The Page 69 Test: *One Foot in the Ether: Whispers of the Pendle Witches* by Kayleigh Kavanagh #page69

 

 

 

They say if you want to really find a good book, go to page 69 (the middle and meat of the book) and you like what's there, it's definitely worth reading the whole book. For today's feature, I'm zooming in on page 69 of Kayleigh Kavanagh's historical paranormal fantasy, One Foot in the Ether: Whispers of the Pendle Witches. 

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Demdike and Chattox, famed witches of Pendle Forest, might be dead, but they’re not gone. Bound to their bloodline, they’ve spent the past two and a half centuries watching over their descendants, waiting for when they’ll be needed. 

When 14 year old Yana comes into her psychic abilities and inherits the ‘eyes of the Chattox family’, she can see the long-dead witches, as well as an encroaching evil. But even with this foreknowledge, she’s trapped by marriage interviews and being unable to see her own future, and more importantly, whoever her future husband will be. 

Demdike’s healing gifts are alive and working in Claire, a mid-30s midwife well renowned for her skills and holding her tongue. The Secrets of Pendle are safe with her and her midwives. However, when surgeons looking to make standardisation the norm encroach on her territory, she soon realises how, even a respected woman is vulnerable in a patriarchal system. 

The two descendants must come together to protect the ones they love from an ancient evil, all whilst balancing their lives and the cruelties of being a woman in a man’s world. Set in late 1800s NW England, this book has all the elements of the area: strong, hardy people, atmospheric horror and days as unpredictable as the weather.  

One Foot in the Ether: Whispers of the Pendle Witches is available at Amazon.

As the lady said, it had led to a lot of strange suggestions and practices. Bloodletting, to try and rid the body of the germs and bleed them out. Smoke to stop the inhalation of germs they knew lived in the air and could get into the lungs. They were still learning. Three hundred (even just twenty) years ago, they hadn’t any clue. Witches and forces of evil made sense to them, and in their attempts to help people, many lives had been lost.
Though, if this 'mother’ was to be believed, she’d been sacrificed as an action of greed. Also not unheard of in those times. 'till, Yana would be careful. 'he had no way of knowing if the spirit was speaking the truth. Playing on sympathy was an easy way to confuse people.
If this spirit was a malevolent entity, it might try to make itself look vulnerable and weak to gain her trust and attack later.
"So you were a wise woman in my family, who died as a witch?" she asked, partly for clarity’s sake, but also to make sure, if the spirit ever did lie, she could be prepared to catch them.
"Indeed."
"Then why are you still here? You don’t seem angry. And you haven’t asked for forgiveness from the church."
The look the woman then gave her--lesser mortals would have fled.
"They should be asking for my forgiveness, not the other way around."
"Isn’t that why you’re trapped, though? Because your bones aren’t on consecrated ground?"
The anger on the woman’s face gave way to something more amused. "I am bound to my family. And I shalln’t be moving on anytime soon."

What do you think? Would you keep reading?

 

Kayleigh Kavanagh is a disabled writer from the North-West of England. Growing up in the area, she learnt a lot about the Pendle Witches and launched her debut novel around their life story. Her main writing genres are fantasy and romance, but she loves stories in all formats and genres. Kayleigh hopes to one day be able to share the many ideas dancing around in her head with the world.

Her latest book is the historical fantasy, One Foot in the Ether: Whispers of the Pendle Witches. 

You can visit her on Facebook, Instagram, Goodreads and Tiktok.