Helen Garraway's Blog
November 23, 2025
Book Review Alert: The Crane Maiden by MH Woodscourt
Reviewed: Novemebr 23rd, 2025
Released: January 26th, 2026
Genre: Fantasy
ARC

War has reached her doorstep.
She will answer with a sword.
When her little sister dies during an enemy raid, Jenai prays to Holy Afallon seeking protection for her village. What she doesn’t expect is to hear a Voice telling her that she must personally lead the armies of Fraelin against the growing threat.
Joined by a gentle unicorn and a few brave allies, Jenai sets out to liberate Fraelin—even at the risk of her own freedom.
However, the road to war isn’t straightforward. Jenai must first gain the trust of the Crane Prince by convincing him she’s not a fraud. Will the Church of Afallon accept her calling or will they condemn her as a heretic?
November 21, 2025
Booktopia Blog- Ten Terrifying Questions!
I am very fortunate to be the Booktopia SFF December Author of the month, and I was invited to answer the ten terrifying questions on the Booktopia blog. Thank you so much to Mark Timmony for the opportunity to share some of my writing journey.
Booktopia Direct Pty Ltd is an Australian online bookseller. The company also owns Angus & Robertson, a major Australian online bookseller, publisher, and printer.
Interested in finding out my answers? The you can find the Booktopia blog post here.
My fantasy journey started with Sentinals Awaken, and Booktopia stock the paperback if you’d like to read it. The Sentinals series is now complete with eight books, two novellas and if you sign up to my newsletter, a plethora of short stories and novellas to fill out even more of the story. Enjoy!
Sentinals Awaken
Start the adventure today!When a long-forgotten threat starts to reemerge, one man stands as the last defense against darkness…
Jerrol Haven serves his king without question. When he finds evidence of corruption and is attacked, the loyal soldier’s mind spins after his touch of a sacred tree awakens the dormant spirit of a three-thousand-year-old protector. But he fears he has failed after the crown prince accuses him of treason and orders his execution…
Fleeing the city, Jerrol is stunned when the goddess appears to him, appoints him captain of her warriors, and charges him with a quest to find artifacts that can save the realm. And as he runs into danger and more betrayals, the steadfast hero discovers a rare gift that may be the world’s only hope…
Can Jerrol rally the forces of good to stop a rising evil?
Sentinals Awaken is the first book in the Sentinal epic fantasy series. If you like endearing characters, immersive world-building, and gritty conflict, then you’ll love Helen Garraway’s award-winning tale.
If you enjoy fantasy books then you will love my epic fantasy Sentinal series or the Romantic Fantasy SoulMist series. Sign up to my newsletter and download a free novella called Sentinals Stirring and also Sentinals Discovery, the first few chapters of Sentinals Awaken from Birlerion’s POV and get notified when my next books are published.
Sign up to my newsletter and download Sentinals Stirring for free
By clicking the sign up button above, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and the newsletter platform provider to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.
By signing up to my newsletter, you agree to receive commercial information from Helen Garraway, located at 61 Bridge St, Kingston, Hertfordshire, UK (Data Administrator
November 20, 2025
A week to go – Come and meet me at the Henley Craft and Gift Market
When: Sunday 29th, November, 10am-4pm
Where: Henley on Thames Town Hall, 2nd Floor (There is a lift!)
FREE Entry

Just in time for Christmas! Have a booklover in the family? Do they love dragons? Then I will have a limited number of the most amazing fantasy anthology with foiled cover, sprayed edges, beautiful artwork and 18 dragon-themed stories. The ideal present for your bookdragon hoarder!

