Weyward was a perfectly enjoyable historical fiction centred around the interconnected stories of three women of the Weyward family, Altha, Violet and Kate, highlighting the inequalities faced by women across four centuries, from 1619 until present day.

There were similarities in each of the characters stories which made for interesting connections across the ages, rather than what could have been fairly heavy repetition. I really enjoyed how the relationship between entomology and witchcraft was portrayed and would recommend this to anyone who loves witchy historical fiction.

What a story! So powerful and atmospheric and a gripping read. Set in 1618, 1942 and current day it tells the story of three women - Altha, Violet and Kate. It needs a biyt of a tidy up before publicaiton but it's excellent. Just one point that niggled - women in 1942 didn't wear tights, they weren't available n UK until the late 1950s. A bt later they become stockings. I hope that gets sorted out before it goes live. With thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a e-ARC of this book to read and review.

The novel takes its title from Shakespeare’s original description of the witches in Macbeth as “Weyward Sisters”.
’The Weyward Sisters, hand in hand,
Posters of the sea and land,
Thus do go, about, about,
Thrice to thine, thrice to mine,
And thrice again to make up nine.
Peace, the charm’s wound up.’
MACBETH

The story is told by three women from different eras, living very different lives yet sharing a common bond:
- 1600s: Althea. A “wise woman” who was tried for witchcraft
- 1940s: Violet, born into an aristocratic family, is a “strange child” with a desire to pursue her love of insects and resents being pushed into a traditionally female role. Her life changes forever when cousin Frederick comes to visit
- 2019: Kate is escaping her abusive partner by fleeing to the cottage she inherited from her great-aunt.

From such different backgrounds, and living in such different times, these three Weyward women have much in common. All have a deep connection to nature. All have reasons to reject patriarchy, with the actions of men changing the women forever. The way the author is able to weave three stories together is clever and the book switched between the different women’s stories seamlessly.

The writing is evocative, descriptive and draws you deeply into the world that surrounds Crow’s Beck. The ancient, the past & the present are all given due consideration and there is suitable inclusion of detail about daily life in all eras along with a natural world magic that is not forced or invented, just there to be found if you stop & listen. I like the imagery of the crows, a bird long associated with witchcraft or magic, such as in ancient Greece, where the crow was a symbol of Apollo, the god of prophecy.

(If you have some understanding of the “evidence” that was sought during witchcraft trials in the middle ages, such as “familiars” and “witches marks”, you will gain an understanding on a deeper level, though it is not a requirement for understanding the story )


Recommendations

If you are expecting witches of the pointy-hat & broomstick variety, this book is not for you. If you have an awareness/interest in the wise-women or herbalists of past times who were often designated as 'witches’ (a word “invented by men, a word that brings power to those who speak it, not to those it describes”) I would highly recommend this book.

Weyward will work its magic long after the final page has been turned.

One of my favourite books of this year 🙌🙌

I have truly loved following the tales of all the Weyward Women. They are truly inspirational characters and this is a brilliant read.
Will be recommending to so many women!

A great book. It did take me a little while to get into it, but then I was hooked. Thank you for letting me read it.

Do not think of witches with broomsticks and pointy hats when you pick up this book. These three timelines focus on women with an affinity, a close bond with the natural world This is a world of the magic of nature, how it can sustain and heal. We have Altha in the 1619s, Violet in 1942 and Kate in 2019 and the author weaves an intricate web to show us how the three women are connected, and how they discover that all share the same gifts. I don't want to give too much away, but I really loved the way that each timeline gripped me. There was not one moment when I felt like skipping over one timeline to read the next. There was also an undercurrent of fear that clung to Kate's story. This is a story about the power that women have and I'm sorry that I'm not writing more, I just don't want to spoil it, i want you to discover this super debut for yourself.

This was such a good book. I love historical fiction, especially when it is about eras/ situations that I previously knew nothing about and this was definitely one of those books. It was so well researched and so compelling in its narrative that not only did I love reading it but I felt that I learned too. A really enjoyable read and perfect for any fans of historical fiction. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

The E-Book could be improved and more user-friendly, such as links to the chapters, no large gaps between words some text written has been typed in red and a cover for the book would be better. It is very document-like instead of a book therefore a star is lost for this.

I wasn’t sure I was going to like this book when I started it - but I was soon proved wrong. The three main characters, Altha, Violet and Kate are all, in very different ways, controlled by domineering males who make their lives very unpleasant to say the least.
The chapters focus on each of the three women in turn and develop the stories of each of them, gradually, building the tension page by page. The chapters end at very decisive moments which makes it hard to stop reading. Reading the book you really feel for the women and what they go through. It is extremely well written with lovely descriptive passages giving a vivid picture of the different times in which Altha, Violet and Kate live; the 1600’s, the 1940’s and the present day. The way the book ends by tying the individual stories together is very clever and very satisfying.
A really excellent debut.

Thank you netgalley for the opportunity to read and review Weyward.
I found it a wonderful story following three weyward women across multiple generations with links to witchcraft. Perfect for Autumn nights read.
My favourite Weyward was Altha I enjoyed reading her story/perspective from 1619

An interesting story that reminded me of Little Eve or The Mercies- but not as scary! It had a really strong sense of place and I enjoyed seeing how the stories of the three generations of women intertwined, though I would have liked a bit more complexity, perhaps, than the usual cunning women good church men bad narrative. But for what it was it was compelling and I though it touched on some important topics.

DNF. Loved the sound of it, but by a third of the way through I gave up. No real characterisation, just women who are clearly witchy, and no real interest in what happened to them

Stories reaching across multiple generations of weyward women. Beautiful story for autumn as it has witches of a type and it’s just a great book. 5/5 stars for me. Really enjoyed it.

