Leigh Goff

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A Bewitching Literary Tour of Historic Annapolis

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Leigh Goff's avatarLeigh Goff

In my second novel, Bewitching Hannah, the reader can follow in my main character’s footsteps and relive her bewitching drama as it unfolds in present-day downtown Annapolis.

The first sight Hannah, a reluctant sixteen-year-old witch, encounters on her return to Annapolis is Witch’s Grave in Truxton Park. According to local lore, the crooked tree marks the burial site of three witches who were hung and buried there. She’s reminded that being a witch, even if she doesn’t want to be one, is a dangerous business with deadly outcomes–a lesson she learned from her parents’ fates.

The next stop is Main Street and McGarvey’s Saloon & Oyster Bar in downtown Annapolis. Hannah makes lots of stops along Main Street, and off Main is McGarvey’s, a dockside restaurant where she orders an Annapolis favorite–crab dip pretzel (click this link for the recipe).

great_hallHannah and her quirky aunt then attend a Chesapeake witches…

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Ghosts & Exiles–Super Secret Cover Reveal!

Spellhaven is no more, but its spirits remain.
About the Book:
Tilda Gray hates Spellhaven, the city where her husband was born, even though she has never set foot in the place, and she does not believe in the magic it’s supposed to have held. Now her husband is dead, she would rather avoid any mention of the city. But her sons, Nicholas and James, have befriended Hugo, a young boy threatened by forces none of them understand. When Hugo’s uncle and guardian, Stephen Cole, visits the Gray family to ask for help, Tilda agrees against her better judgement. Between them, as they search for ways to banish or at least help Hugo cope with the ghosts that are driving him mad, they seek out the dubious aid of the exiles from Spellhaven. In doing so they must face new dangers and unknown magic, unlike anything Tilda could have believed possible.
Book Details:
Print Length: 300 pages
Publisher: Mirror World Publishing
Publication Date: April 17, 2018
ASIN: B07B24HY9Z
Genre(s): Magical Realism, Historical Fantasy
Read a Short Excerpt:
Stephen Cole would never have asked for help on his own account, not from strangers and especially not from a woman and a couple of young boys. Since his slow recovery from his experiences in the trenches during the First World War, he had devoted himself to his work at the Bar and had spent little time in the company of women or children. But the help was for his nephew, Hugo, and by the time Stephen arrived at the Grays’ house in Highgate one Sunday morning in November 1933, he did not know where else to turn.
When he was shown into the drawing room, Stephen looked round to try and gain an impression of the family. He decided that the room had been decorated about ten years ago and hardly changed since then. The yellow and grey curtains had lost their bloom and the wooden feet on the armchairs were scuffed, but the parquet floor round the carpet was thoroughly polished, as were the tiles inset into the fireplace. Mrs. Gray must have had skilled and hardworking servants, not as easy to find as they would once have been. Botanical illustrations hung on the panelled walls. Stephen had no time to notice more before Mrs. Gray entered the room. 
Her appearance took Stephen aback. When he had been told she was a widow, somehow he had pictured a middle-aged woman, dumpy and depressed. Maybe he had been thinking of Queen Victoria, even though he had seen enough war widows in the early days of his practice to know they came in all shapes and styles. Matilda Gray was tall for a woman, with light eyes and a pointed chin. Her pale brown hair was bobbed and smooth. She wore a fawn twin-set and a brown skirt, not new or fashionable but shapely and trim.
‘Thank you for seeing me on a Sunday, Mrs. Gray,’ Stephen said. ‘It’s your son, Nicholas, I’d really like to talk to. He is home for the weekend, isn’t he?’
Hugo lived at school all term, and often in the holidays as well, but Stephen had been told that the Grays were weekly boarders. 
‘The boys are at breakfast, Mr. Cole.’ Mrs. Gray looked as wary of him as he was of her. 
‘I hope your maid gave you my apologies for disturbing you.’ 
‘It doesn’t matter, but you will have to explain what this is about before I decide whether Nicholas should be involved.’
Pre-Order from:
Read About the Book at Mirror World Publishing
Add to Your Shelf on Goodreads
Meet the Author:
Sandra Unerman lives in London in the UK. When she retired from a career as a Government lawyer, she undertook an MA in Creative Writing at Middlesex University, specialising in science fiction and fantasy, and graduated in 2013. Since then, she has had a number of short stories published. Her latest stories are in Sword and Sorcery magazine, June 2017, and Fall into Fantasy, an anthology from Cloaked Press. She writes reviews and articles for the British Science Fiction Association and the British Fantasy Society. She is a member of London Clockhouse writers and other writing groups. Her interests include history, folklore and medieval literature.
Connect with Sandra:
Sandra’s Website:
Sandra’s Author Page: 
Goodreads Author Page: 


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YA Novel Set in Annapolis offers a Bewitching Twist on Beauty & the Beast

Leigh Goff's avatarLeigh Goff

Being a witch is the last thing Hannah wants…

On sale on Amazon now–BEWITCHING HANNAH. The paperback, which normally retails for $15.95 is available for $5.25 and the ebook is available for $3.99. Click here: Amazon

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The young adult novel, set in present-day Annapolis, Maryland (lots of scenes are set at the historic sites in my hometown), focuses on Hannah Fitzgerald, a sixteen-year-old Chesapeake witch. And even if being a witch sounds super cool, it’s the last thing she wants.

Hannah, the thirteenth great-granddaughter of the Wizard Earl Fitzgerald, has always known she was descended from a royal legacy of dark magic. Although a stranger to her coven in Annapolis, she is no stranger to grief and denial. However, when an ancient prophecy reveals the rise of a young, powerful witch and the impending death of another, she realizes she can no longer afford to suppress the magic that has taken…

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YA Novel Set in Annapolis Offers a Bewitching Twist on Beauty & the Beast

Being a witch is the last thing Hannah wants…

51l+xEpRjJL._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_

The young adult novel, set in present-day Annapolis, Maryland (lots of scenes are set at the historic sites in my hometown), focuses on Hannah Fitzgerald, a sixteen-year-old Chesapeake witch. And even if being a witch sounds super cool, it’s the last thing she wants.

Hannah, the thirteenth great-granddaughter of the Wizard Earl Fitzgerald, has always known she was descended from a royal legacy of dark magic. Although a stranger to her coven in Annapolis, she is no stranger to grief and denial. However, when an ancient prophecy reveals the rise of a young, powerful witch and the impending death of another, she realizes she can no longer afford to suppress the magic that has taken away so much. She seeks out the frighteningly scarred, yet mysterious W, a Calvert descendant, who is destined to change her life, but even he cannot prepare her for the danger that lies ahead.

Enemies will hurt her. Loved ones will make her vulnerable. And the impending prophecy that drives her to unleash her magic will cause her to unearth the sins of the past and doubt any promise of a future. Without knowing whom her true rival is, Hannah isn’t certain she’ll survive, and if she loses, she may lose everything, including the ones she loves.

On Amazon now–BEWITCHING HANNAH. Click here: Amazon

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Leigh Goff is proud to be an Annapolitan. She’s a member of SCBWI and a graduate of the University of Maryland University College. Fun fact–she is the eighth great-granddaughter of a seventeenth century Chesapeake witch.

Her second young adult novel, BEWITCHING HANNAH (2017), which is set in Annapolis, provides an enchanting twist on the Beauty-and-Beast theme. Her debut young adult novel, DISENCHANTED (2015), reimagines the legacy of a wicked Wethersfield witch in the present-day life of her sixteen-year-old descendant, Sophie Goodchild.