Kirsten Sørensdatter in Kiran Millwood Hargrave's, The Mercies Here, Naomi Frisby explores how fear of women’s increasing knowledge and self-reliance led to a campaign of persecution in 1620s Vardø, and draws parallels with the treatment of women who dare to exert their autonomy today. The Mercies tells the story of the women of Vardø through the voices of Maren, a young woman who has lost her father, brother and fiance in the storm and is now living an unexpectedly independent life, and Ursa, the young and inexperienced bride of the religious warden sent to bring 'order' back to Vardo. Kiran Millwood Hargrave’s stunning debut adult novel The Mercies was inspired by the true events of the Vardø storm and the subsequent witch trials of 1621. What followed was one of the biggest witch trials in Scandinavia.
As suspicions grew, the local authorities came to believe that witches were responsible for the great storm. The church was already suspicious of Finnmark, a harsh, inhospitable and remote area where the indigenous Sami people lived amongst the Christian population. On Christmas Eve 1617 a terrible storm hit eastern Finnmark in northern Norway, and a large majority of the male population of Vardø died at sea. It was designed by artist Louise Bourgeois and architect Peter Zumthor. most vital insights are about the human heart: how terrifyingly quickly prejudices can turn into murder, and how desperately we need love and courage to oppose it.Pictured: The Steilneset Memorial in Vardø, Norway, commemorates the 91 people who were executed for witchcraft in 1621. New York Times Book Review A gripping novel. In addition to its beautiful writing, its subject matter is both enduring and timely The Mercies is among the best novels I’ve read in years. ‘Something rare and beautiful’ - Marian Keyes ‘A beautifully intimate story of friendship, love and hope’ - Douglas Stuart, author of Shuggie Bain ‘ Took my breath away ’ - Tracy Chevalier It is a story about how suspicion can twist its way through a community, about a love that could prove as dangerous as it is powerful. įor readers of Circe and The Handmaid’s Tale, Kiran Millwood Hargrave's The Mercies is inspired by real historical events. But where Ursa finds happiness, even love, Absalom sees only a place flooded with a terrible evil, one he must root out at all costs. In her new home, and in Maren, Ursa encounters something she has never seen before: independent women. Absalom Cornet has been summoned to bring the women of the island to heel. A young woman, Maren, watches as the men of the island, out fishing, perish in an instant.Įighteen months later, a sinister figure arrives. The sea around the remote Norwegian island of Vardø is thrown into a vicious storm. ‘ Dark, dramatic and full of danger’ - Daily Mail The Sunday Times Bestseller and BBC Radio 2 Book Club Pick The bestselling Richard and Judy Book Club pick
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