<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[Michaela Riley]]></title><description><![CDATA[Explore the dark historical fantasy worlds of Michaela Riley, author of The Witch's Rebirth Series. Captivating historical fantasy books.]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/blog-michaela-riley</link><generator>RSS for Node</generator><lastBuildDate>Thu, 05 Nov 2026 14:37:57 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://www.blackwellspines.com/blog-feed.xml" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><item><title><![CDATA[Beyond the Veil: A Shadow Growth Journal for the Turning of the Year]]></title><description><![CDATA[Begin on Samhain and journal through the year! Beyond the Veil: A Shadow Growth Journal for the Turning of the Year Samhain is almost here. The veil is thinning, the nights are growing long, and the old year is ready to be laid to rest. For witches, it’s the beginning of a new year, and the perfect moment to begin something that matters. That’s why I created Beyond the Veil: A Shadow Growth Journal.  Where This Journal Came From If you’ve read The Witch’s Rebirth series, you know Merona’s...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/beyond-the-veil-a-shadow-growth-journal-for-the-turning-of-the-year</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ae0b4a3a4c466008e5fd600</guid><category><![CDATA[The Wheel of the Year: Other Witch]]></category><pubDate>Tue, 27 Oct 2026 14:30:51 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f377d3_522b506fe2f74048a957cebfac511c97~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Standing in the Rain: Why We Walk Through the Storm to Become It]]></title><description><![CDATA[Walking through the storm and claiming your power. ]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/standing-in-the-rain-why-we-walk-through-the-storm-to-become-it</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7753030a98d2e21f820</guid><category><![CDATA[The Witch's Rebirth Series]]></category><pubDate>Sun, 11 Oct 2026 14:49:31 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_7abf7a6748df4cc3b0c3a82009b60739/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Real-Life Villainess Who Makes Fiction Look Tame: Meet Fredegund]]></title><description><![CDATA[Fredegund the Queen of Vengeance As a writer, I’ve always been drawn to the shadows of history. When crafting the world of The Witch's Rebirth Series, I often look back at the real-world figures whose lives were so chaotic, so ruthless, and so deeply complex that they outshine any fictional villain. If you’ve been following the journey toward Part IV, The Gambit of Queens (where we cross paths with the famous chronicler Gregory of Tours), you’re already getting a taste of Merovingian madness....]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-real-life-villainess-who-makes-fiction-look-tame-meet-fredegund</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7733030a98d2e21f6c8</guid><category><![CDATA[The Gambit of Queens]]></category><category><![CDATA[The Witch's Rebirth Series]]></category><pubDate>Wed, 07 Oct 2026 19:11:57 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_cc68ede746be46ed8010b171ba8400e9/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Two Queens Move the Pieces. A Witch Pays the Price.]]></title><description><![CDATA[Ready for the next release of The Witch's Rebirth Series? The Gambit of Queens launches on Samhain. ]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/two-queens-move-the-pieces-a-witch-pays-the-price</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7733030a98d2e21f6c2</guid><category><![CDATA[The Witch's Rebirth Series]]></category><category><![CDATA[The Gambit of Queens]]></category><pubDate>Wed, 07 Oct 2026 17:32:44 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f377d3_f6cd09d604eb4272bc16cc934d5408a5~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Cauldron That Steals Your Voice: The Real Myth Behind Cauldron of Dagda]]></title><description><![CDATA[Michaela Riley Myths and Legends From the flickering glow of a campfire to the depths of late-night internet rabbit holes, humanity has always had an unhealthy obsession with the macabre. We love a good urban legend, we love a good ancient myth, and we especially love finding out that the two are secretly the same story wearing different clothes. Today we're diving into one of the more unsettling ideas to ever cross from ancient lore into modern horror: the myth of the voice-stealing...