Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. This story did a wonderful job of taking me back in time. He characters were rich and well done. The mystery kept me guessing and turning pages. Highly recommend

The Village Healer's Book of Cures by Jennifer Sherman Roberts is a wonderful work of historical fiction that tells the story of Mary Fawcett, a herbalist and healer who uses the knowledge of the generations of women who have gone before her in order to help those around her in seventeenth century England, Her life is thrown upside down when a witch hunter arrives and immediately casts suspicion on her and her brother. When the husband of one of Mary's patients is found murdered with mysterious symbols carved into his body the witch hunter immediately assumes that Mary is involved and the villagers start to turn against her. Her only hope is the help she receives from an enigmatic alchemist who seems to know the dead man's secrets.
This was an interesting read with a plot that kept me turning the pages and characters that I could empathise with, especially Mary. and I loved seeing her growth over the course of the book .I did feel that the romance subplot was unnecessary and did not add to the book as a whole but it did not mar my enjoyment .
I was provided with an ARC by NetGalley and the publisher but missed the download deadline so this review is based on the published version, all opinions are my own.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

I got through this book pretty quickly and overall enjoyed it! It’s a little different to my usual taste in books but I thought it sounded really interesting so gave it a go!

This book seems incredibly well researched and is written in a lovely way that keeps you interested throughout!

I love a good feminist tale and following Mary through her journey in this book was right up my street in that sense! It was great to see her fighting back and not just for herself but for all women of her time! Especially when there was such a contrast to how the male alchemists were treated for essentially the same thing as the woman healers.

Meet Mary Fawcett, a fierce and compassionate healer who unwittingly triggers the deadly obsession of Matthew Hopkins, a notorious witchfinder driven by twisted faith and venomous misogyny. With a keen eye for the subtleties of human nature and a talent for conjuring the eerie atmosphere of a society gripped by fear, the author masterfully weaves a narrative that ensnares you from the very start.

As the village turns against her like a snarling beast, Mary must race against time to unravel a labyrinthine web of murder, deceit, and demonic manipulation. With each heart-pounding twist, the stakes are raised, and the danger draws closer. You'll find yourself on the edge of your seat, wondering if Mary's extraordinary gifts and unyielding spirit will be enough to outwit the agents of darkness and shatter the chains of fear and superstition.

As the story unfolds, you'll become immersed in a world where the boundaries of good and evil are tested, and the power of knowledge becomes a double-edged sword that can both save and destroy.

I really liked the idea of the village healer and their ability to serve the community. I liked the recipes from the time period that highlighted ways people were treated during the time period. I felt that the historical aspects of this fiction were lacking. I felt that there needed to be more research about what life was like back then and this needed to somewhat be incorporated in the writing. It was like the author just wanted to make up a time period out of the air because they found a spell book of sorts. It stuck out like a sore thumb. I felt that the plot was really all over the place and needed direction. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley,

This one kept me on my toes - that is for sure! Once I picked this one up, I did not want to put it down. 4 stars from me!

This was such a wonderful and enjoyable read!!!! I loved this book and highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys this genre. Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Set in the 17thCentury, Mary is a herbalist who (as the title suggests) is the village healer. There was a lot of superstistition at the time about healing, and cunning women, even though they helped alleviate pain and suffering. This book touches on grief, loss and persecution but is ultimately a rewarding read.

The Village Healer's Book of Cures is a novel about a young woman who is attempting to stay safe in a village that has turned against her while discovering the truth of what is causing troubling events in her village.

Mary Fawcett is a healers living in 17th century England, during the depth of the witch hunts in England. When a Witch-finder comes to town he begins teaching the town to hate those who are different and fear the healing work Mary has always provided for her community. After a death incites even more suspicion Mary fears for her life and the lives of those closest to her even while attempting to solve the mystery of the death.

This novel is a conversation between the way humans behave when scared, and our worst instincts, and the dive to heal even those who may have hurt us. Mary is a woman who has been wounded deeply by her life and by the start of the book has seen more death in her own life then she should have had to endure. Yet even with the worst happening all around her she sees the good nature of others and holds to it. She defends those she loves eagerly, and is willing to treat even those who have wronged her.

The setting is perfect for a twisty gothic that has turns you won't see coming, and a darkness at its core that could only be fed by the worst parks of humanity. The true evil in this novel is no grand monster but humans, and what monster could ever live up to the monsters we turn ourselves into? The grey over cast on the whole novel seeps across the pages and I found myself not wanting to read this one in a dark setting, despite this in no way being a horror novel. It unsettled me to face down the most vile parts of humanity with Mary, and at multiple times I was actively worried about her and her brothers safety.

I would recommend this novel to those who want:
- A dark and twisty gothic
- Mysteries that keep you hooked
- To face down the worst of humanity
- A historical novel about the witch hunts
- A gloomy atmospheric novel

I would avoid if you are a bit squeamish, or are looking for anything cozy or easy to read.


I received an ARC of this book at no cost/for free, I am leaving this review voluntarily and all thoughts and opinions are wholly my own and unbiased

Book Review 📚
The Village Healer's Book of Cures by Jennifer Sherman Roberts - 4/5 ⭐

A strong historical fantasy. And I mean strong. There is so much to love and very little to hate. My only flaw, I would of preferred if this book was 200-300 more pages. There was so much to add.

Our FMC, Mary, is a joy to read about. Watching her journey throughout this book was amazing. She's a character that holds so much depth and described, it was so amazingly done. Her whole development was awe inspiring.

The story was flowing nicely and there wasn't any "slow" moments. I was intrigued in Mary from start to finish. Great descriptions throughout and a thorough plot.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union for allowing me to read this ARC - this is an HONEST review from my own personal opinion.

It takes us back in the seventeenth-century England. The description is engrossing and the characters are so interesting. The book has a mystery. Things begin to change in village when a Witchfinder arrives. The book is about making healing portions/medicines in ancient times , revenge, Knowledge, murder and saving the loved ones.

Mary’s character is so interesting. I loved how dedicated she was towards her work and welfare of the people. The author has created such a poignant back story. The author has shared the perspective of other people too by taking us in life of each of them. The world building is beautiful. When Matthew Hopkins arrives in village, Mary witness some of the strange deaths. The dead bodies with strange symbols. She try to unveil the mystery behind them. But before it’s too late, she must save herself and her loved ones. The author has also shared the knowledge of alchemy and All the Mary’s recipes are real. I loved the author’s note where the author has revealed about the recipes to cure/heal are real, Her characters and world building inspiration. I liked Tom’s and Sudbury Characters too. It’s an excellent debut novel.


Many Thanks to Author, Publisher and Netgalley.

I read it as a fantasy as there were a number of elements that were more fantastic than historical.
It's an entertaining story, well plotted and clever. The women in this story are brave and able to stand their enemy.
Liked it
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

The premise of THE VILLAGER HEALER'S BOOK OF CURES by Jennifer Sherman Roberts is promising: a young widowed herbalist is persecuted for her remedies in 1600s England by an unscrupulous witch hunter. However, the delivery leaves something major lacking: a strong plot and well-developed characters. For me, the story was enough to keep me going, but the anachronisms killed it, the Americanisms and present-day ways of speaking and thinking ruined what could have been a decent story. So, while the elements were there, the ultimate delivery leaves much to be desired. I wish there had been a powerful and unique voice, a genuine presence of the history of persecuting those we envy or fear felt rather than a flat voiced narrative. I received a copy of this book and these thoughts are my own, unbiased opinions.

The Village Healer’s Book of Cures follows Mary Fawcett, an herbalist living in a small village in 17th century England. Although respected by the other members of the village, the arrival of a self-proclaimed with hunter and the mysterious death of one of the village’s wealthiest inhabitants cause the tides to turn against Mary and her younger brother. This forces Mary to turn to new and unlikely friends in order to prove her innocence and uncover the truth behind the murder.

