This book was so good! One of the best debuts I’ve read!

Before I delve in to how it made me feel the cover is absolutely stunning! It just gives me all the rich silks in oil painting vibes.

I was really hopeful for this book and it did not disappoint, it did not disappoint at all, the writing is rich, the book is well paced and takes you on such a journey.

What I loved about this book was the generational timeline, three women, three very different time periods and yet the experiences are so relatable- this is an incredible empowering novel and a hard stare at the violence men wield towards women. I am not a fan normally of past/present timeline as I find it hard to jump back and forth this does not happen Emilia Hart seamlessly takes us on this journey. I thought it was also really clever to have Weyward cottage as an anchoring point, a centre of past and present.

The first part of the book is slower but Hart very cleverly creates a tension that pulls together threads from each of these women’s stories and stitches together one heck of a tale!

There’s witchcraft and exploration of British Witch trials an area where I have such an interest, the abuse of power, family intrigue and mystery and it’s so clever how nature mirrors the women’s experience.

This is not an easy read the themes explored are heavy and could be triggering so please check your triggers.

This book is a powerhouse, can’t wait to read more from Emilia Hart!

A really gripping tale with 3 timelines, laced with witchcraft and showing how women find ways to survive and deal with controlling and cruel men. It’s fast paced with fairly short section for each woman - Althea in 17th c who is caught up in the Witch trials; Violet in early 20th c who is stifled by her father and Kate in the present day with an abusive, controlling husband. There are some unexpected twists and some heart-stopping moments and I think this book will fly high in the charts as a page-turner with wide appeal.

🏷️Thank you to Emilia Hart, Netgalley and The Borough Press for an ARC of this brilliant book in exchange for an honest review.

📙If you loved The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner or The Familiars by Stacey Halls, I bet you'll enjoy this

I love stories laced with witchcraft and simmering tension, ones where women take control of their own lives. Weyward delivers exactly those things, but in a way I've not often read in historical fiction. I never thought I'd enjoy a book with so much insect content, but I'm glad I read this book! (And a bit jealous of Hart's excellent research skills)

The way the story connects the three protagonists through time, hardship, location and the natural world is incredibly compelling. Notably, the more triggering subjects mentioned in the book are handled carefully.

Once I'd hit about 40% of the novel, I was completely hooked and didn't stop reading until I finished the author's acknowledgements!

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Can't wait to see what Hart writes next!

Thankyou to Net galley and Harper Collins for an e-arc of Weyward by Emilia Hart. All opinions are my own and are based fully on the book.

This was such a fast-paced book. I absolutely adore a dual timeline and narrative! I really enjoyed all three different parts and felt the story was just so compelling. Couldn't put the book down which surprised me as i didn't think it was going to be my kind of genre- happily admit i was wrong and it in fact helped me to come out of a reading slump!

Coming in 2023: an emotional story about wild witchy women from the same family at different points in history ✨

🦋 'Weyward' by Emelia Hart tells the story of three women in the UK. Kate's story is set in present day, and starts with her escaping an abusive relationship and fleeing to live in a spooky cottage left to her in the will of a mysterious great-Aunt. Violet's story is in the 1940s, and starts with her trying to unravel what caused her mother's death. Altha's story is set in 1619, and starts with her on trial for witchcraft.

💜 The structure of this was great. I loved how the three strands of the novel constantly echoed each other - when one character encountered a certain challenge, the other two timelines would shed light on what she was going through. Fans of intergenerational novels such as 'Of Women & Salt' will really enjoy this.

✍️ Emilia Hart has an obvious talent for historical fiction and really shines when she's writing about the past. I felt so much more engaged & interested in Violet and Altha's timelines (sorry Kate!), all the little details really contributed to the sense of place. If she writes more novels I'm crossing my fingers for historical fiction!

📖 This is a novel which rewards the patient reader. I'm very impatient & found myself chomping at the bit during the first third or so - but stick with it, the pace really picks up in the final third & will have you desperate to find out how the three stories link together and what happens to these witchy women.

