I have read a few books about witchcraft but this one deals with service magic as it was practiced in the Middle Ages - by regular people who were usually part of their community and sold their services to their neighbours.

The book is organised in different chapters and starts with Mabel Gray, who in 1637 travels across several London boroughs to seek help to find her list silver spoons. Magic then was "the fallback option when things went wrong - or even when life wasn't going as well as one might like". Tabitha Stanmore explains how to people at the time, magic was "a rational part of the supernatural universe in which they lived" - if angels and demons are real, magic could be real too. She gives many case studies of people using service magic, even the Church, and how magic was seen as more neutral than it became seen as in the 17 and 18 centuries.

It's a fascinating book showing how people at the time would ask for the help of their local magician when they wanted revenge, or a baby, or to improve their marriage, or to progress socially. It's well researched and also sympathetic to the ideas of the time and how they were part of a way of thinking that was accepting of magic - as a neutral vessel - and it's practitioners.

Free ARC sent by Netgalley.

Whilst it is relatively easy to read English history stories (true and factual) concerning real people, for instance, the Tudors, this book is aimed more at the lower levels of society. There is magic, witchcraft, alchemy, potions with desperate men and women turning to Cunning Folk for all sorts of reasons, sometimes having lost some clothes!

I found the whole book fascinating, and obviously well researched by Ms Stanmore. She has delved into the 12th century, stories from Elizabeth 1 and even more up to date tales.

Whilst I really enjoyed the slightly older chapters, the whole book was excellent.

Thanks to Net Galley and Random House UK Vintage for the chance to read and review.

Fascinating, well researched and detailed book on both historical and modern stories about people relying on Cunning Folk.
The author has clearly done the leg work for this book and it shows, setting the scenes for many of the tales very well and you become immersed in it all very quickly.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read and review this book.

A veritable treasure trove of historical research, mostly related to magic. I didn't expect this level of detail and I am pleasantly surprised by it. The author even tells of an event that occurred in modern times, when a fortune teller who charged 3 pouns for short readings and 7 pounds for long ones had a queue stretching right around the block in London, around 140 people long. The author was one of the people who queued. Also I learned that the demand for psychics went up during the early days of the covid pandemic and the financial crisis of 2008.
However most of the book was historical and I learned that aristocrats as well as commoners were involved in magical practices, some of the names I already knew but I did not know of others suspected of magic.
An excellent guide to magical practices and other things associated with magic, such as alchemy, which laid the foundations for modern chemistry.
I would give this book more than 5 stars if I could for the sheer level of detail and research that went into it.

As a practicing witch I found this book absolutely fascinating in looking at ways in which magic has been used in many different aspects plus all the practices and beliefs that have been used in the past
This is a very accessible book for anyone with no knowledge on the subject and would make a lovely gift

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc