Published By: Viking
Pages: 144
Released On: 06/11/2025
It was a black night in the year 1620 when Christenze Krukow made the wax child, when she melted down beeswax and set it in the image of a small human. For days, she carried it tucked beneath her arm, shaping it with the warmth of her flesh, giving it life. She fashioned for it eyes and ears that cannot open, and yet – it watches and listens.
It looks on as Christenze is haunted by rumour, it hears what the people whisper. It sees how, in the candlelight, she gazes with love at her friends, and hears the things they say in the shadows. It knows pine forest, misty fjord and the crackle of the burning pyre. It observes the violence in men’s eyes and the cruelty of their laws. In time, it begins to understand that once a suspicion of witchcraft has taken hold, it can prove impossible to shake…
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Viking for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I was not aware of Olga before this book but from some other reviews I’d read, she has a loyal fanbase.
It is a very bizarre book. Its narrated by this…talisman of sorts; something that is not living, has no mouth or working eyes or ears, and yet it watches, listens and speaks – albeit only to the reader.
It’s very retrospective, like someone retelling a story they witnessed. There’s very little dialogue to speak of, no real character development, no big action or plot. It’s this was child explaining to the reader what happened after it was created.
It’s unlike anything I’ve read and I can’t confidently say what I thought of it. It’s very weird and difficult to get on with, and yet I couldn’t tear myself away – like when you drive past a car crash and you know you shouldn’t look but you can’t help yourself.
I think it’s about witchcraft in the 1600s. I’ve red a lot of novels about witchcraft and with trials recently and I generally love them, but I just couldn’t get the hang of this.
It is very abstract, very little reality. It’s full of suggestions, hints, rumours, accusations, feelings rather than truth.
It is apparently based on a true story and whilst I found it bizarre, it is well written and it’s clear that Olga knows what she’s talking about, even if it was weird and difficult and complicated.
I’ll be honest, I had absolutely no idea what was happening whilst I was reading it and now I’ve finished it I still don’t have a clue what was happening. It feels like a book written to show off her use of language and writing style as opposed to creating interesting characters or entertaining plot. The fact that it’s a book supposed to tell a story almost doesn’t come into it, like it was an afterthought and I think that’s why I struggled with it, because it bounced around here and there and I just couldn’t keep up with it.
Books By Your Bedside 