This was a really fascinating read, based off of a true person accused of witchcraft in the author's family lineage. Susannah North Martin was accused of witchcraft in spring 1692 and this novel is the imagined retelling of what happened during her time in jail as well as her life leading up to this point. The Salem Witch Trials are still such a fascinating topic and little is still known really about how this got to be what it was during that time. Once accused, there was hardly anything anyone could do to prove their innocence and that title sadly became a death sentence. Unlike a few others accused, Susannah had lived most of her life already and had raised her children and welcomed some grandchildren as well but others were not so lucky. I highly recommend this read for anyone who is interested in the Salem Witch Trials as the author does add historical court records through out the novel. I loved the back and forth of the story of telling Susannah's life. Thank you to the author for the complementary novel. This review is of my own opinion and accord. ( )

I loved reading about the women and men that were accused of witchcraft in Salem. I felt it was so sad that most of these people were accused because they had something that someone else wanted. I loved how the story is seen through Susannah and what she saw and heard through much of her lifetime. I received a copy of the book from the publisher for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will. ( )

Powerful, romantic and tragic. The Salem Witch Trials have fascinated me for years. It’s so hard to imagine how so many innocent people were condemned to die solely on the faulty testimony of mainly unscrupulous young women. Condemn Me Not is based on the engaging true story of Susannah North Martin, the author’s 10th great grandmother who was falsely accused of witchcraft.

I loved the way the author approached this story. It’s told from two different time periods: the romantic courtship of Susannah and George beginning in 1646, and Susannah’s imprisonment and trial in 1692. It switches back and forth between Susannah’s & George’s passionate love story, and the horrendous prison conditions and trial of Susannah and her fellow inmates as they await their fate. Interspersed between the two narratives are excerpts from the actual transcripts of the Salem Witch Trials.

The audiobook version was fantastic. Nancy Peterson did an amazing job distinguishing between the young, vibrant Susannah and her elderly 70 year old self. The narration was so well done that at first, I thought there were two separate narrators because the voices were so different. I loved the way she voiced all the characters giving them each a unique personality and really bringing the story to life. The story was even more powerful as an audiobook.

I loved George, the handsome, roguish widower who captures Susannah’s heart. His charming, teasing personality completely won me over. I also enjoyed getting to know Susannah as a young, hopeful woman experiencing the first throws of love and marriage and the mature woman going through the horrors of false accusations, degradations, starvation, and awaiting death. Even though I knew the outcome, I was hoping somehow there was an alternate ending and Susannah could be saved. Despite the bleak circumstances, the author delivers a heart wrenchingly, beautiful ending.

This is definitely a must listen/must read book that will captivate historical fiction and historical romance fans alike. I received an advanced complimentary audiobook from the author but also purchased the ebook version. All opinions are completely my own and voluntarily given.

Cw: clean with some passionate kissing and intimate touches (non graphic), fade to black scenes between a married couple, historically accurate portrayal of prisoners stripped naked and private parts discussed (non graphic) ( )

There are many dark stains in our American history, things that cannot be taken back or pushed under a rug no matter how much we wish they could be. From the first time I read The Crucible in school the Salem Witch Trials have haunted me. I could not understand why so many people would turn on innocent people, accuse them of things they did not do, and kill them. It wasn't until many years later that those that died because of these accusations were acquitted of all the charges against them, but it was too late.

I have read several of Heather B. Moore's books and was intrigued to find out that she is the 10th great granddaughter of one such accused woman. Susannah North Martin was her name. Condemn Me Not is her story.

Knowing what I know about the Salem Witch Trials, I was instantly intrigued. The author did a wonderful job of weaving the story of the 70-year-old condemned woman wasting away in a abominable jail cell, surrounded by others who are accused of the same crime, and awaiting trail and the 25-year-old spinster Susannah meeting and falling love with the man next door.

My emotions felt like they were on a rollercoaster as the book went on and you knew Susannah was getting closer to her trial. Your heart breaks as she tells about the other women and the humiliation they endured during the trials. The examinations, the inhumane living conditions, and why? The only thing I can say from the research that I have done myself is that it was all fueled by fear and hatred and is a sad time in our American history.

As many of you know, Susannah Martin was one of four women hung for the crime of witchcraft on July 19, 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts. The way the author wrote the final breaths that Susannah Martin took made me catch my own breath. It was beautifully heartbreaking.

Out of all the books that I have read by Heather B. Moore I believe this one is my favorite. You can feel the kinship that she shares with this woman and it is fascinating. I highly recommend this book! ( )

“Unless I confess to a crime that I did not commit, I will be sentenced to death. The irony does not escape me. Lying before God will buy my freedom among men.”
― Heather B. Moore, Condemn Me Not: Accused of Witchcraft

This book is about Susannah North Martin who was an ancestor of the author. It is also a masterpiece of writing, one that I suspected I would like and did. Loved. It is so good when the high hopes you have for a book are met or even exceeded.

I am not including spoilers because we know how this one ends.

Susannah was accused of witchcraft during the era of the Salem witch trials, as were many other people. This book is told in two parts. In the present, she is jailed and awaiting her trial. But the book also goes back in time to tell of her life as a young girl and how she came to met and know her true love, George.

I have read many books on this period in time. It both fascinates and horrifies me. But what really makes this book stand out ate two things.

One: we get to know the other women in the cell as well. And we see the absurdity of these accusations and just how out of hand..crazy..things got. Condemn me not shows the tragedy so deeply that it is impossible, I think, not to feel emotional reading this. And angry as well.

The other aspect that makes it stand apart...is the tenderness. Aching tenderness and the love story between George and Susannah.

In as much as you weep for her fate, you rejoice knowing how deeply loved she was and I will freely admit that romances in books are not always my thing but I found the romance in this one as good as the other aspects of it. It completely carries one away and I adored reading about this wonderful couple's courtship. Five stars for sure.

I will admit that I am a bit more hardened than I used to be and way more jaded. I now see how such a thing could have happened. It saddens me that I CAN see it. People are very gullible. And suggestible. And some people are just evil. And for me, I wanted to reach through the book and scream at all this lovely woman's accusers. So will you, I think. As great a book as this is, it's deeply painful too.

In closing..highly recommended. A masterpiece. One of my best reads of 2020. And this is a book I will not forget any time soon or ever. ( )