[Review] The Stitch Witches by Krissie K. Williams

Thirty years after the Salem Witch Trials, a series of sinister deaths plagues Promise Land, Massachusetts, once a safe haven for Puritans. Frightened for their lives, the villagers assume the grisly murders were done by a madman, but soon fear there is something more devilish at play. What are the secrets buried deep in Promise Land, and why are they unearthing themselves now?

Orphelia Dudley’s family has made their fortune through the slave trade, enjoying religious and social status in Promise Land. As the town embarks upon another witch hunt to find the murderer, Orphelia and Settie, a woman enslaved by her family, become intertwined in a mystery to stop the deaths, mania, and fear gripping their town.

It's October and the nights are drawing in, so what better way to celebrate the start of Spooky Season than with a historical horror? Anyone who knows me knows that I love my history, and I love my horror just as much - stories of the witch trials around Salem have long fascinated me so when I saw this book I knew I had to read it.

I'll admit, when I first opened this up on my kindle I was a little taken aback by all the thee and thous. Of course we know that this is historically accurate but it's not something you really come across too often in historical fiction. It didn't take me long to get used to it however, and it really did help immerse me into the world of Puritan Massachusetts. Promise Land, a small town in Puritan Massachusetts was the perfect setting for this dark little read - religion is often an excellent backdrop for horror, more so when you know of the sort of horrors that people inflicted on those they believed to be witches during those times. And then of course you have the idea that was so prominent back then, that women were lesser than men added on top of the horror of slavery. All of these things can be mixed up into the perfect horror story - a town ruled by fear of ghostly women conjured to commit murder, slaves locked in a hellish existence with their masters and the worry that they would be blamed for such horrible deeds, and the fact that the people living in this time were so deeply entrenched in their religion that they could not even begin to contemplate that such horrors were conjured by one of their own.

This book was so difficult to put down. The narrative just flowed superbly and had I not forced myself to put it down, I'd have finished it in one sitting. It took me two sittings. And then I was sad as anything when the story ended. It's been a while since a novel has stuck with me for days after finishing it, and I've barely been able to stop thinking about this read it's just that good. The characterisation within was so good that I found myself adoring some characters and despising others - Charity, for instance, wound me up to no end and I found myself silently cheering when her husband snapped at her towards the end. Okay, okay so he was horribly misogynistic about it but she was so annoying. Settie and Mama, however, I absolutely adored and my heart broke over their story. The story of the titular witches is just as heartbreaking - without going into too many spoilers, it is just another horrific depiction of gender during these times.

Williams has done something incredibly special with The Stitch Witches and created something rare - a historical horror masterpiece. It's dark. It's atmospheric. It's emotional. And its a page turner that you will find yourself loathe to put down even when it hits the Witching Hour and your eyes can barely stay open. More so it's horribly creepy, and leaves you with a distinct feeling of unease.

5/5

I would like to extend a special thank you to Netgalley, Krissie K. Williams and Quill & Crow for the advanced copy of this novel.