“Do you think, inside, every one of us is a killer?”
This is the question that haunts the people of Salem, Massachusetts, in Brunonia Barry’s new thriller, THE FIFTH PETAL (Crown). It’s a spellbinding story of supernatural powers and ancient and current myths colliding in a gruesome triple murder. Definitely not for your everyday chick-lit reader.
I was first introduced to Barry’s, THE FIFTH PETAL, the follow-up to her huge sensational debut, THE LACE READER, at BookExpo, in Chicago this past May. The publishing world was buzzing that this novel would be even more brilliant! Since I hadn’t read THE LACE READER, I was going in as a novice and wow, I was blown away!
My grandparents lived near Salem, Massachusetts, and growing up as a child  I’d often visit in the summers and learn about the rich history of the witch trials. But I’d never read any fictional account that incorporated the past prejudices and witchcraft with the historical accuracy of what occurred creating a story including such compelling, quirky characters, twists and turns. I guess you could say, Barry delivers a delicious devious dessert served on a platter of gruesome gore in THE FIFTH PETAL Yum …
A teenage boy dies suspiciously on Halloween night, and Salem’s chief of police, John Rafferty, now married to gifted lace reader, Towner Whitney, wonders if there is a connection between his death and Salem’s most notorious cold case, “The Goddess Murders.”  In 1989, three young women, all descended from accused Salem witches, were slashed on Halloween night and the killer or killers have never been found. Now Rafferty must uncover who, or what, is killing the descendants of Salem’s accused witches, while keeping the town’s paranoia from resurrecting to the hysteria that led to the infamous witch trials.
Brunonia Barry paints a spooky portrait of a modern New England town living in the past, grounded in Salem’s true, dark history. THE FIFTH PETAL uses magical realism to bring the world of Salem to life with suspenseful, sinister, and masterfully composed prose. You’ll be gripped by the throat at page one through the end … and after.

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Brunonia Barry is the New York Times and international best-selling author of The Lace Reader and The Map of True Places. Her work has been translated into more than thirty languages. She was the first American author to win the International Women’s Fiction Festival’s Baccante Award and was a past recipient of Ragdale Artists’ Colony’s Strand Fellowship as well as the winner of New England Book Festival’s award for Best Fiction and Amazon’s Best of the Month. Her reviews and articles on writing have appeared in The London Times and The Washington Post. Brunonia co-chairs the Salem Athenaeum’s Writers’ Committee. She lives in Salem with her husband Gary Ward and their dog, Angel.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy for an honest review.

While this does get off to a strong start, it doesn't go the distance. It quickly becomes boring and long drawn out. I found myself not caring who the killer was.

I apologize for the inconvenience, but I will not be able to read/review this title. I haven't been able to become involved with the story and finally had to call it quits. Again, I apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for the opportunity.

Everyone in Salem knows about the infamous and horrific ‘Goddess Murders’ of 1989. When Rose, one of the survivors of that horrible night, becomes the suspect in the murder of a teenage boy, Billy Barnes, Callie decides that she must return to Salem. Callie must see if she can help Rose. After all, if it hadn’t been for Rose, Callie could have been a victim that night, also. Rose saved her that night. Callie, a professional sound healer, feels she may be able to help Rose, so, as soon as she finds out that Rose is in a catatonic state, she rushes to her side. She returns to Salem...and to her memories.

I love Brunonia Barry’s books about the mystical, magical city of Salem, Massachusetts. This book is even better than the ones I have read previously. Her ultra-realistic characters carry her mystifying plot, dragging the reader along a path of suspense. I could not put this down. Our author also introduces her readers to something new. In this case, she tells us about the subject of healing with sound. In addition, she introduces the reader to a lovely and unusual part of the world, Sassi of Matera. I enjoyed every minute of this book!

I would like to thank netgalley for the free copy of this book.

I can imagine being fascinated by an ancestor connected to the Salem Witch Trials, especially if it’s one of the alleged witches. In this story everything revolves around the events during 1692-1693. The characters are obsessed to the point of murder.

Callie returns to the scene of the cause of her childhood trauma only to find that it is still fresh in the minds of everyone. The killer is still at large, despite the police having a suspect and plenty of theories about the why and how.

Said suspect has been suffering from mental health issues since the night of the murders. Rose is convinced all evil is caused by a banshee. A paranormal presence with a taste for blood. Are there dark powers trying to compete for control and attention or is it just the ravings of a mad woman?

