A spellbinding historical debut which tells the story of a silent midwife hiding a secret and a witch-hunt that tears a community apart. Perfect for fans of Stacey Halls, Maggie O'Farrell, Jessie Burton, and Hannah Kent. East Anglia, 1645. Martha Hallybread, a midwife, healer and servant, has lived peacefully for more than four decades in her beloved Cleftwater. Everyone in the village knows Martha, but no one has ever heard her speak. One bright morning, