cassiecat's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
4⭐️
I had the audiobook read by Beth Eyre
It’s a blend between historical and modern day. Mike Sinclair is the new Minister, he is interested in the history of the village. The ghost of the witch finder General is said to haunt one of the shops in the high street. He notices more supernatural activity and disturbance in his parish.
In the present day Emma is drawn to the cottage she remembered from holidays in her youth, but she starts having dreams and nightmares about the occupant at the time of the infamous witch hunt.
The past is intertwined with the present in the form of dreams. It’s done very effectively, but you have to really concentrate to keep track of the switch.
The premise is good, for me it’s very long and somewhat drawn out.
An enjoyable book.
katherineannpotter's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
readbyashleyd's review
5.0
Yet another unexpected gem from Erskine! I honestly couldn’t have enjoyed this book more, I was completely drawn in right from the very beginning and couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. I love anything to do with witchcraft and witches and this story had both in spades and it was done SO well. I loved how the past and present were so interconnected and weaved such a tangled web that you can’t help but fall into.
scarletaingeal's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
carpelibrumbookstore's review against another edition
5.0
$3.77 at the Parkville Bookworm, hardback
I loved this book!
Ghosts, witches, and goblins, oh my.
Well, Hiding From the Light, by Great Britain's Barbara Erskine, doesn't actually goblins, but it does have ghosts and witches.
Set in Essex, England, circa 1996, the book revolves around Emma, a 30-something Londoner who moves to the countryside after she sees an ad for a house and has to have it, and Mike, the town's priest.
Shortly after moving into her new house, Emma starts having nightmares about people tortured and killed simply for being accused of being witches; most of her nightmares revolve around two women in particular, an elderly woman named Liza and Sarah, the child she cared for and who tried to defend Liza but ended up being accused and almost killed herself. Sarah swore vengeance on the Witchfinder General, Anthony Hopkins, and pursued him, some 350 years after their deaths. Both Mike and Emma hear voices that nobody else seems to have telling them to kill each other, and endure nightmares and sleepless nights. Eventually, the town's other residents suffer from nightmares and voices nobody else seems to hear.
Hiding From the Light was so good I couldn't put it down, even with a bookstore to run, an attention-hungry, energetic dog who wouldn't take no for an answer when he begged for a play session, and mounds of laundry to attend to.
I loved this book!
Ghosts, witches, and goblins, oh my.
Well, Hiding From the Light, by Great Britain's Barbara Erskine, doesn't actually goblins, but it does have ghosts and witches.
Set in Essex, England, circa 1996, the book revolves around Emma, a 30-something Londoner who moves to the countryside after she sees an ad for a house and has to have it, and Mike, the town's priest.
Shortly after moving into her new house, Emma starts having nightmares about people tortured and killed simply for being accused of being witches; most of her nightmares revolve around two women in particular, an elderly woman named Liza and Sarah, the child she cared for and who tried to defend Liza but ended up being accused and almost killed herself. Sarah swore vengeance on the Witchfinder General, Anthony Hopkins, and pursued him, some 350 years after their deaths. Both Mike and Emma hear voices that nobody else seems to have telling them to kill each other, and endure nightmares and sleepless nights. Eventually, the town's other residents suffer from nightmares and voices nobody else seems to hear.
Hiding From the Light was so good I couldn't put it down, even with a bookstore to run, an attention-hungry, energetic dog who wouldn't take no for an answer when he begged for a play session, and mounds of laundry to attend to.
lnatal's review
3.0
This is the story of Emma Dickson who gave up her career in order to live in a cottage on the Essex coast. Even if this house remembered her childhood, it's haunted by a witch who was prosecuted by Cromwell's Witch Finder General Matthew Hopkins. If you like to read books about ghosts and witches as well then you should read this book.
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