The Devil's Glove by Lucretia Grindle - #BookReview #BlogTour

Sun cracks the purple dark and for an instant, something less than a breath, the bay is a field of fire. Then it misted white. Swaddled like an infant, or a wound. Another breath turns it silver as the underbelly of a fish. So each day of the world begins.

This morning, the tide creeps across across the wide ledge below the meadow than slithers back, coy and silly as a girl. If I climbed down I would feel it, slick and silvered with newness, as if the ocean had not been here all night but had only just arrived. I know that isn't true, of course. I know the sea is always here, eternal as the stars...

***

Northern New England, summer, 1688.

Salem started here.

A suspicious death. A rumor of war. Whispers of witchcraft.

Perched on the brink of disaster, Resolve Hammond and her mother, Deliverance, struggle to survive in their isolated coastal village. They’re known as healers taught by the local tribes - and suspected of witchcraft by the local villagers.

Their precarious existence becomes even more chaotic when summoned to tend to a poisoned woman. As they uncover a web of dark secrets, rumors of war engulf the village, forcing the Hammonds to choose between loyalty to their native friends or the increasingly terrified settler community.

As Resolve is plagued by strange dreams, she questions everything she thought she knew - about her family, her closest friend, and even herself. If the truth comes to light, the repercussions will be felt far beyond the confines of this small settlement.

Based on meticulous research and inspired by the true story of the fear and suspicion that led to the Salem Witchcraft Trials, The Devil's Glove is a tale of betrayal, loyalty, and the power of secrets. Will Resolve be able to uncover the truth before the town tears itself apart, or will she become the next victim of the village’s dark and mysterious past?

***

The first thing I must say about this book is that it was not what I had expected as I had expected it to be a novel about the Salem Witch Trials. There are many novels which have this as its dominant theme and I have enjoyed several of them. However, this book was refreshingly different in that it covers the time prior to this well known historical period. Although the witch trials are present, the subject was more a background note than the main focus.

Instead, the author offers up this wonderful story based during the aforesaid time and place but which focussed more heavily on the relationship between the settlers and the indigenous population. I very much enjoyed reading this fresh and stimulating perspective from an author who is new to me.

I really enjoyed getting to know the main character, Resolve, as well as the people with whom she is connected. Her mother, Deliverance, was an extremely interesting character and her friendship with Judith was well presented. The author gave us a set of fully formed characters who I enjoyed getting to know. Ms. Grindle has done an excellent job of bringing her characters alive on the page.

The writing was nicely presented and easy to read and I felt immersed into the time period. The author has clearly conducted her research thoroughly.

This is the first book in the Salem trilogy and I am looking forward to reading the next one, which I suspect will focus more on the witch trials themselves. I also intend to read some of the back catalogue from this skilled writer.

ISBN: 978 1960610010

Publisher: Casa Croce Press

Formats:  e-book, hardback and paperback (currently available on Kindle Unlimited)

No. of Pages:  344 (paperback)

About the Author:

Lucretia Grindle grew up and went to school and university in England and the United States. After a brief career in journalism, she worked for The United States Equestrian Team organizing ‘kids and ponies,’ and for the Canadian Equestrian Team. For ten years, she produced and owned Three Day Event horses that competed at The World Games, The

European Games and the Atlanta Olympics. In 1997, she packed a five mule train across 250 miles of what is now Grasslands National Park on the Saskatchewan/Montana border tracing the history of her mother’s family who descend from both the Sitting Bull Sioux and the first officers of the Canadian Mounties.

Returning to graduate school as a ‘mature student’, Lucretia completed an MA in Biography and Non-Fiction at The University of East Anglia where her work, Fireflies, won the Lorna Sage Prize. Specializing in the 19th century Canadian West, the Plains Tribes, and American Indigenous and Women’s History, she is currently finishing her PhD dissertation at The University of Maine.

Lucretia is the author of the psychological thrillers, The Nightspinners, shortlisted for the Steel Dagger Award, and The Faces of Angels, one of BBC FrontRow’s six best books of the year, shortlisted for the Edgar Award. Her historical fiction includes, The Villa Triste, a novel of the Italian Partisans in World War II, a finalist for the Gold Dagger Award, and The Lost Daughter, a fictionalized account of the Aldo Moro kidnapping. She has been fortunate enough to be awarded fellowships at The Hedgebrook Foundation, The Hawthornden Foundation, The Hambidge Foundation, The American Academy in Paris, and to be the Writer in Residence at The Wallace Stegner Foundation. A television drama based on her research and journey across Grasslands is currently in development. The Devil's Glove, and the concluding books of The Salem Trilogy are drawn from her research at The University of Maine where Lucretia is grateful to have been a fellow at the Canadian American Foundation.

She and her husband, David Lutyens, live in Shropshire.

(book, author photo and bio information provided courtesy of The Coffee Pot)