Delilah Ali works as a Magical Medical Practitioner alongside her incompetent student, Micah, who she intends to fail by the end of his summer internship. But her summer plans are disturbed when her vampiric ex-“something,” Darcy, crashes back into her life with a desperate plea—untether her newborn son Noah’s magic before his late father’s werewolf pack hunts him down.
As the odd-ball team travel across Ontario to escape the pack and make the surgery possible, old feelings reemerge, Delilah's own long-dormant magic rears its head, and they begin to suspect the problem is bigger than just one baby's magic.
Waxing and Waning is a thrilling sapphic urban fantasy romance, set against the picturesque backdrop of Southern Ontario and Québec.
J.N. Howell lives in Canada with their tyrannical little dog and wife. They are a corporate cryptid by day that writes stories about messy queer people by night. Their work can be found scattered in speculative and lit magazines. When they aren't writing, they can be found hunched over a dying vegetable garden or haunting their local cafe, matcha in hand.
“A sapphic second chance romance with quirky characters, a beautiful magic system, and truly unhinged (complimentary!) vibes! I loved reading about middle aged magical women falling in love all over again, despite the wild circumstances under which they reunite. J.N. Howell has created a thoughtful, uniquely Canadian magical world, and I truly enjoyed the nostalgic nod to Canadiana through the dialogue. Did I like Waxing and Waning? Yeah, no, for sure!” —Chandra Fisher, author of The Dark Sweetness at the Bottom of the Well
“An enthralling tale of belonging and acceptance, Waxing and Waning boasts a refreshingly diverse cast. With top notch humour and expertly delivered nuance, J.N. delivers a fantastic and entertaining read that will sit with the reader long after it’s finished.” —Jenee Dutary, author of Fire & Death
“Peak adult gay panic in a deliciously realized fantasy romance. Best friends to lovers estranged since college commit to being partners in a cross-provincial quest to save one's newborn from murderous werewolves. Howell's debut offers a magic system with unfolding layers of intrigue, singular characters in rich settings, and a tender mentorship arc as a consistent heartbeat.” —JR Creaden, author of Moon Dust in My Hairnet
