In thirteenth-century Ireland, a woman with power is a woman to be feared. Alice, the daughter of a wealthy innkeeper in Kilkenny, grows up watching her mother wither under the constraints of family responsibilities—and she vows that she will never suffer the same fate. In time, she discovers she has a flair for making money, and takes her father's flourishing business to new heights. But as her riches and stature grow, so too do rumors about her private life. By the time she marries her fourth husband—the three earlier are dead—a storm of local gossip and resentment culminates in a life-threatening accusation.
Taut, narrowly focused ... While Bright I Burn attempts to do justice to the historical Alice, Aitken shrinks from confronting the real human cost of accusations of witchcraft ... There’s a moment in Bright I Burn when the novel seems to exhibit a glimmer of self-awareness.
There is much lyrical description of nature, herbs, flowers and scents. Alice is sensitive to her surroundings, and Aitken’s lusciously poetic style reflects this perfectly, in prose that is rhythmical and often mesmerising ... It’s an imaginative, very stylishly written, and entertaining book.