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-cauldron-that-steals-your-voice-the-real-myth-behind-cauldron-of-dagda</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7733030a98d2e21f6b0</guid><category><![CDATA[Cauldron of Dagda]]></category><category><![CDATA[Myth and Legend Series]]></category><pubDate>Thu, 03 Sep 2026 21:12:06 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_d34c42333e4449b0a2f96cdb5f32ae85/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Unveiling the Enchantment: Michaela Riley's Dark Fantasy Realm]]></title><description><![CDATA[Unveiling the fantasy world of Michaela Riley ]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/author-spotlight-michaela-riley-the-storyteller-behind-the-witch-s-rebirth</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7753030a98d2e21f80a</guid><category><![CDATA[Michaela Riley Author]]></category><category><![CDATA[Dark Fantasy]]></category><pubDate>Sun, 09 Aug 2026 15:25:02 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f377d3_cb29ee2ab24c45c2860aaa640707eba2~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Ultimate Guide to Indie Author Scams: How to Spot, Avoid, and Outsmart Predatory Prowlers]]></title><description><![CDATA[“Honestly, I get at least five a day boasting to have read my books, telling me how much they love them, and wanting to promote them on Goodreads, Listopia, or a book club.” If you are a self-published author, this scenario probably sounds all too familiar. Indie author scams have surged aggressively, capitalizing on the emotional highs and lows of the self-publishing journey. Driven by AI-automated cold outreach, scammers weaponize an author's deep desire for visibility, validation, and...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-ultimate-guide-to-indie-author-scams-how-to-spot-avoid-and-outsmart-predatory-prowlers</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7753030a98d2e21f83b</guid><category><![CDATA[Indie Authors]]></category><category><![CDATA[Indie Author Scams]]></category><pubDate>Sat, 08 Aug 2026 00:25:06 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f377d3_1b3476161b0141629e36f67fd63be4ab~mv2.png/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[She Knows What Armaeus Craves Most]]></title><description><![CDATA[Distance is a luxury on the battlefield, but for Merona, it is something sharper: a lens. Across the fractured expanse, she watches him. The daemon, Armaeus, stands amidst the wreckage of a sky that has forgotten how to hold stars. He does not rage; true power rarely needs to shout. But as Merona studies his silhouette against the burning horizon, the romanticized veil of mythology burns away. There is no tragic misunderstanding here. No hidden, misunderstood heart waiting for a gentle hand...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/she-knows-what-armaeus-craves-most</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7753030a98d2e21f859</guid><category><![CDATA[Spear of Lugh]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_b541d7e7e02e4ed3a14553556297b3f9/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Shadows Aren't Hunting Her. They're Guiding Her.  Labyrinth of Shadows]]></title><description><![CDATA[Merona pauses at the edge of the torchlight, a spectral path opening in the mist just past where the light gives out. Most heroines in this genre run from the dark. Merona has learned, the hard way, to be suspicious of the light instead. "I followed the darkness," she says, "because the light had lied to me first." It's a quiet, defining reversal for Labyrinth of Shadows—the shadows in this book aren't the threat, they're the map. Whatever's guiding Merona through the maze isn't kind,...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-shadows-aren-t-hunting-her-they-re-guiding-her-labyrinth-of-shadows</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7753030a98d2e21f84c</guid><category><![CDATA[Labyrinth of Shadows]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_08bd3bcffba34910a31c8a076308675b/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Cauldron of Dagda: Resurrection, Abundance, and the Heavy Cost of Defeating Death]]></title><description><![CDATA[Teal light, luminous vapor curling around her hands — Merona stands beside a legendary artifact of Irish mythology, the Dagda's cauldron, whispered in ancient lore to feed an army and never run empty. "I have returned from death," she says. "That does not mean everyone should." In Irish mythology, the Cauldron of Dagda is one of the Four Treasures of the Tuatha Dé Danann—a mythical vessel of infinite bounty, said to be so vast that no man ever left it unsatisfied. But Cauldron of Dagda (Book...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-cauldron-of-dagda-cod-01-resurrection-abundance-and-the-heavy-cost-of-defeating-death</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f791</guid><category><![CDATA[Cauldron of Dagda]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_b76b67c78d894607b7cecc5b5c8cc970/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Gods Left Gifts. They Also Left Warnings.]]