Summary: Trailing the Hunter by Heidi Eljarbo
1661 in Norway.
Clara Dahl has made a decision. She has seen the dread and sorrow witch-finder
Angus Hill has caused in her hometown and sets out to find him. Her goal is to
fight the wrongful and wicked misconceptions about witch hunting. But the
witch-finder’s influence is strong. How can she warn the villagers of something
they don’t understand?
Clara’s heartfelt desire is to protect and rescue the women who are in danger
without causing more harm. As Clara develops secret plots to thwart the plans
of the notorious witch-finder and works to help the villagers, she finds
friendship and the possibility of true love (from Goodreads).
Book Review: Trailing the Hunter by Heidi Eljarbo
Under cover of teaching children to read, Minister’s daughter Clara Dahl is following witch hunter Angus Hill to Berg, South Eastern Norway. She intends to stop his activity of hunting down and declaring innocent women witches, to have them burned. In her work to keep others safe, Clara gets an ally in local nobleman Christian Ivershall.
Trailing the Hunter by Heidi Eljarbo is continuing the theme from book 1, Catching a Witch. The story is set in South Eastern Norway 1661 and is about minister’s daughter Clara Dahl as she travels from her home town to settle in small village Berg (modern day Halden). Under the cover of teaching children to read, Clara is on a mission to save the lives of innocent women. English witch-finder Angus Hill is in town eager to blame village women for anything from too much knowledge of herbs to unattractive moles. He starts with convincing town councilmen to support the witch hunts, and with their approval the hunts begin again…
Main character minister’s daughter Clara Dahl is philanthropically minded and extremely well educated for a woman of the 1600s. She seems quite independent and has a mindset resembling a woman of today. I find it impressive how she manages to gather a group of trusted friends to help her cause.
Supporting character Christian Ivershall is an
ex-soldier who has been born into privilege and is Lord of the Manor Ivershall.
He seems to have a lot of local influence and filters every decision through
what is best for the village and its people. He is as impressive as he is kind,
which is why he is my favorite of this story.
I find the writing of this story to be both descriptive
and vivid. I particularly enjoyed descriptions of village environments of 1661
Berg. Some extensive research of lifestyle and conditions in South Eastern
Norway and area around Fredrikstad at the time must have gone into writing this
story. The descriptions and character building of the women knowledgeable about
herbs, healing and midwifery was a particular favorite. The story is told from
different characters’ perspectives which I enjoyed a lot and I feel added depth
to the plot. The story reads like a standalone but includes hints to characters
and events in Catching a Witch.
My favorite part of the story was the vivid descriptions
of Clara’s luxurious and abundant dinner at Ivershall, while the worst part was
description of the chase of a pregnant woman through the woods. I appreciated
the dramatic effect and it probably was a good element in a story from 1661. I very
much enjoyed the author’s research notes at the back.
Conclusion: This is the captivating story of a strong, capable and caring woman who fights against a witch hunter for the lives of innocent women in 1661 South Eastern Norway.
Anyone who like historical
fiction genre would enjoy Trailing the Hunter with its descriptions of life in
the 1600s.
Similar authors to
explore might be Catherine Taylor and Anne Easter Smith
Thank you to author Heidi Eljarbo for gifting me this book in return for my honest review.
Rating: 4 stars / 5
Get your copy here:
Book Details:
Publisher: Independently published (October 21, 2019)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1699861080
ISBN-13: 978-1699861080
About The Author
Heidi Eljarbo is the bestselling author of Catching a Witch and its sequel Trailing the Hunter. She grew up in a home filled with books and artwork and she never truly imagined she would do anything other than write and paint. She studied art, languages, and history, all of which have come in handy when working as an author, magazine journalist, and painter.
After living in Canada, six US states, Japan, Switzerland, and Austria, Heidi now calls Norway home. She and her husband have a total of nine children, thirteen grandchildren--so far--in addition to a bouncy Wheaten Terrier and a bird. Their favorite retreat is a mountain cabin, where they hike in the summertime and ski the vast, white terrain during winter. Heidi's favorites are family, God's beautiful nature, and the word whimsical.
If you would like to know more, please visit:
https://www.heidieljarbo.com/about-heidi
https://www.facebook.com/authorheidieljarbo/
https://no.pinterest.com/heidieljarbo/
https://www.instagram.com/heidieljarbo/
Twitter: @HeidiEljarbo
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