Hello everyone. I wanted to know if any of you have read any books by Ruby Goldwyn? I’ve been doing as much reading as i can about apothecary and working with plants and herbs and i came across a 3 book series on Kindle by this author. I dont know enough about this topic to know if she is accurate, but I do know enough to know that what she’s written about wicca, wiccans and pagans etc., isn’t accurate at all. Its not what we know to be true. I’ve learned over the years that there are alot of books out there about witches, wicca, pagans and so on that can be full of stereotypical information rather than truths and i also understand that when it comes to the history of it all there have been different accounts from different sources. Does anyone else have an opinion on this author?
I’d say be careful with the rest of her stuff.
Thank you. Id like to hope that im mistaking and maybe i dont eremember my facts as well i think. I do have a hard time understanding what im reading at times due to a disability, but this was not like that this time lol. I found too many things that felt off to me. I think i will stick to the authors i know going forward.
You don’t have to do that. Do explore. That’s the way we learn. All I’m saying is use your intuition and your mind: if something feels off to you, find something else that feels better. That feeling is there to help and protect you.
Thank you, you’re right. Im learing more evvery day that my gut is strong and rarely leads me in the wrong direction. I love learning new things and from those who have lots of knowledge to share.
This is a great place for both of us. I feel the same as you do. I hope you feel comfortable sharing what you learn, too. That way, we can learn from you as well. 
I haven’t heard about her before. And trying to google her name comes up with no information for me. I wish I could help. I’m sorry ;w;
Personally ive never heard of her but I am interested to learn about who she is!
I will keep looking at your post to see what others say!
Jeannie
I have never heard of her either. A great book for herbs is Herbal Magic by Aurora Kane.
Great! Thanks, I’m going to check this one out now.
The author’s name doesn’t ring a bell - but if her books on topics you are familiar with don’t ring true, then I think it’s smart to doubt the others. How can a reader trust a source with unknown material, when that source isn’t accurate about known material?
It’s a good idea to ask around 
This is another smart way to check for validity and credibility. Plenty of reputable authors use pen names (for safety reasons, privacy, to differentiate between genres they write in, etc), but even authors with pen names create an online trail - social media accounts, websites, etc. These platforms and presence help tell their readers that they are real, reputable people who are invested in their material over a long period of time.
If this author seems to have appeared out of nowhere, has created several books whose information doesn’t seem to be right, and has no online trail or presence to show dedication to their area of knowledge - while not decisive, those are all red flags to be aware of.
I’m not saying this is the case at all with this author, but I do know that there is an increase in AI-generated publications being sold on Amazon. It’s easy to create something that looks at first blush like a wonderful publication but really contains no real information or worse inaccurate and harmful information.
I first ran into this with an AI-generated tour guide to Portugal. Had great reviews, the book was info gleaned from Wikipedia, and tour pages, and was full of spelling and factual errors. Thankfully I was able to get a refund.
The other case I just heard about was from an Instagram post by the Black Forager about an AI-generated mushroom identification guide that someone purchased, used and their family was poisoned because it had incorrect information.
Basically, I’m saying, it’s tough and maybe getting tougher to know what sources to trust and which truly have PEOPLE researched and verified information.
If they seem like they popped out of nowhere, have no real background info to verify, and have been wrong multiple times in the past… well you’re right to not trust more from that source.
One way I check is, can I get the book from a bookstore, you know, the good old fashioned bookstore. Waterstones here are able to order any reputable authors work in for you (they compete with Amazon for real books by real authors, so they’re a good testing ground.)
The other check, is in reputable books, they normally enclose a further reading list. This is usually a good place to get verified information. When it comes to herbs, I personally don’t trust books, even reputable ones, as I have allergies so I ask a herbalist. Herbs can be ok for one person and toxic to another, plus you need to know what can and can’t be used with medication.
@Mistress_Of_Herbs will know more.
How may i be of assistance?
Ive never heard of Ruby Goldwyn.
Heres list of authors i trust
Scott Cunningham
Llewllyn
Ellen Evert Hopman
Valerie Ann Worwood
Sandra Kynes
Sage Willowbrook
And thats just a few off hand. Is there something specific youre wanting to do or make? Bc i also have medicianal journals too.
@Pagan-Dragonfly81 is theres anything else i can help with just ask.
I think it’s about what books/authors are trusted for learning about herbal remedies. Thankyou by the way.
@tracyS of course love. Always happy to help. Hope my reply helps.
Indeed! I always like to research authors I haven’t heard of before, to be safe.
Also, I would like to suggest Herbal Magic by Aurora Kane. I love her books 
@Pagan-Dragonfly81 i was curious about ruby goldwin so i checked out her books “herbalism for witches”. And i have to say i was impressed with her writing style
I haven’t done too much digging into the author herself, but I can say that there are a few red flags in my surface-level search.
Zero online presence – most authors have an online presence of some sort, be it social media or a website. This author has none that I could quickly find.
Her profile picture is an edit of an AI-generated image (Joyful white young-adult female with long brown hair and green eyes | Generated.photos)
screenshot of author’s profile picture from Amazon on the left and a reverse-image search result linked above on the right)
The price…? $2.99 for three e-books over 400 pages in length seems very fishy to me, especially considering the books are available on KU and then the print set is $36. It sounds like the author is capitalizing on the KU payment for these books because people will read through the entire thing multiple times because it’s free on KU.
There is zero information on the illustrator or book cover designer, even in the copyright pages of the book.
Based on red flag # 2 alone I would avoid this author at all costs.I will come back to this post in a bit and read through the rest of the comments lol
She has had previously inaccurate material…trust your instincts…do not trust her!!!
Protect yourself.