This is a good work of historical fiction set in the time of Oliver Cromwell and Charles I. Judith, a sixish midwife and herbalist, is also the younger daughter of Shakespeare. Fearing persecution as a witch she flees her home in Strafford. We follow her adventures and learn about her earlier life when she returns to London to hide . She also travels to Oxford where she cares for the wounded on battlefields and comes to terms with her life.

We meet Judith, Shakespeare’s daughter, in the Year of Our Lord 1646 in this follow-up novel to Tiffany’s My Father Had a Daughter, where we followed her life as a child into young adulthood. We left Judith newly married to Quiney and anticipating their first child, and now join her about forty years later at the age of sixty-one long after the loss of both their sons to plague. Now they are “a geezer and a crone… creaking about and grumbling as [they] perform [their] separate businesses.” And Judith admits she is not a wife “with the soft voice that turns away wrath.” This novel can be enjoyed without reading the first book, because Tiffany does a superb job of weaving the past events into the current narrative.

Four years into the English Civil War, Quiney has never stopped mourning the loss of his sons, and neither has Judith, but she keeps busy with her healing arts and midwifery. Showing up on their doorstep is Jane and her sister’s child, Pearl-of-Great-Price. Judith rashly allows them to stay because of their connection to her family. Jane is devoutly religious, and Judith has little use for gospellers, and even though Jane annoyingly spouts scripture and bursts into song non-stop, a friendship grows. Pearl is a “mad hoyden,” devilishly unruly, and spontaneously disruptive. When the two accompany Judith on a birthing call and Pearl begins growling and barking, things quickly unravel. Out of threats and fears of witchery accusations, Judith, Jane, and Pearl leave the village until things calm down. They head to a much-changed London from Judith’s younger days, and adventure follows as Judith revels in her new freedom.

The unique characters of Jane and Pearl add so much texture to the novel, and Judith herself, witty and indomitable, is a delight. The dialogue and language flow easily with a feel of their time. An immersive, satisfying read.

Historical Novels Review, February 2025