Shakespeare’s Witch by Samantha Grosser #BlogTour #HFVBT

On By macsbooks311In #historical fiction, Blog Tours, Book Reviews, Magical Realism

02_Shakespeares-Witch
Love, Witchcraft, Sorcery, Madness.
A fortune told …
When Sarah Stone foresees Will Shakespeare’s latest play has opened doors to evil, she begs the playwright to abandon it. But Will refuses, aware the play is one of his best. And so rehearsals for Macbeth begin.
Forbidden desires …
After her vision, Sarah fears for her life – she has never known the shewstone to lie, and she turns to her brother Tom for comfort. A strange darkness seems to haunt the playhouse, and when Tom sets out to seduce John Upton, the boy actor who plays Lady Macbeth, the boy sees the hand of witchcraft in his own forbidden desires for men. Then Sarah weaves a spell to win the love of the new lead actor, and John, terrified for the safety of his soul, begins to make his accusations.
The Spirits have spoken …
As rehearsals continue, Sarah and Tom must struggle to convince John he is mistaken and that his sins are his own – their lives and the fortune of the play are at stake. But the Spirits have spoken – will the fate that Sarah foresaw come to pass or is their destiny their own to decide?
Set against the first production of Macbeth in 1606, Shakespeare’s Witch is a seductive tale of the origins of the curse of the Scottish Play.

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Barnes and Noble

From the time that I first performed in a high school production of Macbeth, I have known of the rumors regarding the curse associated with the play. In fact, the curse has become as well known as the play itself.  Set against the backdrop of the original Macbeth production in the 1600s, coupled with sorcery and fate, Grosser has created a tale that is suspenseful, seductive and captivating.

Shakespeare’s Witch is, by far, one of the most intriguing and unique historical novels I’ve ever read. When Will Shakespeare’s new play is about to open, he calls on his friend, Sarah who is known to dabble in the occult, and asks her to see if his play will be a success or not. What Sarah sees badly frightens her and she begs Will not to go forward with the play. Of course, as we know, he does not listen and the play is forever cursed.

Grosser has done an amazing job creating believable characters that wind around one of the most well-known figures in history, Shakespeare, and brings him to life in a way I’ve never read before. They all are young, living in a time that is dark, forbidding, harsh and brimming with both religion and the occult. It is a confusing time on the brink of a new age, but still hidden in the shadows of so much darkness and ignorance. The way that Crosser illustrates this is sheer brilliance.

I admit that there are portions of the story that made me uncomfortable, and they should. The book does include incest, but that is a part of this era that cannot be overlooked. Only now are we able to look back on this time in history and take off our puritanical/Victorian glasses and see this era as it was, not what it would become. It’s important to remember when the story takes place and that England had very different ideas about a lot of things at that time. For me, this heightened the story, not detract from it, which is why I highly recommend it to you if you like historical fiction from this era. The magical realism works perfectly with the historical aspects from this time.

You can find the book on sale now. I am very appreciative to Amy @HFVBT @SamanthaGrosser and #SamanthaGrooserBooks for my copy of #Shakespeare’sWitch

About the Author:

untitledHistorical fiction author Samantha Grosser originally hails from England, but now lives on the sunny Northern Beaches of Sydney with her husband, son and a very small dog called Livvy.
Combining a lifelong love of history with a compulsion to write that dates from childhood, Samantha is now bringing her passion for telling compelling stories to the world.
Samantha has an Honors Degree in English Literature and taught English for many years in Asia and Australia. She is the author of wartime dramas Another Time and Place and The Officer’s Affair and The King James Men, set during the turbulent early years of 17th Century.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | BookBub | Pinterest | Instagram

Blog Tour Schedule:

