Dark Scriptures: France 1670: A perilous time for women who are different.

by Deo De Wit

Loire Valley 1670. The Catholic Church proclaims that certain women are the servants of Satan and perpetuates history’s greatest misogyny by dispatching Colonel Montpellier to St Raphael to curb a rise in witchcraft. Incarcerations, torture, and bigoted public trials follow and those found guilty are burnt alive. Bertrand Duval (32), a witch dissenter and meticulous investigator unravels clues leading to the perpetrators of the deaths of an 11-year-old boy and two wealthy landowners. Whilst concluding that the landowners died from poisoning, the court declares witchcraft is to blame. Meanwhile, a local girl Mara (16), is found guilty at trial for practicing herbal medicine but gains reprieve when the town carouser, Dr Pierre Laurent (24), convinces the court that she be released under his care to continue her experiments of highly promising discoveries. Mara’s sanctuary is threatened and all Duval’s investigative skills are required when a soldier’s body is found floating in la Loire.

384 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 26, 2024

Reviews

[Michael Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fast moving page turner combining the horrors of when women were easily and viciously persecuted, along with a criminal investigation of a number of seemingly unrelated crimes. The story has a rich cast of characters on different threads that are very satisfactorily brought together in the final chapters.

For me, a good sign of a well constructed mystery is when I do not anticipate the answer to the "who done it". Dark Scriptures managed to keep me guessing on a number of questions. A very enjoyable read.