The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox – Book Review

The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox – Book Review

The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox

The Witch of Willow Hall

Author – Hester Fox
Publisher – HQ
Pages – 384
Released – 18th October 2019
ISBN-13 – 978-1848457478
Format – ebook, paperback, audio
Reviewer – Stacey
Rating – 4.5 Stars
I received a free copy of this book
Post contains affiliate links.

 

Years after the Salem witch trials one witch remains. She just doesn’t know it… yet.

Growing up Lydia Montrose knew she was descended from the legendary witches of Salem but was warned to never show the world what she could do and so slowly forgot her legacy. But Willow Hall has awoken something inside her…

1821: Having fled family scandal in Boston Willow Hall seems an idyllic refuge from the world, especially when Lydia meets the previous owner of the house, John Barrett.

But a subtle menace haunts the grounds of Willow Hall, with strange voices and ghostly apparitions in the night, calling to Lydia’s secret inheritance and leading to a greater tragedy than she could ever imagine.

Can Lydia confront her inner witch and harness her powers or is it too late to save herself and her family from the deadly fate of Willow Hall?

New one review witch 2017

1811, Boston Massachusetts, USA, home to the Salem Witch Trials two centuries earlier. Little Lydia Montrose is caught up in what is described as a ‘fight’ with a local boy, but the rumours never die down of what really happened that day.

1821, with the rumours still doing the rounds and Lydia now becoming a woman, the family move from the city to a small town and into Willow Hall. The house has stood empty for many years and even the owner, John Barrett won’t live there, preferring a smaller dwelling down the road. There is talk in the town that the place is home for ghosts, but surely ghosts aren’t real?

The Witch of Willow Hall is a fictional historical paranormal story with the most amazing cast of characters. The Montrose family, consisting of Father, Mother and three daughter, Catherine, Lydia and Emeline, who move into Willow Hall after a turbulent time at their old home, due to the incident with Lydia some ten-years before.

The tale is told from Lydia Montrose’s point of view. Lydia is a plain young girl, she is also a witch, she just doesn’t know it. She understands that certain things happened depending on her moods, but she doesn’t know why or how, though there are stories that they are the descendants from one of the Witches hung at Salem.

Catherine is older than Lydia and much prettier too. She is used to men falling at her feet and so deems every man to be in love with her. She is exceptionally shallow and naive and very, very selfish. She detests Lydia and tries to do everything in her power to make her sister miserable. She is also harbouring a dangerous secret, one that could tear her family apart.

Emeline is just a little girl, full of curiosity. She gets in the way a lot and wants to be like her big sisters. Lydia is her idol and they dote on one another.

The plot builds slowly as we get to know and understand the Montrose family, mainly the girls and witness overtime as strange occurrences happen to Lydia that she can’t explain and no-one else notices. There is a very upsetting scene within the book, one I’m not going to talk about. All I will say is that had I know it was coming I wouldn’t have read it sat on a sun lounger around the pool – Luckily I had my sunglasses on!!

The Witch of Willow Hall is a real treat if you love paranormal books or historical fiction. The casting is vivid, the setting beautiful, and the pace just right. I was amazed to discover that it was written by a debut novelist as it really is superb. I was hooked from the very beginning and stayed that way throughout. It is wonderfully enjoyable and the story lingers long after you close that final page.

Reviewed by Stacey


Purchase online from:

Amazon.co.ukAmazon.com


About the Author

Hester Fox The Witch of Willow Hall

Hester Fox comes to writing from a background in the museum field as a collections maintenance technician.

This job has taken her from historic houses to fine art museums, where she has the privilege of cleaning and caring for collections that range from paintings by old masters, to ancient artefacts, to early American furniture.

She is a keen painter and has a master’s degree in historical archaeology, as well as a background in Medieval studies and art history. Hester lives outside of Boston with her husband and two cats.

The Witch of Willow Hall is her debut novel.

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34 Responses

  1. Tasha says:

    I am not a lover of historical fiction, but I would definitely read this! Great review.

  2. Karen says:

    Can only think one of one paranormal read, Behind her Eyes Sarah Pinborough. I love books about witches and this looks good. Thank you for the giveaway

  3. I enjoy historical fiction but normally do not read paranormal, but your review has me rethinking that. I may need to check this one out!

  4. DJ Sakata says:

    This one was too YA for me but glad you liked it

  5. jennifer gaarder says:

    Oh man, This is the kind of history that I LOVE. I definitely will be reading this.

  6. Silvia says:

    The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters is one of my favourite paranormal books. And this one sounds pretty scary too!

  7. Fizah Saeed says:

    Great Review.

  8. Nia says:

    I’m so excited to try this book! Sounds perfect ?

  9. Great, it is a wonderful book. Thank you.

  10. I’ve not read that one. Fingers are crossed for you.

  11. It is a great book, not too spooky either.

  12. Great, I hope you enjoy it too.

  13. I’ve never read anything by Sarah Waters but heard many good things about them.

  14. I hope you have entered the giveaway then!! The book is great.

  15. This is definitely something I would love.

  16. Great. I hope you get to read it sometime.

  17. Christina says:

    Wonderful review! I absolutely adored this one as well!

  18. Sounds like a perfect book for Halloween! Great review!

  19. I don’t read a lot of historical fiction but this one sounds good.

  20. Heidi says:

    The cover makes it look very intriguing! Great review!

  21. Thank you. Glad to hear you liked it too.

  22. It is a great book. I’m not massively into historical fiction but this one works well.

  23. The cover is gorgeous. Thanks.

  24. Cia Black says:

    Interesting mixture of genres definitely one to check out

  25. Great review Stacey, now I am really intrigued and very curious about this book after reading your review and this book is also a new to me as well. Thank you so much for sharing your awesome post and for putting this book on my radar.

  26. Toni says:

    I love anything “witch”

  27. It’s a lovely book. I agree one to check out.

  28. Leila Benhamida says:

    Sarah by Teri Polenta, a story about a vengeful ghost.

  29. I’ll have to look out for that book. I like vengeful ghost stories.