Publisher: Bell Jar Books
Publication Date: 18th September 2023
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary:
England, 1673. Still a world of witches, witch trials and witchfinders.
When a new vicar arrives to take over the parish of Mutton Clog, the village finds itself in the grip of Puritan fever, and suspicious eyes are turned on Rose Driver.
Rose’s mother, brother and grandmother were all put to death by the fanatical witchfinder, John Sharpe.
Almost a quarter of a century after the Newcastle witch trials, Sharpe is no longer a threat. Rose should be safe in her quiet village, but is history about to repeat itself?
Find out in Solstice, the powerful conclusion to The Widdershins Trilogy, which tells the story of one woman’s struggle for survival in a hostile and superstitious world.
The Widdershins Trilogy was inspired by the little-known Newcastle witch trials, where fifteen women and one man were hanged for witchcraft on a single day in August 1650.
Review:
Firstly thank you to Random Things Book Tours, Bell Jar Books and Helen Steadman for having me on this tour and sending me the book.
Now when I signed up for this tour I didn't realise this was the last book in a trilogy, and I made the decision to not read the other two and just go into this one not knowing what had gone before.I feel parts of the book may have been a little clearer if I had read the other two books but in general, I didn't think I needed to have read them to understand the characters we encounter in Solstice but I definitely think I will go back and read the other two.
I loved how this was written and that we had alternating chapters from Rose and Patience I definitely liked the Rose chapters more but I think that's because Patience is an incredibly hateful character and that is because she brilliantly encapsulates what you'd think of when you think 17th-century puritan. I frequently got annoyed at her during her chapters about the malice that she has for Rose for no reason other than thinking she is better than everyone else because of her faith. She is a brilliantly written character, all the characters in this are fantastically written and Helen Steadman did a beautiful job stepping the reader back in time to a small northern town in the mid-17th century.
I loved following Rose's story and it's her story that makes me want to go back and read the rest of the trilogy, it also makes me want to some reading about the trial that inspired this trilogy because I have not heard of it and I have done reading about the English witch trails.
The ending really made me smile, I thought it was beautiful and I would love to read more about Rose. Helen Steadman has written characters that you can really care what happens to, and I could believe that they were part of the history books the way she crafted their lives.
I definitely recommend this to any historical fiction fans, but maybe start at the beginning rather than the end ;)
Firstly thank you to Random Things Book Tours, Bell Jar Books and Helen Steadman for having me on this tour and sending me the book.
Now when I signed up for this tour I didn't realise this was the last book in a trilogy, and I made the decision to not read the other two and just go into this one not knowing what had gone before.I feel parts of the book may have been a little clearer if I had read the other two books but in general, I didn't think I needed to have read them to understand the characters we encounter in Solstice but I definitely think I will go back and read the other two.
I loved how this was written and that we had alternating chapters from Rose and Patience I definitely liked the Rose chapters more but I think that's because Patience is an incredibly hateful character and that is because she brilliantly encapsulates what you'd think of when you think 17th-century puritan. I frequently got annoyed at her during her chapters about the malice that she has for Rose for no reason other than thinking she is better than everyone else because of her faith. She is a brilliantly written character, all the characters in this are fantastically written and Helen Steadman did a beautiful job stepping the reader back in time to a small northern town in the mid-17th century.
I loved following Rose's story and it's her story that makes me want to go back and read the rest of the trilogy, it also makes me want to some reading about the trial that inspired this trilogy because I have not heard of it and I have done reading about the English witch trails.
The ending really made me smile, I thought it was beautiful and I would love to read more about Rose. Helen Steadman has written characters that you can really care what happens to, and I could believe that they were part of the history books the way she crafted their lives.
I definitely recommend this to any historical fiction fans, but maybe start at the beginning rather than the end ;)
Krystina xx
Thanks very much for this lovely review, Krystina. I'm really pleased you enjoyed Solstice, and I hope you'll enjoy her big sisters just as much. If you'd like to learn more about these trials, you might be interested in BBC Sounds, who have just released a new podcast about the witch trials in north east England. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0gpjzkb
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