></title><description><![CDATA[Celtic carvings beneath Merona's fingertips. Ravens circling through thick, teal smoke. If you've been following The Witch's Rebirth, moments like this prove that the Cauldron of Dagda leans hard into its real mythological roots. But take a closer look—those intricate carvings aren't just there for decoration. The Dagda and the Tuatha Dé Danann are genuine, powerful figures pulled straight from the Irish Mythological Cycle, not invented for the sake of a fantasy series. "Mortals call it...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-gods-left-gifts-they-also-left-warnings</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f78a</guid><category><![CDATA[Cauldron of Dagda]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_d867c7a6677143ee9ef16221ae6cdca3/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[His Daughter Carries the Magic He Swore to Destroy]]></title><description><![CDATA[A distant golden-haired girl standing beneath one cold-blue star. The hunter positioning himself squarely between her and Merona. This striking visual is our first real glimpse of Elowen, the Witch Hunter's own daughter—and the deep, fracturing fault line running straight through his entire mission. "Elowen is not his betrayal," Merona says. "She is the truth he refuses to see." In the grand tapestry of the Spear of Lugh, this moment plants a quiet, devastating irony that pays off across the...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/his-daughter-carries-the-magic-he-swore-to-destroy</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f784</guid><category><![CDATA[Spear of Lugh]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_a97d7fd0f62e40a59b7d5d8ab060b20f/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[When Abundance Becomes a Weapon: The Battle for the Cauldron in The Witch’s Rebirth]]></title><description><![CDATA[The cauldron glows between two opposing armies, teal mist thickening into the shapes of spectral warriors. This is the Cauldron of Dagda at its most political: an object built for abundance, being eyed by kings who only see leverage. "Kings see an endless feast," Merona says. "I see an endless war." That is the pivotal turning point the novel makes around its midpoint. An artifact that can sustain an army forever doesn’t stay a private miracle for long. Once word spreads of what the cauldron...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/it-feeds-armies-and-awakens-the-fallen</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f776</guid><category><![CDATA[Cauldron of Dagda]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_0f00405c430c4af1a815ec06db8cb6a3/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Immortality Has a Price No One Sees]]></title><description><![CDATA[Ghostlike fragments of vanished kingdoms drift around her. Candle flames go out, one by one, like a countdown nobody else in the room can hear. "They envy the years I have lived," Merona says. "They never ask what those years took from me." It's the thesis statement of her entire character across the series—immortality in Labyrinth of Shadows was never framed as a gift to be envied. It's closer to a wound that never finishes healing, one life stacked on top of the last, each one taking...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/immortality-has-a-price-no-one-sees</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f76f</guid><category><![CDATA[Labyrinth of Shadows]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_989aaccb0d2d408c9e97a87921e2f5c4/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Dead Are Listening From Inside the Mist]]></title><description><![CDATA[Faint ancestral faces surface in pale teal vapor, candlelight the only other light in the chamber. As we reach this pivotal moment, the Cauldron of Dagda closes its central artifact arc on its quietest, eeriest note: the cauldron doesn't just restore the dead. It remembers them. "I hear their voices," Merona says. "The question is whether they are calling me — or warning me." That ambiguity is entirely deliberate. This isn't a recycled haunted-object trope played for cheap jump scares....]