To this day Salem profits from their turbulent and violent past. I can imagine it isn’t as amusing or innocent to the locals though. A little bit like Whitby being filled to the brim with goths and ghouls every Halloween, because that is where Bram Stoker wrote Dracula. It’s all fun and games until you have wannabe vampires draped over the headstones in your local cemetery.

It felt as if there was a lot going on, perhaps too much, and the red herring was brought up and beaten to death over and over again. It certainly doesn’t lack zest though.
*Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my copy of The Fifth Petal.

This was one of those hard-to-put-down novels. The unsolved murder, the young woman with no family, the mentally disturbed woman who had witnessed it all — it all combined to make an engaging read.
Now I have to say that I found some of the parts about the nuns (who raised Callie) and their superstitions a bit far-fetched. I’ve known many a nun in my time and none have acted like the nuns in this story, especially as recently as 1989.
On the other hand, I found the whole piece about sound healing fascinating. Callie is a music therapist, of which I have known several, but she also does sound healing. I looked this up online and found it quite fascinating!
If you know me, you know I love history and New England, so tying this story into the Salem Witch trials made it a home run for me!
Thank you, Net Galley and Crown Publishing, for my review e-copy!

"God will give you blood to drink. "—SARAH GOOD, 1692

Callie was 5 years old when her mother along with her two friends were killed on Halloween when performing a blessing at Proctor's Ledge, the real site of the hanging of the Salem Witches. Named the Goddesses, the woman were the descendants of the original Salem witch hanging victims and had a reputation of bewitching men in Salem. Rose, a historian and mother-figure of the group, hid Callie during the murders and gave Callie a rose rosary, the imprint of which is scarred on Callie's hand due to Callie squeezing it so hard when hiding. Callie went to an orphanage and Rose lost her mind and went to a mental institution. The murders went unsolved for 25 years and became part of Salem's spooky history until a boy mysteriously dies after Rose curses him. Callie who was unaware that Rose was still alive until she saw the news report, comes back to Salem to care for Rose and see if she can get some answers about her past. Callie begins to have visions of her past and tries to help Salem's chief of police, John Rafferty, solve the murders but sometimes leaves more questions than answers. There were suppose to be five people there, a descendant for each of the five accused witches that hanged, so who was the fifth person? Rose keeps ranting that a banshee was released that night 25 years ago and killed the 3 women and the boy she cursed. Were they killed by an evil spirit or something more human in nature?

This book is a very slow read. It seems like a lot of people that did not read the first book in the series, The Lace Reader, had the same issue and did not finish it. The plot did not require you to read the first book but the problem may be that you were not invested as much in the characters than you would be if you did. This book went into a lot of mythology and ancient history and New Age medicine so if you are not into any of these or have no previous knowledge of them, I would avoid this book. I was attracted to this book by the Salem witch trial theme to the book but I feel that the author did a good job fleshing out the story with the mythology, history, and the back stories of the characters. What kept me going through the story that the gradual unraveling of the mystery of the murders and what actually lead up to the murders and how all the backstories and the history is connected. I felt it was worth the read and now want to read The Lace Reader.

I gave this 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley for review consideration.

A novel cluttered with so many sub-threads that it's hard to settle in. This sounded like a thriller but it's more like crime-porn, where murder is just a vehicle for titillation. Not my kind of book.

My rating falls somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars. The story kept getting better and better as it unfolded.

Brunonia Barry returns to Salem, MA in book two of her Lace Reader series. Chief of Police, John Rafferty, has two murder mysteries to solve--one a cold case that happened in 1989, before he came to town, which involved three young women who called themselves the Goddesses, and another that happened on this Halloween night and involved the death of a young boy. The common factor? A banshee and a woman named Rose--are they one and the same?

Callie Cahill, Rose's 'niece,' returns to Salem after she learns that Rose has been hospitalized and may be implicated in the murder. Callie was just five years old and a witness of sorts when her mother, one of the Goddesses, was brutally murdered back in 1989.

Callie is an interesting character who still suffers from nightmares and flashes of violent memories. She has been trained as a music therapist but also works with sound therapy to help patients who are in pain, sometimes using music recordings, sometimes using a singing crystal bowl which sets up a sound vibration, soothing to various chakras. That is a very interesting part of the story, something I knew nothing about.

For one woman with cancer, Callie has her relax while she plays a recording of Yo Yo Ma performing Bach's Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, which Yo Yo Ma had said is 'all about flow.' (There's a great recording on youtube of Yo Yo Ma performing six cello suites by Bach at the Royal Albert Hall that is superb to listen to while reading. In the recording, Yo Yo Ma himself says the music can be helpful when going through hard times 'to feel part of a greater whole.')

