Gothic horror! Witch trials! Sinners! This book was a very enjoyable and thrilling read. Williamson writes very well and it suits the plot and story perfectly.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

a psychological gothic horror following christian shaw, determined to live outside of sin. when christian was eleven, she accused thirty five townsfolk of witchcraft after learning of the tunnel of sin and what men and women do in the dark and the terrible red, red, red rags that follow her into her adulthood. loosely based on a true story, of europe’s last large witch trial.

a very gripping and fast read that is incredibly well written, i hope to check out more of victoria williamson’s work very soon. thank you netgalley for a copy in exchange for a review.

This was a nice quick read and had a really unique feel to it! Would recommend to anyone looking for something a bit different!

This book was uncomfortable and at times truly disturbing, but I’m sure that was the point, given that it’s based on the deeply unsettling and unfortunate true story of the last witch trials in Scotland.

Christian Shaw has spent her entire life trying to remove stains - first from her past, and now as an adult, from the white sewing thread she makes. The story is told in an innovative Warp and Weft pattern, using the characteristic weaving back-and-forth terminology to distinguish her flashbacks from the present time.

There is much repetitive imagery, often disturbingly graphic, surrounding the birth of a younger sibling, and which echoes throughout Christian’s brittle and skittish mind ever afterward. Her relationship with a dear friend/servant is a loose tie to sanity, but I would have liked some more explanation as to where she came from and what her motives were.

Overall, the horror aspects were just too strong for this fantasy reader - but just because I didn’t love it doesn’t make it poorly written. I respect the way Victoria Williamson wove this story, and appreciate the way it all came together.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this advanced reader's copy and the opportunity to this early. Review has been posted on Waterstones and Goodreads.

Very interesting and really good pacing.
I enjoyed the idea and the execution, it just didn't hit me as hard as I expected.
Do recommend it though.

Red Runs the Witch’s Thread by Victoria Williamson is a dark, atmospheric novella inspired by the 1697 Paisley witch trials. It follows Christian Shaw, whose childhood accusations led to executions, and who, as an adult, is haunted by guilt and psychological torment. The dual timeline and shifting narration deepen the tension, blurring reality and hallucination. Vivid prose and gothic imagery enhance its eerie tone, though some may find the protagonist hard to empathize with. Overall, it’s a compelling read for fans of historical horror and psychological fiction.

DNF at 10%. I was dubious from the outset, because the author apparently NEEDED me to know how very fat the rude merchant was ("the merchant's beefy hands," "his stubby fingers," "that fat old swindler"). That wasn't the only stereotype about fat people she was going for, of course: the protagonist's mother was too fat to walk easily upstairs because of "her fondness for plum puddings and sweet wine." But then the rest of the prose was repetitive, with tons of redundancy, and frankly life is too short for me to spent it on a book that managed to so thoroughly annoy me in only twenty pages.

I really enjoyed Red Runs the Witch’s Thread. The title is excellent. The unreliable narrator, Christian was such a great character.

Two time frames; Current day (1700’s) with main character Christian trying to redeem her family’s name with her purest white garment thread. And past Christian as a child, cursed by witch’s and the subsequent fallout and burning of those witch’s.

We don’t know what’s true and what’s false until we get to the end. Will definitely read more from this author.

My apologies, but I just couldn't get into this book at all, no matter how much I tried. I managed to read the first 4 chapters.

A novel that bleeds across the genre of horror and historical fiction. A dual timeline that portrays the unravelling of a woman psyche who believes she has been cursed while the narrative follows a series of memories unspooling like a thread. A very unsettling tale that asks questions about ones own complicity in events that may haunt you across lifetimes.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐑𝐮𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡'𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐕𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐬𝐨𝐧

5 stars — haunting, atmospheric, and unforgettable

This book completely devoured me. Set against the chilling backdrop of the Paisley witch trials, it weaves historical fiction with gothic horror in the most mesmerizing way. Christian Shaw is a complex, tormented protagonist whose descent into obsession and madness had me turning pages long into the night.

Ravens, visions, guilt, and a devil’s bargain—this story is drenched in eerie atmosphere and historical depth. The line between ambition and damnation has never been so razor-thin. I highly recommend this to fans of dark, feminist historical fiction with a supernatural twist.

An absolute must-read.

It was short, interesting and a bit unsettling. The atmosphere and setting were great. The suspensions of the town people towards Christian was written very well and understandable. But the book also has its flaws. The book works with flashvacks to a much younger Christian, yet character wise she acts the same. As if she had no character growth in all this time. I also wished her mother and her sisters would have gotten a bit more character. They feel like they aren't people but are only there for the plot. Sadly the word repetitions were also something that got annoying quite quickly. I understand why they were there (showing how far gone she was into her madness) but they were overused to the point where they lost the impact.

'Red Runs the Witch's Thread' is very intense for its short length. There's a dual timelime. In 1696, Christian Shaw is a young girl who believes herself bewitched by a group of people. In 1722, she is now grown up and a widow, haunted by the choices she made as a child. I liked the trope of who the true monster(s) were in the book. The blending of reality and an unstable mental state was done very well. Due to its short length, it can easily be read in one sitting.
4 stars.

Rate : 3.7

Paisley, Scotland, 1697. Thirty-five people are accused of witchcraft. All of them died. All of them were accused by eleven-year-old Christian Shaw. Bargarran House, 1722. Christian Shaw returns home, spending hours perfecting the thread bleaching process that will revive her family’s fortune. She thought by making it the purest white, her past sins would purify too. But her white thread is not enough to stop the dark force from consuming her sanity day by day.

This story has strong relatives related to historical events. The FMC, Christian, is seeing illusions of her guilty past. She is just shameful of what she has become and making those lies become someone else's tragedy. To be honest, I don’t like Christian, who is not responsible and just madly insane and full of guilt after what she has done.

Also, this story feels like reading Christian Shaw's unfortunate dear diary. Because this story is strongly related to historical events, it is lacking in world building and adventure. I couldn’t say I enjoyed this story, since I’m not unto the FMC. But if you curiously about it, it is not wrong to try reading this book.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing this digital book! I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was short and interesting, but overall uninspiring for me. The timeline jumps between past and present, and while different in age, I couldn't distinguish between Christian's present and past self. She talked and acted the same at the different ages. It surprised me at one point when in one of her past points of view that she was only 8 years old. Her voice was startlingly mature and I didn't quite believe it.

I struggled to find the exact conflict. Was it her first period, the ravens, the boys in the woods, her visions, her lying? I got the sense that I should be concerned or held in suspense, but I just wasn't. This was a strange mix of potentially undiagnosed mental illness and genuine spiritual warfare, but the main parallel between what she did out of a sense of justice and her own severe guilt is what struck me the hardest.

I found her confusing but also pitied her. She was under a lot of strain, mental and emotionally. The ending was not as clear as I'd hoped it would be.

Red Runs the Witches thread uses the real life burning of 7 people accused of witchcraft, most likely the last in the Uk, in 18th century. It follows the 11 year old, Christian at the centre of this case who accesed 35 people of witchcraft. We see her as a widow in her 30s and as the 11 year old girl struggling with the changes in her body.

The story was compelling and it felt like a fresh version of a historical witch hunt story. I am wary of insinuating real witchcraft amongst the innocent women killed at this time, but I do think the story doesnt diminish that at all. Those killed were innocent!

I do think this makes for an atmospheric read to evoke a gothic atmosphere. I was absolutely absorbed in Christian's story and left disturbed in the way you should after reading a spooky tale...if you dare.

Christian Shaw, at 11 years old, condemns 7 townsfolk to be hanged and burned as witches after her first period leaves her hysterical and in a bout of momentary madness. On the Twenty-fifth anniversary, something wicked comes to Bargarran House as ravens circle the house while Chrisitan obsesses over creating the most perfectly white thread.

I absolutely loved this book. Victoria Williamson weaves an intriguing and horrific story of what life was like for a young girl learning what it is like to transform into a woman with a single bleed, in a time where one accusation would have you branded a witch. Interestingly, Williamson merges this tale with a narrator who is also the accusor. It very much feels like The Crucible was as much laced in the inspiration as was the last witch execution in Scotland.

Williamson makes Chrisitan such a relatable character that it's hard to hate her fully, despite the horrific things her words have done. However, because she acknowledges her wrongdoings, she stands out from other accusors in historical fiction centered around the horrific witch hunts.

Overall, Red Runs the Witch's Thread was an intriguing, horrific read into the mind of a young girl who's lack of information lead to disaterous consequences and a bout of madness that sends chills down your spine. I thoroughly recommend Williamson's novella to anyone fascinated with stories centered arounf the witch hunts or who wants to see this narrative from a different perspective.

Thank you, NetGalley and Silver Thistle Press, for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this Arc in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved every second of this book. It is a slow start as it’s spends time building up the atmosphere and plot. The chapters change between past and present to explain the past and what is leading her to slowly lose her mind in the present,