date: Sunday, August 16, 2026, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Location: Spirit Square, Shoppers Row, Campbell River, BC
These are my final in-person events before I leave for a family visit in Ontario. I’ll have some Hexborn book launch events coming up in September and October, dates to be announced.
My Next Project
At the moment, I’m still pondering which project to work on next. Truth be told, I’m enjoying the between time, catching up on some reading, working with Shawn Wernig of Eggplant Studios on a website refresh, and getting out on my new trike. Time away from writing is time well spent refilling my creative well.
What I’m Reading
I recently read Alchemised by SenLinYu. Though it took some getting into, I ended up loving it. It has a unique structure, and I ended up reading it twice in succession, just to pick up nuances I’d missed the first time through. It’s a dark fantasy about an alchemist who finds herself a prisoner on the losing side of a civil war. Her memories have been altered, and both she and her captors are racing to recover them first and learn what warranted the drastic measure of rewiring her brain. I highly recommend it, with the caveat that you should be prepared to push through the first few chapters. If you can get past that, I think you’ll enjoy it.
I also just finished the audiobook for Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab. It’s told in three voices from three different eras. Having read Schwab before (The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue), I expected beautiful writing and a touch of the supernatural, but she still surprised me with this one. I won’t spoil the nature of the magic, except to say it’s not about witches, and it’s wonderfully original.
YouTube Update
I’ve now finished recording the YouTube version of the teasers for the Thorne Witch novels and The Gift Legacy. You can watch the finished excerpts by selecting any cover:
That’s all my news this month. Until next time…
XO
Jo-Anne