She also learns about the solfeggio scale used by the ancients--and experiences the medieval Hymn to John the Baptist in Latin, composed in the solfeggio scale--a healing service. "It was one of the simplest and deepest mediation experiences she'd come into contact with--and definitely healing." Recordings can also be found on youtube for those interested.

The mysteries come to a very satisfying conclusion with some dogged police work and a little help from magic. I am enjoying this series and look forward to book three.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read an arc of this book.

This was one of those books that I didn't want to finish because I was enjoying it so much, but I had to keep turning the pages to see what happened next. Obviously well-researched, full of history and interesting information, with characters I really cared about. I'm already eager to read Barry's next book.

Thank you to the author and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

he book is very easy to follow and keeps the interesting level high.
There are some interesting facts about Irish lore, and history of the Puritans and Salem.
The plot is about the unsolved murders of three young women and the drastic change in character of a respected scholar, who is presumed the culprit of such murders, but since that night she is considered crazy and unstable. This is also mixed with the element of witchcraft and the search of an ancient oak that it is supposed to be cursed and a little girl that survived the dreadful night of the murders.
Twenty five years have past and another murder is committed. So it begins.

The Fifth Petal is set in contemporary Salem, Massachusetts making it a heady concoction of witches, evil, superstition, murder, magic and tragedy. Rose Whelan, a local historian who, decades ago, was witness to the murder of three young women who lived in her home now stands accused of murder herself. The problem? Since the original murders Rose has morphed from a vibrant woman with an encyclopedic knowledge of the Salem witch trials to an odd woman who seldom speaks except to predict when someone is going to die. After she is put in jail, Callie, a young woman who uses music therapy to help heal patients, returns home to help Rose, who often take care of her. Oh, and by the way, six-year-old Callie was at the murders of the young women, one of whom was her mother.

John Rafferty is the Salem chief of police and is in a unique position to understand the supernatural element of Rose’s claims when she does awaken. His wife is one of the many citizens in Salem who has extrasensory gifts. In fact, the town has embraced its duality—one as a place still repenting for the women who were falsely accused of witchcraft and two, of a place where witches happily convene. Good witches, or wiccans, for the most part. Author Brunonia Barry harnesses this blend of guilt and capitalism to populate Salem and The Fifth Petal with characters who are truly trying to help and those who are pursuing their own agenda.

When you take the components I mention in my opening sentence there is a chance the resulting novel can become…ridiculous. Barry doesn’t let this happen with The Fifth Petal, but she doesn’t waste the supernatural elements embedded in the story. Instead, by twining them around the more understandable concepts of greed and avarice she gives the novel a tension that pulls right up until the final pages.

There were portions of this book that I really liked and it was well written and descriptive, but I kept waiting for more history on the Salem Witch Trials. The murder investigation was interesting., but I didn't really enjoy all the mysticism about trees, it overpowered the other story lines.

I have always been fascinated by witches and stories based on all of the witch-related occurrences in Salem, Massachusetts in the last 1600s so I immediately wanted to read “The Fifth Petal” by Brunonia Barry.

The novel starts by depicting the events directly after the gruesome “Goddess Murders” of 1989 in which a couple of nuns found a child – Callie – the only survivor hiding in overgrown shrubbery in the woods. Flash forward to 2014, the unsolved massacre still looms over the town.

Rose Whelan, a renown scholar and expert on Salem’s history, had been present that fateful night and subsequently went “crazy,” becoming a homeless, town loon wandering the streets, talking to trees. When Rose is present/involved in the death of a young bully in 2014, the townspeople are ready to crucify her for the murder regardless of evidence and Sheriff Rafferty is faced with uncovering the hidden secrets of the “Goddess Murders” in order to determine Rose’s fate.

One of the things that most disturbed me was how quickly and easily the 1989-era police force dropped the investigation and hid evidence. I understand why they were nervous considering their own involvement, but it just goes to show the power that law enforcement holds.

Marta was one of the most interesting characters with a deep-rooted history in Salem and who’s family intertwined heavily with the other families, but she did not appear much throughout the first half of the novel. Her decades-long affair with Finn fueled so much of the story’s narrative, and I wish we as readers had more insight into their relationship and Marta’s complex personality.

I will admit that I was very skeptical reading this novel because while I love witch tales, I don’t really know if I believe in all of the supernatural that was tied into this story, but I loved how Brunonia Barry tied in all of the supernatural witchcraft with realistic actions and motivations.