👇 This book is perfect for fans of:
🌿 'Hamnet' by Maggie O'Farrell (themes of childbirth and wild healing women)
🐝 The Change' by Kirsten Miller (themes of revenge & being in tune with the natural world)
🐍 'Stone Blind' by Natalie Haynes (explores fear of monstrous / misunderstood women throughout history)

📆 'Weyward' comes out 2nd Feb 2023

Thanks to @netgalley for my advance reader copy!

- Katie

Review posted to Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/ClRpeD-o7sT/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Short review to be posted on Twitter this Friday: @katiespencey

Three women, three very different eras, one secret in common that could either free them or destroy them.

Altha, 1619, locked away in a stinking rotten cell in Lancaster awaiting trial. A trial that will decide on her fate, if she lives or dies.

Violet, 1942, locked in her own home by her father, with a war raging in the world and wanting nothing more than to learn about the things around her. Can the arrival of Frederick be the thing that breaks her out?

Kate, 2019, locked in a life she hates with a man she despises, desperate to get away and start a new life. Will what her great aunt bequeathed her be Kates saving grace?

Reading this has been quite a journey.

The book follows the three women, generations apart as the each try to escape their problems before it’s too late. There are parts about witch trials I’ve read before in other books so it was good to hear another take on it. The book flicks between the women’s stories and looks at the many differences but also the similarities throughout the years. There are some big topics covered including suicide, rape and baby loss.

I’ve really enjoyed reading this book and highly recommend it.

I was hooked right from the start. I read so many positive reviews prior and needles to say that they got my interest itching with the excitement to read this book.
An absolutely fascinating book, holding three stories across different timeliness of three women from Weyward family tree.
Three timeliness slowly unravelling in each chapter and colliding all together at once.
Thrilling mystery book that holds a strong message of: embracing that divine feminine energy, stanfing up to bullying and sexual assault - these are such powerful and inspiring messages from the book.
If this speaks to you, you should pick this read.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. I sincerely enjoyed it.

have read quite a few novels this year with historical British Witchcraft as their subject and would say this is one of the best that I’ve read .The author uses the stories of different women throughout history who are all from the Weyward family even if they initially are unaware of their special abilities and family background .As the book progresses we see the women come to terms with their abilities and are shown subtlety how they have all had similar experiences in life despite their different eras in which they live. Initial section about spousal abuse nearly made me out the book down as it was quite triggering I was glad I continued however as in context the abuse was significant .It was telling that in all times Living without a man marked the women as witches
I found the link with Insects creepy in particular the Old dude in decaying stately home surrounded by dead insects .
The author has a clear flowing easily read prose style I enjoyed reading the book and didn’t want to put it down
I enjoyed the character development of all the women who were narrators of the story
I read an early copy on NetGalley Uk the book is published in the Uk 2nd February 2023 by Harper Collins Uk ,Harper Fiction .This review will be published in Goodreads and my blog Bionic Sarah’s Books

An evocative, character-driven exploration of three women and their connection to nature and each other. Like many others I was surprised this was a debut; Emilia Hart writes with a confidence and fluidity that many experienced authors lack. Altha, Violet and Kate are distinct and well-drawn, and their stories are beautifully interlinked across the centuries. Each timeline gripped me in ways I wasn't expecting. Poignant and beautiful, WEYWARD is no doubt the first step in what will be a long and illustrious career for Emilia Hart.

This book follows 3 women over 5 centuries and I absolutely loved it. I enjoyed reading about the lives of Altha, Violet and Kate and now they all linked to each other. The book explores witchcraft and the witch trials, family secrets and how people fear what they don’t understand, which makes for a really good read!
Trigger warning: rape, domestic violence, baby loss

Unfortunately I had to stop reading this around 20%. This is personal opinion as some of the themes were quite triggering around abuse, domestic violence and coercion for myself. Its a shame, I enjoyed the layout and pace of the book for the portion I read, so would recommend to those who are okay to read these particular TWs.

