I don’t even know where to begin with this review but let me just preface it with: I absolutely LOVED this novel. I haven’t read any of Kiran Millwood Hargraves other novels so I was looking forward to seeing what her writing style was like after such an intriguing synopsis. I know a little about the witch trials of the early 17th century so I had some background information, but I definitely learned a lot more after reading.

The novel is told through the perspective of two young women; Maren and Ursa. Maren and her fellow villagers have suffered the terrible loss of all the men in their village – fathers, husbands and brothers, all gone due to a massive storm. What follows after is their desperate bid for survival and we read how their lives change as they gain independence and a sense of freedom, despite being haunted by their grief. With the absence of the men, it is up to Maren and the other women to provide for themselves and go out to fish for example, which is deemed socially unacceptable.

Ursa is the daughter of a merchant, a young woman who has lived a rather privileged life in relative comfort despite the crippling loss of her mother many years ago. She lives in the humdrum routine of caring for her sister Agnette who is ill and being cared for by a kind servant, Siv. After a series of bad investments, her father drowns his sorrows in alcohol and life carries on so until one day Absalom Cornet comes to his door. He is searching for a bride and Ursa is presented to him after which their wedding is quickly arranged and they are off to Vardø to bring order to the village.

I truly enjoyed the perspectives of both Maren and Ursa and each chapter worked so well to highlight the differences between the two women but also that they’re the same in the ways that really count. The relationship that develops between the two is honestly some of the most sensitive and beautiful writing I’ve had the pleasure to read. Their relationship brings a necessary lightness and vibrancy to the novel, in the midst of all the fear and suspicion which is rife throughout the book. It’s a small beacon of hope in the novel which is devoid of much goodness.

I feel like the novel will draw a variety of strong emotions, the chief one being anger and disbelief at the actions of Absalom and other characters who will persecute anyone who doesn’t fit into their restrictive ideals of womanhood. I detested Absalom from the get go and he got progressively worse as the story went on, he’s so narrow minded and fanatical that he was easy to dislike and this makes his arc and end in the novel all the more satisfying. It was also interesting and sad to read as the women of Vardø turn on each other, over petty jealousies and disagreements and I feel like Hargrave really exposes and explores the darker side of human nature here.

I would also like to note that Hargrave touches upon the suppression of indigenous people within the novel and how their rich culture and traditions were being stamped out by European and British powers. In particular the novel features the indigenous Sámi people, who are native to northern Norway and Finland. We get to understand their plight through the character of Diina, Marens sister in law. Diina is a young Sámi woman who marries outside of her own, choosing to marry Erik (Marens brother) as they fall in love. While she is never fully accepted into the village because of her heritage, Diina never lets go of her beliefs and I really admired her conviction and bravery.

Overall, I really enjoyed The Mercies and how atmospheric and powerful it is. It says a lot about the position of women in a very dark period of history and the lessons we can learn from these characters who mirror the tragic reality, their strength, courage and determination leaps off the page and will stay with readers long after they turn the last page.

Review to be posted on blog: 27/01/2020

Atmospheric, beautiful and heart wrenching, The Mercies is based on a true tragic event in Norwegian history. After forty men are killed in a storm that wipes out a fishing fleet, Maren is forced with the other women of her island, to fend for herself. Years later Absalom arrives fresh from witch burnings in Scotland with his young wife Ursa, landing like natural disaster in a community of women who have by necessity become free thinking and adaptable in terms of what they can do. Millwood Hargreave’s prose is delicate and savage, exquisite and robust. It takes a literary bent but the story has plenty of substance. This is an unflinching look at friendship and love and fear. Highly recommend.

The Mercies is a book to get lost in. Kiran Millwood Hargrave’s descriptions transport you to another place and time - the wild northern region of Norway in the Seventeenth Century. Told through the eyes of two young women it is easy to identify with, I felt their fear, their grief and their love.
The hardship of life, and the horror of the witch hunts was so well portrayed, This is a book with tenderness at its core, but surrounded by the shocking terror of the times.
I highly recommend #TheMercies for its excellent writing, interesting subject matter and mostly its ability to touch the heart.
Thank you so much to the author, her publishers and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review such an amazing book.

I’ve never previously come across this author, but can see that she has a very dedicated fan base - and I can understand why. The setting for this book was refreshingly unusual (17th century very northern Norway!), whilst the theme was depressingly universal (oppression of women, sometimes by each other, and fear of anyone different from oneself.).

