Big thanks to Boldwood books, Clare Marchant and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion !

This is my first time reading this genre and it was such a lovely surprise. I was intrigued by the cover and the name of the book initially.

The fact that it was a dual timeline story was great. I’ve always wanted to read a book with the same setting in different eras and see where that connection would lead.

We start with Adrianna, who seems to be trying to get some rest after being completely burned out at work and Ursula a midwife and herbalist with the give of sight, and as the story develops we start to understand how the are linked and why their stories are told together.

I won’t spoil the rest of the story but it was such a page turner. I quickly got caught up with the both of them, and just had to know what would happen to them.

I will admit that I found Adrianna’s story a little bit too predictable compared to Ursula’s but I think having two more complex story could have lost some readers. I loved the ending, it felt good for once !

This isn’t a « fun » and light hearted read as it talks about violence, witch hunts and the role of women in our society but it did widen my horizons and make me want dig deeper into our history and the way independent women are and were treated and hunted.

I'm reviewing this via NetGalley, as part of a tour with Rachel's Random Resources.

This is a timeslip novel, and in recent years, I've found myself more and more drawn to this type of book.

There are two narratives - one in the 1600s and one in the present day. In the 1600s, we follow Ursula, a village midwife who is accused of witchcraft. In the present day, we follow Adrianna, who goes to stay at a secluded cottage in Norfolk while she is on sabbatical leave. She finds herself feeling curious about the cottage and its history.

I was very drawn into the story as the author brought two narratives, and two sets of characters, to life. In both cases, I felt there was an eerie atmosphere, with a touch of magic. There was a lot of suspense too; I kept turning the pages, and found I had to read one chapter, then another, then another.

This was a little bit like two stories in one, and I became invested in both stories. This was a page turner that helped me to escape, and kept me entertained for a few hours.

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachel's Random Resources, Boldwood Books, and to the author, for the opportunity to read and review this.

Cool cover, exciting blurb - I grabbed this one!

This is what it's about: we are in Norfolk, in a small town in the idyllic middle of nowhere. Adrianna from London is burned out and is taking a sabbatical. She has chosen an ancient cottage for this and she just wants to relax. She soon realises that the building is shrouded in mystery, that things and energies are at work here that cannot be explained - and even though some things are spooky and mysterious, Adrianna doesn't let that stop her from investigating. She finds an old diary that was kept more than 400 years ago by Ursula, who once lived here.....and the more Adrianna deciphers the old pages, the closer she feels to Ursula, who once lived here as a midwife and herbalist.
The story is told alternately by Adrianna in the here and now and by Ursula from 1646, and of course the shared house is the connecting element. But the further the story progresses, the more similarities emerge: Adrianna, actually a successful power woman, has let her narcissistic boyfriend take away her self-confidence and is now finding her way back to herself with difficulty and with the help of new friends. Ursula, on the other hand, decided early on not to let a man into her life, because her personal freedom has always been her most valuable asset - especially because as a healer she repeatedly encounters domestic violence, which she definitely does not want for herself. It becomes problematic for her when a new rich doctor moves to town who pulls out all the stops to possess her... and after all, that was the age of the Inquisition...

Yes, and so the book in general has a very feminist component for me, which I really liked. I found it interesting that the protagonist from the 17th century decided so vehemently for her personal freedom and for being single and went through with it - the lady had personality! - and the protagonist from our times lets herself be so taken over by her boyfriend. Domestic violence on the psychological level, which is not immediately recognizable as such - I think that has potential for identification. I found these relationship issues in both eras to be portrayed in a really fascinating way, that was the big theme in the book for me. Maybe other readers see it differently, of course there was a ghost feeling and mystery, and the setting in historical Norfolk also came across well to me, but as I said, I found the relationship issues particularly exciting.

The book was generally a great read, I found the characters authentic, and I could empathize with both women. It grabbed me. Cool plot twists, and an absolutely brilliant and unpredictable ending!
Conclusion: it was great! Many thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the review copy!