Altha, Violet, and Kate are all survivors of violent and abusive men. Kate has run away from London escaping her abusive husband., Violet is treated as a second class citizen by her controlling Father, and Altha is ostracized by her community for her knowledge of the healing powers of nature. The Women are separated by centuries, and connected by nature and witchcraft; 'Women are the most feared, the most problematic, and, potentially, the most transforming force on the planet'.
A beautifully crafted tale about power and abuse, and how we are all connected by nature

Initially, the cover of this book did not interest me however the description was something that instantly grabbed my attention - three women? In different time periods? One suspected of witchcraft? All interconnected somehow? I was sold instantly.

The world-building is very small but it has meaning, every small detail is meaningful to the story progression and that's what makes it even more immersive and whimsical. It was beautiful to read and, despite the descriptions throughout the book, it was easy to read as well. I adored the area it was set in and did, in fact, look on the internet to see whether any of the places were real or were the cause of the inspiration because I wished to visit them. It was magical.

The main three characters were all interesting and I found it easy to connect with them, empathise with them, and be pulled into their individual storyline alongside the main storyline. They were all well fleshed out and developed, in my opinion, and each held flaws rather than being perfect which made the story even more engaging. I enjoyed how full circle the plotline went, also.

Following on from that the supporting characters were all also very interesting and I would have liked to have known more about where they came from, what happened to them, etc. I always find that this leads to a good plotline and something I thoroughly enjoy so it was a pleasure to discover whilst reading.

I really recommend this book to others as it shows incredible insight into how prejudiced a small village can be towards women and the generations that come before them however it also showed how times had changed for the better whilst also exploring some other harder topics including finding the strength within yourself.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this title.

My thanks to the Author and publisher's for advanced readers copy paperback of this book to read and honestly review.
An excellent debut absorbing atmospheric clever descriptive totally engaging from first to last page. Told in alternate chapters across three timelines the intelligent tale of three Wayward women. A beautifully written character driven story at times dramatic and tense, sometimes funny others mysterious poignant and sad but always interesting. As a sixty five years old grumpy Yorkshireman I doubt I am the target audience for this book, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and completely recommended it.

Multiple timelines featuring 3 women born into the Weyward family. First Daughters of first daughters, powers have been passed through generation to generation. But some of this at a time when strong independent women were tried as Witches.
I loved how this novel moved timelessly telling the story of Altha, Violet and Kate, all battling against injustice and mistreatment by the men in their lives. A story of women's empowerment and strength with a touch of nature between the pages. But so much more too, a fascinating book that will stay with me. One to read again and again

I adored this and read it one day. I loved the triple narrative and found the storytelling and revealing of various secrets riveting.

Truthfully, I found myself much more drawn to Altha and Violet than to Kate - something about their stories felt fuller somehow.

Overall, just brilliant.

I really liked the sound of this book, which is set in Cumbria and about three women from the same family, Altha, a young woman accused of witchcraft in the 17th century, Violet, living in isolation with her abusive father in the 1940s, and modern day unhappy Kate who doesn't know anything about how special the women are in her paternal family.

I thought it was a really good idea which was well executed. I was very keen to find out what happened to each of the women, and it is certainly a page turner. The different voices and eras made it easy to follow the three individual stories, and I liked all three, which is unusual (I usually have a favourite when a book has multiple timelines.) .

I loved the idea of the three women helping and supporting each other through time. Each of the three main characters was engaging, likeable and believable in their own way. The book certainly makes you think about male power and violence, and it does this really well.

The setting was beautifully described and the power of nature was another compelling part of the book. I had no trouble immersing myself in the well described environment. I have never liked crows, but I think that now I will have a new found respect for them.

I would definitely recommend this book. It would be good for a book club discussion and would appeal to readers old and young. I am really glad I read it.

Well this book was my surprise read of the year so far!! I was intrigued but also wary going into this thinking it would feature a fair amount of magical fantasy. Wrong!! This is definitely more of a thriller featuring three women who, despite living in completely different eras, face similar challenges and somehow manage to help one another break free from the oppressive men in their lives. Each character is so well crafted that as I got to know them I became thoroughly invested in their well-being. This book has hope, freedom and revenge. And I loved it!!!

Enjoyed this A real page turner to read in front of the fire of an Autumn evening. There are times we all need to be a bit more Weyward.

Weyward is a great story covering three women from different eras. A powerful and gripping read which I would definitely recommend.