The Gossips Choice by Sara Read
Travel back into the 17th century with me today for the blog tour from Love Books Tours for the new historical novel by Sara Read called The Gossips Choice.
My Review
The Gossips Choice paints a very authentic and believable picture of life as a woman in the 17th century when a Gossip is the name given to women who attend another during childbirth.
The main protagonist is Lucie, who is a midwife and provides vital assistance to women giving birth. Married to the towns Apothecary Jacob she has a good knowledge of herblore and medical practices, a dangerous occupation for a woman in these troubled times when suspicion can befall anyone who deviates from societies ideals of the norm.
I love the cover artwork depicting an image of Lucie, she looks exactly like I’d have pictured her. Exhausted, crumpled, caring and competent, she represents a key worker of the distant past.
Chillingly, given current events, the book is set during the time of the Great Plague when London in particular is ravaged by Bubonic Plague and many people flee to the countryside, including Lucies only son.
There are plenty of emotional and harrowing scenes as well as informative details and a story brimming with secrets and deception with a gripping mystery at its heart.
Bold, scary and relatable, the Gossips choice is an illuminative and richly painted tapestry which draws you between the threads and deep into life in the past.
What is instantly apparent is that this book is written by a competent and skilled historian, as it is educational and very descriptive as well as entertaining.
As I followed Lucies dramatic tale I was transported back in time to experience events with her and her family. Great escapism rooted in fact.
Here is a link to the book on Amazon
The Blurb
“Call The Midwife for the 17th Century”
Lucie Smith is a respected midwife who is married to Jacob, the town apothecary. They live happily together at the shop with the sign of the Three Doves. But sixteen-sixty-five proves a troublesome year for the couple. Lucie is called to a birth at the local Manor House and Jacob objects to her involvement with their former opponents in the English Civil Wars.
Their only-surviving son Simon flees plague-ridden London for his country hometown, only to argue with his father. Lucie also has to manage her husband’s fury at the news of their loyal housemaid’s unplanned pregnancy and its repercussions.
The year draws to a close with the first ever accusation of malpractice against Lucie, which could see her lose her midwifery licence, or even face excommunication.
Author Bio:
Dr Sara Read is a lecturer in English at Loughborough University. Her research is in the cultural representations of women, bodies and health in the early modern era.
She has published widely in this area with her first book Menstruation and the Female Body in Early Modern England being published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2013.
She is a member of the organising committee of the Women’s Studies Group, 1558-1837 and recently co-edited a special collection produced to celebrate the group’s 30th anniversary.
She is also the co-editor of the popular Early Modern Medicine blog. With founding editor Dr Jennifer Evans, Sara wrote a book about health and disease in this era Maladies and Medicine: Exploring Health and Healing, 1540-1740 (Pen and Sword 2017).
Sara regularly writes for history magazines such as Discover Your Ancestors and History Today. In 2017 she published an article ‘My Ancestor was a Midwife’ tracing the history of the midwifery profession for Who Do You Think You Are? magazine in 2017. She has appeared on BBC Radio 3’s Freethinking programme and is often to be heard on BBC Radio Leicester and BBC Radio WM.
Follow Sara on Twitter @saralread
Your point of view caught my eye and was very interesting. Thanks. I have a question for you.