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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
adventurous
dark
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Another good fantasy thriller mixing folklore and feminism from C.J Cooke with multiple timelines and POVS.
I've read two other books by this author and I found this to be even more enjoyable. I really enjoyed the fact that this is based on true events that occurred in 16th century Orkney, Scotland, which tells the story of seventy-two women who were executed during the North Berwick witch trials.
The tale begins with Alyson (or Alison) Balfour, who was accused of assisting a man in a plot to kill his brother using witchcraft.
The book opens in the present day where we meet Clem, a fifty-year-old divorced mother, who works two jobs to care for her teenage daughter Erin, who recently went on a hiking trip with friends and her baby granddaughter Freya. When Clem gets a horrifying phone call informing her that Erin is hospitalized and in a medically induced coma in Orkney, she rushes to find out what's going on.
She discovers that Erin is unconscious, with several fingers amputated and suffering from serious burn marks. Erin's boyfriend Arlo, who was on the trip with her, is found dead with his body burned and hands bound. Her best friend Senna is missing. The police start an investigation and, based on text messages, suspect Erin might be responsible for Arlo's death and possibly harmed Senna, who has not contacted her parents.
Strangely, when Erin wakes from the coma, she doesn't recognize her parents and denies her name, insisting on being called "Nyx."
We also get to read Alison Balfour's POV, where she is asked to make a charm for an earl's bastard brother who wants to replace him using powerful magic. Even though she refused, she was still put on trial, tortured for a crime she didn't commit, and declared a witch.
I found the storyline really interesting and I did find that the timeline in Scotland in the 1500's which featured Alison Balfour was the most gripping to me as I felt invested in Alison's outcome and the way she was treated. Each time the chapters changed to current day I wanted to actually find out what was happening to Alison. The way they treated her and her loved ones to get her to confess was absolutely crazy to me! This book had me thinking back to the past and how women (and men) were accused of being witches and what befell them.
Knowing that this book was based on a real person made this book even better for me. I admire the amount of research that went into the writing of this book.
When I reached the end of the book read the author's note as well, I found it to be so informative and detailed the research that went into the writing of this book.
Wonderfully written, well thought out, terrifically paced, and hard to put down. I would recommend this for readers who are interested in witches and witch stories.
I've read two other books by this author and I found this to be even more enjoyable. I really enjoyed the fact that this is based on true events that occurred in 16th century Orkney, Scotland, which tells the story of seventy-two women who were executed during the North Berwick witch trials.
The tale begins with Alyson (or Alison) Balfour, who was accused of assisting a man in a plot to kill his brother using witchcraft.
The book opens in the present day where we meet Clem, a fifty-year-old divorced mother, who works two jobs to care for her teenage daughter Erin, who recently went on a hiking trip with friends and her baby granddaughter Freya. When Clem gets a horrifying phone call informing her that Erin is hospitalized and in a medically induced coma in Orkney, she rushes to find out what's going on.
She discovers that Erin is unconscious, with several fingers amputated and suffering from serious burn marks. Erin's boyfriend Arlo, who was on the trip with her, is found dead with his body burned and hands bound. Her best friend Senna is missing. The police start an investigation and, based on text messages, suspect Erin might be responsible for Arlo's death and possibly harmed Senna, who has not contacted her parents.
Strangely, when Erin wakes from the coma, she doesn't recognize her parents and denies her name, insisting on being called "Nyx."
We also get to read Alison Balfour's POV, where she is asked to make a charm for an earl's bastard brother who wants to replace him using powerful magic. Even though she refused, she was still put on trial, tortured for a crime she didn't commit, and declared a witch.
I found the storyline really interesting and I did find that the timeline in Scotland in the 1500's which featured Alison Balfour was the most gripping to me as I felt invested in Alison's outcome and the way she was treated. Each time the chapters changed to current day I wanted to actually find out what was happening to Alison. The way they treated her and her loved ones to get her to confess was absolutely crazy to me! This book had me thinking back to the past and how women (and men) were accused of being witches and what befell them.
Knowing that this book was based on a real person made this book even better for me. I admire the amount of research that went into the writing of this book.
When I reached the end of the book read the author's note as well, I found it to be so informative and detailed the research that went into the writing of this book.
Wonderfully written, well thought out, terrifically paced, and hard to put down. I would recommend this for readers who are interested in witches and witch stories.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
A very hard read.
I had to take breaks. The modern timeline was fine but the 16th century narrative is just torture, literally. And that takes nearly half the book. While I know it was to be expected when reading a novel about the Scottish Witch Hunts, knowing that Cooke doesn’t shy away from the cruelty her female leads are being subjected to, it was still a hard read.
The mystery and suspense of how the two timelines would eventually collide was what kept me reading, but it still took 3 weeks.
I don’t think I could read that book again.
I had to take breaks. The modern timeline was fine but the 16th century narrative is just torture, literally. And that takes nearly half the book. While I know it was to be expected when reading a novel about the Scottish Witch Hunts, knowing that Cooke doesn’t shy away from the cruelty her female leads are being subjected to, it was still a hard read.
The mystery and suspense of how the two timelines would eventually collide was what kept me reading, but it still took 3 weeks.
I don’t think I could read that book again.
I feel like I need to sit with this one for a while. It was an incredible blend of historical fiction, folklore, fantasy, and mystery. With dual timelines from present day to the late 1500s, it was unputdownable. The blurred lines between historical fiction and the true realness of what women accused of witchcraft endured was so well done.
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
medium-paced
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced