Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian

Hour of the Witch

by Chris Bohjalian

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the acclaimed author of The Flight Attendant: “Historical fiction at its best…. The book is a thriller in structure, and a real page-turner, the ending both unexpected and satisfying” (Diana Gabaldon, bestselling author of the Outlander series, The Washington Post).

A
young Puritan woman—faithful, resourceful, but afraid of the demons that dog her soulplots her escape from a violent marriage in this riveting and propulsive novel of historical suspense.


Boston, 1662. Mary Deerfield is twenty-four-years-old. Her skin is porcelain, her eyes delft blue, and in England she might have had many suitors. But here in the New World, amid this community of saints, Mary is the second wife of Thomas Deerfield, a man as cruel as he is powerful. When Thomas, prone to drunken rage, drives a three-tined fork into the back of Mary's hand, she resolves that she must divorce him to save her life.

But in a world where every neighbor is watching for signs of the devil, a woman like Mary—a woman who harbors secret desires and finds it difficult to tolerate the brazen hypocrisy of so many men in the colony—soon becomes herself the object of suspicion and rumor. When tainted objects are discovered buried in Mary's garden, when a boy she has treated with herbs and simples dies, and when their servant girl runs screaming in fright from her home, Mary must fight to not only escape her marriage, but also the gallows.

A twisting, tightly plotted novel of historical suspense from one of our greatest storytellers, Hour of the Witch is a timely and terrifying story of socially sanctioned brutality and the original American witch hunt.

Look for Chris Bohjalian's new novel, The Lioness!

Reviewed by Kim Deister on

4 of 5 stars

Share

The story takes place in Boston in 1662, a time of change in the new world when the witch accusations were just beginning. The setting alone is enough to set the tone for the story, creating a sense of dark anticipation. The characterization of Mary—a beautiful and young woman who is married to an older man and who is a tad too defiant and outspoken—just adds to the tension.

This is far from a historical romance. The marriage between Mary and Thomas was not one she wanted, full of violence and fear. His abuse is born of anger and alcohol, and he’s a misogynist and a sadist to the core. He’s also powerful in their community, putting Mary in even more of a tenuous position when she tries desperately to escape his treatment of her. Between his place in society and her well-known rebellious nature, that is not so simple a process. All of this comes together with some interesting twists and turns to put Mary, the victim, at risk of losing her life as an accused witch.

The only issue I truly had with the book was the incredibly slow first half or so. The author painted a detailed portrait of life in the time period, describing the people and ideology. And while that was interesting, it did drag down the pace of the rest of the book. But the second half truly made up for it!

Last modified on

Reading updates

  • 11 October, 2022: Started reading
  • 6 November, 2022: Finished reading
  • 22 November, 2022: Reviewed