Blog Tour: Solstice – Helen Steadman

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 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.

Helen Steadman’s first novel, Widdershins and its sequel, Sunwise were inspired by the 1650 Newcastle witch trials. Her third novel, The Running Wolf is about a group of master swordmakers who defected from Germany to England in 1687. Helen’s fourth novel, God of Fire, is a Greek myth retelling as seen through the eyes of Hephaestus, perhaps the least well known of all the Olympians.

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.

The Running Wolf is the story of a group of master swordmakers who left Solingen, Germany and moved to Shotley Bridge, England in 1687. As well as carrying out in-depth archive research and visiting forges in Solingen to bring her story to life, Helen also undertook blacksmith training, which culminated in making her own sword.

My thoughts: in the tense years of the late 17th Century, witch hunting fever spread and innocent people, mainly women, were sent to their deaths, often on the say so of jealous neighbours.

The obsessive and rather intense daughter of the new vicar is the accuser in this case. And the accused a young farmer’s daughter who becomes her sister-in-law. Patience has way too much sway in her father’s home – she confines Rose to the attic, keeping her prisoner and her father says nothing. The accusations make it all the way to court, but Rose isn’t a witch and much of Patience’s accusations are based on her lack of understanding of country ways and her paranoid jealousy.

Lives are still damaged and destroyed, much as they really were. Helen Steadman is a great writer, bringing history to vivid life, Rose is a fascinating character and even the deeply unpleasant Patience is well drawn.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.