Another favorite line that really encompasses the spirit of this book: “there seemed to be things just below the surface of life itself, revealing themselves only at odd moments or when accidentally or intentionally disturbed,” (Part Three: Chapter Forty).

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I enjoyed this book and recommend it to readers who are interested in witches, the history of Salem and stories with a lot of detail. Because there is so much going on, this is a book that requires the reader’s full attention.

The story begins in 1989 with the murder of three young women who the townspeople believed to be witches. The story follows people, including a child, Callie Cahill, who were either present at the murder scene or involved (some very peripherally) in events involving the three young women prior to their murders. Callie, the child, observed the murders, but was hiding in some bushes. Rose Whelan was also present at the scene, but survived. Over time Rose, an historian and expert on Salem, became homeless and more and more mentally unstable. She was accused of witchcraft and became the primary suspect. Because there was no clear evidence of her guilt, the murders remained unresolved.

Ms. Barry has clearly done an enormous amount of research for this book. Her descriptions of people, places and events are all extremely detailed and the characters are so well explained that too many of them seem to acquire main character status. As a result, the story gets rather bogged down and, in my view, difficult to follow.

When I arrived at the book’s end, I found it quite incredible that Ms. Barry had managed to so artfully pull together so much diverse detail into a reasonable and believable conclusion. What read as a recounting of disjointed events became a cohesive story.

Many, many thanks to Netgalley and Crown Publishing for allowing me to read and review The Fifth Petal. I’m very grateful for the opportunity.

The Fifth Petal is the second book in the Lace Reader series, and although the author makes references to the first book, it is not necessary to have read it in order to enjoy this one. I didn't read the first one, and didn't feel like I was missing anything from the story, although I will read it when I get a chance as I am curious as to what happened.

I was drawn to this book because of the setting, no question. I love anything to do with Salem, paranormal or not, as I am intrigued with its history and its development. While I enjoyed the characters and the story line in this novel, I did find it somewhat drawn out, and I felt like the author lost sight of the actual murder investigation in lieu of the developing romance between Callie and the son of a prominent member of the town. Although I did find the historical aspects of the story fascinating, including the search for more details on the original residents of Salem and those who were executed and how it relates to the current residents of Salem and surrounding areas, and the way the author just gave tidbits of information drawing the reader into the story so they could learn more as the story progressed, it just wasn't enough to make up for the drawn-out mystery. I did enjoy the basic story, but I never felt truly engrossed into the story or in their lives.

To be honest, I think part of the problem was there were too many story lines going on and I was never sure exactly which one was the main part of the story. When Sheriff Rafferty began looking into a 25-year-old triple homicide, I thought it would be more a police procedural than it was, but there wasn't really a lot of investigating going on. For those of us who read police procedurals on a regular basis, it was a bit disappointing, to be honest. I liked the man, and I thought the author did a great job showing how people can panic and do silly things when scared, but I just felt like something was missing. Then you have Rose Whelan, a woman who was quite respected for her historical research into the Salem witch trial, now thought to be guilty of the homicide and talking to trees in search of the answers to the case. I really didn't know what to think about that, and it's not because I don't like the paranormal, it's just because it didn't seem to fit into the story very well. Then there was all of the drama with Towner's aunt and the home for abused women on the island with all of its secrets. Then there was the feud between two founding members of the town, going on for centuries, with explanations that were not fully satisfactory. While each of the story lines would be very interesting on their own, I am wondering if there was too much going on, and the author should have just focused on one or two for the novel, and left some of these brewing in the background for future novels.

The Fifth Petal, while interesting in its own way, was more a love story rather than a murder / mystery and I found this to be a bit disappointing. I did like the characters however, and thought they were quirky enough to be interesting, and would like learn more about them. There were huge aspects of the book that were quite irrelevant to the story, and were used as filler, but she is a good writer so I went along with them. I definitely liked the historical tie-ins to the witch trials and although nothing new was really revealed, it was still interesting, and it is evident a lot of research went into it. If you think you can plow through this one, then I would recommend it just for the writing and the historical research. If you are looking for a murder / mystery, then I would pass.

Fifth Petals is by Brunonia Barry, and after some research, I found out that the book was the second in the Lace Reader Series. I have never heard of this series before now. The book is mainly about a Murder Mystery, involving magic that takes place in the Famous Salem Massachuetts. The first part of this book opens up with a Murder, which involves three young girls and the local historian who eventually goes crazy. As the book continues we meet John Raferty who is now the local Salem Police Chief. Eventually. Callie Cahill the daughter of one of the dead women from the Murder decides to come home to Salem. She finds out along the way that not all is what it seems to be or what she was lead it to be about the Murder.

