The Mudpuddle Manual of Natural Magic

Natural Magic, Book 1

De: Ciara Blume

Narrado por: Ryan H. Reid, Jessica Threet, Andrea Parsneau, Travis Baldree

A murder, a mystery, and a not-so-overactive imagination...

Eccentric heiress Maida Westabrook treasures her peaceful, "ordinary" life in California—morning strolls along the beach, warm evenings by the fire, and losing herself in her beloved library of myths and legends. Yet Maida can’t shake the nagging feeling that there’s more to her story than she’s been led to believe. Strange and inexplicable occurrences have always surrounded her, dismissed as nothing more than her overactive imagination.

When a distant relative mysteriously vanishes, a body is discovered, and Maida’s lifelong dream of owning an enchanted bookshop suddenly comes true she realizes her "wild" imagination might not have been so far-fetched after all.

There’s just one hitch: the sentient bookshop has gone into hiding and it’s up to Maida to coax it back. To claim her inheritance, she must step out of her safe, predictable world and embrace a reality where magic is not only real—it’s woven into the very fabric of everyday life. That handsome neighbor? He might be a shapeshifter. And the barista who runs the local café? She’s likely brewing more than coffee.

As Maida unravels the secrets of her past, she’s forced to rethink everything she once held true. Saving the bookshop—and protecting her newfound magical family—will require more courage than she ever thought possible, including risking her heart.

©2024 Dolce Villa Press (P)2025 Soundbooth Theater

awesome

amazing

loved the story, awesome narration,and overall just a great book

really enjoyed this one

keep up the amazing work

Enchanting and delightful!

This was such an enchanting and delightful story! I listened to the audiobook, and cannot recommend that format enough. The music set the mood from the very beginning, and took me straight into this magical world in such a fun way! This story included such an array of characters. The ending was so sweet and wonderful! I can't wait for the next story in this series!

Fantastic Fantasy

A cozy urban fantasy with stellar performances by a legendary cast, accompanied by enchanting music. The story is woven excellently, and the characters all feel unique.

An absolute must-buy

First of all, I cannot get past the insane talent of the narration team!! But more on that in a sec. The story is just delightful through and through. From the first moment to the last, there is a through line that transports you so perfectly into the world of Natural Magic. And once there, you’re never let down. The characters are so well developed and all have their own unique and well-crafted journeys.

Then when you add this INCREDIBLE voice cast, you get the perfect match. Ryan H Reid leads this impressive cast, which considering you have Baldree, Parsneau, and Threet, it’s very impressive how beautifully he lead them. The acting is absolutely top tier and really immersed me into the story.

Then you add the gorgeous music on top of it all, so artfully placed and well balanced, then this is one you HAVE TO GET.

Cozy listen

It was just what I needed during a stressful week. This is an amazing listen with the full cast giving a stellar performance. I want to Just curl up in this world and watch the everyday natural magic go by.

Magic, Mysteries, and more than just Romance

Spectacular performance. SoundBooth Theatre always delivers with great narration and sound effects.

The book is primarily a romance novel, but it is more than just romance, or at least better in some ways than most romance novels. Despite not being much of a romance reader myself, I still found the world building great.

The drama and character relationships were entertaining, and while I had felt I knew what was going to happen very early in the book, and I was right, it still held enough suspense to keep my attention.

A grown-up magic book

If you are someone who wishes adult fantasy books were as whimsical as children’s stories, this book is for you. If you like well-rounded characters, lovely writing, and a plot that nods to many tropes while overusing none of them and breaking several in very clever ways, this book is for you. If you like sentient buildings… yep, it’s got those, too! It has cozy, specific details to delight bookworms, miniaturists, naturalists, fashionistas, and foodies. And most importantly of all, it’s full to bursting with heart and hope.

The critical part of my brain wishes I had the ability to dock a half star in the story section for a few tiiiiiiiiiny plot holes and the main romance, which I felt was a bit a bit superfluous to the plot—but I loved the Mudpuddle far too much to rate it anything less than top marks and found every other relationship deeply satisfying!

This story found a heart that was very tired and desperate for whimsy. It cradled it lovingly in enchanted afghans, found family vibes and multidimensional softness for almost every minute of its 12.5 hours, alongside a cast that portrayed every character incredibly well, from skin-crawling to snarky to sweet. Bonus points for the gorgeous touches of music throughout the story that really brought the words to life and constantly heaped on extra fairy tale vibes! If you’re at all on the fence, I highly suggest giving this one a listen—may it give you joy as bright as butterfly wings, and remind you of the magics of every day, both small and large. Don't forget a cup of tea and plate of cookies should you choose to take this journey—trust me, you'll want both before very long!

So good

Book slump???? What book slump?
This book is great. My only issue is I have to wait for the next in series.
I like to have the book and audio.
WOW the audio was a fantastic duet. Has me looking for other books made by Soundbooth. The main male narrator Ryan was awesome. I wish more books were narrated by men. But this one of course was perfect. The range of the narrators from Soundbooth are fantastic. I Love to read but the audio version of this was hard to stop listening to.

Lovely Cozy Mystery

Such a lovely, cozy mystery! The world was fun and full of charm, with just the right touch of magic. I don’t usually go for fully orchestrated narration, but this one was well done - it really brought the story to life. I hope I get to visit this world again soon!