Esther

Esther McBride is ordinary, so completely and utterly ordinary, in fact, that she sails completely below the radar. Everybody’s radar. That is, until her seventeenth birthday, when suddenly everything changes.Seventeen isn’t meant to be a big deal. There is, as a general rule, nothing especially extraordinary about turning seventeen. Unless you happen to be Esther Merilyn McBride, who, from her seventeenth birthday, discovers what it is to have power beyond imagination and an unbelievable heritage which just might save the world, not to mention an irritating and yet nearly always wise voice in her head, a bodyguard who is simply too good looking to be real and a whole new bunch of friends, each equally as extraordinary as it appears she has turned out to be.Witches, warlocks, black and white magic and an adventure any ordinary girl could only ever dream of. Welcome to Esther’s far-from-ordinary world.

Tai Le Grice is a study in contrasts; a woman who prefers to live in fairly isolated small-town New Zealand with her brother and menagerie of animals; a woman who is fascinated by interpersonal relationships and writes eloquently about the nuances and subtleties of friendships, intimacies and acquaintances. Her favourite saying is: ‘Every day above ground is a good one’, capturing her quintessential black humour contrasted with her practical nature and positive outlook. Tai has had numerous jobs during her colourful life but writing has been a constant grounding force, providing a creative outlook for her active and imaginative brain.