I’ve been fascinated by witch trials since I was a young girl, no doubt because I was burned in a previous life 🔥

“The Witchfinder’s Sister” is the story of a disgusting human being known as Matthew Hopkins, who was responsible for a prolific witch hunt in England around 1645  that resulted in the hanging of over 100 women.

Matthew’s story is told by his sister, Alice, who is not really known to have existed. It’s yet another horrific story of a man compensating for his weakness and ineptitude by killing elderly and mentally ill women, or any woman who dared to challenge him in some direct or imaginary way. 

This book reminded me of two things:

1) Men weren’t the only ones guilty in the witch hunts; insecure and weak women were culpable as well. It was truly devastating what was done by the most deplorable of both genders behind the shield of Christianity.

2) Not all church leaders were supportive of the witch hunts. 

The story is heavily fictionalized and, in my opinion, the author took that a bit too far at the very end. It’s highly unlikely that it actually ended in the way she described. But, I learned a lot and am better for having read this heartbreaking story.

I rarely write reviews because I prefer keeping my opinions to myself. But all I could say about this book is, it is utterly terrifying. Terrifying because of the idea and the fact of what a human is capable of.

This book is as dark as the darkest shade of the cover. It is not something as interesting because of the colorful contents, but something interesting as it holds fragments of truth of our history as humans in this planet.

And right now, I am lying on the floor, the book on my lap still intrigued and mad. Still I could feel the heaviness of the book. I could still feel the heaviness of the times where and when people commit such things. And the fact that this situations still go on, in a different context, clothed with another form of fancy fabric.

Now about the actual content.

I had a hard time grasping old english, since I rarely read this sort of books. At first parts, it is the usual: introduction, enough to pique you. 1/3 to 3/4 of the book I personally deem as boring - boring not because it is boring. But because it slowly burns you, I think I got used to books that instantly sets you ablaze and instantly puts off the fire by drowning you in a calm river.

And this book, is different. It burns and burns and burns and burns... And I am afraid the gist of this book will remain engraved in my mind as how the doings of man makes my skin crawl throughout my existence.

Actual rating: around 3.2 starts to 4.8