The Daylight Gate - Jeanette Winterson

[Jane B]

Winterson has written an immensely readable ficitonalised account of the Pendle Witch Trials of 1612. The period in Britain during the reign of James 1, who was a self proclaimed expert on witches, witchcraft and sorcery and when the persecution of Catholics went hand in hand with persecution of ugly old hags. It was paranoid time in which plots were plotted, no one could be trusted and it was every man, women and child for themselves. The spare prose style Winterson employs in the telling of this gripping and grisly tale makes for a real page turner and lends itself to the horror, brutishness and squalor of the times. This is my first taste of Jeanette Winterson and it won't be my last.

[Lindach]

I shall definitely add this book to my 'to read' list. I watched a Jennifer Byrne's interview of Jeannette Winterson and she said her new novel was quite different from her previous work and described it as a horror novel. It combines my reading interests of history and horror with excellent writing. It can't miss!