By Kathleen Kent
Genera: Historical fiction
Age range: 15-adult
Major themes: Family, Right-from-wrong, coming of age
Smiles book rating: 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
The Heretic’s Daughter, by Kathleen Kent, is a powerful book told from the point of view of a child. Taking place during an era of smallpox and witch trials, where the people were heavily influenced by the church, this book captures the essence of what it was like not only to grow up in that time period, but to be Martha Carrier’s daughter. Martha carrier- a woman convicted of witchcraft in the Salem witch trials.
Overall, this book was amazing, keeping me intrigued from start to finish. Kent expertly told the story from a young girls point of view, making it all the more powerful. Good for teens to adults, those younger would probably not understand the powerful themes in the novel.
The main character, Sarah, was such a strong person, and yet super sarcastic and typical teenager, which made her relatable to adults and the YA group, despite the fact that she was young for most of the novel.
And let us not forget Martha and Thomas, Sarah’s parents, both of whom were quiet and mysterious and yet super characterized, a great combination that’s difficult to achieve.
Finally, the part that made the book irresistible, was the plot movement. There was always something happening, but the movement supplemented the description rather than robbing it. Kent masterfully made you want to keep reading, and you can be assured that the plot was never dull or repetitive.
Highly recommend!
*To get five stars, the book has to make me keep reading all night (literally because I do this), so to get 4 stars means it was essentially perfect
Write Through the Night 