It’s quite difficult to find the language to review this book as positively as I’d like to because it made me feel outraged and angry in various different places - which I hope was very much the author’s intention! This is one of those books that stays with you after you’ve read it. I’ll certainly be seeking out more of her books. Thoroughly recommended.

I have just finished this book and I am both wanting to review it as soon as possible so that it's fresh, and also wanting to take a step back because it's really quite heavy.

I knew what the topic of the story was, but I admit, it was not an event that I had heard of. I very much wanted to google it and read more, but I have waited, and I am glad, as I feel knowing it may have clouded some of the story.

We are thrown into tragedy from the outset with the Christmas Eve storm that claims the lives of Maren's father and brother along with 38 other men from a small village.

We live through the winter with them, live through their grief, and eventually through their discovery of self and capability as they learn to live without the men in their lives.

We are soon introduced to Ursa, who is beautifully naïve, and woefully unprepared for marriage, and life outside of the city she has been raised in.

When she arrives, a friendship develops between she and Maren, and though the feelings develop, this is a side story, it is not the focus here.

This book is lovingly written, and it carries with it (I feel) many messages that we can learn from, but it is haunting and as we draw to the last 30% or so a hard read too.
Earlier this year I read 'Incantation' by Alice Hoffman, which is based around the Spanish Inquisition, and an equally hard read for a teen book, The Mercies had me feeling much the same way.
I feared for the women and girls in it, I wished that some of the men were braver, I felt horror and incredulity at the accusations being levelled against those being 'tried' and how seemingly sane and educated (in the case of the men) people can believe the words they speak when it is all so very ridiculous.

This is a story of the wickedness of humans in the name of the church and in the name of God and righteousness, and a story of how fear and ignorance, grief and anger, can fracture a community at a time when it should pull together, It is a testament to the weakness of men, and their fear of women who could survive on their own in the harshest of places.

It is easy to forget how free we are, how lucky we are, as women, to be raised in a time where we are educated, where we can do the same work as men and (mostly) not be told that it is not our place, to be able to wear what we want, to speak our minds and to forge our own paths without the fear of persecution, and yet so much of it still exists in the world. It is easy to be blind to the backwards steps we have taken and to believe that we don't need to keep pushing forward.

This is a bleak story, but in it we have glimmers of kindness, slithers of understanding, growing love, and hope that at least one young woman found her freedom, found her happiness, and these are the things we must fight for, the things we must hold onto.

I really can't recommend this book enough, even if you have no interest in history, in witches, in Norway, read it so that you can do better, so that you can be kind to each other instead of pointing fingers. We must learn from our past mistakes, and this is a story (just one of many) that we must never repeat.

Dark and enthralling, this is a fictional account of how a real community of bereaved women ( their menfolk were all drowned in a sudden storm) may have become caught up in accusing each other of witchcraft. There is a mix of cultures, an atmosphere of grief and suspicion, and some serious stirring by a Scottish witch hunter who has been drawn to this place by the Lensmann (Squire? Lord?)with a promise of witches to be punished and social advancement.
The two main female characters are beautifully written and pull you deep into the narrative- but the cast of additional characters are also extremely well drawn and believable. Well worth the read. I’m becoming a serious fan of Kiran Millwood Hargrove’s books!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

This is an intriguing look at the witch trials that happened in Norway in the 1600s. Something I knew nothing about. Kiran has written a brilliantly woven tale of love, sisterhood and human nature and the world she's created is all encompassing.

On Christmas Eve, 1617, the sea around the remote Norwegian island of Vardø is thrown into a reckless storm. As Maren Magnusdatter watches, forty fishermen, including her father and brother, are lost to the waves, the menfolk of Vardø wiped out in an instant. Now the women must fend for themselves. Eighteen months later, a sinister figure arrives. Summoned from Scotland to take control of a place at the edge of the civilized world, Absalom Cornet knows what he needs to do to bring the women of Vardø to heel. With him travels his young wife, Ursa. In Vardø, and in Maren, Ursa finds something she has never seen before: independent women. But Absalom sees only a place untouched by God and flooded with a mighty and terrible evil, one he must root out at all costs.

