【 THE WITCHING TIDE 】

Raw and haunting – and very powerful.

Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary
Author: Margaret Meyer
Published: June 2023
Publisher: Hachette / Moa Press
Pages: 320 (paperback)

Thanks to Hachette/Moa Press for a copy for review!

This book is a great example of what I love so much about historical fiction: the ability to connect the reader emotionally to events long past that otherwise remain so removed from us.

Based off the witch hunt trials that happened around 1645-7, this is a lovely literary piece of historical fiction that captures the agony and unfairness of being a woman during this time. The utterly unbearable constant state of danger.

Martha was a fascinating protagonist – mute and both empowered and entrapped by her silence – she was a character equal parts odd and comforting.

This isn’t really a book to dip in and out of – it’s one that you need a good half hour at least to totally lose yourself in. And then, you’ll rush your way to the end to see what happens (all the while praying for a happy ending you have about 2% faith will happen).

It’s stressful, immersive and well written. The Witching Tide has given me a harrowing new perspective on this historical event and another pang in my heart for the historical suffering of women.

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Title: The Witching Tide
Author: Margaret Meyer
Purchase: Angus & Robertson
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East Anglia, 1645. Martha Hallybread, a midwife, healer and servant, has lived peacefully for more than four decades in her beloved village of Cleftwater. She has not spoken a word in years.

One bright morning, Martha becomes a silent witness to a witch hunt, led by sinister new arrival Silas Makepeace. As a trusted member of the community, she is enlisted to search the bodies of the accused women for evidence. But whilst she wants to help her friends, she also harbours a dark secret that must never be revealed.

In desperation, Martha revives a poppet, a wax witching doll that she inherited from her mother, in the hope that it will bring protection. But the poppet’s true powers are unknowable, the tide is turning, and time is running out . . .

Inspired by true events, The Witching Tide is a magnificent debut from a writer to watch.