Writers are often told to write what we know. Thus, it is not surprising that many authors choose to write about books and the people who love them.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak tells of a girl who steals the things she can’t resist—books. The hero of Michael Ende’s The Neverending Story becomes a character in the mysterious book he is reading. In When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead, the protagonist relies upon her favorite book, Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time, as a kind of “life compass.”
Following in that tradition, Lewis Carroll’s Alice books appear “as themselves” in my Waterspell books. My heroine, Carin, first encounters Through the Looking-Glass (TTLG) and discovers that the book holds within it a powerful weapon that only she can wield. Later, Carin gets her hands on a copy of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (AAIW) and continues to find veiled connections between the Carrollian world and her own perilous situation.
As an enthusiastic fan of Martin Gardner’s The Annotated Alice, I like to imagine how the late Mr. Gardner might annotate the Waterspell series as he picked up on my novels’ subtle homages to the Alice books. I think he would remark on the reversed order in which Carin encounters the books. Lewis Carroll wrote AAIW first, then TTLG some years later. Throughout TTLG, things “go the other way,” so it is appropriate (as well as necessary to the plot of Waterspell) that Carin reads the books “the other way”—second book first.
Another play on the “other way” can be seen in the spelling of the names of the two leading ladies. “Alice” is vowel-consonant-vowel-consonant-vowel, while “Carin” (also five letters) is consonant-vowel-consonant-vowel-consonant.
The names of things are important in the Waterspell books. In AAIW, the dormouse speaks of drawing all manner of things that begin with the letter M. I don’t doubt that Martin Gardner would notice the characters in Waterspell whose names start, like his, with M: among them Myra, Megella, and Merriam.
And on it goes. In Waterspell Book 3: The Wisewoman, Carin is required to travel under an alias. What name does she choose for herself? Alice, of course.
In no way, however, are the Waterspell novels a retelling of the Alice books. Though there are analogies—Carin’s reflective “mirror pool” recalls Alice’s looking-glass—my story follows its own unique trajectory. To capture the gist of Waterspell, one might say it’s “Jane Eyre meets a sorcerer.” The relationship between my main characters is reminiscent of the stormy sparring between Jane and Rochester. Waterspell is a story that young adults can enjoy, but it’s really aimed at an older audience. Though an Alice motif runs deep in my series, Waterspell is no more a “children’s book” than is The Hunger Games or Philip Pullman’s epic trilogy of fantasy novels, His Dark Materials. My characters encounter great danger, violence, murder, and betrayal.
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“One of my all-time favourites. The Waterspell series shines in its character development. Readers are introduced to a diverse cast of deeply human, flawed individuals shaped by their pasts—whether through jealousy, grief, or a yearning for freedom. These aren’t flaws added for drama’s sake, but natural consequences of their lived experiences. The changes they undergo are gradual and organic, evolving over the course of the series. If you enjoy slow-burn narratives and meaningful arcs, you’ll appreciate how the story handles growth and transformation. I’d even consider this an ʻenemies-to-lovers’ romance, though it takes three books for that dynamic to fully develop. Patience is key—but it’s worth the wait. —Ariel The Tempest
“In this four-book saga, the author has created an epic fantasy world full of magic, danger, romance, and travel through time and space. The characters are vivid and complex, including a young woman on a hero’s quest, and a powerful warlock who isn’t sure whether to kill her or embrace her. This is a most enjoyable read for fans of fantasy and fine writing.” —Shirley, NetGalley
“A must-read for fantasy enthusiasts who enjoy immersive world-building, well-developed characters, and a storyline that seamlessly blends magic and human emotion.” —Dalton S, NetGalley
“Immediately immersive” 
