Cunning women is a short novel based on Sarah, the cunning woman's daughter and her life where she meets a timid farmer boy and struggles with her new master whilst living on the outskirts of a God-fearing community.
This was a very slow book with a short and cute romance for which I honestly demand justice. I shed a few tears on what could have been of Sarah's life. I don't understand why Daniel could not go away with Sarah even if he promised himself to Molly? They hadn't married yet and if he loved Sarah, it simply does not make sense. This is why I demand justice. Other than the confusing ending to the lovestory, the plot line was weak which corresponded badly with the slow pace.
This book is ideal if you enjoy star-crossed romance and witches.

Opening in seventeenth century, Cunning Woman is a story that blends early modern suspicion and religious beliefs and witchcraft. We come face to face with a cunning family, both rejected and (hypocritically) courted under cover for their charms and knowledge. Sarah, the eldest daughter and future cunning woman, finds herself drawn to Daniel — but a world of suspicion and fear, can they find happiness?

Although not a heavy tome, I did find this story slow and difficult at the start. Parts of the early chapters were messy and anachronistic. I had to reread certain passages twice or more,

However, as the story develops, one finds the character of Sarah interesting but I cannot say I was ever invested. It is far from a bad debut — and I’m grateful to NetGalley and the Publisher — but it did not grab me. .

As a fan of historical fiction, I find it refreshing to read a book from this period that is from the point of view of the peasant rather than a royal courtier. It reminded me of Philippa Gregory’s Tidelands, dealing in issues faced by women in those times; suspicion of midwives and herbalists, and the vulnerability of unmarried/widowed women. I enjoyed Lee’s allusions to depression, bipolar and birthmarks (sounds random, but apparently a ‘reliable’ sign of a witch) and it was fascinating to draw parallels with how these are understood and viewed in our time. The language used was vernacular enough to gently suggest rural Lancashire without distracting or making a laborious read.
I found it easy to identify with the main characters and yearn for their love story to have a happy ending. I enjoyed the developing collision of the side-characters’ actions upon the lives of the couple, proving that nothing in society happens in a vacuum. I loved the fact that the main character appeared to battle internally with what she learns from a superstitious culture, and what she interpreted logically from observing the world around her, I did however, find this logical, questioning aspect of the character at odds with her “possessed by a familiar” side, and somehow wished the character had resisted the ‘inheritance’ of occult powers. I happily raced through the book and look forward to a possible sequel, or any future work by Elizabeth Lee.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Windmill for the preview copy.

I was not sure what to make of this book at first. It begins quite slow and I was not overly keen on the authors writing style. However, after continuing on I found that I cared about the main character and her relationships with her family and others in her life. Having said that some of the characters actions were a little annoying considering the consequences they faced and it felt like they should have and would have made smarter choices at times. I still enjoyed the story for what it was though. The ending was unexpected though thankfully not as unpleasant as it could have been and it leaves you with a sense of hope for Sarah and her family after everything they have been through.

The writing style continued to bother me a little. there was a handful of passages I had to reread as the way sentences are broken up makes it difficult to follow the story easily sometimes but as I was reading an ARC I suspect there might be some further editing to go through yet.

To finish off, I would probably recommend this book to anyone looking for a short-ish standalone story that has some challenging moments throughout but has you routing for the main characters and leaves you with a sense of hope at the end.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Typically, I’m not a huge reader of historical fiction. I tend towards more high fantasy, with worlds that are clearly different from our own. Despite this, I was really excited to read this one as the time period of the 1600s (in which this book was set) has always intrigued me. The superstition, fear and darkness that surround this era has always seemed like another world entirely in comparison to modern day. The way that Elizabeth Lee explored this reality was done excellently. Despite the focus being on witches (or cunning women), Lee managed to make everything seem so raw and realistic that I almost forgot that these cunning women didn’t exist. The take on witchcraft was unlike any I had read before and I actually really appreciated the fact that it wasn’t fully explained as an air of dark mystery was still retained around the whole thing.
I adored the characters – their values, their growth and the influence they had on each other. Sarah’s inner strength and the fierce protectiveness she had over her family came across on every page and witnessing Daniel’s growth throughout the book was beautiful and inspiring to read. Overall, really think this is what placed him as my favourite character.
If I had to pick one word to describe the book in its entirety, it would be bittersweet. It made my heart ache in parts but I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
The only reason I couldn’t make it a five-star read is that I think there could have been more development/ a build-up for Sarah and Daniel’s relationship. Although I loved them both, I wasn’t 100% invested in them as a couple.
I would highly recommend fans of historical fiction and those who like a witchy read to pick this one up when it’s released in April 21!

