A brilliant debut novel that had me hooked. I love any historical witchy read and this one didn’t disappoint

This felt a little trite and surface-level. Pretty much all the men were archetypal bad characters. I felt the witch trial section was very cliched in the sense that it has been covered many times before and in more interesting ways. And the modern section felt like something out of the 1950's!

This gripping thriller is a masterclass in tension, making each page a heart-pounding step further into the darkness of its secrets right until the last page!

I’ve had this book staring at me from my TBR shelf for quite a while now, so decided to finally read it. It was such a journeyyyyyyy!
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The story has multiple POVs which is normally not my favourite thing, but in this case it was helpful to have all these perspectives from different women, who even though were alive in different times one from the other, their story is kind of the same: an oppressed woman who needs to be strong to stand her ground.
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Loved this for a debut novel!

Really enjoyed this. 3 different perspectives. Audio was superb

5 stars

Would recommend to friends etc

Thank you for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. I really enjoyed reading this book, and was gripped from the beginning

This stunning cover has been doing the rounds on the internet recently and the story within its pages sounded truly captivating, so I couldn’t wait to have the time to dive into it. I’m delighted to report that I couldn’t put it down.

In 1619, Altha is preparing to stand trial for the murder of a farmer and will have to fight the claims of witchcraft from everyone around her, if she is to be free again. In 1942, Violet is kept away from the world by her father and finds evidence that her mother didn’t die in the manner that she has always believed. In 2019, Kate is on the run from her violent partner and has nowhere else to go other than the house she inherited from her great aunt -Weyward Cottage.

There is the constant repeated motif of nature being fully on the Weyward women’s side throughout their lives. It’s perhaps strongest in Violet’s story, as she has a fascination and affinity with insects but Altha also has a unique bond with animals. The Weyward magic is so beautiful and powerful, intrinsically linked to the natural world, implying that just like nature, Weywards cannot easily be controlled.

However, as we’re following three female characters, the world (in all three time periods) constantly tries to control the Weyward women. There is a lot of commentary on the history of men’s attempts to control and subdue women and it makes for pretty bleak reading to see how it still manifests in Kate’s 2019 life. The control and abuse changes its shape each century but the principles and attitudes behind them remain constant.

Violet’s story was the one that had me completely hooked throughout. I was deeply invested in her getting some kind of peaceful ending after the horrific treatment that made up the bulk of her childhood and youth. She was so smart and interesting that it made my heart ache to think that she lived in a time where there were so little opportunities for women to flourish.

Kate’s love for escaping into fiction clearly spoke to me and I love the idea that the mind is untameable and that books enable it. I suppose the limitless size of the imagination and the countless places that books can take us make that wildness of the mind obvious but in the context of Weyward, a novel that is predominantly about the ways in which women are controlled and ‘tamed’ to fit criteria that men need them to fit, reading anything at all feels like a brilliant act of rebellion.

I also thought it was so clever how Hart managed to compare the obsession with hunting that men displayed in both Violet and Altha’s stories with Kate’s partner Simon’s corporate job. The light bulbs in my head shone so bright when I made the connection! Again, the book is showing us how things have changed without ever changing at all.

Weyward is a fantastically immersive, gripping story that celebrates women’s relentless victories in the face of patriarchal brutality. Women are (and have always been) treated with suspicion and cruelty but Weyward illustrates how powerful and dangerous they can be, if their magic is allowed to grow. It is a witch book with no witches but a whole lot of triumph and timeless revenge.

This was such a good book! At the beginning I was wishing for more of Altha's timeline, enjoying the witchy feel of her and her mother's story, but by the time the book was almost ending I was satisfied that each woman had been given adequate amounts of narrative to tell their side. This is very much a "good for her" book with each member of the Weyward women overcoming a terrible man or men in their life and righting wrongs, and yes this could be seen as cheesy in another story but in this I thought it was perfect. There was just the right amount of tension in their stories too, with Altha and the trial, Violet with Frederick and her father and Kate with her partner Simon. Perhaps this the story isn't anything new, perhaps abusive partners and their beaten counterparts fighting back and becoming stronger has been done to death, but adding an uncanny element inherited through the ages kept me interested and made for such a fresh voice in this kind of historical novel. I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to see what Emilia Hart writes next

I loved this. The intertwining stories from the different characters and the immersive writing, made this a compelling and thoroughly enjoyable read. I’ve already recommended to others and I’m so glad I’ve read it. It was excellent.

Weyward is a compelling and gripping debut with a beautiful story about 3 generations of women, their resilience in adversity and their relationship with the natural world and all that is around them.

I’m not usually a fan of books told through different timelines, with the story flipping back and forth between characters within different times, simply because I usually get more invested in one and then end up resenting the other, or because I lose focus when trying to keep it all together in my mind. So for that reason, I was a little iffy before going into this book, however, the synopsis and the cover ultimately made me want to read it as I was in that kind of mood. I did go into it with a clear head, but I was obviously a little bit cautious because of the timeline facts.

I ended up really enjoying this book. Each of the three women and time periods were fleshed out nicely and to the point where I wasn’t getting confused or mixing them up, which considering are somewhat similar, showed how good a job the author did with these characters. I did enjoy reading from/about some of the characters more than the others, but they each had enough happening that I didn’t do my usual thing and skim or skip sections that weren’t holding my attention. The fact that I finished this book a few months ago and still have clear memories about what happened and my thoughts, shows how much it has stuck with me, even the parts I didn’t enjoy and believe me, I usually have the brain of a goldfish when it comes to remembering things, eg names etc.

It has made me realise that I shouldn’t be too close minded when it comes to reading books where certain things are out of my usual comfort or go to mode, especially when there are other parts that are screaming out to me. It’s definitely character driven, more than it is plot, with some good character development, which is again the opposite of what I usually like when it comes to reading. I have already recommended this book to a few people, more so those people I know would enjoy the theme and topics within this book.

This isn’t the best book I’ve read, but it is one that has made me open my eyes and be a lot more open minded when it comes to reading and what books to choose next.

Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. Well written and unfolding across multiple timelines, it was a good read.

Weyward is told in three different timelines, 1619, 1942 and 2019.
Altha’s story starts off when she is on trial for witchcraft. Anyone that knows me knows that I am very interested in that subject. I liked the nods to the Pendle Hill witches too.
Violet’s story was sometimes very distressing. I wanted to shake her father and her nanny for not paying attention or giving any kind of love at all. Her actions after an event made me so sad.
Kate’s story was also harrowing, living with a man that made her a shell of herself and beating her too.
I loved Altha and Violet’s sections the most and it was such an emotional book. Kate’s parts were sometimes very tense.
It was interesting learning how they were all connected. The nature element was fantastic.

I was hooked as soon as I started reading and I think the author wrapped the book up nicely.

I found this book really magical, enjoyable read. I didn’t want to put this book down truly captivating. Definitely be reading more from this author

This is fantasy, and I read this switching between the audiobook and e-book.

This is a story of 3 women, set in 3 different time periods - the 1600s, the 1940s and 2019. None of them are having a great time with the men in their lives: In the 1600s she's on trial for being a witch, in the 1940s she's a teenager enjoying the outdoors and collecting bugs until her cousin comes to stay and terrible things happen, and in 2019 she is trying to escape from her abusive boyfriend.

The stories are largely independent of one another although you also see how they connect as the women are related to each other.

The audiobooks has 3 barrators, which I really liked to clearly distinguish between the 3 storylines.

I enjoyed this, it's not necessarily a happy story but it is them finding strength in the terrible things that have happened to them (many potential trigger warnings).

Unusually for this kind of structure, I also liked all 3 of the stories rather than wishing we were back with someone else at any point!

4 stars

Weyward follows three generations of the same family; Altha, Violet and Kate… all with their own challenges to overcome and a special gift to help them.

