If you enjoy historical fiction and witches as much as I do pick up The Familiars by Stacey Hall

"If the Devil is poverty, and hunger, and grief, then yes, I think they know the Devil.”  Fleetwood Shuttleworth, The Familiars

 The Familiars

A Review by James Romano

Hello 1000 Bookies!  This week we open our portal and arrive in 1612 Lancaster, England.  The book we are reviewing is entitled The Familiars.  Written by Stacey Hall, this story is a historical fiction account of the Pendle Witch Trial, an actual historical event.  This was the October selection of my book club at work.  Book clubs are fantastic, and they expand our boundaries and horizons. Lancaster, England hosted these witch trials August 18th and 19th, 1612 where 11 suspected witches were tried.  10 were found guilty and hung, one of the group was acquitted.  This was 80 years prior to the more infamous Salem Witch Trials which swept through the Massachusetts Bay Colony.  Yet as we will see there are several similarities which played a role in the ensuing hysteria.  The Familiars tells the story from the point of view of a wealthy landowning family in the area, the Shuttleworths. 

My friend and our book club leader, Heather Reinecke, said of the book, “I enjoyed Stacey Hall’s historical novel, "The Familiars".  It was interesting going back in time to 1612 to understand young Fleetwood Shuttleworth’s life as a 17 year old pregnant for the third time.  I found Fleetwood's character to be brave and endearing.  I often felt pity for Fleetwood as she was desperate to carry her third child to term after losing the first two by miscarriage.”  I share Heather's sentiment. I found the book an easy read at approximately 350 pages.  I would recommend reading this book during winter break wrapped in a blanket sipping whiskey or wine.  

The main character of the story is Fleetwood Shuttleworth, a 17 year old married woman.  She lives with her husband Richard at Gawthorpe Hall.  He inherited this home, his title and his stature from his uncle.  Fleetwood is pregnant for the fourth time.  She has had three miscarriages and is looking for the “magic” formula for pregnancy to survive.  She fears her status is tied with producing an heir for her husband.  Her life seems fairly good or so she thinks.  Our story begins with Fleetwood reading a letter her husband has received from the doctor that anymore pregnancies and she will die.  Eventually Fleetwood engages with a young woman named Alice Grey.  Alice is a barmaid who is a “wise” woman.  She knows what to do to help Fleetwood with her pregnancy.   So she is hired as Fleetwood’s midwife and is giving her herbs and recipes for her cooks to make to help her during the pregnancy. 

The Pendle Witch Trial revolves around a meeting that takes place at Malkin Tower on Good Friday in 1612.  The Demdike/Device Family were believed to be witches for many years throughout that area of Britain.  Alizon Device supposedly hexed a man named John Law because he would not provide her with pins.  In the book, Law’s face and body are contorted matching descriptions of a serious stroke.  A series of events between the Demlike/Device family and neighbors left everyone accusing each other of witchcraft.  In the story, the sheriff, Roger Nowell, takes in a small Device child and uses her to accuse her family of witchcraft.  Much like families in Salem accused each other of witchcraft for purposes of stealing land and settling scores with neighbors, the Pendle Witch Trial was a precursor to that.  There were also class issues--most of the accused witches were poor and did not have the resources to defend themselves. The accused were not Lords, Ladies, Dukes, Duchesses, Earl and so on. The role of women in society also fuels the accusations of witchcraft.

Alice Grey attended the meeting at Malkin Tower. However, Alice evades the law for a while by being employed as Fleetwood Shuttleworths midwife but ultimately that does not save her from arrest.  Keeping Fleetwood alive is Alice’s job.  However, Fleetwood is betrayed on several fronts.  The first, she is betrayed by Roger Nowell, whom she looks up to as a father.  His zeal to advance himself and Richard Shuttleworth at court with King James is leading to the slaughter of innocents.  Then Fleetwood discovers that her husband has betrayed her, impregnating another woman.  Fleetwood’s precarious position has just gotten worse.  She flees to where her mother is staying and brings Alice with her.  Fleetwood and Alice begin to become good friends.  There is a great scene that shows how much Alice means to Fleetwood, she says to her husband:

            "Alice Gray saved my life, not just once but many times. When I itched, she brought me plants to rub               on my skin. When I was sick, she made me tinctures. She kept me company when I was at my                            lowest. She planted a garden for my health.'

            'Sounds like a witch to me, Richard said bitterly. 'How else would she know those things?'

            'She is a midwife, like her mother before her. Are you like the king now, thinking all wise women and             poor women and midwives are carrying out the Devil's work? Why, he must be the largest employer                in Lancashire.”

I think Heather was correct when she said “Although the story of Fleetwood was intriguing, I longed to learn more about Alice Grey and her family of mystical women.  I would have preferred the book dive more into the witch trials and would have loved to see Alice take more of the lead in character development.  Overall, I enjoyed the friendship that formed between Fleetwood and Alice and their loyalty to each other.”

I identified with this book on several levels.  The first is I love historical fiction novels which bring events to life.  This one discussed a subject in history that I was not… familiar with.  The characters for the most part were real people in history.  I like to fancy myself an amateur historian with a large interest in the Salem Witch Trials. Someday I may even write a fictional story revolving around the events in Salem.  Many of the same themes that led to the 1612 trials would be found later in Salem on a larger basis—greed, fear, loathing and politics.   The Salem Witch Trials are one of the dark stains of American history.  People accused each other to avoid suspicion.  People accused their neighbors, rivals and sometimes family members.

Another reason I identified with the story was the desperation to have children that Fleetwood feels.  My wife and I went through years of trying to have children, like Fleetwood, my wife suffered miscarriages and a tubal pregnancy.  You will do anything, pay any price and give anything to hold your baby and you can feel that emanating off the pages of this story.  Heather stated it best, “This book was an easy read and you can't help but be invested to learn if Fleetwood is able to carry her baby to term with the help of Alice.”  I was hooked and I had to find out what happened.  

I did have a favorite scene in the book, Fleetwood confronts Alice’s ex-boyfriend/lover at his home with his new lady friend. Alice stands accused of murdering a child.  Fleetwood needs to exonerate her, she needs a confession from him to prove Alice’s innocence.  So Fleetwood rides out in the middle of the night to confront him with her husband’s pistol.  Fleetwood Shuttleworth was pretty badass, she was also pretty astute.

This coming weekend pour a drink and cuddle up with this book!

Keep Reading My Friends!!!