Come and peruse the variety of stalls in this vibrant market and find some christmas gifts and a new book to read. Everyone welcome.
Already bought my book and want it signed? Then I’m happy to sign your book for you.
If there is a specific book you want, then please let me know, so I make sure I bring enough copies, and can reserve one for you, as now I have 15 books, I am limited by the number of books I can fit in my car!
Hope to see you there.
If you enjoy fantasy books then you will love my epic fantasy Sentinal series or the Romantic Fantasy SoulMist series. Sign up to my newsletter and download a free novella called Sentinals Stirring and also Sentinals Discovery, the first few chapters of Sentinals Awaken from Birlerion’s POV and get notified when my next books are published.
Sign up to my newsletter and download Sentinals Stirring for free
By clicking the sign up button above, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and the newsletter platform provider to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.
By signing up to my newsletter, you agree to receive commercial information from Helen Garraway, located at 61 Bridge St, Kingston, Hertfordshire, UK (Data Administrator
November 15, 2025
Book Review Alert: The Shattered King by Charlie N. Holmberg
Reviewed: November 15th, 2025
Released: September 2nd, 2025
Genre: Dark Fantasy
A captive healer and a mysterious prince are drawn to each other in the midst of war and magic in a beguiling dark fantasy by Wall Street Journal bestselling author Charlie N. Holmberg.
The kingdom of Cansere is on the brink of war. Young men are conscripted from their homes, and a royal decree from the queen has made healing the only legal form of craftlock. Nym, a healer and beekeeper, is the sole provider for her family of seven now that her younger brother has been sent to the war front. But when a letter comes from the queen, summoning Nym to the palace to heal Prince Renn, the kingdom’s ailing shut-in, Nym finds herself making the tumultuous journey from her family’s apiary to the capital city. Nym is determined to fail the queen’s mission and return to her younger siblings as soon as she can.
But escaping the castle’s hold isn’t as easy as failing a simple test. Prince Renn is cold and distant, and his illness is like nothing Nym has ever seen before, nothing she could ever imagine treating. In a moment of connection with Prince Renn, Nym manages to remedy the faintest symptom of his ailment—only to discover that no healer before has made such progress. Forced to become the prince’s official healer and a ward of the castle, and with her only hope of returning to her family hinging on the prince’s recovery, Nym must navigate the castle’s cruel and twisted court and uncover the haunting truth behind Prince Renn’s illness—even as she finds herself irrevocably drawn to him. Read My Thoughts…
November 9, 2025
Book Review Alert: Glimmer of the Other by Heather G. Harris
Reviewed: November 9th, 2025
Released: September 1st, 2021
Genre: Urban Fantasy

I can tell when you’re lying. Every. Single. Time.
I’m Jinx. As a private investigator, being a walking, talking lie detector is a useful skill – but let’s face it, it’s not normal. You’d think it would make my job way too easy, but even with my weird skills, I still haven’t been able to track down my parent’s killers.
When I’m hired to find a missing university student, I hope to find her propped up at a bar – yet my gut tells me there’s more to this case than a party girl gone wild. Firstly, she’s a bookish soul who’s as likely to go off the rails as Mother Theresa. Secondly, I’m not the only one on her trail; she’s also being tracked by the implacable and oh-so-sexy Inspector Stone.
Stone and I team up, and he shoves me into a realm where magic is real – a place where there are vampyrs and werewolves, dragons and trolls. And where my skills are more than just detecting lies…
Oh, and my dog? He’s a freaking hellhound who can manipulate the magical realms themselves.
I need to find the girl. I need to discover who killed my parents. And I need to find out more about the attractive but mysterious Zachary Stone… Read My Thoughts…
Come and meet me at the Henley Craft and Gift Market
When: Sunday 29th, November, 10am-4pm
Where: Henley on Thames Town Hall, 2nd Floor (There is a lift!)
FREE Entry

