Sun Magic by Rachel Patterson provides a fresh perspective on putting the Sun and solar energies into the same place of interest and mystery that the moon has typically held in practicing the craft. The book reads easily and is parceled out into bite-size pieces. The contents read like a table of correspondences for the sun and each chapter is only a few pages in length.

Ms. Patterson has provided enough information for anyone to begin the practice of solar magick and form the correct alignments to draw the energy into your workings and make maximum use of the sun in all of its expressions.

I particularly liked the brief section on “Solar Water”. This comes after the chapters on the “Solar Eclipse” and “Eclipse Magic”.

“Set out a jar or dish of water during an eclipse and let it soak up the energy.” 2.

Simple, clear and filled with potency of intention; after completion you will have magically solar charge water to use as you will.

Other chapter topics cover “Sun Herbs and Plants”, “Sun Signs”, “Sun Incense Blends”, “Sun Oil Blends”, and more.

The chapter, “Sun Animals” gives an overview of those animals typically associated with solar energy. And, in keeping with the flow of topic to topic, the next chapter provides the reader with a lovely “Meditation to Meet a Solar Animal”. It is a brief meditation that could be done in minimal time or expanded and stretched into a more lengthy space of journeying.

Many are familiar with the practice of drawing down the moon, but few have experienced the equally potent ‘Drawing Down the Sun”. This exercise is done outside in sunlight and makes use of a lovely written poem/chant to be recited as the energy of the sun is invoked into your being. This is a nice exercise to use for healing and strengthening your body(ies) when some additional bolstering is needed.

Sun Magic is a lovely addition to any beginner’s library. It is a handy little reference book that provides the reader with options, information and starting points to incorporate solar energy in their workings and practice.

Reviewed by Robin Fennelly of PaganPages.org

A fascinating well written book. I loved it. As much as I love the moon and all her magic its so refreshing to read about the sun and all his magic and gifts and magical history. The meditations, ritual and spells are brilliant and I can't wait to make a sun incense blend.

4 out of 5

**OMG! I cannot believe that these reviews haven't been done! I am so sorry they are so late!!!**

I've been really interested in Sun Magic so when I found this book I got really excited! The author did a good job compiling everything sun magic related into one place. It is kinda like an encyclopedia for everything sun magic. That being said, it was a bit of a struggle to read it cover to cover. There were sections I found super interesting and others I found boring. It's going to be a good idea for anyone who is going to pick this book up to skim/lighlty read and just bookmark the places that interest you most. The main complaint I have about the book honestly is that it provides so much information about different correspondences with the sun, but I didn't think it gave me much to start off with. That might just be me, I don't know. However, books that really stick out to me are ones that give me exercises or small things to get me started. And I didn't really feel that with this book. It probably wouldn't be too much of an issue for a more experienced person to pick up easily on all the correspondences and other information. All in all though, I think the book does a good job of what you'd expect from a book titled Sun Magic- it's your one stop shop for everything Sun Magic.

Pagan Portals Sun Magic by Rachel Patterson
Book Review by Dawn Thomas

144 Pages
Publisher: John Hunt Publishing / Moon Books
Release Date: June 28, 2019


Religion & Spirituality, Paganism, Elements

This is part of the Pagan Portal series of books. It has a lot of information regarding the sun and its solar aspects. There are descriptions of the phases of the sun along with its effects on us physically and mentally. There is even a selection on the chakras with a focus on the solar plexus. The author does a thorough job of including the magical properties that can help with magical workings along with crystals, stones, herbs, plants, oils, incense and teas. There are recipes and I am particularly looking forward to making the solar shortbread cookies.

She also discusses the ancient cultures that honored the sun and the structures they built for worship. It includes the importance of how the turning of wheel of the year, the solstices & equinox and astrological sun signs affects us. There are listings of sun deities and solar animals with meditations to connect with them.

There are invocations to the sun and instructions to draw energy down from the sun. There is a sun ritual and many spells. She also includes divination, including The Sun card from the tarot, and other symbols.

This is a great book for anyone interested in working with the sun and its energy. The book is well written and is choked full of information. I love the meditations especially the ones associated with rainbows.

This book was wonderful for sun magic. There is very little out there on this topic and this book does a great job of filling that void. I look forward to more wonderful titles from the Pagan Portals.

This is a wonderful guide to following the sun cycles as well as solar deities It is very well researched and presented in a enjoyable format that is easy to read I enjoyed learning how to follow the sun cycles and the history of the cycles of the sun. Very highly recommended

I enjoyed Rachel Patterson's book on Kitchen Magic so much that I had very high hopes for this one. I have to admit I was a little disappointed.
There was some great content, including ideas for rituals, spells, and tools that can assist the practitioner in utilizing this source of fiery magic. This is a great addition to the literature, especially given the emphasis on the moon found in so many books on witchcraft and magic. Unfortunately though, a great deal of the book consisted of lists of correspondences -- even after the author emphasized the need to personal associations as opposed to pre-set ideas from other people. Additionally, the lists often included items that were not immediately obvious in their ties to the sun, and Patterson did not always explain those connections. This made the inclusion of those items a bit perplexing.
However, the suggestions for incense blends and teas were lovely -- strawberry and woodruff sounds delightful, and a great way to invoke the warmth of a sunny summer day, indeed! I also liked the inclusion of crystal grids for bringing the energy of the sun into one's life and home. And of course, as the High Priestess of a Kitchen Witch coven, the book couldn't be complete without a few recipes! The lemon poppyseed cake with lemon curd filling is absolutely going on my Lughnasadh menu later this week!
My ultimate critique of the book is that it simply did not feel well organized. While I love the conversational, relaxed tone that is characteristic of Patterson's writing, this tone coupled with the somewhat scattered jumps from topic to topic made it feel somewhat manic and hard to follow. The content was not poor quality but was not of a depth that made it feel much more valuable than an internet search to me. For someone who wants the information collected and handed to them in easy to understand language, however, this book could be invaluable! Ultimately it is not the book for me, though I could see it being useful and enjoyable for someone newer to the craft.

