Weyward

By: Emilia Hart

(Trigger Warnings: Gore, rape, domestic abuse, abortion, mental health, miscarriage, physical abuse of an animal, racial slur, sexual assault, stillbirth and suicidal ideation.)

Rating

★★★★★

1619: Atha, on trial for witchcraft and the murder of a man from town creates a book of her account of what really happened and why.

2019: Kate, flees her abusive husband to the remote town of Crows Beck to the cabin she inherited from her Great-Aunt that she had only met once. She finds relics of the past and answers to her own heritage.

1942: Violet, more interested in climbing trees and wanting to wear pants then being a proper lady, finds secrets hidden in her own home that changes everything she thought she knew.

I got this as my March 2023 Book of The Month pick, and I know your not supposed to judge books by their covers but I honestly do 90% of the time and this is one of them. The art of this cover is just so beautiful and after reading the blurb I knew I had to get it.

I love books with multiple timelines and viewpoints because it keeps me interested. Some books don't do it very well and I find myself skimming some of the story waiting for the one I like but I didn't do that once with this book, which I call a win. The pacing of this book was exquisite and unraveled from one time period to the other.

Athas viewpoint was the only one in first person which brought a very personal touch to her story. After being accused of witchcraft and the murder of a local man she is brought in for trial. The man who died is her estranged friends husband who was trampled to death by his herd of cows. The town comes out to testify against Atha to prove she used witchcraft to scare the cows and kill John. After being found not guilty she returns home and writes a book about what happened before and during the trial and hid it in a locked nightstand.

Kate's story starts with her running away from her abusive husband to save herself and her unborn baby. She goes into town for a doctors appointment for the baby and at the end asks for information on abortion services and the receptionist gives her a disapproving look before sliding over the pamphlet. While living at the cabin and starting her own routine she starts to feel more herself and like she's where she belongs and wants to keep the baby. While buying baby things Kate's old email address, that her husband has access to, is accidentally added and her husband comes for her and finds her at the cottage. To hide from her husband Kate hides in the attic and finds an old hand written book inside a nightstand.

Violet is a carefree child who has an "unnatural" affinity with nature and bugs especially. While she wants to be a scientist and go to collage like her older brother, her father is more worried about her being a proper lady and getting married to a respected man. Her father gives her an ultimatum and tells her if she can behave like a proper lady while her cousin is visiting he wont send her to finishing school. Her cousin Fredrick is a solder in the war and is visiting while on leave. one day Violet and Fredrick go on a walk into the woods where Fredrick rapes her and then leaves the next day. Violet finds out she's pregnant and tells her father it was Fredricks and he takes her to a little cabin in the woods and decides she will stay there and wait for Fredrick to get back from the war and marry him. While cleaning the cabin she finds a handwritten book that shows a concoction to start a period, killing the baby.

The stories of three woman across five century's weave together to show pain, suffering, and heartache but also the resilience and determination of woman and the strength they have. I loved how this book showed all three woman in surprisingly similar situations and were helped by the woman before them. The book that Atha writes helps Violet abort the baby of her abuser and shows Kate how strong the Weywards are and gives her strength to face her abuser and finally be free of him.

This book was very well written and kept me interested all the way through. It is an amazing story of woman finding their strength and taking control of their lives. Some parts of the book were pretty triggering so make sure you check them before starting it because I didn't and was a little shocked when I came across some scenes.