Come and peruse the variety of stalls in this vibrant market and find some christmas gifts and a new book to read. Everyone welcome.
Already bought my book and want it signed? Then I’m happy to sign your book for you.
If there is a specific book you want, then please let me know, so I make sure I bring enough copies, and can reserve one for you, as now I have 15 books, I am limited by the number of books I can fit in my car!
I will have a limited number of the deluxe special edition of Reign of Dragons. An ideal christmas gift for the book worms in the family! Hope to see you there.
If you enjoy fantasy books then you will love my epic fantasy Sentinal series or the Romantic Fantasy SoulMist series. Sign up to my newsletter and download a free novella called Sentinals Stirring and also Sentinals Discovery, the first few chapters of Sentinals Awaken from Birlerion’s POV and get notified when my next books are published.
Sign up to my newsletter and download Sentinals Stirring for free
By clicking the sign up button above, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and the newsletter platform provider to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.
By signing up to my newsletter, you agree to receive commercial information from Helen Garraway, located at 61 Bridge St, Kingston, Hertfordshire, UK (Data Administrator
Enter the Sentinals Origins Part Two Goodreads Giveaway.
Starts: Sunday November 9th, 2025
Closes: Sunday November 30th, 2025
100 ebooks awarded December 1st, 2025
US only.
Join me as I celebrate the forthcoming launch of Sentinals Origins Part Two. I am so excited to share the final part of the prequel, and the last full length book in the Sentinal series. If you love the majestic worldbuilding of Lord Of The Rings and the excitement and adventure of The Witcher but without as many monsters then you’ll love my Sentinal series. You can find the complete series in Kindle Unlimited.
For a chance to win one of one hundred ebooks enter the Sentinals Origins Goodreads Giveaway. Avalable in the US only.
Enter Giveaway hereSentinals Origins – Part TwoReleases: December 1st, 2025.
On Preorder. Releases December 1st, 2025Are you ready to travel back three thousand years and meet the Goddess Leyandrii, her Captain, Guerlaire, and find out how the Sentinals came to be and what happened to them?
Set three thousand years prior to Sentinals Awaken, Part Two of Sentinals Origins concludes the prequel to the Sentinals series.
Birler, Tagerill and Serill have accepted the Lady’s invitation to become her personal guards, her Sentinals. They roam the territories of Remargaren in the name of the Lady, protecting those who can’t protect themselves.
But the threat against Lady Leyandrii is growing and Captain Guerlaire is in the Ascendants sights. He has been too successful in disrupting their plans and now time is running out, for him and the Sentinals. The Ascendants are determined to kill them all and show Leyandrii, once and for all, that they hold the power in Remargaren.
Birlerion’s discovery of his innate magic, offers Leyandrii an alternate path, but it’s a last resort and as Leyandrii teaches him how to control it, she is desperate to find another solution.
As the final confrontation looms and the natural world buckles under the backlash from the reckless use of magic, Leyandrii has one last throw to try and save their world from ruin and destruction, but will any of them live to tell the tale?
Part One was released May 5th, 2025, and Part Two releases December 1st, 2025.
If you enjoy fantasy books then you will love my epic fantasy Sentinal series or the Romantic Fantasy SoulMist series. Sign up to my newsletter and download a free novella called Sentinals Stirring and also Sentinals Discovery, the first few chapters of Sentinals Awaken from Birlerion’s POV and get notified when my next books are published.
Sign up to my newsletter and download Sentinals Stirring for free
By clicking the sign up button above, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and the newsletter platform provider to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.
By signing up to my newsletter, you agree to receive commercial information from Helen Garraway, located at 61 Bridge St, Kingston, Hertfordshire, UK (Data Administrator
November 6, 2025
Book Review Alert: Of Spindles and Nightfall by J. Ann Curtis
Reviewed: November 7th, 2025
Released: October 1st, 2025
Genre: Fairy Tale retelling