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-dead-are-listening-from-inside-the-mist</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f754</guid><category><![CDATA[Cauldron of Dagda]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_923f715b72d0463e9c219b9b9d864d9c/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[An Immortal Woman, an Ancient Vessel, and the Price of Defeating Death]]></title><description><![CDATA[Standing stones. Teal mist rising off ancient bronze. The cauldron doesn't just sit there waiting to be found like some forgotten relic in a dusty tomb. In the world of Cauldron of Dagda, it reacts to Merona the way an old acquaintance would—with a chilling, familiar weight. "The cauldron recognizes me," she says. "I wish I knew whether that was a blessing." That profound uncertainty is the beating heart of Michaela Riley's dark fantasy series, The Witch's Rebirth. An artifact this powerful...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/an-immortal-woman-an-ancient-vessel-and-the-price-of-defeating-death</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f750</guid><category><![CDATA[Cauldron of Dagda]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_1729590a7f8540409ab6b6ff80967450/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Spear of Lugh: Myth, Immortality, and the Deadly Family Feud at the Heart of The Witch's Rebirth]]></title><description><![CDATA[Golden light illuminating the horizon, black dust coiling menacingly through the air—this is the striking aesthetic,  featuring one of the most legendary artifacts of Irish mythology: the Spear of Lugh. But in the rich, dark fantasy universe of The Witch's Rebirth, this divine weapon isn't just a relic of the past. It is the instrument of a relentless executioner. And the target? Merona. A Hunter, a Weapon, and an Ancient Grudge In Spear of Lugh, readers and fans are introduced properly for...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-spear-of-lugh-myth-immortality-and-the-deadly-family-feud-at-the-heart-of-the-witch-s-rebirth</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f74e</guid><category><![CDATA[Spear of Lugh]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_805df099f31a428f9b7e90f41ff9b660/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[She Woke With No Memory of Dying]]></title><description><![CDATA[Storm sky overhead, ancient stone beneath her, and a cloaked figure disappearing into the ruins just as Merona opens her eyes. This is where Labyrinth of Shadows actually begins — not with a death remembered, but with one erased. "I do not remember the blade," she says. "I remember the voice that told me to run." It's a rare gap in Merona's otherwise total recall, and the book treats it as exactly the kind of loose thread a reader should be suspicious of. Someone — or something — warned her...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/she-woke-with-no-memory-of-dying</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7743030a98d2e21f746</guid><category><![CDATA[Labyrinth of Shadows]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_945d980780f9405485671492a3f6298c/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Weapon Belongs to a God. The Choice Belongs to Her.]]></title><description><![CDATA[The Weapon Belongs to a God. The Choice Belongs to Her. Gold fire and dark water spiral around the shaft as Merona reaches toward it without quite touching it. This is no ordinary relic—it is a real, breathing artifact of Irish mythology, tied directly to Lugh, the ancient god of skill, light, and battle. Now, it sits quietly at the center of a deeply personal and high-stakes decision. "Power does not choose the worthy," Merona says. "It reveals them." With a single line, the entire...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/the-weapon-belongs-to-a-god-the-choice-belongs-to-her</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7733030a98d2e21f699</guid><category><![CDATA[Spear of Lugh]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_e0b50cbbf1a845d6be68987ec82bef7d/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[She Has Survived Every Century — Until This Hunt]]></title><description><![CDATA["I have escaped kings, armies, and gods. Armaeus is dangerous because he believes he is all three." Picture a ruined battlefield. The air is thick with the ash of forgotten empires, and cutting straight through the wreckage is the unmistakable, ethereal gold light of the Spear of Lugh. Amidst the devastation walks Merona, a warrior taking in the quiet aftermath of yet another era she has somehow managed to outlive. For centuries, Merona has been a constant in a changing world. But as Spear of...]]></description><link>https://www.blackwellspines.com/post/she-has-survived-every-century-until-this-hunt</link><guid isPermaLink="false">6ad3b7733030a98d2e21f697</guid><category><![CDATA[Spear of Lugh]]></category><pubDate>Fri, 07 Aug 2026 14:20:17 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="http://video.wixstatic.com/video/f377d3_d6610fcaaf8c438faf456b5c25f79c40/1080p/mp4/file.mp4" length="0" type="video"/><dc:creator>Michaela Riley</dc:creator></item></channel></rss>