GHOSTS OF ALBION: Astray

Sibling sorcerers William and Tamara Swift mix it up with spirits and sprites in this zesty pastiche of the Victorian ghost story. In 1838 the Swifts—whose supernatural family pedigree makes them frequent hosts to the ghosts of Lord Byron, Queen Bodicea and other spectral standard bearers of England's glorious past—travel to the village of Blackbriar, where mothers of illegitimate newborns are finding their children magically swapped for demonic changelings. In the course of unraveling the mystery, the two are compelled to cast flashy spell and counterspell against Wild Edric the ghostly huntsman and Godda the Faerie Princess, heavies with hands in the affair. This thinly plotted novella is spun off from a BBC animated Webcast, and likely would seem more substantial if rendered in an active graphic medium. Benson played Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Golden (The Boys Are Back in Town ) has written bestselling novelizations of that show and this book will play best to the audience they have cultivated. (Nov. 29)