Description

In thirteenth-century Ireland, a woman with power is a woman to be feared.

When a young Alice Kyteler sees her mother wither under the constraints of family responsibilities, she vows that she won’t suffer the same fate. Soon Alice discovers she has a flair for making money, and builds a flourishing business. But as her wealth and stature grow, so too do the rumours about her private life. By the time she has moved on to her fourth husband, a blaze of local gossip and resentment culminates in an accusation that could prove fatal.

Inspired by the first recorded person in Ireland to have been condemned as a witch, Bright I Burn gives voice to a woman lost to history, who dared to carve her own space in a man’s world.

Publisher Review

Extraordinary . . . Some of the best prose I’ve read — ELAINE FEENEY Spellbinding witch literature . . . A stunning rendition of one fierce Irish woman’s voice pitted against the patriarchal power constructs of Medieval Ireland — ANYA BERGMAN Aitken is a distinct, singular, stunning voice in historical fiction, and Bright I Burn is a triumph. It took my breath away — JENNY MUSTARD A gorgeous, blazing novel, that makes history crackle to life. Fans of Maggie Farrell’s Hamnet or A.K. Blakemore’s The Manningtree Witches will love Aitken’s complex, sensual anti-heroine — CLARE POLLARD I was captivated. Every sentence reads like poetry. A stunning, magical, beguiling book — HUMA QURESHI Gripping, poetic, a glorious story of a remarkable woman’s passion and her revenge — LOUISA REID Beautifully told, full of passion and fire, Aitken evokes a vivid sense of time and place through her powerful depiction of a woman determined to maintain her position in a society driven by men. Stunning — JENNY QUINTANA An incandescent story, ablaze with the passion and determination of a woman centuries ahead of her time — POLLY CROSBY A lushly fevered tale of marriage, murder and moneylending . . . Haunting and powerful — JANE HEALEY A beautiful, fascinating novel about an extraordinary woman that will linger in readers’ memories for a long time after they finish it — JENNIFER SAINT