Lena Hartwell just wants to be left alone.
Divorced. Menopausal. Accidentally magical. She's survived murder charges, ancient gods, and a crossword puzzle from hell. Now she's trying to lie low by tending her late grandmother's garden.
But this is no ordinary garden.
Venomous ivy that bites. Singing thorns that gossip. A Mandrake plant that once attacked the sheriff and shows no remorse. And buried beneath the soil, something ancient sleeps.
Something made of clay and stone and old, old magic.
When Lena's prized Mandrake uproots itself and attacks Sheriff Charlie Dobbs, she knows something is terribly wrong. The garden's protective spirits are agitated. The plants are angry. And someone is corrupting them from below.
The golems are waking.
Five ancient protectors built by Lena's ancestors. Five clay giants designed to guard Crystal Hollow from evil. But someone has found the key to control them?and they don't want protection.
They want revenge.
A mysterious woman named Morgan claims the golems belong to her family. She's waking them one by one, turning them against the town, against the coven, against Lena. And the fifth golem?the largest, the oldest, the most powerful?is buried directly beneath Lena's garden.
With her daughter Jade, her blue-flamed friend Sophie, and a coven of witches who are better at knitting than combat, Lena must figure out how to stop the golems before Morgan controls them all.
But there's a problem.
The golems were designed to kill witches.
And Lena is the only witch the golems can't touch.
Gardening & Golems is the third book in The Crystal Hollow Series?a twenty-book journey perfect for fans of Practical Magic, The Witcher, and anyone who believes that midlife is the perfect time to dig in the dirt and fight ancient clay monsters.
What readers are saying about the series:
"Finally, a fantasy heroine who fights monsters and weeds in the same day."
"My toxic garden has never felt so seen."
"The Mandrake is my new favorite character. Don't tell the others."
Perfect for readers who love:
- Cozy paranormal fantasies with plant magic
- Witches over 40
- Golems and protective spirits
- Magical gardens that bite back
- Ancestral secrets and family legacies
- Found family and second chances
The plants are restless. The golems are waking. And the only thing standing between Crystal Hollow and destruction is a menopausal witch with muddy knees and a grumpy Mandrake.
Welcome back to Crystal Hollow.
Watch your fingers.
