The Witching Tide: A Novel

By: Margaret Meyer

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Synopsis: Named a best historical novel of the year by The New York Times Book Review and &“reminiscent of both The Scarlet Letter and Hamnet&” (Jezebel), The Witching Tide is a powerful debut inspired by the true events behind a deadly witch hunt in 17th-century England.East Anglia, 1645. Martha Hallybread, a midwife, healer, and servant, has lived peacefully for more than four decades in her beloved seaside village of Cleftwater. Having lost her voice as a child, Martha has not spoken a word in years. One autumn morning, a sinister newcomer appears in town. A &“witchfinder,&” Silas Makepeace has been blazing a trail of destruction along the coast, and his arrival in Cleftwater strikes fear into the heart of the community. Within a day, local women are being detained. Martha is enlisted to search the accused women for &“devil&’s marks,&” and finds herself a silent witness to the hunt. Martha is caught between suspicion and betrayal; between shielding herself or condemning the women of the village. In desperation, she revives a wax witching doll that belonged to her mother, in the hope that it will bring protection. But the doll&’s true powers are unknowable, Martha harbors a terrible secret, and the gallows are looming… Set over the course of a few weeks that forever changed history, and for readers of Hilary Mantel and Margaret Atwood, The Witching Tide &“illuminates a dark historical period and cautions against its recreation&” (Kirkus Reviews).