Leaving her boyfriend behind in London, Adrianna escapes to rural Norfolk in order to recharge and take stock of her life. However, the cottage she rents is a place of secrets and shadows and with a sense of the past lingering, Adrianna soon becomes immersed in the story of Ursula, a local wise woman, who lived in the cottage during the middle years of the seventeenth century.

This time slip novel captures beautifully the indecision of Adriana in the modern time and explores her reasons for leaving London, whilst at the same time we are seamlessly whisked back to a troubled time in our past when vulnerable woman were at the mercy of unscrupulous men who were hell bent on revenge, and during the time when the witch hunts were at their most venomous.

I've really enjoyed spending time in both time frames which are brought to life with meticulous detail and it was interesting to see similarities playing out in the lives of both of these young women. Heart breaking and consuming in equal measure, I followed Ursula's story with a sense of foreboding and yet was equally consumed with Adrianna's very modern dilemma in the present. The House of the Witch weaves together two different time-frames and yet does so with a fine eye for detail and a strong sense of both history and destiny.

The House of the Witch by Clare Marchant is a dual timeline novel set in Norfolk. One timeline is set in the present day where Adrianna is escaping to the countryside for a break from the stress of her job and city life. The other is set in 1646 featuring the witch hunts in East Anglia at that time.

Both timelines were equally compelling and I quickly became emotionally invested in the strong characters of Adrianna and Ursula. These two women linked by a cottage, showed strength and resilience in order to face their adversaries.

This was my first time reading a Clare Marchant novel but it will not be the last. I really enjoyed the authors writing style and attention to historical details. My thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for providing me with a digital review copy.

A brilliant book which I thoroughly enjoyed. Had me totally gripped. Would highly recommend. Look forward to reading more books by Clare.

My first Clare Marchant novel and it won't be my last!

A very well written dual timeline book about the power of standing up for yourself among all odds.
The more I read, the more the timelines were tied in a way. in the 1600's it was a woman that had seen hardship all her life and trauma at the hands of men. In the present day it was a woman who needed to know just how strong she was when she wasn't being a victim of foul play.

I loved the way the characters were so real to me that I felt their emotions alongside them. Because of this, most of the book had me feeling extremely angry in a way that good writing can do when it taps into your head and makes you resonate with the characters and situations.

The endings were good although I wish there were more on the familiar and the part it played or more to Addie's story than feeling what she feels. I guess I just wanted to read more!

I thank Netgalley, Boldwood Books and of course Clare Marchant for the opportunity to read the book and leave this review with my honest opinions. This review has been posted on Goodreads, Storygraph and will be on Amazon shortly too.

This is a dual timeline story, that alternates chapters between the two timelines. In the 1646 timeline, Ursula is the village midwife and healer. She is single and plans to stay that way: her views on men tainted from the fact that her father had beaten and killed her mother. When a new doctor comes into town and she attracts his attention, Ursula is forced to either submit to being his mistress, or he will destroy her reputation and then have her tried for witchcraft.. The other timeline is in present day, when Adrianna is renting a cottage near the sea in rural Norfolk, when she finds a mysterious bundle of notes hidden under a floorboard, and a strangely-carved stone, drawing her into a centuries-old mystery…

This book was excellent. I admit, Adrianna frustrated me, the way she was so obtuse in her relationship, and how her boyfriend was gaslighting her. It was hard to understand how she couldn't see any of the red flags, so it was especially satisfying when she finally wised up, and he got what he deserved I really liked Ursula. I believe this is pretty much a true representation of what it was like to be a single woman in those times, as disheartening as that is. If you are a fan of historical fiction, you will definitely want to add this one to your TBR pile. I highly recommend it!

When it’s done well, dual time fiction is always rather a personal favourite – and you won’t find it done much better than this, two strong story threads, the historical one impeccably researched and delivered, the contemporary one entirely involving and emotional, both beautifully wrapped around each other with common themes and links. Beautifully written, this was a book I found completely impossible to put down, reading it in one wonderful sitting, furious at the many betrayals, shocked by the unexpected twists and turns, willing on both women as they fought for their lives in their different ways.

In 1646, Ursula has resolutely chosen to keep herself to herself – the bloodstain on the fireplace of her home a forcible reminder of the cruelty of men, in a world where women are treated as possessions with no agency or voices of their own. She quietly goes about her business – growing and gathering herbs, dispensing remedies, delivering babies – until she comes to the attention of the newly appointed local doctor, who initially shows interest in her remedies but becomes obsessed with making her his mistress. And when she makes it amply clear that he won’t have his way, he sets about destroying her reputation – at a time when the most innocent and well-meaning activities can all too easily be interpreted as witchcraft, with the most serious of consequences.

In the present day, Adrianna is taking a six month sabbatical from her high-powered job, staying in the same Norfolk cottage while she recovers from burn-out. Deciding to tackle the overgrown garden, she comes across some stones with strange markings – and indoors, after a few experiences with a touch of the supernatural, a hidden journal plainly written by a herbalist who once lived there. With the help of others in the community she slowly becomes part of, she sets out to find out more about whatever may have happened in the past – and uncovers Ursula’s story, with a number of surprising discoveries along the way. And her own life takes an equally unexpected turn, with parallels between past and present – and a real element of danger that makes the pages turn even faster.

Both stories are absolutely compelling. We witness every stage of the gross injustice of Ursula’s treatment, with exceptional historical authenticity and quite stunning emotional impact – she’s incredibly real in every way, tremendously sympathetic, and many of her horrific experiences moved me to tears. And as for Adrianna – she certainly proves to be considerably stronger than she ever believed she could be, facing every setback head on. And I really loved the resonances between the two stories – they’re both particularly strong women, both victims in their own way but drawing on unexpected reserves, both wonderfully drawn, their comparable stories spanning the centuries separating them. The supernatural elements are perfectly handled – yes, perhaps a touch disturbing at times if you’re sensitive to such things, but a wholly essential and intriguing part of the story. And the conclusion, drawing the stories together, was one of the best I could have possibly asked for – extraordinary bravery, resilience of the highest order, and an outcome that was so very satisfying and completely unexpected.

I really want to delve into the detail – the ways in which the evidence against Ursula began to mount through circumstances entirely outside her control, the small details that became increasingly damning, along with the detail about Adrianna’s life that drives her personal story. But I won’t – this is a book that everyone needs to read for themselves, to become as immersed in as I was, to become part of the individuals’ lives, to experience the heart-stopping twists and turns, to be moved by the depth of feeling that permeates the whole narrative. This really was an exceptional read, most definitely one of my books of the year, by a particularly special author whose every future book will be top of my “must read” list – I really loved it.

This is an amazing dual timeline story from Clare Marchant. The cleverly woven stories from Ursula and Adrianna gripped me from the very beginning, and I found the history of the cottage fascinating.
The tales of the witch hunts were horrendous and to read about the injustice carried out via mob rule made Ursula’s story the more compelling. Her independence and courage seen as a bad thing in a time of suspicion.
I loved seeing how the history of the cottage and the uncovering of its secrets gave Adrianna the strength to make her own decisions for the future she deserved

Claire Marchant is a favorite author of mine for her time-slip stories The House of the Witch is a bit different take on time-slip from her prior novels, but just as compelling.

Adrianna has rented a small cottage to recuperate from a breakdown due to the stresses of her job and her boyfriend The cottage dates back to the 16th century and though a bit rundown has a certain charm . Adrianna starts to feel some weird cold spots and strange happenings and then she discovers the diary of a 17th century midwife and wise woman under the floorboards. The diary belonged to Ursula, a young woman who is making her living as a single woman helping the poor and downtrodden in her village. Of course this is 1646 when any young woman dabbling in the healing arts can be accused of being a witch. A doctor named Oliver Bruton shows up in Ursula’s village and takes her rejection of him very badly, You can imagine how he decides to get his revenge for her rejection. Meanwhile Adrianna is having her own issues with her boyfriend. The two time periods meld together through different chapters. I enjoyed Ursula’s story a bit more than Adrianna’s but I enjoyed the story as a whole.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher Boldwood books and the author for the chance to read and review this ARC.

I would like to thank netgalley and Boldwood Books for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Poor writing.

