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ClareR (5991 KP) rated The Witches of Vardø in Books

Dec 30, 2022  
The Witches of Vardø
The Witches of Vardø
Anya Bergman | 2023 | Fiction & Poetry, Religion, Thriller
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
What starts off as a story about the life of a child in a fishing community, soon turns into a seemingly hopeless struggle for their lives. It’s dangerous to be a woman in the 1600’s. Dancing, laughing, drinking - all of these simple, everyday things can result in an accusation of witchcraft. Funnily enough, if a man does them, that’s ok (I found myself becoming increasingly frustrated with the injustice of it all!).
The young girls are the ones that hold the story together. They are the link between the accused women (their mothers, aunt and another villager) and the King’s prisoner, Anna. Anna is trusted to ‘care’ for the witches whilst they’re held in the Witches hold - a thoroughly inhumane incarceration. She’s a woman with an education, so I expected for her to treated a lot worse than she was.
There’s a great mix of history and magic in this, although done in such a way as the magic didn’t seem out of place - and fitted in perfectly with the rest of the book. It was interesting to learn about the way the Sámi were regarded by the rest of Finn-mark (I’m unsure of the spelling!) - even though it wasn’t good (they weren’t Christians, and therefore dangerous).
It was a really engrossing read - I loved it.