The Lighthouse Witches is a fantastic book. It is by the same author as The Nesting, which I read last winter and enjoyed very much, so I knew I wanted to read this latest novel too. I was not disappointed!
The story takes place on a fictional island called Lon Haven, which is set in the region of Cromarty and the Back Isle. This is an area I know quite well from my own time spent in Scotland, so it was a pleasure to read about this desolate corner of the Highlands and other little known places I have visited, like Drumnadrochit. It made me long to return there and I could almost smell the sea as I read these pages.
The author has successfully transferred the sense of isolation on the Black Isle and thereabouts, onto the page, even being so bold as to write about the distrust and disdain of the locals towards outsiders and tourists. This is something I have experienced myself and I can vouch for the authenticity of such interactions!
So when the main protagonist Olivia, turns up on the island with her three daughters in the middle of the night, not all of the locals are pleased to see them. As she begins her commission as an artist to paint a mural in the lighthouse, she begins to feel uneasy. A ghostly child winks in and out of her sight-line, folklore of children disappearing are plentiful and tales of wildlings, sinister fairy changelings, abound. So when her own three daughters go missing, Liv is frantic with worry and determined to find them, even if it means sifting fact from folklore or dealing with a changeling or two in the process.
As a book that deals with the witch hunts of Scotland, it is a very atmospheric read. Eeriness drips from each chapter and there are sinister undertones throughout. At times quite brutal and graphically violent, it nonetheless draws you into its world of mystery, magic, murder and a centuries old witch's curse.
The witch hunts are rarely referred to in Scotland, despite how prevalent and brutal they were at the time. Now it is as if they have been whitewashed from Scottish history and although you might occasionally hear stories of the Brahm Seer, who was burned in a barrel at Chanory Point, or Janet Horne who was also burned in a barrel at Dornoch, for the most part, the witch hunts of history have been hushed up.
For that reason alone, I highly recommend this novel, as it brings the unfortunate plight of historical 'witches' out into the open. It is also a cracking read and the perfect way to kick off the spooky season. So grab a wee dram, light a few candles, curl up beneath a tartan blanket and go on a literary trip to the magical Black Isle in the far northern Highlands to see what The Lighthouse Witches has in store for you. Enjoy!
Blessed Be
Marie x
AD; This novel was sent to me by the publisher for review purposes prior to it's release. It is published on 30th September, 2021.
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