Rating: ★★★☆☆ – liked it
This was an interesting historical fiction, with a main character, Rune, that I cared and rooted for pretty much immediately.
It was hard to read in places, knowing that these witch hunts really did occur and the horrors that Rune faces are from our actual history, but that’s part of what makes the story so good.
There are two POV characters, but the focus is clearly more on Rune than Laurentz. His POV really only exists to clue the reader in on some things that Rune had no way of learning in her own story arc.
My only complaint is the ending. It felt rushed and pretty confusing. It really felt like some chapters were missing or something. I think if she had drawn out the ending more, dropped a little more foreshadowing about some things revealed in the ending, and possibly left out that whole thing with the villagers coming back (I won’t expand on that because spoilers) then the ending would have felt more satisfying. As it is, I was left wanting despite enjoying the majority of the book.
There is a sequel, but Forest of Whispers can be read as a standalone. Overall the book was enjoyable and I recommend it to people who want a quick little witchy read.
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