What another astonishing read this is. Set in Norway, we begin with village devastation as the men die and we end the read with the darkness and desperation of witch trials. Hargrave does a spectacular job at bringing to life the feelings of loss, anguish and torment and I was living all the emotions the characters were experiencing. This is darker than Hargrave's other books but rest assured it is just as gripping and absorbing. We also have the beautiful illustrations that I have come to expect in Hargrave's books and always love.

There is a lot to this plot and I loved immersing myself in all of its dark glory. This is incredibly exciting and I loved following all the events. Of course, artistic licence is used but it still reads as true and fitting to the time. What a location this is as well, perfectly reflecting the gloomy atmosphere and the desperation of the characters. It is both beautiful and eerie.

Hargrave's characters are equally as stunning. Getting to know them was a joy. They are a hardy bunch of women who go through a lot in this book and the reader goes through everything with them. There is a good mix of status and personalities and they all bring excitement to the read.

'The Mercies' is another sensational read from Hargrave. A stunning location with a desperate, twisting plot that you just know is going to end badly. What a read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan for an advance copy.

This is a dark compelling read. It shows the best and the worst in humanity. This is a dark period of history when people were accused of being witches. In this story the accusers were probably trying to save themselves. This book is really well written and has obviously been very well researched. There are some strong interesting characters and it will stay in my head for some time.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

I admit it took me a while to get my teeth into this one but this is Nordic drama at its best, beautifully dark, brilliantly written, and atmospheric.

The Mercies is a strong, suffocating tale made the more so by the direct, simple approach to the storytelling and the undeniable horror of the events in the book.

Set in early 17th century isolated Finnmark, the story starts simply enough, with a direct approach reminiscent of children's writings. Men drown, women survive, and the story quickly becomes darker and more sinister.

Maren, the main character, is a strong young woman making her own way in her restricted life, having lost father, son and fiancee in an unnatural storm. We read about her friendships, family and loves as she rails against the dour and strict expectations of the times.

Events in the book are based on factual records of the time, but the author brings these facts to life in a devastating and disturbing way, highlighting the horror and the distress of the characters in the mundane and the less mundane events that happen around them.

The sinister tone is so well-maintained, and the women in the book are subjected to actions that they hadn't seen coming and that are so devastating to many of their lives.

Given the time and strangeness and distance between us and the events in the book, the author does an amazing job of showing how these women must have led their lives. By the end of the book you really care for the characters and want to see them settled, whilst realising this is probably not going to happen.

Overall the story is beautifully told, the story is so evocative, and the book stays with you long after reading.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the pleasure of reading an advance copy.

Gosh this is a good book! I devoured it. It's tense and atmospheric without being flowery - the author creates a bubbling cauldron of emotions with very few words. Beautifully written and gripping from start to finish.

** spoiler alert ** Set on an island left grief stricken when 40 of the men folk die at sea,and the women are left to fend for themselves.
Which was tough,back in the day when wearing trousers was considered to be a sin.
Excellent central characters,both struggling to adapt to their circumstances,finding friendship with each other (my one grievance is I wished it had just been friendship)
Set against a backdrop of social climbing,overly religious women and witchcraft,the book has tension and pace a plenty.
Really rather good.

In one freak storm, almost all the men and fishing fleet of Vardo were wiped out, leaving the women to fend for themselves. Despite the disapproval of their priest, they began to do the work that the men had done in order to survive. But the new Lensman, a Scot, has appointed another Scot to come and oversee the community - and Absalom Cornett is not sympathetic to the women. He was involved in witch trials in Scotland, and is determined to root out any hint of non-conformity in the village as witchcraft - particularly relating to the local Sami traditions.

Maren saw the storm, and she supported Kirsten as her friend became the unofficial leader of the village. It's also Maren who befriends Ursula, Absalom's new wife. Ursula is the daughter of a merchant from Bergen and is unprepared for the realities of life in a small house with no help in Vardo. She's also lonely, and gets little comfort from her husband. But when Kirsten is accused of witchcraft, and divisions in the village grow, is it possible for Ursula and Maren's friendship to survive?

I know little about the background in Norway at this time, but this was a fascinating read. As a picture of how easy it is to divide a previously tight-knit community, quickly riven by jealousy, it's compelling, and although it was obvious what must be going to happen to Kirsten I was still shocked when it did. The sense of place in the book is strong, and the characters are well drawn and appealing. I'm still thinking about bits of it!