There were several elements of this novel that I really liked. For one, while Mary does have a kind of unnatural capacity to sense and treat emotion and pain, this is not so much a book about magic as it is about an intuitively feminine sense of power and knowledge. The knowledge that is most central to Mary’s life is passed down from generation to generation, inevitably arousing suspicion and jealousy from powerful men. We also get a more feminist perspective of the 17th century than some authors may lead you to believe would have been possible. Women have always been intelligent, and have always had to look out for each other, and Mary’s character really exemplifies this point. Her herbal cures and remedies don’t feel like the uninformed recipes of a backwards society, but rather are the best possible solutions to common medical issues that were available at the time.

I also really appreciate the role that grief plays in this novel. Many of the characters are touched by loss or death, and this often provides a more interesting or even sympathetic motive to the villains than their just being evil for the sake of being evil.

I did not, however, find that the presence of romance in this novel was particularly compelling or necessary. It felt contrived at times, and I was also never particularly convinced that there was any chemistry or romantic tension between the characters. The main love interest, Sudbury, is an alchemist, and I found that his involvement in the romantic subplot detracted somewhat from what could have been a really interesting interplay between alchemy and herbalism.

While I overall enjoyed the writing style, finding it easy to read and engaging without being overly simplistic, I did find that certain scenes had a kind of difficult to follow or improbably choreography, especially during conflict. For example, in the big climax scene, where the twist of the novel is revealed, it sometimes felt like the characters would be frozen in place in order to have these kind of plot-revealing conversations. It kept taking me out of the story to find myself asking in what world everyone just stops mid-fight in order to have a drawn out conversation, before jumping back into conflict. Fortunately these kind of clunky scenes were few and far between.

I enjoyed but didn’t necessarily love this novel, but would definitely recommend to readers interested in 17th-century historical fiction with a focus on women’s lives and medicine. Everything felt well-researched and well-written, and it was fun to read.

Solid 4 out of 5. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

This story toes the line of realism and fantasy in a balanced way. A story many are familiar with: the local medicine woman is targeted by authorities and accused of witchcraft. Though here there are two of these medicine women and also an alchemist thrown into the mix and lots of misdirection and crossing storylines. Fun read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book with no obligation to review.

I liked the sound of this book and thought, being about a cunning woman and witchfinding, that it would be something different and the setting was indeed a bit different. Unfortunately I felt there was something lacking, there is not much of a story really and what there is, is more of the unlikely romance genre between our heroine and a mysterious stranger with a scar - you know the sort of thing.

Mary is not only a herbalist, she also has a gift of understanding everything about people just by touching them. I think this could have been further explored but it wasn't.

Some of the plot elements sound promising but in the end they are not - there is a mysterious coin and some tattoos and a twist at the end but, having found the story to be slow and lacking in oomph, I started skimming from just over halfway so I might have missed something. The anachronisms and Americanisms were a bit jarring but it dont think they would bother you much if you were enjoying the story.

Also, apart from maybe the first one or two for novelty value, I was not at all interested in the "eye of newt and toe of frog" cures which start every chapter and, in fact, it was the details and frequency of Mary's "cooking" that made me start to skim the book.

It's not a bad book as it goes but it doesn not live up to the blurb.

“Witches aren’t discovered, but rather created in the minds of the people. Even in the best of people and the best of places. We’re only one step from the animals when we’re weak or afraid.”

This is the classic story of a woman being accused of witchcraft. It's been done a million times before, and this, unfortunately, brought little new things to the table. This was an enjoyable read, but it was not amazing or unique.

A well researched novel about healers and witch hunters in 17th century England. The main character, Mary Fawcett, inherits healing recipes from her ancestors and is able to empathize with the sick. She has to go up against a "witch finder" (Matthew Hopkins, a character you love to hate) to save herself and her young brother. More of a thriller with mystical elements than I was expecting. The historical recipes at the beginning of each chapter were a great touch. I enjoyed reading the author's note - where she found her inspiration and which parts of the story/characters were based in fact. Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the digital copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

In this exciting debut, I discovered a character who is now one of my favorite heroines. Mary Fawcett is a compassionate and loyal young widow living in a 17th-century English village who possesses a rare gift for healing, aided by a book of cures passed down by generations of women. But when a "witchfinder" arrives, Mary's talent becomes a potential danger to her and those whom she loves. This is a suspenseful read with characters to root for, an intriguing mystery to solve, and well rendered historical atmosphere to savor.