A wonderfully interwoven story across five centuries. What connects these women?
Altha is accused of being a witch in 1619. Violet is kept hidden from everyone except the household like a secret in 1942. Kate is trapped in an abusive relationship in 2019. We follow Altha through her incarceration and trial; Violet through her father enacting like she isn’t there, thankfully she has a positive relationship with her brother; and Kate as she looks to escape and find safety.
They are all Weyward women, and as they find themselves they also find out more of their history which helps them grow in power and strength to develop independence and a future for themselves.
The chapters are engaging and leave you wanting to know more as you move to one of the others stories. I loved all three characters, and could hear the bees, insects and birds - the writing was so descriptive and evocative it really came alive. Yet, it was an easy read.
I loved it.

A story spanning nearly 500 years with three distinct women at the centre; I'd been excited to read this book. And there's no denying that it's nicely written with some clever tricks to keep the protangonists speaking with individual voices. The story moves at a good pace and more or less avoids anachronism (although I'm not sure a village girl would necessarily know the year in the mid 17th century).
But, there is a big problem with this book. It's just too clichéd. Each strand follows a predictable path and the tenuous links joining these strands aren't inventive enough to lift this book into being something more.
It's fine. It's a pleasant read; a holiday book perhaps. It wasn't what I hoped it would be

Beautiful Story.

Wayward follows the path of three different, but linked women, Kate, Violet and Altha. Each of them are women who are overcoming difficulties and learning more about themselves and their links to witchcraft.

I was gripped reading the different historical stories, and how they were tied up with the present day tale of Kate.

With thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review.

Weyward is a beautiful story told across 3 generations of Weyward women.
It explores so many different aspects of women's experiences throughout history, I really enjoyed the different perspectives from each character, and the way that nature almost became a character itself.

I'm giving 3 stars because I enjoyed the character development journey each women took us on and the feminist themes woven through their stories.
I really wanted to enjoy this book more, as it is a really beautiful and important story but the level of description in each section was too much for me. It felt as though every moment of the story was being described to me in minute detail, this slowed the pace to a point that I found it difficult to stay engaged and it took me a very long time to read. I don't know if I would have pushed through to finish this book if I hadn't been given an ARC via NetGalley for review purposes. This issue may be down to personal taste and reading style, but had this been slightly faster paced I think I'd have enjoyed it much more and given it 5 stars.

Though I should note that the final 75% of the book did pick up the pace and I enjoyed this section the most, as endings go, Weyward did it well.

In 2019, Kate flees an abusive relationship in London for Crows Beck, a remote Cumbrian village. Her destination is Weyward Cottage, inherited from her great Aunt Violet, an eccentric entomologist.

As Kate struggles with the trauma of her past, she uncovers a secret about the women in her family. A secret dating back to 1619, when her ancestor Altha Weyward was put on trial for witchcraft…

This is a wonderful book - it tells the 3 women's stories, Kate, Violet and Altha, from their own view points, interweaving their tales and their journey of self discovery and their secret nature.

Initially I wasn't sure a story about 'witches' would be for me but the subtle integration of it into their nature felt organic and was perfectly homogeneous.

I was lucky enough to receive a digital advanced copy of this book through NetGalley.

I really enjoyed this book. I don't normally read books that span different timelines, but this one was written so well that it wasn't jarring jumping between periods of time. It is beautifully written and immerses the reader in a world of nature. Hart did a fantastic job of writing relatable characters that will immediately have the reader rooting for them. A story of strength and empowerment, I definitely would recommend.

Loved, loved, loved this beautiful, layered read of natural magic and the female through a triplet of timelines. It was so inconvenient when life interrupted my reading of 'Weyward', and I genuinely couldn't wait to pick it up again. A really impressive debut which doesn't shy away from difficult subjects and violence from others and to self. It was the connection to nature and the detail of the natural world that really stood out for me, and I loved the weaving of the narrative and its development into a coherent whole.
A powerful earthy read with depth, power and heart. 4.5 stars

As soon as I read about Weyward I knew it was a book I just had to read, and I was not disappointed!
Intelligent, rich and superbly magical, this story of three women, bound by similar circumstances but centuries apart highlights both the differences and similarities of what women experience, particularly when unconventional.
The book explores witchcraft; the green, wild, natural healers and often lost craft of herbs, tinctures and being attuned to the earth magic, that was once demonised as unchristian and now is often ridiculed or misrepresented in popular culture. This story also explores how easily physical attributes such as birthmarks, mental health conditions such as postnatal depression, or even medical circumstances such as Rhesus disease in pregnancy (something that's occurred in my own family history) could condemn women as being a witch or possessed, or "hysterical", or cursed. The age-old paradox of good and evil is very cleverly composed in each of the characters's storylines, and you see each play out the ways the odds are stacked against fairness and justice as well as how we must be true to ourselves and trust in our inner intuition.
I have spent hours researching my own family history, I find it fascinating to see the long and short lives that shaped my very existence and I can only hope to somehow unearth some of the stories attached to the names, particularly the women- this book emboldened this longing I have to get to know some of their experiences.
I am a big fan of dual timeline stories and this has three different timelines but it swings effortlessly between them each with such clear character formation and narrative that it wasn't difficult to follow at all. The build up in all of the stories to the dramatic revelations and conclusions in each was masterfully done and I truly felt I didn't want to stop reading about these phenomenal women. I am forever now connected to the Weyward women and I hope many more will enlist on reading this impressive debut.