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The Manningtree Witches

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The Manningtree Witches

By: A. K. Blakemore
Narrated by: Sofia Zervudachi
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About this listen

England, 1643. Parliament is battling the King; the war between the Roundheads and the Cavaliers rages. Puritanical fervour has gripped the nation, and the hot terror of damnation burns black in every shadow.

In Manningtree, depleted of men since the wars began, the women are left to their own devices. At the margins of this diminished community are those who are barely tolerated by the affluent villagers - the old, the poor, the unmarried, the sharp-tongued. Rebecca West, daughter of the formidable Beldam West, fatherless and husbandless, chafes against the drudgery of her days, livened only by her infatuation with the clerk John Edes. But then newcomer Matthew Hopkins, a mysterious, pious figure dressed from head to toe in black, takes over The Thorn Inn and begins to ask questions about the women of the margins. When a child falls ill with a fever and starts to rave about covens and pacts, the questions take on a bladed edge.

The Manningtree Witches plunges its readers into the fever and menace of the English witch trials, where suspicion, mistrust and betrayal ran amok as the power of men went unchecked and the integrity of women went undefended. It is a visceral, thrilling book that announces a bold new talent.

©2021 A. K. Blakemore (P)2021 A. K. Blakemore Historical Fiction Magic Users Witchcraft Magic

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Loved it, perfect in every way. Brilliant story and excellent narration. so much talent on display. living in the area it created an even more atmospheric picture of the dread of the times.

Brilliant story and excellent narration

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These poor women were not witches but condemned to be so by others who were ignorant of the real facts. I felt the narrator made this book very much worth the read. Very much impressed with Rebecca West character. Most enjoyable and revealing read.

Brilliant read thank you

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I loved this poetically, darkly, uplifting tale of the life of the ordinary yet extraordinary women brutalised by the ignorance of society and men surrounding them.
Great narration till the final 'Scottish ' sea captain

Superb !

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being from Essex I found the accents distracting and over the top. Essex residents in this era (particularly ones living in North Essex) would have a Norfolk type accent, far more country than the excessively cockney shrill that was occurring on this audiobook. That combined with the author's equally excessive verbosity made it sound like I was being read to by Russell Brand! The voice she chose to do for Matthew Hopkins was absurd as well. I limped through this book that felt far longer than it is and only because it was chosen for my book club.

accents were off-putting

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I really enjoyed this semi historical novel. The author is a very skilled writer and there are memorable scenes including the description of seventeenth century Colchester and the hanging of the guilty at the end. The reader does a great job of bringing the story alive using different voices for the main characters with great skill and this makes the book easy to follow.

Excellent book read really well

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