Product Description

As "Witch Child" ends so "Sorceress" begins. Alison Ellman is still searching for information about the wonderful Mary Newbury, she has a diary and some scattered information about other people in Mary's life, but Mary has disappeared into the forests and Alison has no way of following her. But when she meets Agnes Herne, Alison encounters the person who is going to tell her all about Mary's life after she leaves Beulah. Agnes is a descendent of Mary's and has a special skill which allows her to be in touch with Mary in the spirit world. And Mary has a story to tell. This is a story of love and friendship, sadness and loss. A story that takes her across the new world in an epic search for a home. We fell under the spell of Mary in Witch Child and now at last we find out what happened to her after her ill-fated time in Beulah. Just as Mary's story has to be told to Agnes it has to be read by us for it is passionate, compelling and utterly wonderful. Praise for "Sorceress" - 'A fine achievement, memorably describing times when teenagers had problems that make today's frustrations seem tame.' - Nicholas Tucker, "Independent".

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #223262 in Books
• Published on: 2003-03-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Celia Rees's Sorceress is the bewitching sequel to Witch Child, which was shortlisted for the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize 2001. In the first novel, a young English girl called Mary flees 17th-century England when her grandmother is hung, accused of being a witch. She sails across the seas to America where she begins a new life with a community of Puritans. But as the history books show, this was no safe place for a young witch, good or bad, and when Mary's past is exposed she is cast out into the wilderness. Her diary is abandoned and the reader is left not knowing how Mary's story ends but wanting more.

Not one to disappoint fans, Rees returns with a sequel. In Part II, the story is taken over by a young modern-day historian called Alison Ellman and a Native American Indian called Agnes, who realises that there is a spiritual link between herself and the long-dead English girl. The pair track down the truth of what happened to Mary, each in their own way. But it is through Agnes that Mary's story truly unfolds as the girl goes on a spiritual journey of self-discovery. In a trance-like state, she becomes Mary. We learn of her marriage to the Indian warrior Jaybird, their children and the suffering of her people when war comes. Rees combines superb storytelling with factual history to enchanting effect, leaving you captivated until the very last page. --Nicola Perry

The Saturday Independent
‘Rees has become a major writer for teenage readers’

Glasgow Herald
‘(Witch Child is) definitely one of the highlights of this year’

Customer Reviews

An almost magical book to get you involved!
When I began this book, I was brought right into it straight away. My Godmother sends me a few books every Christmas and Birthday to me. She always buys me the best books. As anyone would, she bought me both, the Witch Child and the sorceress. These type of books are particularly to my interest and I can't stop reading them. I love the bit when Mary is sitting with someone, being shown a woven quilt that was of the lives of her family. This book is good for anyone who is not boring and loves interesting adventures.It is highly reccommended.

sorceress - success
as a follow on from Witch Child, Sorceress transforms wonderfully into the story of the young witch who becomes wife, mother and valued healer. Containing a very moving account of the brutality meted out by white men seeking to conquer more and more land in America, this book reaches far beyond the teenage market. An excellent read.

Excellent sequel to the bestselling "Witch Child". Mary's story continues... the story of an exiled seventeenth-century witch.
If you've already enjoyed "Witch Child", then you'll love this, the sequel. It's really compelling - I challenge you to put this book down mid-story!

In "Sorceress" the story of Mary Newbury continues. "Witch Child" ended with Mary fleeing Beulah (USA), accused of practising witchcraft in the small settlement there. This story alternatates between Mary's Story and the story of another young girl, Agnes, in the present day. Agnes is a Mohawk at college in Boston, and hears about the appeal of the researcher, Alison Ellman, to find information about Mary from the seventeenth century. Alison had already found the 'Mary Papers' and written the first part of Mary's story (which makes up "Witch Child") but now she's reached a dead end and cannot find any more information... until she hears from Agnes.

As Mary's story unravels you can't help but feel empathy. Her life, like any had its highs and lows, but she seems to have had more than her fair share of sadness to contend with. A moving, convincing story, compelling read, and I can highly recommend it for ages 11+.