Overall this book was a really great suspense thriller. I rated a 3.5 out of 5 stars simply because I felt like somethings weren't clearly cover or where cover to little in the way of the Plot. I really think I would have enjoy this book more if I had read it around Halloween time, since that is part of the Story. Overall if you love suspense, thrill and scary movie excitement, you will love this book.

This was another wonderful atmospheric Brunonia Barry novel with a touch of witchcraft and a sinister undertone. I enjoyed this and have no trouble recommending it to my library users.

I have always been slightly obsessed with the Salem witch trials and the mass hysteria associated with that time. In fact, one of my thesis papers in my undergrad talked about this event and the way that mental illness was viewed during that time period. I'm always on the lookout for good books on this topic. When I heard about this one, I knew I had to get my hands on it ASAP!

Living in Salem means you are surrounded by witchcraft; everywhere you go, there are people claiming they are seers, witches, or descendants of someone from the Salem with trials. John Rafferty, chief of police, has gotten used to it by now, especially since he himself is married to gifted lace reader Towner Whitney. But things take a turn for the unusual when he has to investigate a 25-year-old triple homicide dubbed "The Goddess Murders", where 3 women who were all descended from accused Salem witches were killed on Halloween. With the help of Callie Cahill, daughter of one of the victims - and a survivor of this event, Rafferty begins to uncover a dark period in Salem's past. Callie finds herself struggling with visions that she can't quite understand, as her gift with premonitions kicks into overdrive. Neither Rafferty nor Callie believe that the main suspect, Rose Whelan, is guilty of murder or witchcraft. But exonerating Rose comes at a price, one that could put everyone in danger. Who - or what - killed those women? And if they can't discover the answer to that, will evil rise again?

This novel is by far one of my favorite novels on the Salem witch trials! What a masterfully told story!

From the very beginning, this story was compelling in the way it set the scene. The graphic nature of it all shook me and kept me reading further. This book takes place 25 years after the incident, and it shows how the townspeople and those directly involved in the case have been affected by it. The author went into great detail about the mythological and historical aspects of witchcraft, and it was really fascinating to read about. All of the facts were incorporated beautifully to create this deep and layered novel. The characters were amazing in that they were each unique and fully developed. There were certain interactions and connections between characters that seemed lacking, and I think that may have been because there was a prequel (which I neither knew about nor had read). The plot was intriguing and I liked how the author entertained the possibility of supernatural causes as well as the more human-related cause. Overall, this novel had me spellbound with its intrigue, prose, and its references to witchcraft and the Salem witch trials. A must-read for anyone interested in those topics!

I received this novel from Blogging for Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Fifth Petal by Brunonia Barry is the second book in the Lace Reader series. Though I haven’t read the first one, I was pretty much able to follow the plot
The book begins with a crime scene and a bleeding child, the daughter of one of the victims. What spooks you is the scar in the little girl Callie’s palm, shaped in the form of a rose- a five petaled rose to be exact. Fast forward to 25 years and the investigation is already closed, but unsolved. Rose Whelan is accused of the murder but losing her mind on the night of the murder saves her from being charged. The book draws an intriguing start and you start wondering who actually killed the three girls. And immediately, in the present, 2014, same day of the murder, 25 years later another death happens and again Rose is put on the spot. When the news becomes viral, the only other survivor of that fateful night, Callie learns that Auntie Rose is still alive and returns to Salem in order to find the truth. What follows next, is the revelation of bits and pieces of the night of 1989 murders and whether Rose gets acquitted and who is the mystery fifth girl aka fifth petal.

The book was scary and spooky at times when Callie had her nightmares or when Rose talks about the screaming Banshee. I wanted to like the book despite the spookiness, but i found it very long and dragging. Some parts of the book were very detailed and not required at all, like the detailed explanations about Paul and Callie’s Italy trip. Or the parts about May and Rafferty’s daughter. Maybe they were added to give a connection to the first book, but they were not needed because the book was lengthy enough. I was mainly interested in the book because it had connections with the famous witch trials of Salem. But the girls who were murdered were anything but witches.
Rafferty mainly relied on Callie’s dreams and Ann’s visions. This was totally unlike other suspense/thrillers where the police do all the work.A lot of stuff about music therapy was completely lost on me. 😦

I did predict the killer to an extent and it did get a little fast paced towards the end. Maybe because i skipped a lot of details about how Rafferty gets in towards the end.

It’s a worth a try, if you are interested in speaking tress and screaming Banshees. My rating would be 3/5.