A book to renew your love of nature and the inherent magic that moves around women. The female strength and softness ; the possibility of birth and renewal.......sure in the knowledge that those who hurt her children will suffer death, or worse, by her hand, quite willingly. Three women of different generations linked by their power and bond with nature. Sometimes the veil can be brushed aside to allow aid and comfort between the threads of time. Well worth a few quiet hours.

Weyward
by Emilia Hart

Finish 9.1.23

Book 3/60 2023

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Good

🦅 This story gripped me from the very start. The first narrative of 3 (Kate's) was my favourite, and it pulled me in immediately.

🪶 I enjoyed all 3 timelines and narratives, whereas usually in a book written in this style I usually find myself skimming one of the stories in order to return to my favourite.

🕷 Each character certainly had their own voice, and I enjoyed how each of their stories had common interwoven themes and shared history.

The Bad

🦅 I didn't find the story entirely original - it may be that I read a lot of books in this style and genre, but I didn't feel the author had a viewpoint that I hadn't come across before.

🪶 The descriptions of nature and the crows became repetitive at times, although they were well written and atmospheric.

🕷 The descriptions of spiders on necks and in hair were too much for me!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

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Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins for this eARC!

I’m always drawn to books about witches and magic, but sometimes they can be disappointing. This one wasn’t.

I loved the three person perspective over many centuries - all women from the same family line, discovering themselves and facing their own trials and tribulations.

This is a story about female empowerment, family, and embracing your weird. It was so rewarding to see the main character grow and become a stronger, better person, who had more self worth and a deeper understanding of her own power. There were some really satisfying moments in this one, as well as those more heartbreaking.

The stories of the women are equally interesting, and you can see how their lives intersect even without them living at the same time. They were likeable and inspiring and just completely badass, even when experiencing heartbreak and prejudice and even worse!

Always be a Weyward woman.

An interesting blend of folklore and magic realism bring this tale of female empowerment to life. I don't usually enjoy books where the characters are from different centuries but this one held my interest enough to want to discover their connections.
Thank you to netgalley and HarperCollins for an advance copy of this book.

Weyward is a riveting and absorbing debut novel which tells the story of 3 generations of women living at different times, 5 centuries apart, all linked by blood and birth, and by accusations of witchcraft. They also each have a real affinity with the natural world.

In 1619: Altha is on trial for witchcraft, accused of killing a local farmer. A natural healer, or “wise woman”, she is known for her uncanny connection with nature and animals and learned her skills from her mother.
1942: Violet, the daughter of the 9th Viscount of Kendall lives at Orton Hall and is more interested in collecting insects and climbing trees than in becoming the young lady her birth dictates, until a chain of shocking events changes her life forever.
2019: Kate flees London, and her abusive, violent, and controlling partner Simon. She heads for Cumbria and Weyward Cottage, which she inherited from her great-aunt Violet. Here, a secret lurks in the bones of the house, hidden ever since the witch-hunts of the 17th century, and this is where the interlinking stories of all 3 women ultimately will be revealed.

The storylines of these 3 women are woven together in alternating chapters, and the author moves the reader effortlessly and seamlessly between them, and their respective historical periods, in such a way that it never jars. The challenges faced by them individually, inform each other’s stories and are reflected within them. Over 500 years, and generations apart, each of them is subject to misogyny, abuse, and control, from both men and wider society. But they each meet these threats and challenges head on, finding their own strength and power within. The themes of female empowerment, resilience, and a strong affinity with the natural world are very strong, in this feminist novel.

The characterisation is realistic and believable; it is incredibly well plotted and constructed; it is beautifully written with descriptions of the natural world and landscape which are vividly and exquisitely lyrical, and, living in Cumbria, as I do, I was truly impressed by the creation of the sense of place within the novel.

Weyward is a brilliantly immersive novel, which is very hard to put down. The reader quickly become invested in the characters and their story, and the narrative finally leads them to a just and satisfying ending. The writing is extremely assured and it is hard to believe that it is in fact a debut. After such an impressive start, I will be very keen to read subsequent novels from Emilia Hart!
Thank you to HarperCollins, Netgalley and Emilia Hart for an e-ARC in exchange for an independent review.

