I received a copy of “Unfamiliared” as part of the Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Competition (SFINCS).

This novella follows the story of Eva in the village Witchgorn.
Eva is part of the village’s protectorate which is a group of women with magic powers which are channelled through magical animals – the familiars. The story starts with the familiars mysteriously disappearing, leaving the village unprotected and what seems to be worse – only weeks away from games which some sort of competition between protectorates from different villages.
The story focus on the ways the villagers find to deal with their temporary lack of magic. It’s an easy, cosy plot, with some hints of humour, but with perhaps too many characters to deal with and too much emphasis on the strategies and tricks they come up with to hide the fact that they have no magic during the games.
I enjoyed the message of a village coming together to help each other, but it left me curious about how they recovered their familiars and I thought Eva’s world deserved a bit more description to help us get into the why having magic was so important for them.
Overall a relaxed reading for fans of cosy fantasy, suitable for all ages of readers.