Cunning Women is a gorgeously immersive dual narrative tale about witchcraft, religion, romance. It touches on themes of what it means to be a family and societal acceptance/norms in the 1620s that feel very modern. It follows Sarah and Daniel as they try to build the life they want within strict social rules and judgements.

Lee's use of language is beautiful throughout, and the historic information is so well researched that it seamlessly fits into the writing so that it's not jarring to the reader. The characters, particularly Sarah and Daniel, resist simplification - Lee has done well in making them multidimensional and waver on their values at times. I found the plot very engrossing and the themes tie themselves up so nicely at the ending.

My only qualm was with the dual narrative itself. Though I thought it lent and interesting perspective, I didn't understand why the narrative tense changed between Sarah and Daniel's chapters.

Overall, I highly recommend this lush book!

I love historical fiction and even though 16th century isn't an era i'm familiar with I was eager to read this book, but I didn't really enjoy the story. I'm thinking it is better aimed at a YA market with the 'love at first sight' of the main characters and the witchy magic that is peppered through the story. Though maybe other parts not to YA.
The middle of the story with the change of clothes and face wash just didn't appeal to me and I lost interest around there.
I wanted to love it, but I came away in need of a tonic for disappointment.
Grab this book is your a fan of love at first sight.

Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read and review.

A well written tale of a village witch who now probably would be called a herbalist or faith healer. She is struggling to find a way to feed her family until her daughter Sarah meets Daniel, the son of a local farmer. A story of love, ignorance, violence and heartbreak. I found this book absolutely stunning and was engaged with the plot and the characters straight away. I would love to read a further tale of the characters, even though the ending was pretty final.

Set in 16th century Lancashire, Cunning Women is a tale of witchcraft, love and prejudice.
We follow the story of Sarah, who like her mother is a witch. Her family has been kept on the outskirts of the village as outcasts due to their skills in what is seen as sorcery. However, when Sarah meets Daniel, a farmer's son from the village, she begins to see a better future take shape until the arrival of a new magistrate brings a dark cloud over her and her family.

I had high hopes for this book but it really fell short.
I was so excited to read from this novels setting of rural Lancashire and experience this period in history but this is one of the main features I felt was lacking. With little description of the surroundings I felt it very hard to picture the location that this story took place. There was never a feeling of atmosphere to give you that feeling of really stepping into this tine period that you should feel when reading a historical fiction.

My other major issue with this book was the plot in general. The romance within this novel which is the main driving force of the story was very weak. I have a very strong dislike for "insta love" wihtin books and this was a text book example of it. After only one meeting these characters were ready to marry each other and declare undying love. It left me just unable to feel invested in there supposed love when it was so unrealistically portrayed, so without feeling invested I never felt very emotionally connected to the characters and cared for their predicaments.

There was also a ridiculously unrealistic part of this book where the main characters basically goes undercover by just wearing nicer clothes and somehow that means she becomes unrecognisable to everyone who knew her before which was just so silly I lost all commitment to the narrative.

Overall this was just a major disappointment. The blurb for this book holds a lot of promise but what is actually within this books pages is a bland story with forgettable characters and a very lack lustre plot.

Not my cup of tea, I'm afraid, as I would have liked more historical content and less romance. However, Cunning Women is rather well written, easy to read, and the theme of witchcraft makes it interesting and intriguing enough, so I'm sure it will find its readers.

Cunning Women is a wholly believable tale of a "witch" family living just outside a fishing village in 17th century Lancashire. In the shadow of the Pendle witch trials, Sarah and her family survive from day to day by begging and providing a range of traditional remedies to those in need. The ever present threat of deeper powers instills fear in the villagers, which is both vital to the family's livelihood and has the potential to boil over at any time and threaten their survival.

Sarah and Daniel, the two main characters, are beautifully drawn, flawed and filled with self-doubt, but both possessed of an inner strength and powerful sense of justice. Their love - for this is essentially a romance - drives the story forward.

Stripped of the witchcraft elements, the outlines of the story are simple and familiar - forbidden love, can it survive, can they succeed?

But this is more than made up for by the sensitivity with which witchcraft is woven into the tale. The conditions that create and sustain such beliefs and practices, the various social, spiritual and legal responses of the community, and the dilemmas and internal tensions faced by the family itself, are all shown in powerful detail. And yet this is done entirely through the narrative, with an admirable lightness of touch. There is no heavy exposition here.

