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by Juliette Godot
If there was a 4.5-star capability, this book would be deserving of it. Having just recently toured the Salem Witch Museum in Massachusetts where I viewed a wall mural that compared the witch trials with a number of eerily similar occurrences that have taken place over the years, including very recently, I was intrigued to see where this author would take us. I was not disappointed. I thought that Salem was eye-opening, and then I read this book.
Juliette Godot takes the reader from 2023 and drops us smack in the middle of 1500s Europe. Here the author shares a well-told story that grabbed me by the collar with the opening scene and held me tightly while putting front and center the reality of that time while appropriately sharing the level of blatant graphic violence.
The story is a tale of historical fiction that blends religious persecution, and paranoia about those who are different, particularly those thought to be witches and those who may look different. The characters, each had good and less-than-desirable traits, which only helped to make them relatable. Although the day-to-day chores and behaviors of the flawed humans did drag a bit at times, it only served to make them, and the goings-on appear to be more history than fiction. By the story being written in this way, the reader is better able to feel immersed in the character's issues, empathize with their journeys, and feel their pain deep within.
The basis of this book, on its own, is an interesting concept, but the addition of what could be her family's persecution, and its mirroring the activities of our time make it an engaging, if not frightening, must-read. In order for change to occur, good people have to do good things, and 500 years after the fact, Juliette Godot has done such.
From the Drop of Heaven Review:
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