I received an ecopy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Superb…well-written unique debut!

I loved reading Virginia Boecker’s The Witch Hunter. I’ve read my share of books about witches. This was far from the usual fare of witches trying to stay away from executioners. I had not read anything about the executioners themselves. I would have never imagined an elite ‘task force’ within the king’s army designated for capturing those practicing witchcraft. Genius!

Boecker presented readers with well-developed characters–Elizabeth Grey, John Raleigh, Nicholas Perevil, George and Fifer. Elizabeth, the young witch hunter, is a force to reckon with. She’s strong, intelligent and willing to sacrifice herself for others. John, a young healer, has a heart of gold. You can’t help loving him. I love Nicholas and his last name (looks like a play on the words ‘pure evil’). He doesn’t live up to the propaganda surrounding him. George and Fifer are great friends to have.

Even the villains are great in this prolific story! Lord Blackwell has a serious dark side that needs to be extinguished. He’s deceptive and only has loyalty to himself. Caleb, the best friend with a new role, is more of an unwilling sidekick for Blackwell. He’s the product of his own ambition.

Boecker’s details were astounding. Anglia is medieval England. I was transported to that time period without much effort on my part. I could easily envision the town square, the witches chained to stakes and even the smelly, dank prison cell. It’s obvious she did extensive research on this time period. The clothes, the building interiors and even the gardens read true.

I’m now wanting to read more about revenants thanks to Boecker. After reading about Schuyler you won’t think about spirits the same way (there’s a difference between a revenant and a ghost).

There is a valuable lesson in The Witch Hunter which Elizabeth learns towards the end–be careful who and what you believe in. I love how Boecker unfolded the message without constantly banging it over the protagonist’s head.

If you haven’t added The Witch Hunter to your must read list, what are you waiting for? It’s a magical story full of suspense, betrayal and intrigue. I can’t wait to read the next chapter in Elizabeth Grey’s life!

Pretty short book at 171 pages, but there is enough meat to satisfy if not necessarily a buffet. This was a source for my paper on the Islandmagee (no, really, that is one of the correct spellings for this tiny peninsula in Northern Ireland). I basically skimmed it looking for information/quotes for the paper, but I hope to get to reading it cover to cover. Thinking this will be my history blog's March book of the month club, so I have time. Still need to write up February's book of the month club report, with reviews for here sometime this week.