The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane

loved this book. Technically the book is very well written and well researched. I loved the history and how Katherine Howe honored and respected the real women affected by the Salem witch trials. I love Grace- I want to be more like her. I loved the collegiate aspect in this book. In the Daughters of Temperance Dane the collegiate aspect was quite overbearing and a bit stressful. This one was much more balanced. I love the information about the herbs and charms. The plot was tight and moved along quickly and was not only tight and believable. She is very understated about Connie's romance with Sam. In this book Connie felt much more committed to Sam. Finally, the magic was perfect, magic to my soul. Well-done.

This 2009 book is very similar in subject matter to Deborah Harkness' 2011 'A Discovery of Witches', however 'The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane' is more intimate and focused, a miniature rather than a mural, without any whiff of vampires or other supernatural beings to tip it into 'Twilight' territory.Connie, a hereditary witch who doesn't know the first thing about her own powers, is tumbled into a mystery involving her late grandmother's house in Marblehead, MA, her own doctoral thesis research at Harvard, a hunky local, and a mysterious 'physick book' that belonged to one of her ancestors, Deliverance Dane.The writing is fresh and solid, the subject matter intriguing, and as it's set in 1991 (with flashbacks to 1692 and 1715) Connie's research stumbles along from library to library without internet or cell phones to help her. Howe's descriptions of 1690's Salem and the witch trials reflect her deep knowledge of the time period without crossing the line into the look-how-much-I-researched! trap that many authors fall into.While this didn't send me into fits of reading joy like 'A Discovery of Witches' did, it's cut from the same cloth and quite well done. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and had I read it before ADoW, it might have made me just as giddy. I have to wonder if the two authors were (or are) aware of each other -- both are academics interested in similar fields, and both have produced books full of libraries, witchcraft, research and romance.My two small complaints about the story are: a)the author's attempt to write a Boston accent into her characters' dialogue, which is cumbersome and distracting, and, b) how long it occasionally takes our smart doctoral candidate heroine to make connections that the reader made instantly and get herself from point A to point B. Overall, these are small complaints, and they only slow things down in a couple of spots.As an additional point of interest, Howe is an actual descendant of two women accused of witchcraft in Salem in 1692 -- one survived her trial, the other was hung as a witch.I'm looking forward to future books from Katherine Howe. Recommended!

There is so much to love about this book in spite of its tragic storyline about researching the lives of women descended from a woman hanged in the Salem Witch trials.First, is the title. It piqued my interest from the moment I read it. Next comes the list of characters. Each is intriguing in his or her own right, and especially as their bloodline is traced and the importance of their names in succession is revealed. Third, the plot line held my interest, as did the descriptions of the libraries and their old books, the hidden house with its almost sentient garden, and the magical little dog that appears and disappears unnoticed.Finally, that the storyline is set amidst the rigorous and often frantic halls of academia and scholarly research is a unique and brilliant touch.I’ve read many fiction and non-fiction books centered around the Salem Witch trials, and this is definitely among the top 10.

This is the first book I have read of Author Katherine Howe's and it definitely will not be my last! Harvard student Connie Goodwin hasjust finished her oral qualifying examine to complete her PhD., but instead of an easier. Summer break, her mom Grace wants her to get her grandmother's house ready to sell. Unbeknownst to Connie, she will be finding a lot of mysterious clues to her families origins. After meeting Sam, a handsome steeplechaser, Connie's life begins to get more complicated. Will she find the answers that she needs in order to save the man she loves? Who is the dark force behind the evil doings that have begun to plague Connie? I was drawn into this amazing book from the first page. The Salem Witch trials are presented through the views of Deliverance Dane, an accused witch, who was hung as a result. With a lot of magic, a hint of romance, and a good deal of evil, you can't go wrong reading this novel! I look forward to reading more from this magnificent author!

The story of Deliverance Dane and her life as a cunning woman gave me so much to think about.Constance is a young woman at graduate college studying history.Her mother is a somewhat fey woman who talks casually of auras and other worldliness. It is not difficult to see why Constance would choose to study a factual, feet on the floor subject. Yet, as the story develops you see that history is a mixed bag, and it is not so set in stone.Reading about witchcraft, a female lineage; interspersed with details about familiars, why a witches hat is the shape it is was wonderful and fascinating.This is an energetic book, I enjoyed every word, including the postscript at the end.

Too good a read. I felt so attached to the story sometimes that I could really see things happening in front of my eyes. It's in such lucid language tok. Bringing out one's heart to writing is what is evident here. I would look forward to similar works from the author

What a wonderful, interesting book. I read it for a class but got so involved in it. Highly recommend it!!!

I came to this book through an online course on Historical Fiction. The author Katherine Howe is a descendant of two women who were involved in the Salem witch trials and this is her version of that historical event. She tells the story in a twin time frame - the trials of 1692 and the search for an original historical artefact for her PhD by student Connie in 1991. In doing so we can compare the treatment of women at the end of the 17th century with the continuing treatment of women in the late 20th century academic world. The author also uses the device of relationships between mothers and daughters across the centuries. I enjoyed the book and found the 17th century story compelling. In parts the 20th century narrative became a little too focused on the budding romance between Connie and Sam the steeplejack. Overall a good read and I would read more by Katherine Howe.

What I love about this book is the author has researched the subject before writing the book so it is as historically accurate as you can get. Wept during the execution. Not going to lie very moving. Almost like being there