Diving into Scottish history once again with an enthralling witchy read.
Red Runs the Witch’s Thread
Victoria Williamson
Paisley, Scotland, 1697. Thirty-five people accused of witchcraft. Seven condemned to death. Six strangled and burned at the stake. All accused by eleven-year-old Christian Shaw.
Bargarran House, 1722. Christian Shaw returns home, spending every waking hour perfecting the thread bleaching process that will revive her family’s fortune. If only she can make it white enough, perhaps her past sins will be purified too.
But dark forces are at work. As the twenty-fifth anniversary of the witch burnings approaches, ravens circle Bargarran House, their wild cries stirring memories and triggering visions.
As Christian’s mind begins to unravel, her states of delusion threaten the safety of all those who cross her path. In the end she must make a terrible choice: her mind or her soul? Poverty and madness, or a devil’s bargain for the bleaching process that will make her the most successful businesswoman Paisley has ever seen?
Her fate hangs by a thread. Which will she choose?
An eerie tale of lies, deception and the supernatural from award-winning author Victoria Williamson.
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Whilst I’m not always a fan of historical fiction, I will always make an exception for a book set in Scotland and when it involves witches. I’m glad I decided to try this one because I found it such an enthralling read, I sometimes find it weird to say that I enjoyed a book when it’s a heavier topic matter but I did enjoy this one.
For a short book, it sure packs a punch, I loved how complex and morally grey Christian was. There were times that I felt sorry for her and then something would happen that would shock and horrify me and I felt almost like she deserved some of her suffering, it was a rollercoaster. Exploring how she interprets what happened to her as a child with the knowledge of an adult was interesting, some things have different meanings to her now but others are the same.
The author manages to brilliantly capture the dark and confused atmosphere of Christian’s story, there were times during the book when even I was starting to question what was real and what was a figment of her imagination. It certainly kept me on edge and immersed me in a little of what it must have been like for Christian, who at times seemed to be losing her grip on reality.
I don’t want to say too much about the story itself because this is one you need to experience and because I don’t think I could accurately describe it in a way that wouldn’t sound confusing or convey how good it is. I will say that it is a story based on real people which I found very interesting.
Red Runs the Witch’s Thread is an unpredictable and surprising book, it is tense and honestly kept me hooked from start to finish. This is my first book by this author but I will be looking out for more stories after reading this.
Victoria Williamson is an award-winning author who grew up in Scotland surrounded by hills, books, and an historical farm estate which inspired many of her early adventure stories and spooky tales. After studying Physics at the University of Glasgow, she set out on her own real-life adventures, which included teaching maths and science in Cameroon, training teachers in Malawi, teaching English in China and working with children with additional support needs in the UK. Victoria currently works part time writing KS2 books for the education company Twinkl and spends the rest of her time writing novels, and visiting schools, libraries and literary festivals to give author talks and run creative writing workshops.
Victoria’s previous novels include The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle, The Boy with the Butterfly Mind, Hag Storm, and War of the Wind. She has won the Bolton Children’s Fiction Award 2020/2021, The YA-aldi Glasgow Secondary School Libraries Book Award 2023, and has been shortlisted for the Week Junior Book Awards 2023, The Leeds Book Awards 2023, the Red Book Award 2023, the James Reckitt Hull Book Awards 2021, The Trinity School Book Awards 2021, and longlisted for the ABA South Coast Book Awards 2023, the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2020, and the Branford Boase Award 2019.
Her latest novel, The Pawnshop of Stolen Dreams, is a middle grade fantasy inspired by classic folklore. Twenty percent of the author royalties for this book are donated to CharChar Literacy, an organisation working to improve children’s literacy levels in Malawi.
You can find out more about Victoria’s books, school visits and free resources for schools on her website: www.strangelymagical.com
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