Love, Death & Other Awkward Spells

A Necromantic Cozy Fantasy (Bathurst Academy of Post-Mortem Studies, Book 1)

By: Scott Killian, Ryan Tang

Narrated by: Gary Furlong, Rebecca Brokaw-Sands, Annie Ellicott

Eldritch Blackwood Jr. never quite fit the mold of a proper necromancer.

Instead of raising armies of the dead, he specializes in bringing beloved pets back to life. But when Eld’s prestigious family forces him to enroll at Bathurst Academy of Post-Mortem Studies, his unlife takes an unexpected turn. Between dodging his father’s ever-growing expectations and navigating the bizarre social landscape of underworld academia, Eld stumbles upon something far more terrifying than final exams—a buried girl in the academy’s graveyard.

But Lea isn’t just another restless spirit. She’s an eldritch entity whose missing memories hide apocalyptic secrets. Can Eld and his misfit crew of nightkin companions unravel the mysteries of Bathurst all while finding dates to Necropromicon?

A stitched-up amalgamation of cozy fantasy and comedic horror, Love, Death, and Other Awkward Spells is about how it’s never too late to find purpose—even if you’re buried six feet under.

©2025 Scott Killian, Ryan Tang (P)2025 Soundbooth Theater

fun and exciting story! loved the narriation!

4.5 stars! This was such a fun story! Not as cozy and low stakes as I anticipated, but still really enjoyable. Eld is a necromancer, but his specialty is reviving animals, specifically pets. He would rather be on the surface helping others, but his very demanding undead father has other academic plans for him. Elm and his various undead pets decend into the underworld to go to the academy. But nothing here is what he expected.

The author did a great job weaving this world together. It's such a vivid world full of a litany of amazing creatures. Between the professors and the other students, there is no shortage of odd and strange encounters, but each one is charming in it's own way. The humor and love for the animals made me appreciate it all the more. I look forward to what the next book brings!

Great Spooky Season Read.

I love the characters personalities and the fun storyline of being in a magical school. Listened while I was putting up my Halloween decorations. It's a great spooky season read!

amazing book!!!!

Okie dokie so this book is fairly new so I'm gunna go ahead and give a quick overview of important details typically missed without spoilers

clean there is no dirty smuty flith just clean good fun

it was hilarious! it has kind of a college/highschool vibe about it 🤔

it was like if tim Burton and Hogwarts had a baby but lighter

cute ships good jazz

good plot moved at a nice pace keeps you intrigued

over all this book was a 10/10 you should get it if you are thinking about it

I'd say age wise it's definitely more of a family friendly book but I'm an adult and I liked the way it played out 👍

In a way it lacked some plot twists which was actually kind of a plot twist itself I enjoyed that a lot you aren't overwhelmed by the amounts of twists and you could actually keep track of the story

I loved the readers as well they made a great choice with that

I don't really have any negative comments about it over all it was just a good book I might not read it again just because it felt satisfying and didn't take reading it 100 times to actually get the story and I'm ready to move on to the next book but over all it is definitely one to recommend I like it and yeah good jazz

Eld the Friendly Necromancer and the Chamber of Secrets

As always, SoundBooth Theatre does a fantastic job performing.

The story is like Casper the Friendly ghost at Hogwarts directed by Tim Burton. It’s got quirky characters, in an ancient school full of mysteries, in a world of scary things “living” like people.

I would recommend it to those who like young adult fantasy with a spooky setting.

Fun Book

This book will definitely get you in the Halloween spirit. It was a fun read and as always the amazing people at Soundbooth theater did a fantastic job on the character voices. I cannot wait for book2.