Magical Realism

The Listeners by Maggie Stiefvater Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Magical Realism Published by Headline Publishing Group on June 2, 2025 Format: Hardcover, Special Edition Pages: 411 Source: FairyLoot At the Avallon, real power comes to those who watch and listen…  High in the Appalachian mountains is a place quite unlike any other. The Avallon Hotel and its enigmatic General Manager, June Hudson, are famed for offering unrivalled luxury, season after season, to those who come from far and wide to indulge in its beautiful hot springs and take the healing waters. Everything is perfect. Perhaps too perfect.  So when the Avallon is called upon to help the war effort – to oust its guests and host three hundred diplomats and Nazi sympathizers – June’s priority is business as usual. But as dark alliances and unexpected attractions crack the polished veneer of the hotel, she is forced to reckon with the true price of luxury.  After all, only June knows the sacrifice required to keep everyone happy – her staff, the FBI and, above all, the tumultuous sweetwater running through the heart of the hotel.  The Listeners is a story of love, lies, secrets and betrayal, based on real …

Good Spirits by B.K. Borison Series: Ghosted #1 Genres: Adult, Chick Lit, Contemporary Fiction, Fiction, Holiday, Magical Realism, Romance, Contemporary Romance, Ghosts Published by Avon Books on October 20, 2025 Format: Hardcover, Special Edition Pages: 378 Source: Owlcrate He’s the Ghost of Christmas Past. She’s not exactly Scrooge.  Ghost of Christmas Past Nolan Callahan intends to spend this holiday haunting like every other—get in, get out, return to his otherwise aimless existence as a ghost awaiting the afterlife. But when he’s faced with Harriet York, the sweetest assignment he’s ever had, he suddenly finds himself wishing for a future.  Harriet York has no idea why she’s being haunted. She’s a good person—or, at least, she tries to be. A people pleaser to her core, she always does what’s expected of her. But as she and Nolan begin to examine her past, they discover there are threads that bind them together— and realize there might be more to moving on than expected.  With the deadline of Christmas Eve fast approaching, will they find the key to their futures in each other’s pasts? Or will they stay firmly in the present, indulging in their unexpected, spirited connection? This book may be unsuitable …

The Society of Unknowable Objects by Gareth Brown Genres: Adult, British Literature, Fantasy, Magic, Urban Fantasy, Magical Realism Published by Bantam on August 11, 2025 Format: Hardcover, Special Edition Pages: 352 Source: Goldsboro Books The world of unknowable objects – magical items that most people have no idea possess powers – has been quiet for decades . . .  But three current members of a secret society have remained watchful, meeting every six months in the basement of a bookshop in London. They are pledged to protect their archive of magical items hidden away, safe from the outside world – and keep the world safe from them. But when Frank Simpson, the longest-standing member of the Society of Unknowable Objects, hears of a new artefact coming to light in Hong Kong, he sends the Society’s newest member, author Magda Sparks, to investigate.  Within hours of arriving in Hong Kong, Magda is facing death and danger, confronted by a professional killer who seems to know all about unknowable objects, specifically one that was stolen from him a decade before. Magda is forced to flee, using an artefact that not even the rest of the Society knows about.  Returning to London, Magda …

The Dallergut Dream-Making District by Miye Lee Series: The Dallergut Dream Department Store #2 Genres: Cozy Fantasy, Adult, Asian Literature, Korean Literature, Fantasy, Low Fantasy, Magical Realism Published by Hanover Square Press on June 24, 2025 Format: eBook Pages: 302 In this bestselling follow-up to The Dallergut Dream Department Store, beloved characters must visit a special dream-making district to unlock new secrets about the customers they lost and hope to bring back.  It’s been a year since Penny first walked through the doors of the Dallergut Dream Department Store, and surviving a year at the store means one thing… She is now an official employee of the dream industry! She can finally take the express commuter train to the Company District, where all the dream-production companies are located, and discover how all raw dream materials and testing equipment are produced.  But the Company District is not quite what she expected. Instead it hides a secret underbelly of the magical industry that Penny thought she was a part of.  Penny discovers the Civil Complaint Center, full of people filing complaints about their dreams. She also learns about the regular customers who have stopped coming to the store. As she gets to …

Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle Genres: Adult, Magical Realism, Ghosts, Low Fantasy, Speculative Fiction Published by Simon & Schuster on May 19, 2025 Format: eBook Pages: 400 What if you could have one last meal with someone you’ve loved, someone you’ve lost? Combining the magic of Under the Whispering Door with the high-stakes culinary world of Sweetbitter, Aftertaste is an epic love story, a dark comedy, and a synesthetic adventure through food and grief.  Konstantin “Kostya” Duhhovny is a haunted man. When he was a child, his beloved father died shortly after their family immigrated to Brooklyn from Ukraine, and ghosts have been hovering around Kostya ever since. Kostya can’t exactly see the ghosts, but he can taste their favorite foods. Flavors of meals he’s never eaten will flood his mouth, a sign that a spirit is present. Kostya has kept these aftertastes a secret for most of his life, but one night, he decides to act on what he’s tasting. And everything changes.  Kostya discovers that he can reunite people with their deceased loved ones—at least for the length of time it takes for them to eat a meal he prepares for them. He realizes that perhaps his life’s purpose …