The King's Witch

A Novel

By: Tracy Borman

Narrated by: Esther Wane

Length: 14 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

In March of 1603, as she helps to nurse the dying Queen Elizabeth of England, Frances Gorges dreams of her parents’ country estate, where she has learned to use flowers and herbs to become a much-loved healer. She is happy to stay at home when King James of Scotland succeeds to the throne. His court may be shockingly decadent, but his intolerant Puritanism sees witchcraft in many of the old customs - punishable by death.

But when her ambitious uncle forcibly brings Frances to the royal palace, she is a ready target for the twisted scheming of the Privy Seal, Lord Cecil. As a dark campaign to destroy both King and Parliament gathers pace, culminating in the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, Frances is surrounded by danger, finding happiness only with the King’s precocious young daughter, and with Tom Wintour, the one courtier she feels she can trust. But is he all that he seems?

Acclaimed as a brilliant historian, Tracy Borman proves with this thrilling debut novel that she is also a born storyteller.

©2018 Tracy Borman. First published in Great Britain in 2018 by Hodder & Stoughton, an Hachette UK company. Recorded by arrangement with Grove Atlantic, Inc. (P)2018 Audible, Inc.

Wonderful

The story and historical accounts are compelling. The narrator does a great job of identifying each character separately. Highly recommend if English history is of interest.

Historical Novel Authors Should Do Their Research

I took a chance on this, based on reviews. I could not finish it. The protagonist, Lady Francis, is supposed to be an expert in healing herbs, making tinctures, salves, etc, The author clearly did not know the difference between a tincture and a simple concoction of herbs and water. I make tinctures and salves--it isn't rocket science, but this author didn't know much about her protagonists' supposed area of expertise.

Then Lady Francis winds up at the court of James I, living without a maid in Whitehall Palace. It would literally not have been possible to live as an aristocratic woman in those times without a maid. For one thing, the court clothes were so elaborate that it required at least one additional person to get another person dressed. The wearer was often literally sewn into a dress, or laced into a dress in a way that the wearer could never have managed on her own. Then there is the issue of the elaborate hairstyles and their enmeshment into fashionable headgear. The notion that Lady Francis would have been able to manage all this and still not look like an expensively dressed madwoman is highly unlikely.

I was pretty sure from the beginning what the plot was going to be--Francis is a healer, James I is the author of "Daemonology," a treatise against witchcraft. I can see it coming a mile away. Too bad--I was really hoping to enjoy this book, based on the reviews. The narration was good.

Narrator Noises

I enjoyed the story but the narration was a bit lacking. In particular I could hear the narrator's weird mouth noises (lip smacks, nasally breathing, throat noises) at pauses and it was a bit unnerving.

Excellent Way To Learn About the Gunpowder Plot

This writer knows how to spin a tale about important people during King James I’s first tempestuous years of rein. I hadn’t known much about the years after Queen Elizabeth I’s death and would love to see this novel as a limited series. I can’t wait to hear the sequel, and I hope the reader continues.

Several unfinished threads

I liked the narrator, but the novel seems like a bunch of disconnected stories that were never really fleshed out. Francis’ relationship with Tom is shallow, with him being gone for half the novel. She is hijacked by her uncle and her parents just disappear to make brief appearances as if they have no interest in what happens to her. Her charges for witchcraft appear in the middle of the book and her skills as a healer are never revisited. Someone so devoted to her craft would not relinquish it so easily if I had my way. Francis is one dimensional as she is sort of dragged along with little life or spirit through the novel which ends with the gun powder plot against King James. The title is “The King’s Witch”, yet witchcraft sort of generally provides a background to the story rather than playing a leading roll as the title suggests. I was expecting some sort of court rebel with firmer convictions for a heroine. All of these threads could have been combined artfully into a more vibrant version of this tale. Alas this is not it.

Narrations are very poor.

I struggled to keep interested in the male dialogs. I thought the females fine, but I however the males needed work.

My first book about James

I enjoyed this one and will try the next one soon. No complaints about story or reader.

Interesting and some Intense scenes

Truly one of the most harrowing torture scenes I’ve ever read—had heard of it but never “experienced” it. I learned so many things with this story about a young healer caught up in King Jame’s world. Such as that women were made to pay after Queen Elizabeth died. Of course they were. Funny how history repeats itself, with women and others historically subjugated being punished after moments (or lifetimes!) of more success. Yet we strive. I was very surprised at the focus of the second half of the book though, it was much less about women and witches, and I’m not sure what I think of it. Still, it’s a well-written and interesting book.

I had to hit the back buttons many times in this audio. Not quite sure why but the delineations were just not as separate to my ear.

Tedious

It took forever to get to the point, so tedious. It’s hard to get into any of the characters, they are two dimensional. I felt like the author found things clever that were really just repetitive and boring.

King James needed a scapegoat.

I thought this book was great and wish its sequels were avalaiable in America. So until then I am bumbed. Curiously waiting for the sequel it was a great book.