*may contain spoilers*
I really enjoyed this book, even though it broke my heart. It paints a gruesome, mind-blowing tale of a dark period in America's history -- the Salem witch trials. The author, Peni Jo Renner, says in her 'about the author' section that she is actually a direct descendant of the story's protagonist, Rebecca Eames, and that is truly something to think about. People flock to Salem every year by the hundreds to 'vacation' in these places where hundreds of men, women, and children were murdered in the name of God, and it's just 'SO COOL!' to visit Salem.
And I've been there, myself, and it was incredible. But I think that we often forget that the people who died there were just people. They weren't part of some super fun reenactment trial. They were real people who lived and died horrible deaths.
This book does a great job of bringing the human element back into the story of the Salem witch trials. Reading about the horrifying struggles that the Eames family had to suffer through simply because Rebecca spoke her mind to a man whose family had hated the Eames' family for years... it's just... Wow. What a perfect example of how much damage hatred and ignorance can cause.
However, it was also very uplifting at times. Seeing how the Eames family managed to keep their faith in God despite all the horrors they suffered... very inspiring. I know that the book itself is fiction, but as Ms. Renner says, it is a fictional book based off of real events and real people.
It's one of the better books I've received through the Goodreads giveaway program. I enjoyed it from beginning to end.
I really enjoyed this book, even though it broke my heart. It paints a gruesome, mind-blowing tale of a dark period in America's history -- the Salem witch trials. The author, Peni Jo Renner, says in her 'about the author' section that she is actually a direct descendant of the story's protagonist, Rebecca Eames, and that is truly something to think about. People flock to Salem every year by the hundreds to 'vacation' in these places where hundreds of men, women, and children were murdered in the name of God, and it's just 'SO COOL!' to visit Salem.
And I've been there, myself, and it was incredible. But I think that we often forget that the people who died there were just people. They weren't part of some super fun reenactment trial. They were real people who lived and died horrible deaths.
This book does a great job of bringing the human element back into the story of the Salem witch trials. Reading about the horrifying struggles that the Eames family had to suffer through simply because Rebecca spoke her mind to a man whose family had hated the Eames' family for years... it's just... Wow. What a perfect example of how much damage hatred and ignorance can cause.
However, it was also very uplifting at times. Seeing how the Eames family managed to keep their faith in God despite all the horrors they suffered... very inspiring. I know that the book itself is fiction, but as Ms. Renner says, it is a fictional book based off of real events and real people.
It's one of the better books I've received through the Goodreads giveaway program. I enjoyed it from beginning to end.