Weyward was an absolute delight to read. I devoured the book and couldn't put it down. The writing was brilliant, it got me hooked from the very first page. I was immersed in the characters' stories and immediately felt like I knew them and could sympathise with them.

The author follows the story of three women, Altha, Violet and Kate, who have lived in different time periods. Their stories, at first similarly unrelated, turn out to be intertwined and tangled in many ways. The author explored different types of abusive relationships - within a small village community, within a family and within a romantic relationship. Following the women's stories, we observe different ways they break the chains people try to put them in and find their power.

Weyward is a story of finding your inner power and freedom, self-empowerment and courage. Emilia Hart shows in brilliant ways what it means to be a woman and how strong you have to be to overcome the judgement of society and gender discrimination so you can live the life you have chosen.

I adored this book. I'm very grateful Netgalley for the arc! I hope Emilia would tell ys more stories in the future!

The Weyward women have captured my heart, with this enthralling book. I did not want this book to end, I was enraptured.

Altha. Set in the 1600’s, a period of time when being different was dangerous. King James was on a witch-hunt mission during those times.
Violet. 1940’s and living a sheltered life in Cumbria. Drawn to insects, birds and bugs.
Kate 2019. Kate is in an abusive relationship, she needs to escape, far away from the clutches of this man.

The book starts with Kate, present time of 2019.
Without giving away any spoilers, Kate needs to get away, start a new life.
Altha, Violet and Kate are the three main characters. The story moves seamlessly between the three, and the time gap of the centuries.
I absolutely loved reading each snippet of their life, moving forward, wondering with curiosity what may happen? but not wanting the book to end.
The book does cover some very sensitive topics.
For me personally, this book is a winner. I want to read more books like this! And from this author, Emilia Hart.

Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction for an advanced e-book copy. Opinions of this book are entirely my own.

I don't always like books with moving timelines - I find them confusing and often lose track of where we are and when things happen - but because this is following three totally separate people in three totally separate timelines, and each one is more or less in chronological order, it didn't bother me at all this time. Which is great, because it left me time to concentrate on the beautiful writing!

If I were absolutely forced to pick something bad, I'd say that Violet's section felt like it was happening about a hundred years before it was actually set. The whole thing was practically Victorian. I understand that the timing had to line up with Kate, but it still seemed odd to me.

However, that's a tiny thing that didn't bother me at the time - it just occurred to me afterwards! It didn't affect my enjoyment at all; I know that Violet's father may have deliberately kept things old fashioned in the house. (I may have sobbed a little during the epilogue, when - ooh, spoilers!)

I can see why some people are struggling with parts of this book. The writing is very vivid and explicit, and it deals with some very heavy topics. It's all very true to life, of course, but it may too much for some readers - do be aware of the warnings!

I loved this, I can see why it's getting so much attention, and I think it's going to do really well.

Weyward is a historical fiction with magical realism that follows three different women, linked by blood and nature.

The synopsis for this book was really interesting to me. However, I just felt incredibly underwhelmed by it all.

The writing was mediocre. It felt stilted in places and lacked any warmth and passion I expected from what the story was trying to relate. There were some major flaws with the plot delivery, making it feel forced to reach a point that was necessary to the story. I also have to mention the slight continuity error on the final two pages (how do you take off a necklace twice???)

The characters came across rather bland to me, as if they were being forced to match each other in order to fulfil their place in the story.

That all said, the premise really gripped me, I was driven to continue so I could see this connection between these characters and be enveloped on this natural take to witches and witchcraft. If you're looking for a natural witch that uses her powers for good and has an affinity towards nature, in particular insects and birds, then this is indeed a book for you!

Overall, I was very intrigued by this novel and its remarkable potential. I'm just incredibly sad to say that its delivery didn't match this and left me slightly bored in places.

Thank you so much HarperCollins UK, Harper Fiction and Netgalley for the arc of Weyward by Emilia Hart in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

I would describe Weyward as a feminist historical fiction with a strong vein of fantasy, witchcraft and naturalism running through it.

Once I started this book, which had languished for too long waiting for me to pick it up, I didn’t want to put it down. I became totally invested in the lives of these amazing Weyward women.

Altha is on trial for witchcraft in 1619, accused of the murder of a cow farmer in her village. Violet, is oppressed by her father as World War II rages, unable to realise her dreams of escape to study nature and insects. While Kate is trapped in an abusive relationship in 2019, with the only escape route being to run to the abandoned cottage left to her by an aunt she hardly knew. This is the story of these Weyward women, separated by time, united by love, witchcraft and nature.

This book is written with such heartfelt emotion, unflinching as it never shies from hard hitting topics including misogyny, physical and sexual abuse, abortion, death, illness, mental health and more. Yet, it also tells the story of nature and it’s beauty, reclamation of power, recognition of self and the innate strength of these amazing women.

This is not a read for those who may be triggered by such hard hitting topics but, it is a book that brims with hope and optimism - “Perhaps one day, she said, there would be a safer time. When women could walk the earth, shining bright with power, and yet live.”

I wholeheartedly recommend this for all you Weyward women and will definitely be rereading this in the future when my preordered edition arrives.

I had just finished reading a historical fiction focusing on the life of a witch which is due to be published in the same month as Weyward, so it seems this is a theme for 2023 fiction!

Weyward tells the story of three ladies who are related to each other and have a link to witchcraft across the centuries. There’s Altha, who was accused of being a witch in the 1600s, Kate who is running away from an abusive relationship in the present day and the childhood story of her great aunt Violet in the 1920s - who suffers a sheltered childhood until she is taken advantage of by a relative. Each character felt realistic and well-drawn and were relatable in their own right. The chapters alternated perspectives between them, but I never rushed through one to get to any of the others – all of the stories were interesting and held my attention. There is also a nice link between them that gets stronger as you read further on.

The witchcraft theme is lightly handled – there is an air of real magic surrounding some of the things they can do but a lot of it relies on knowing the natural world and healing. This means you don’t have to suspend your disbelief too much to enjoy the story. Just a note that it does get quite dark in places with themes of abuse, control and sexual assault. Most of the storylines involve pregnancy as a theme to link them together as well.

Overall, this is Emilia Hart’s debut and with this strong start, she is certainly an author to watch out for in the future! Thank you to NetGalley & Harper Collins UK – Harper Fiction & Borough Press for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

— 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 —

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: Weyward
𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬: N/A
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫(𝐬): Emilia Hart
𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: Historical Horror
𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝: 2nd February 2023
𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 5/5

TW: domestic abuse, rape, miscarriage, stillbirth

”The connections between and among women are the most feared, the most problematic, and the most potentially transforming force on the planet.”

This is a beautiful and compelling story with one main goal: to empower women. It includes witches, creepy crawlies, and three points of view that I will never forget.

Three Weyward women spanning across the generations struggle with the sexism and misogyny in their lives. Each of these women have nature in their hearts and life force which has been quashed in different ways.

For Altha, this connection is well known throughout the village and gets her accused of witchcraft in 1619.

For Violet, set in 1942, this connection is forcibly dampened by her father and the servants, who try to lock away the strangeness inside her.

For Kate, set in 2019, this connection is completely and utterly stifled, her confidence is broken, and the bruises blooming on her skin are another secret of hers that’s trying to get out.

I became fully invested in each of these characters immediately, never resenting when the POV would switch and always eager to learn more about each of their stories and how they could intertwine across centuries. I was not disappointed.

In fact, this book reminds me of a blend between Mrs England with its gothic atmosphere, and The Change with its wonderful feminist magical realism.

Overall, this book was a love letter to weirdness in women and how no man should ever underestimate the power we hold.

Side note: I properly love the UK cover of this and can’t wait to get my hands on it!

