Theodora's Tea Shop by Christy Anne Jones

A richly imagined, dark and dazzling cosy fantasy about learning to love ourselves by wondrous new Australian novelist, Christy Anne Jones.

Dorothy Louise Walcott should have died when she was fourteen. Instead, she grew into a timid young woman, frugal, ill, over-educated, and dreaming ceaselessly of running away to learn magic. When she hears of a woman who might apprentice her, she sets off on a journey to Alliaster, a city where spirits play cards with kings. Dot is determined to find the witch Theodora-empress of an underground syndicate peddling magic from the quaint fa ade of her tea shop. Theodora is everything Dot wants to be: beautiful, witty, confident.

However, Dot's arrival heralds the unearthing of Theodora's eldritch secrets, threatening to topple the witch's empire and take them both with it.

Theodora's Tea Shop is an atmospheric 1920s-inspired fantasy novel about magic, friendship and, of course, tea. It features twists and turns, found families, monstrous women, many heartfelt and cosy moments, and a creepy daemon who owns a department store. If you love Howl's Moving Castle, you will adore this book.