Audiobook Review: Widdershins by Helen Steadman @hsteadman1650@lovebooksgroup @lovebookstours

Title: Widdershins (Widdershins #1)
Author: Helen Steadman
Narrator: Christine Mackie
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: Audiobook
Published: 25-06-21

Buy Links: Amazon

Blurb

Widdershins is inspired by the Newcastle witch trials, where 16 people were hanged. Despite being the largest mass execution of witches on a single day in England, these trials are not widely known about. In August 1650, 15 women and one man were hanged as witches after a Scottish witchfinder found them guilty of consorting with the devil. This notorious man was hired by the Puritan authorities in response to a petition from the Newcastle townsfolk who wanted to be rid of their witches.

Widdershins is told through the eyes of Jane Chandler, a young woman accused of witchcraft, and John Sharpe, the witchfinder who condemns her to death. Jane Chandler is an apprentice healer. From childhood, she and her mother have used herbs to cure the sick. But Jane soon learns that her sheltered life in a small village is not safe from the troubles of the wider world. From his father’s beatings to his uncle’s raging sermons, John Sharpe is beset by bad fortune. Fighting through personal tragedy, he finds his purpose: to become a witchfinder and save innocents from the scourge of witchcraft.

The Historical Novel Society said of Widdershins: “Impeccably written, full of herbal lore and the clash of ignorance and prejudice against common sense, as well as the abounding beauty of nature, it made for a great read. There are plenty of books, both fact and fiction, available about the witch-trial era, but not only did I not know about such trials in Newcastle, I have not read a novel that so painstakingly and vividly evokes both the fear and joy of living at that time.”

Recommended for anyone who has enjoyed Stacey Halls’ The Familiars, Beth Underdown’s The Witchfinder’s Sister, AK Blakemore’s The Manningtree Witches, Elizabeth Lee’s Cunning Women, Louisa Morgan’s A Secret History of Witches, Jeanette Winterson’s The Daylight Gate, Madeline Miller’s Circe, Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, or Deborah Harkness’ A Discovery of Witches.

Review

Widdershins is inspired around the 1650 Newcastle witch trials, the main characters are Jane Chandler, who has been using herbs along with her mother since childhood to cure the sick. Jane is accused of witchcraft and her mother was condemned, and John Sharpe and a man whose mother died during birth and his father blamed him and the “witch” who attended the birth and disowned him. John was an awful person, maybe because of the childhood he experienced but he was on a mission to expose all witches and put them to their death.

Witch trials have always fascinated me, what made townsfolk think the women were witches in the first place, the different ways they tortured these women to prove they were witches and how they put them to their death. The trials were pointless because the townsfolk had already made their minds up, without any real evidence.

This was an amazing book and audiobook; Helen Steadman wrote it so very well and the narrator Christine Mackie gave a great performance and she kept me wanted to listen to her.
There was a cliffhanger ending and I am excited to listen to the second book very soon.

Author Bio

Dr Helen Steadman is a historical novelist. Her first novel, Widdershins and its sequel, Sunwise were inspired by the Newcastle witch trials. Her third novel, The Running Wolf was inspired by a group of Lutheran swordmakers who defected from Germany to England in 1687.

Despite the Newcastle witch trials being the largest mass execution of witches on a single day in England, they are not widely known about. Helen is particularly interested in revealing hidden histories and she is a thorough researcher who goes to great lengths in pursuit of historical accuracy. To get under the skin of the cunning women in Widdershins and Sunwise, Helen trained in herbalism and learned how to identify, grow and harvest plants and then made herbal medicines from bark, seeds, flowers and berries.