I have to admit this fell flat for me and was quite a slog… plot lines were predictable and slow but I did enjoy the similarities winding through the Weyward women.

I was really looking forward to this book so my disappointment at not liking it is probably directly proportional. I don't think I'm I'm giving it a harder time than I would if I'd had no expectations but I can't promise it isn't influencing my opinion. Bear that in mind.

Weyward is beautifully written and very well structured. I enjoy dual/ multi timeline books with multiple povs and the way the three threads wove together was very deftly done. I also like the depiction of a long line of women each leaving sonething for a future great granddaughter. The inter-connectedness of female relationships is fascinating and was sufficiently interesting - if very underdeveloped here - to keep me reading.

Unfortunately that's where my good opinion flags. I've seen another reviewer describe this as 'women are abused by men, men are evil' or similar and frankly that is the premise of this entire book. It tackles the subject of female oppression in a very womb centric way. A style that would have been going out of date during the early 90s when 13yr old me would have most jived with this book. But even then I think I would have found the binary viewpoint and didactic message hard to swallow.

Every man with any agency in this book is either violent or a sex offender or both. Every woman - especially the three MCs - is a hapless victim. Not only is this incredibly wearying to read - seriously if you're female you've probably experienced sexism if not misogyny (and no they're not the same thing, could everyone please stop conflating the two) - but it's infuriating. Why are otherwise decent authors bent on reinforcing the idea that these are the only stories we're allowed to tell?

In addition, it is absolutely one of my most hated tropes that female characters are depicted as strong only in contrast to the evil male characters. If you cannot make a female character interesting and engaging without tearing down 90% + of your male characters, then your characterisation is crap. It's the same boring and irritating tripe I've seen in so many books of late (Morgan is my Name, Rosaline etc)

What I most object to is the continual casting of women as victims and men as rapists or would-be rapists. Then doubling down on it by reducing her MCs to reluctant baby machines whose main value and nebulous feminie mystique is their uteruses. Points for having characters consider and even carry out pregnacy terminations. Points deducted for having characters then regret those decisions and allow them to cast a pall over their lives. We can do better than that. Also point of fact but terminating a pregnancy was not illegal until Victorian times when it became part of the law to prevent infanticide. (Women with too many mouths to feed would sometimes smother newborn babies - this was a direct result of knowledge of contraception and termination being buried by the Church). So Alva may well have found that added to her witch tab but there was nothing in law to say women could not rid themselves of an unwanted child up to quickening (5 months) and it was none of a man's business. Certain aspects of life were always far more equal or even weighted towards woman than is commonly known. Rant ended.

This was not the most hateful example of this new women hate men genre that's creeping in, but it was certainly playing into the idea that 'female bodied people are better off without penis barers except when they want to conceive'. Which is so messed up I don't even know where to start. So I quit. Do not recommend.

A fabulous multiple timeline mystery about a line of women who may have witch powers, and the impact that makes on their lives. Meticulously researched and full of heart.

Sadly I was expecting a little bit more.
I wasn’t a fan of the characters, but the writing is still good.
But I’m sure others will like it better!

I got Weyward by Emilia Hart from NetGalley for free for a fair and honest review.



A story of three women from the same family separated by 400 years who are all classed Weyward or are unable to be tamed.


Weyward is one of those novels that could be classed as feminist which may be to its disadvantage as it can put readers off by some peoples connotations of that word.

However in Wayward we have a novel that examines how females who do not conform to the standards of the day may be seen as strange or charged with witchcraft as is the case with Altha who's story is set in northern England of 1619.

The other two main characters Violet in 1942 and Kate in 2019 both have over controlling males in their lives and in Kate’s case a boyfriend who has taken her from the job she loves and her friends.

While the novel does swap between each of the woman's stories the novel itself is well put together as each one shows how these Wayward Women become stronger as they become who they really are.

Making Wayward by Emilia Hart an enjoyable novel about people finding out who they are and being comfortable in their own skin.