Celia Lake

On the Summer Solstice of 1940, Gabe made a solemn oath. Two parts of it were easy enough, he was already doing them. The third part has haunted his every choice since. When he is asked a question that August, Gabe knows he must answer yes. His answer will change him, his family, and everything around him. There is no other way through but keeping his word and dealing with the consequences. No one said he had to do it the way anyone else expects. Upon A Summer's Day is a short novel that takes place in the autumn and winter of 1940 as World War II moves into a second year with the start of the Blitz Join Gabe, his wife, his family, and their allies in unweaving a tangle of ancient magics, turning assumptions on their heads, and refusing to follow destructive traditions. The fourth book in the Land Mysteries series, Upon A Summer's Day directly follows the events of Old As The Hills, and is best read in sequence.

What would you risk so others could live? It is the early months of WWII and Rathna already has an idea of how bad it might get. If she can make the final connections she needs to create a new portal in a matter of weeks rather than years, she might just be able to get a few more people out of Germany's ever expanding grasp. But she's also been asked to take on a new apprentice. Rathna has no idea whether he'll be willing to help, if she can trust him, or if he can trust her enough to do what needs to be done. Her husband Gabe has a challenge that will use every single one of his skills and then some. He's been charged by the Council to coordinate magical responses to the war, not only in Albion itself, but among the many esoteric and occult groups of Great Britain. His own apprentice is brilliant, in a different way than Gabe, but this project will ask everything of them both. Together, Gabe and Rathna have built their lives to bend their passions, talents, and magics to making things better for the world around them, including their three growing children. Now their war work is going to separate them, certainly for months, possibly for much longer. As they tangle with ancient magics, seeking new ways forward, there are more unanswerable questions, tremendous risks, and a few glimmers of hope. Old As The Hills follows Gabe and Rathna's adventures from the autumn of 1939 through the summer of 1940, a time of desperate plans to save lives and hold back invasion. It is full of ancient fae magic, the power of place, urgent witchcraft rituals, and unexpected encounters. The Land Mysteries series explores the Second World War in the magical community of Albion.

New magic brings new challenges. Charged with creating a magical journal that would allow rapid communication during the Great War, Lynet has worked with a papermaker to overcome the technical challenges. But brilliant magical innovation isn't enough. When she returns from a leave after the death of her father, Lynet is told they have to make more journals, cheaper and faster. The last thing she needs is a set of unskilled hands assigned to help her at this impossible task, and she's dubious that a man will be more of a help than a hinderance given her ongoing problems with most of the men of the research department. Reggie is recently invalided out of the Army but has no relevant skills other than being a magically trained Schola man. When he's assigned to help Lynet, he's not sure how much use he'll be. He's soon swept up in Lynet's ambitious project and fascinated by her skills and knowledge. Together, Reggie and Lynet must figure out how to get the magical materials they need for the project and move forward despite unexpected obstacles. Their mission is quickly complicated by odd goings on with other research in the department, something that might change the War itself Bound For Perdition is the first book in the Mysterious Arts series. A cosy historical fantasy romance set in 1917 in the magical city of Albion, Britain's magical community, it is a great entry to Celia Lake's Albion books. Bound for Perdition is full of bookbinding, coming to grips with injury, navigating class differences, and making a new future in a rapidly changing world.

The enemy of my enemy is not my friend. Lord Geoffrey Carillon wants to do the impossible. He needs to get an imprisoned alchemist doing key research out of Germany before the world gets even worse. Carillon's cover as a slightly daffy aristocrat will get him where he needs to be, but he can't do this mission alone. He has many magical skills, but not the ones he needs to free his friend. Alexander is a stranger in his own land. A skilled and powerful member of the Council, Alexander is responsible for tending the land magic of Albion. However, the Council uses him as their enforcer, adeptly doing terrible and necessary work from the shadows. When Carillon proposes the expedition into Austria and Germany, can Alexander carry off the subterfuge and still keep his hands clean and his inner self barricaded in enemy territory? Any two professionals can tolerate each other in service of a goal. That's true even if Carillon has excellent reason to distrust the Council, and Alexander has just as much reason to keep everyone at arm's length. When matters move from possible blackmail into a sought after invitation to a remote schloss, Carillon and Alexander find their lives entangled in ways neither of them had ever dreamed of. Best Foot Forward takes place in 1935 in the magical communities of Great Britain, Vienna, and Berlin. It is an enemies to "it's complicated" M/M romance full of espionage, magic, extreme competence under pressure, music, and healing from the traumas of the Great War. It also contains an epilogue novella, Intimacies of the Seasons, following Alexander and Carillon through the next year of their lives.

