Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian

Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian

Publication Date: May 4, 2021

Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian is a classic tale of the witch hysteria that took over the American colonies in the 17th century. The main character/witch on trial is Mary. She is a devoted Christian and wife. As with all of the 17th century witch trials none of these things were taken into consideration at her trial. 

Mary is from a wealthy family in the British colonies in America. She travelled from London to the colonies with her mother and father to begin a new, more devout life in the new world. She is married off young, to a widower that is old enough to be her father and becomes step-mother to a daughter that is her own age. Unfortunately for Mary, her husband becomes abusive when he has too much drink, which leads in an off handed way to her witch trial. 

I enjoyed this tale. It reads a lot like other books on the same subject with one poor soul being accused of witchcraft with no real proof or a way to prove their innocence. Witch hysteria was truly a sad time in our budding country and really illustrates how the mob mentality can take over any situation and matters can turn deadly very quickly. A reader cannot help but love and sympathize for Mary. She speaks her mind in a world that was ruled by men. She knows that they aren't really going to listen to her so she just goes ahead and says what's on her mind, which provides some good comic relief in the story to help breakup the seriousness of the subject. Hour of the Witch is a good book to help readers appreciate how far America has come in four hundred years. 

Thanks to Netgalley and Doubleday Books for an advanced reader copy for an honest review. 

For Purchase: Hour of the Witch