Wednesday, March 20
Review at Passages to the Past

Thursday, March 21
Review at Book Reviews from Canada

Friday, March 22
Interview at Jathan & Heather

Saturday, March 23
Feature at Broken Teepee

Monday, March 25
Review at Amy’s Booket List

Tuesday, March 26
Feature at What Is That Book About

Wednesday, March 27
Review at Pursuing Stacie

Friday, March 29
Interview at Passages to the Past

Sunday, March 31
Review & Excerpt at Clarissa Reads it All

Monday, April 1
Review at For the Sake of Good Taste

Tuesday, April 2
Review at A Chick Who Reads

Thursday, April 4
Interview at Hisdoryan

Monday, April 8
Review at Chicks, Rogues and Scandals

Tuesday, April 9
Review at Bibliophile Reviews

Wednesday, April 10
Review at Macsbooks

Friday, April 12
Review at A Book Geek

Monday, April 15
Review at Donna’s Book Blog
Excerpt at Myths, Legends, Books & Coffee Pots

Tuesday, April 16
Feature at CelticLady’s Reviews

Wednesday, April 17
Review at Bookramblings
Review at Coffee and Ink

 

 

 

 

21 thoughts on “Shakespeare’s Witch by Samantha Grosser #BlogTour #HFVBT”

  3. This sounds incredible! I taught Macbeth for over a decade and this has always fascinated me. My professor at UNC taught us about the curses. Such fascinating stuff! I’ll definitely add this to my TBR. Wonderful review!

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    1. This book took to places I wasn’t sure I wanted to go but once I was finished, I was glad I went there with the author. It was so interesting! It actually had me re-reading Macbeth all over again, something I had hoped not to do for quite a while – LOL! I hope you like it Stephanie.

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      1. It really sounds interesting! Ha! I’ve had to read Macbeth so many times I’ve got it memorized. Lucky me 🤣 It must have been good though for you to reread the play. Thanks, I have a feeling I will.

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      2. I hope so – just remember that I did warn you about sex scenes. 😉 I think I have read A Midsummer Night’s Dream enough times that most of it is memorized. Between directing it for plays, reading it for lit classes, performing it at university, seeing it performed…. it’s like the play that never ends in my life. Good thing it is my favorite of his plays.

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      3. I’ve been warned! I think I have that one and The Tempest memorized too. I finally had to stop teaching 18th century British lit and just a course on Shakespeare..it was too much, lol. I’m so much happier now teaching gothic lit and creative writing, with the occasional contemporary lit class thrown in! Midsummer’s Night is my favorite too. I have never been in a play-well, I was in one play 1x and cried on stage, so that was the end of my acting career!

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      4. Oh no – how awful to cry!! I always liked being behind the stage more than in front but I’ve done both. I like being bossy and telling people what to do more than acting, though. LOL! Once I got so nervous while playing the piano in front of this huge crowd that I fainted dead away. I never played in front other people again after that. It was so horrible.

        I am so intrigued about the Gothic Lit. That was not offered when I was at university. Do you teach only the classic gothic literature or do cover the whole thing from 1700s to the present? I want to be in your class!! Stephanie that is just so cool!

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    1. Pffttt, I never read Jane Austen! I loved the literature professor at my university so I just kept signing up for lit classes. Brit Lit, American Lit, Greek Lit, Roman Lit, you name it and if she taught it, I took it. She was so animated and wonderful! It wasn’t that I necessarily wanted to take Lit classes, I just wanted to watch her and listen to her – LOL!! I was a weird kid!!

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    1. OMGosh – I did!! I love Doctor Who! I actually thought about that while I was reading this book! LOL! My favorite episodes always were the ones where they actually encountered historical figures, I guess where they went back in time rather than forward. Hmmm, I guess I should say are rather than were, although I’m still trying to adjust to this new doctor. 😉

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      1. The minute I red about the witches and curse, somehow that was the image that popped into my mind, though that wasn’t Macbeth.

        I enjoy Doctor Who as well, but I somehow lost interest towards the later part of the Matt Smith season, and haven’t been following it regularly since. But I have watched and rewatched the Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant ones.

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      2. I LOVED Eccleston’s season, but then I really like him as an actor in general. David Tennant’s time was perhaps my favorite overall. I didn’t enjoy it at all after Matt Smith but now I’m watching it again just because it’s different. So far, so good. It seems to have gone to its original premise a bit. I felt like it had strayed too far at some point. I actually don’t own a television so I have catch it where I can online which is difficult at times.

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