River Witch by Cheryl Burman – Review by Jennifer Gordon

River Witch by Cheryl Burman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a wonderfully written story, inspired by the true story of a ‘wise woman’, skilled in healing who was accused of witchcraft in the early 20th century, in the Forest of Dean, where the author lives. This engaging story focuses on a farmer’s daughter, Hester, who dreams of more, as she envies the freedom of the river nymphs and hears Sabrina’s whispers of “Be wise, be strong”. Hester believes that the healing wisdom of fields and forest is what Sabrina wants her to do, and this is reinforced when she meets a man powerful in herbal lore, Aaron. However her mother scorns her daughters dreams and ambitions as ‘witchery’, and orders Hester to find a husband and settle down.
Hester flees to Aaron but is surprised when he too insists that she should marry and be like ‘ordinary’ folk. Hester is a strong, independent and determined heroine and she fights for her dreams. Meanwhile, Aaron has to reconcile his past if he’s to accept the future, and the river will either help or hinder them both. This is a captivating story which had me hooked all the way through. The detailed descriptive narrative brought the setting vividly to life, making me feel immersed in the storyline. The plot twists kept me gripped, and I found myself reading late into the night, as I could not put this book down. The characters are so well defined, I felt like I was there alongside them, and I was left thinking about Hester, long after I had closed the book.

View all my reviews