🧚🏻‍♀️

This is an amazing story about a family of witches across several generations.. About the help they tried to give people and the way they were mistreated, mainly by men. Very easy to relate to the story and the characters, A thoroughly fascinating read.

This is the 1st of Emilia Hart’s that I’ve read. It is really quite good, torn between rating it 4.75 or 5. I liked that it span such many years, parallel story telling, I liked that it all linked up, no loose ends. So harrowing for some of the scenes, really tugs at one’s heartstrings. She writes so well, portraying such strength in the female characters in the book. I think I read it initially in a stage of my life where I have been distracted by everything around me that I found it really difficult to carry on reading. I’m glad I did! Thank you Emilia Hart and Harper Collins for the advanced review copy via NetGalley.

I had this book sitting on my Netgalley shelf for a while and I have no idea why I put it off so long! Such a well woven tale, I read it more or less in one go - I couldn’t put it down.

It tells the story of three women of the Weyward family, separated by time but bound by their gift - the ability to talk to and embrace the power of the natural world.

A feminist novel in that all of the women are breaking free of male domination in one way or another and all come to realise their power when they most need it.

I seem to be going through a spell of excellent debut novels at the moment and this is another one to add to the list

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins for the chance to read an early copy

This story of 3 women from different generations of the same family is beautifully told. I was fully invested in the lives of each one, and their stories both differed and interlinked in intricate and interesting ways. The natural world plays a huge part in her novel in a very powerful way and I was swept away by the descriptions of the earth and it’s creatures. A beautiful book.

Thank you so much Netgalley and HarperCollins UK for an advanced copy of Weyward.

This book is a MUST read, I was completely obsessed. The story takes place over several centuries with three different generations of women telling their stories. And how their lives have been changed forever by the abusive men in their life.

It was such a beautiful read and I want everyone and I mean, everyone, to read this book.

I haven’t stopped thinking about this beautiful beautiful book since I finished it, as soon as I finished the last page, I wanted to go back and read it all over again.

This book will have you feeling all the emotions, I hardly get scared by books, but without giving spoilers, there’s a scene in a part of the house which had me shook, I felt I was right there with the character. I also experienced happiness, fear, empowerment and annoyance at some of the people Kate had to deal with!

All of the woman were so well written, I felt a bond with all of them, each of the timelines were interesting.

An unbelievably amazing debut, I’m excited to read the authors next book

Altha - 1619

Altha is on trial, accused of being a witch.

“Night had already fallen for me.”

Violet - 1942

Violet’s father is appalled by her behaviour (climbing trees is most inappropriate) and is threatening to send her to finishing school so he can marry her off to an eligible young man. Violet wants to be a scientist. She would also like to be allowed to wear trousers. No one understands her “insect obsession”.

‘Is there something wrong with me?’

Kate - 2019

When Kate leaves her abusive relationship, she goes to Weyward Cottage, which was owned by her great-aunt. It is here that she will come to terms with her past and discover her heritage.

“I am the monster.”

The first Weyward child is always a girl. This is the story of three of them, centuries apart yet connected.

Although each Weyward is given a voice in this story, Altha’s is the only one told in first person. I found something to like about all three women. In particular, their affinity with nature endeared them to me.

Be aware that on page violence against women is part of the story in every timeline. The graphic nature of some of this abuse may be triggering for some readers. Thankfully, women reclaiming their power and having the courage to be themselves was also part of the story.

Favourite no context quote: “Perhaps one day, she said, there would be a safer time. When women could walk the earth, shining bright with power, and yet live.”

Content warnings include abortion, domestic abuse, mental health, miscarriage, physical abuse of an animal, racial slur, sexual assault, stillbirth and suicidal ideation. Readers with emetophobia may have trouble with some scenes.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and The Borough Press, an imprint of HarperCollins UK, for the opportunity to read this book.

I absolutely devoured this book - finished in a day and couldn’t put it down. Phenomenal story telling of three Weyward women and their connections with the natural world. Very real issues that were hard to read at times and written very very well. 5/5 this will stay with me for a long time.