The Threadbare Apothecary

Her grandmother vanished thirty years ago, speaking to a hedgehog. That same hedgehog has been waiting for Philippa ever since. At fifty-two, Philippa Ashmore thought she understood her life. Her marriage was a slow suffocation. Her corporate career was someone else's dream. When her husband left, she felt relief she could never admit. Then a solicitor's letter arrives, and everything changes. An inheritance from a grandmother she never knew existed. An apothecary in a village that has been expecting her. The Threadbare has been closed for three decades, but when Philippa crosses its threshold, the building exhales. Shelves rearrange themselves to match her thoughts. Herbs bloom in the cellar. And a cantankerous hedgehog named Quillby emerges from a crack in the wall, takes one look at her, and sneezes with what can only be described as relief. The apothecary's magic is real. So is its price. Philippa can heal anyone except herself. No remedy, no tincture, no cure will work on her own body. Ever. The magic flows through her to others, never for her. As the Autumn Veil Festival awakens old magic, someone begins searching for what her grandmother hid. They know about the constraint. They know Philippa cannot protect herself with magic. And they are running out of patience. She came to Saltwhistle looking for closure. She found a mystery, a grumpy hedgehog, and the terrifying possibility that at fifty-two, her life is only just beginning.