I've enjoyed Kiran Millwood Hargrave's other books, and if this is an example of her writing for adults then I look forward to more of it!

In the early 1600s, in Finnmark, Ursula, daughter of a shipowner, is married off to Absalom Cornett. He is on his way from Scotland to rule and cleanse the (all female) inhabitants of Vardo who, having lost all their menfolk in one vicious storm, have been left to rule their own district.
"Vardo is an island, the harbour like a bite taken out of one side, the other shores too high or rocky for boats to be launched." Upon arrival, Ursula observes: "The village has the curious sense of being crammed together and spread widely out: it bunches and then releases, land standing uneasy between buildings of wood and stone, turf and mud."
Hoping for companionship, Ursa finds hostility; with dreams of love, instead she is delivered authority; far from all she has known or what she understands, their 'step-up' in the world requires a level of independence which her upbringing has in no way afforded her. The women of Vardo have had time to set about rebuilding their day-to-day existence and are rightly wary of her God-fearing, witch-burning husband and so she finds herself very much alone.
With persistence Ursa gains a foothold within the community and a rapport with, lifelong island-dweller, Maren Magnusdatter. But, as her confidence grows, so does the suspicion and religious fervour of her husband as he is urged on by the church and promises of influence and power.
Previously, the storm had made the sea "an enemy" and, at that time, Maren "thought she had seen the worst from this harbour, thought nothing could rival the viciousness of the storm. But", in time, she realises "she was foolish to believe that evil existed only out there. It was here, among them, walking on two legs, passing judgement with a human tongue." Until finally, she is forced to reflect "the mercies of God would have been better drowning them all."
After, what I felt was, a slow start (perhaps hampered by unfamiliar names and titles which meant it took me longer to distinguish between characters), I found myself compelled through Hargrave's tale: both fascinated and appalled at the misogyny, bigotry and fantastical malice displayed by a colony forced to point the finger away from themselves -ignoring sense and sound judgement- in order to survive. And so I urge you to persist: you will not be disappointed .
I'd like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with and ARC of this novel in exchange of my honest review.

A gorgeous, totally atmospheric and compelling story. The characters were so fully-fleshed that I found myself holding my breath at times. I loved the eerie element in the background, along with the suspicions and fears. the bleakness of the Norwegian setting was so strong, and I enjoyed reading a book from an era with events I knew little about.

What a powerful novel this is. I had no previous knowledge of the witch trials in Vardo, Norway. The Salem witch trials are widely known about but these events in Vardo seem to have been overshadowed.
The author really brings this whole sorry period in human history to life with powerful characters, description of the area and meticulous research.
It is a book that will stay with me. The mark of any good historical novel for me is when I want to learn more about the actual events and this novel does just that.
My thanks to Netgalley, the author and publisher for this copy.

This was a fantastic atmospheric novel about the repercussions of the witch hunts encouraged by King James VI and enflamed across Europe, right down to a tiny Norwegian village. I understand from the author's notes that this book was partly inspired by the Witches' Monument, a memorial that stands in rememberance of the women and men who were persecuted and killed during this dark time.
I was fascinated with the relationships in this book. The women are all such strong characters and even though as a modern reader one knows that the verdicts always end in tragedy it was a real joy to follow the development of each person in the village. From a stranger to a holy man to a husband to a zealot, Absalom is a genuinely terrifying character by the end. That said it is the women, with their strength and their flaws and their enduring love that make The Mercies a heartbreakingly compelling work.

The storm brings more than just rain! A thrilling tale of change, independence and control! A fantastic narrative with inspirational female protagonists who work to defy the odds!

Wow! What a truly heart wrenching novel. Never before has a book so utterly destroyed my soul, and based on true events ,no less!
Maren is such a complex and deep character, whose emotions play with my own. I especially loved seeing how her relationship with the other women on the island changed over the 18 months after the storm. Her friendship with Diinna was especially interesting to see, as Maren truly adores the cold hard sorcerers daughter.
Another element in this book that I loved was all the talk of omens and signs, Maren’s dreams with the whale were truly haunting.
I’d say my favourite scenes were the ones at the beginning where Maren visits the boathouse to see the swelling bodies of the dead men, they were chilling and so upsetting to see her loved ones bodies so destroyed and ruined.
This book goes straight to the top of my favourites list and I’d recommend this book to anybody who wants an empowering and beautiful novel to read.