About the Book:
“I am no witch, nor adulteress, thief, nor murderer. They say I have lost my reason, but I know only that my heart is shattered, and in crying it aloud, now I must pay the cost….”
After three grievous losses, Puritan woman Silence Marsh dares to question God aloud in the church, and that blasphemy lands her in trouble—she is silenced for a year by the powers that be. Broken in heart and spirit, Silence learns to mime and sign, but it isn’t until a new Boston doctor, the dashing Daniel Greenleaf, comes to her backward Cape Cod village that she begins to hope again. Rather than treating Silence with bleeding or leeches, Dr. Greenleaf prescribes fresh air, St. John’s Wort, long walks—and reading.
Silence has half a hope of getting through her year of punishment when the cry of witchcraft poisons the village. Colonial Massachusetts is still reeling from the Salem Witch Trials just 20 years before. Now, after demanding her silence, she is called to witness at a witchcraft trial—or be accused herself.
A whiff of sulfur and witchcraft shadows this literary Puritan tale of loss and redemption, based on the author’s own ancestor, her seventh great-grandmother.
Praise for Silence:
“Julia Park Tracey’s Silence is a powerful, lyrical marvel of a novel. The challenges that Silence March faces and the questions that she struggles with after she has been sentenced to a year of silence by her Separatist community not only create a vivid and authentic picture of Puritan New England, but also resonate in meaningful ways with our own times. Silence’s story is both haunting and inspiring, and I am grateful to Julia Park Tracey for having given her such a captivating voice.” - Jean Hegland, author of Into the Forest
“I’m a huge fan of Julia Park Tracey. Her new novel Silence is a moving, transcendent novel in the vein of Groff’s Matrix and Toews’s Women Talking. Historical fiction, yes, but more importantly an inquiry into female agency and power in a world that takes the breaking of the spirit as its right. Beautiful.” -Christian Kiefer, author of The Heart Of It All
“Tracey’s writing is sumptuous and absorbing, transporting the reader to a provincial, eighteenth-century Puritan village while weaving together a deeply felt story that packs a considerable punch.” —Greg Houle, author of The Putnams of Salem: A Novel of Power and Betrayal During the Salem Witch Trials
My Thoughts:
The emotional resonance and nuance of Julia Park Tracey’s Silence shouldn’t be underestimated. Set in colonial America during the 1720s and inspired by the author’s own family history, Silence is a moving exploration of grief, resilience, and personal faith.
The language of this piece appealed to me immediately. Tracey adopts a tone and cadence that is accessible to modern readers and reflective of the novel’s setting. In a market increasingly defined by simple, easily consumable prose, Silence is refreshingly rich and immersive.
Rigid social norms and morality define Puritan society. Tracey’s fiction offers a detailed illustration of life in these communities, but it also uses culture and custom to explore patriarchal oppression. George Fellows, John Richardson, Israel Nichols, and David March exercise power over Silence in different ways. Some are overtly aggressive, while others temper their authority with warmth and affection. All, however, demand absolute obedience, and I was impressed at how their manipulation of Silence reflects the complex and pervasive nature of gender-based repression.
A beautiful story about navigating sorrow, discovering hope, and claiming agency in adversity. Highly recommended.
Julia Park Tracey | Sibylline Press | Novel Published 2024
Unsolicited Review from Personal Collection
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