A fabulous story set in dual time-lines, prese t day and 1646. A lovely and interesting book which I throughly enjoyed. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Clare Marchant for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for The House of the Witch coming out August 9, 2024. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author. I absolutely love stories about witches during the 1600s. I think the Salem Witch Trials is a very tragic and fascinating time to learn about. So I quite enjoyed Ursula‘s storyline. However, I think the modern storyline with Adrianna wasn’t as interesting to me. I think it took me out of the story. I couldn’t quite see the relation between the dual timelines. I’m also just not a fan of the toxic boyfriend trope. I didn’t like to read about it. I would check out other books by this author, but I don’t think this book was necessarily for me.

A 4.5 star read for me. This is a skilfully written, powerful and rather dark story of two women separated by the centuries and linked by a house.
21st century Adrianna has lost her confidence and takes a sabbatical in the countryside to recover her peace of mind. In the cottage, she finds evidence of an inhabitant from the 17th century.
Adrianna and Ursula are linked by more than just the cottage, as it turns out, and I enjoyed the modern character’s journey towards understanding. She has much to learn and at times I wanted to shout at her. The author cleverly helped to show how the kind of circumstance depicted can play out.
Ursula’s story was painful to read at times, but very well done and felt authentic in terms of historical period. The setting was beautifully rendered, too. I admired Ursula, who is stubborn and principled almost to a fault.

This was my first read by Clare Marchant but it won’t be my last… I've already got two of her other books on my Kindle and will look forward to reading them.

Great dual timeline historical mystery. Would definitely recommend. .
Great detail from the past, and it kept you guessing what was going to happen.
I will be looking for other novels by this author.

Thanks to Boldwood Books and NefGalley for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I enjoyed this book a lot and definitely agree with the marketing that states “for fans of Weyward.” I actually enjoyed the story of this book more than Weyward, but it got SO repetitive that I felt like I could skim whole chapters and not really miss much.

This book is written in a dual timeline, Ursula in 1646 and Adrianna in present day. I preferred the Ursula storyline and wished it had maybe been a 70/30 split of the two timelines rather than half and half.

Adrianna has a toxic boyfriend and she excuses his bad behavior far too often. He spend a couple of thousand pounds of her money without asking her, left her apartment a mess, and dealt with him being rude about her taking a sabbatical from work. I just find those characters hard to relate to or believe.

I give this 3.5 stars and recommend to anyone who is looking for a witchy book for the Halloween season!

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this dual timeline book and was hooked from the beginning.

In 1646 Ursula, who is the village midwife and helps treats villagers with her herbs and potents in a little cottage near the Norfolk coast.

In the present, Adrianna comes to stay there for 6 months taking time out from her job. She stays on her own while her boyfriend Rick leaves to continue his job in London, making trips back at weekends.

When she begins to settle in, Adrianna feels that something is different with the house. Whilst cleaning, she finds a diary from 1646 with a warning on the first page she reads.

Ursula wrote that diary, who was very happy living there on her own, because she was aware of how men behaved with their wives. But, when a new doctor came to the village, he set his sights on her and will do whatever it takes to make her his.

The story was beautifully written, keeping you turning the pages throughout.

I highly recommend this book.

I wish this book had had a content warning for domestic violence. It’s a strong focus of the book. The pace is slow, and the book never captured my interest.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

“The House of the Witch” by Clare Marchant is an emotional 5-star read! In 2024, Addie needs to unwind after issues at work, so she rents a small cottage where she intends to enjoy a 6-month sabbatical. Meanwhile, in 1646, Ursula wants to live a solitary life as an herbalist and a midwife for the less fortunate in her small town.

This story is told from the POVs of Addie and Ursula, who unfortunately have very similar struggles with the men in their lives. You get an in-depth look at the trials and tribulations of a woman who wishes to remain single and is just trying to live her life in the 1600s. It’s baffling to learn the ways someone can be deemed a witch. Clare Marchant did an outstanding job weaving these two timelines together. I will be enjoying more books by this author!

Thanks to Boldwood Books, Clare Marchant, and NetGalley for providing me with the opportunity to read this ARC and share my honest review.