Most people who think about magic think about the moon and how it affects everything. They forget the magic of the sun. This book gives you facts and everything you never thought about and should. It goes thru the cycles and how to use them and the correspondences. Sun Magic is a book everyone should have on their shelf. It is full of need to know facts that will take your magic to new heights. I loved it. The other books don't come close to this book on information. It's easy to understand and you must have it. I received this book from Net Galley and John Hunt Publishing for a honest review.

This is a useful introduction to using the sun’s power in magic and witchery. The book is short but packed full of information, including a brief overview of the solar cycle, magical properties of the sun and its phases, and important dates in the solar calendar such as equinoxes, solstices, eclipses, and the like.

The author also features a variety of solar deities from different pantheons, and whilst these are very brief summaries of each deity in question it’s refreshing to go beyond the familiar faces of Apollo, Sekhmet, Baldr, and Eos. There are also a number of recipes — incenses, oils, teas, meals — along with which herbs, spices, and foods are ruled by the sun. Crystals and animals also feature, as do myths and superstitions.

In this slim tome there are also meditations and visualisations, rituals, and spells, for anyone who wants to get hands-on with their magical practice. Also featured are crafts, divination, and crystal grids.

While I don’t necessarily agree with all the correspondences listed in this book — not every witch will agree on these things, I’m sure! — this is a lovely read, and the author as a gentle way about her. I would have liked more information rather than just an overview, but I realise this is just an introductory guide. Recommended.

I received an e-ARC from the publisher, Moon Books, through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love Rachel Patterson's book and I loved this one.
It's full of informations, suggestions and advice and I will surely try some of them.
A well written and engaging reference book, very useful.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

I enjoyed how this book was devoted to looking towards the sun for spiritual guidance. So many books are focused on moon rituals, this is a refreshing change to your spiritual enlightenment. I love the different topics the author includes in this book to perform sun magic. Incense, teas and my favorite crystals and their properties are wonderfully explained and categorized as a go to reference guide for a variety of sun rituals. The author even includes a section on Sun Animals and Solar Deities and their influences on these rituals. If you are looking to be more in tune with sun magic, "Pagan Portals-Sun Magic" by Rachel Patterson, should be in your witchy library.💜 #Paganportalssunmagic #Netgalley

As a fascinated of titles that help you get in touch with the ancient ways through the ancestors, I found this title from Rachel, more than a little interesting. It contains exercises to allow you to get in touch with the sun aspects, tells you about the various pantheon sun aligned god/desse/s to whom if you're a theological witch to whom to appeal to alongside which animals are aligned to the sun if you're more druidic or shamanistically focused.

Throw into the mix some kitchen witch recipes, ways to help charge your crystals and stones alongside various ways to cast your spells or organize yourself via the time of day and its a book you can't do without. Finally add to this, a friendly and at times humorous voice that allows you to dip in and enjoy the various chapters, all round make this a wonderful title to spend time with.

Review will appear on day of release on site (26/07/19)

This is my first experience with the writings of Rachel Patterson, but after reading PAGAN PORTALS - SUN MAGIC, I can confidently tell you that this book is only the first of many of her books that I will be eagerly purchasing and devouring. What an incredibly written, beautifully magical book! I read this book in record time, reached out to the author to let her know how incredibly healing her writing was for me, then read the book again! SUN MAGIC was extremely informative, yet written in such an intimate, friendly way. Being new to this path, I am so grateful for Rachel Patterson, for the kindness that comes through in her writing, and for her immense wisdom that she generously chooses to share with the rest of us. A definite recommend!

This book touches on everything possible regarding the sun and its influence in pagan workings. It may have gotten a tad dry in spots for me as it went into so much depth in the science behind eclipses, etc, but you can’t say you don’t understand it all completely after reading those sections. This is great for anyone involved in a pagan religion and wanting to use sun magic in their practice.

Not a long book, a good introduction for those who want to bring the Sun into their practice or who like the Sun in general. You do get a few ideas that you can do after you read the book (ex. crafts and meditations). It does give an introduction to a few topics like solar water and eclipses.

Very good interesting read. Realy insightful . I have to admit I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. Thank you netgalley for sending me this book to reveiw

I admit I live in sunny Australia so I find sun a bit so what, but I was intrigued to read about any magical practices surrounding it. This book tends to often defer to more eastern philosophies and I think it's a bit teensy weensy lazy of the author to ask the reader to go check if a practice the author is presenting is suitable for particular crystals etc. This makes for a short book and will be of interest to those new to anything esoteric. I did find the recipes interesting and plan to incorporate them in my own family solar traditions and celebrations and I thank the author for that. I really want to give this a 4 but there just wasn't enough substance for me.

What a fascinating title! I can already tell I'll be coming back to this one often, to look things up or just to reread and enjoy. I had a vague knowledge of some of this information, but the depth of it is wonderful and it's laid out very clearly. Sadly it's been raining the last few days so I can't try anything out, but I certainly plan to!

A great read, perfect for novices right up to experienced energy workers.


Receiving an ARC did not alter my review in any way.