Rumpelstiltskin meets The Serpent and the Wings of Night in this spicy, fairy tale retelling.
Never make a deal with a demon—especially the demon arch king.
Aryana, the vampire princess, has spent her life as a weapon in her uncle’s cruel kingdom. But when the demon arch king, Zarathos, steals her away, she is thrust into a world more treacherous than anything she could have imagined.
Zarathos’s presence is suffocating, his dark power intoxicating. He claims she has the ability to turn straw into gold—a lie. But the real truth is far more terrifying. He needs her for the deadly demon trials, and he’ll stop at nothing to bend her to his will.
Bound together by a bargain neither can escape, Aryana must fight for Zarathos in the trials, even while the magnetic pull between them grows with each passing moment. The more time they spend together, the deeper she’s pulled into a world of lust, power, and ruthless peril.
Zarathos will never let her survive the trials. She’s nothing more than a pawn in his plans. But as the fire between them burns hotter, Aryana wonders if the demon king has claimed more than her life—has he taken her heart as well? Read My Thoughts…
November 1, 2025
Enter the International Launch Giveaway for Sentinals Origins Part Two!
Starts: Saturday November 1st, 2025 at 8am GMT
Closes: Sunday November 30th, 2025 11.45pm GMT
Winner announced December 1st, 2025
Open Internationally, One winner, Over 18 only. No cash alternative.
Join me as I celebrate the forthcoming launch of Sentinals Origins Part Two with many of my friends in the writing community. Thank you to these generous authors for donating their books to the grand prize. Enter the launch giveaway by following the authors on social media or by signing up to their newsletter. The more authors you follow, the more entries you recieve.
One randomly drawn reader will win a signed paperback of Sentinals Origins and SEVENTEEN amazing fantasy ebooks.
Prize list:Signed Paperback:
Sentinals Origins Part Two by Helen Garraway
Paperbacks:
Buried Heroes by Beth Ball
Shadow Dancer by C.K Andersson (Paperback UK or Ebook International)
The Last Ranger by JDL Rosell
Alidor The Forgotten Hero by Matthew Hillsdon
Aspect of Essence by Samantha Amstutz
Ebooks
The Prisoner of Tardalim by Dan Zangari and Robert Zangari
Toric’s Dagger by Jamie Edmundson
A Breaking of Realms by Jasmine Young
Wonders and Dragons: A Midwest Fantasy Sampler curated by Justin Rose
The Unravelling of Luna Forester by Marisa Noelle
College of Shadows by Mark Wells
Night of the Black Dragon by Melanie Ansley
When Darkness Hunts the Dawn by MH Woodscourt
Sadie Madison and the Boy in the Crimson Scarf by Neil J. Hart
Liberation by R.M Krogman
Sundering by R.M Krogman
The Price of Honor by Richard Fierce
Sentinals Origins – Part TwoReleases: December 1st, 2025.
On Preorder. Releases December 1st, 2025Are you ready to travel back three thousand years and meet the Goddess Leyandrii, her Captain, Guerlaire, and find out how the Sentinals came to be and what happened to them?
Set three thousand years prior to Sentinals Awaken, Part Two of Sentinals Origins concludes the prequel to the Sentinals series.
Birler, Tagerill and Serill have accepted the Lady’s invitation to become her personal guards, her Sentinals. They roam the territories of Remargaren in the name of the Lady, protecting those who can’t protect themselves.
But the threat against Lady Leyandrii is growing and Captain Guerlaire is in the Ascendants sights. He has been too successful in disrupting their plans and now time is running out, for him and the Sentinals. The Ascendants are determined to kill them all and show Leyandrii, once and for all, that they hold the power in Remargaren.
Birlerion’s discovery of his innate magic, offers Leyandrii an alternate path, but it’s a last resort and as Leyandrii teaches him how to control it, she is desperate to find another solution.
As the final confrontation looms and the natural world buckles under the backlash from the reckless use of magic, Leyandrii has one last throw to try and save their world from ruin and destruction, but will any of them live to tell the tale?
Part One was released May 5th, 2025, and Part Two releases December 1st, 2025.
If you enjoy fantasy books then you will love my epic fantasy Sentinal series or the Romantic Fantasy SoulMist series. Sign up to my newsletter and download a free novella called Sentinals Stirring and also Sentinals Discovery, the first few chapters of Sentinals Awaken from Birlerion’s POV and get notified when my next books are published.
Sign up to my newsletter and download Sentinals Stirring for free
By clicking the sign up button above, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and the newsletter platform provider to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.
By signing up to my newsletter, you agree to receive commercial information from Helen Garraway, located at 61 Bridge St, Kingston, Hertfordshire, UK (Data Administrator
October 28, 2025
Book Review Alert: Storms and Schemes by Sky Sommers
Reviewed: October 27th, 2025
Released: October 26th, 2025
Genre: Fantasy

What if you had to give up your divine powers—and no worthy goddess candidate to take them?
Tartie, the Goddess of Small Things, is stuck. To help a friend in need, she has to pawn off her Storms ability – the one that shorts out every electronic gadget in range. With no qualified candidates in sight, Tartie resorts to a temporary fix.
It backfires. Badly.
Now there’s a new God of Storms—unhappy, destructive, and definitely not Zeus material—running around London. One of Piccadilly Circus Tube entrances has already tasted his accidental wrath. Tartie’s left holding the thundercloud, wondering if this disaster was exactly what the ever-meddling Ancient Goddess of Fate planned all along. Read My Thoughts…


