Alyssa and the Spell Garden

Alyssa is eleven. She is annoyed because both her parents who have been arguing more than usual for a long time now, have to go on work trips during the summer holidays. So Alyssa is being sent to stay with her Auntie Jasmine whom she has never met because Jasmine and Alyssa’s mother, Violet, fell out a long time ago, reason unknown.

When Alyssa arrives at Jasmine’s Tea Shop, she experiences a strange tingling in her fingers which occurs when she’s homesick or upset. This explosion of feelings causes a mess in the tea shop. It transpires that Alyssa has magical powers like Jasmine, their magic activated by plants and Jasmine runs Silver Leaf Spell Garden and Magic School.

Alyssa was not to know about this, because her mother has denounced magic. Alyssa’s powers, however, are too great not to be trained.

Can Alyssa harness her powers and when Jasmine and the Spell Garden are in trouble, can she help save them?

There are two particularly interesting features of this book. Whilst Sheppard’s novel is set in London her characters are Jamaican and their culture is celebrated throughout. The second feature is that any magic conducted by someone at Silver Leaf must be for the good of the community and not for personal gain. This is a welcome decision of the author in her fantasy world-building.

For readers of fantasy, they will recognise many familiar tropes.