The Midsummer Women

De: Jean M. Roberts

Narrado por: Debi Tinsley

Since childhood, Ethnobotanist Hannah Heronstone has had a passion for healing plants and their use through the centuries. Orphaned at birth, she's unaware of her connection to an ancient lineage of cunning women, healers, and yes, even witches. But they have not forgotten about her.

A surprise invitation to an archaeological dig lures Hannah to Maine and the site of a long forgotten English colony, abandoned in 1608. The presence of Dr. Peter Wentworth, rich, charming, and a recent fling, is an intriguing complication. But the thrill is cut short as the dig is plagued by accidents and attacks while bizarre visions disturb Hannah's days and strange dreams fill her nights. Questioning her sanity, she turns to a trio of local women, who claim descent from a sisterhood of natural healers and practitioners of earthly magic, the Midsummer Women.

Together they help Hannah connect with the past, to Anna, a young cunning woman forced into servitude by the powerful Wentworth family. Against her will, she sails to the new world with her hated master. When Anna breaks her healers vows by using the black magic of a local demon, she taints the blood and lives of her Heryonstan descendants.

To save the man she loves and restore her bloodline to the sisterhood, Hannah must resist the growing power of the demon, Tando, and learn to harness the dormant magic of the Midsummer Women—or be doomed to follow in her ancestors' fate.

©2024 Jean M. Roberts (P)2025 Jean M. Roberts

This book will keep your brain on high alert!

“On either side of the road, sky-blocking hedges scratched the side of her vehicle like supernatural fingernails.”

BAM! Right out of the box, author Jean Roberts pulls in and immerses readers in a contemporary England that feels eerily like we've crossed into an ancient time. As we meet Hannah Heronstone, it's quickly apparent she's not your everyday ethnobotanist. I say this tongue-in-cheek because I didn't know what one was and clearly, now that I do, there's no such thing as an everyday ethnobotanist. One of the things I most enjoyed about THE MIDSUMMER WOMEN was I learned so much! Whether we're firmly in modern times or voyaging back to the 1600s, Roberts's thorough research shines and informs.

As Hannah is discovering more about herself, little hints are dropped that something mystical is happening within and around Hannah. (And you sense she's an old soul by some of the words and phrases she uses -- more little hints she's special.) Since one was featured on the cover, I paid attention to the herons and was fascinated by the part they play across time and space. Since I read the sequel first, I had good intel as to whether the events unfolding in THE MIDSUMMER WOMEN were due to otherworldly influences, Hannah's imagination, or human shenanigans; but happily, the knowledge I brought from book two didn't really detract from my enjoyment of book one in any way.

I mentioned shenanigans, and there are buckets full of them in THE MIDSUMMER WOMEN. Shady characters, spooky places, sinister occurrences, and chapters that shift between timelines and perspectives will keep readers brains on high alert, and oh yeah: all is not as it seems. Not even close!

Less talented authors would make a mess of it, but Jean Roberts handles Hannah's and Anna's alternating perspectives and observations of one another across centuries with panache. Her characters are richly drawn and fully fleshed out, but she keeps enough mystery around everyone that I never could quite trust my gut feelings or believe anyone's intentions. There's a lot of suspense and tension, but Roberts knows just the right moment to throw in some breathtaking scenery and ground the reader with nature's never-failing beauty.

ABOUT THE NARRATOR: The audiobook is performed by accomplished narrator Debi Tinsley, and she has good mastery and consistency with voicing various characters. Her pacing was pretty good, so I listened to the book at regular speed. She nails the creepy-dude vibe and the airy-chick vibe, and there are plenty of both. BUT, nitpicky me, she sounds midwestern not Texan, as main character Hannah should sound; her Anna voice often reminded me of the Ghost of Christmas Past in the Muppet version of A Christmas Carol; and I didn't realize until well into the story that the character name she was saying was Hezekiah (she pronounced it HuhZEEkya). Even so, this is a well-executed and enjoyable listen, but I advise careful listening or you’ll miss finer details. I had to replay parts and reference the eBook a few times, but that's on me. There's A LOT going on.

I was pleased with the book's resolution, though romance lovers may be disappointed to miss out on what happened between the last two chapters. Not me! Romantic elements are sprinkled throughout, but happily, they aren't the focus of the book. But love does drive much of the plot, and I'm fine with that. Can't wait for book three, but I will, I will, I will. (How 'bout now?)