Enjoy this gentle and kind historical fantasy romance set in the magical community of Great Britain after the Great War. Thalia wants to make an impact. Thalia's life is full of artists, authors, and other creative minds, but she's barely keeping herself together. After yet another rejection of her writing, she's willing to keep an eye out on a remote home on the edge of Dartmoor while her reclusive great-aunt takes a rest cure. Adam hasn't been the same since the Great War. Adam's family have long since run out of tolerance for his continuing shell shock. His uncle's broken leg is the perfect excuse to get Adam out of the house - at least he can make himself useful fetching and carrying. Adam's not at all sure he can be any sort of help to anyone. When he visits his uncle's apple orchard, he's even more confused by what he finds - and no one else seems to find the late-ripening apples at all unusual. The house has its own secrets. At first, the house seems a pleasant enough retreat for Thalia. The housekeeper and maid are competent, if distant. The food is wonderful, and she didn't have to buy or cook it herself. But there's the odd noise from the attic, the locked rooms, the ageless photographs. When she meets Adam, they at least agree that something is odd. Can they discover the secret and change their futures? Mistress of Birds is the seventh book of the Mysterious Powers series, exploring the institutions of Albion during and after the Great War. All of Celia Lake's Albion books exploring the magical community of the British Isles can be read in any order. It is full of gothic mystery, feeling out of place, apples, birds, and how to move forward into a new stage of life. Enjoy this charming romantic fantasy set in 1927 with a happily ever after ending

Enjoy this kind and creative Edwardian historical fantasy romance set in the magical community of Great Britain.Rhoe agreed to this trip for her own reasons.About to take up a new and challenging position as a healer, Rhoe agreed to a trip with her brother on a luxurious ocean liner. She plans to spend the voyage reading, relaxing, and ignoring the social duelling of the first class passengers.It's not that simple. Nothing with her brother ever is.Hugh wants to find his place.Hugh's family made their name offering safe, luxurious shipping and ocean travel for magical and non-magical passengers alike. Now that his older half-brother has inherited the business, Hugh needs to know where he stands. He expects this transatlantic trip to be about soothing ruffled feathers over minor difficulties, and keeping the first class passengers properly entertained.When Rhoe's brother reveals he is transporting a powerful magical aquamarine, it becomes clear this will not be a simple voyage. Something is lurking below, the pelagic mermaids are scattering, and Rhoe, Hugh, and their allies must find a way to calm the waters.Sailor's Jewel is a standalone novel of 90,000 words. All of Celia Lake's Albion books exploring the magical community of the British Isles can be read in any order. It is full of ocean travel, mermaids, last minute rituals, and of course a magical gem. Enjoy this charming romantic fantasy with a swirl of sex set in 1901 with a happily ever after ending

Can two war wounded learn how to carry on after life-changing injuries?No one has told Roland anything useful since he awoke in the Temple of Healing following the battle of Ypres. Muzzy-headed from the potions he's forced to take and with no word from his family or friends, he is entirely alone. He's only allowed out of his room for command performances, talking about his experience of the War to people who refuse to listen to reality.When Elen is assigned as his new nurse, Roland assumes she will be gone in a week or two like all the others. She's still there in a month, stubbornly insisting on doing everything she can to help him recover. Elen has been sent back from the front after a head injury. She used to know the Temple of Healing well, back during her apprenticeship. Now, nothing works like it used to and she can't figure out what to do about the fact Roland's healer is entirely absent from his care. Except, that is, for baffling directives that are not at all in her patient's best interest.Together, they must confront Elen's fear of questioning authority and find out why Roland has been isolated from everyone he knows.Carry On is set during the Great War in Albion, the magical community of England, Wales, and Scotland. First in the Mysterious Power series, it has a happily-ever-after ending full of knitting, compassion, and romance.