Moreover, this is historical fiction, not fantasy, and is so much the better for it. Witchcraft in actual, real-world settings is interesting enough, and worthy of more novellistic portrayals. In contrast we surely have more than enough vampire/Potter/horror/fantasy fiction to keep us all going til the end of time.

In Cunning Women, Elizabeth Lee has given us a better exploration of witchcraft in a real-world setting than anything I have ever come across. I loved it.

When Sarah's father is lost at sea, her mother does what she can to survive. Cast Out and shunned by those who were once there friends, she scrapes an existence selling potions, charms and spells. There is never enough food, there is never any money for new clothes, the family must survive in abject poverty. This breeds bitter resentment and evil is never far away.
Sarah has been marked for the same fate as her mother, to live on the outskirts of society, feared and despised, but called upon by the villagers in time of need. When Sarah spots a boy taming a horse with kindness, she is entranced, and he is drawn to her. There relationship grows and Sarah has a glimpse of a world of kindness and love that her mother warns her can never be hers. She needs to decide if she dares to follow her heart. The world around her is about to change, people are less tolerant, more fearful, evil lurks just out of sight, suspicion grows. One wrong step could destroy her family.

This is a beautifully written story. A air of encroaching darkness, foreboding and fear sweeps in on the first page. The heart wrenching deprivation in which Sarah and her sister live really got to me. The idea that Sarah could build a better life hangs tantalisingly in front of her, but nothing good ever comes her way so she dare not believe it. The best historical fiction gets you right inside a community, a family, the mind of an individual, and lets you experience the world from their point of view. This book does this very well indeed.
If I had one criticism it would be that the tone of misery and foreboding throughout the book was pretty unrelenting. The quality of writing kept me reading it it did feel a little flat and grey around the middle of the book, before the plot fully kicked in. A ray of light here and there might not have gone astray.

I would like to thank net galley and the publisher for the oppertunity to review this book

This is set in 1620, with all the horrors of being “different” and where superstition is the norm. The story is beautifully written, the characters are well formed and I felt empathy with them. The ending is good and well delivered. If I have one gripe it is that the story is a little slow, but don’t be put off, it’s well worth a read. Not usually a fan of love stories, not keen on all sweetness and light, but the witchy element and different style ending really lifts this book. Thank you NetGalley for the arc.

I really enjoyed this book. In a nutshell it is a love story, laced with witchcraft and involving local villagers and an outcast family.
Beautifully easy to read, the characters were credible and developed enough for myself to form a mental picture of each of them. Clever writing drew out their personalities too.
I have read similar books covering this subject matter, but for me,this book stood out above them. I would recommend it to any lover of witchy tales and a love of history, who is a sucker for a touch of romance.

An extremely powerful and gripping novel based in 1620. I was hooked from page one. The characters are written in such a way they pull you right to the heart of the story. Once or twice I had to hold my breath afraid of what would happen. It tells the story of Sarah and her family who live in poverty as outcasts from the village because people think they have powers of witchcraft. It is a love story as well as Sarah and the local farmers son fall in love but have to keep it secret for a number of reasons. Bittersweet and cruel I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

A great historical fiction novel set in the 1620s during the witch trails. I was rooting for Sarah and her family from the beginning and there were plenty of twists and turns. The characters were well defined and you really felt the nail biting tension of the story. A wonderful debut!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.

Wonderful historical fiction. Well written, characters are nicely developed, atmosphere is perfect and the reader is quickly immersed in another time where people believed in superstitions, magic and witchcraft.

This is a story of poor family which tries to survive on a brink of society, because the villagers judge only by the appearance and status. But there si love and hope, good and evil, twists and turns.

Great book!

I absolutely raced through this; it grabbed me from the very start. I loved how easily fleshed out the characters were, right from the off - Daniel wanting to carry the milk pail out in front of him and being mocked seemed such a simple idea, but really fed into how he sees himself and how he's seen by others, making his later boldness more surprising (for them, but not for the reader).

Would definitely recommend this if you enjoyed The Mercies, or Witches of New York.

An exciting historical fiction intertwined with witchery tales and beliefs, telling the story of a young couple in love and in great peril. Beautifully written!

This is a wonderful novel. Sarah, the witch child, meets a lover who is drawn to her, more than he is to Molly the winner of the May queen competition, In fact he is obsessed with her. She has few friends in the village and bitter memories and experiences there. I will not reveal the ending for fear of spoiling it, but this novel is well worth reading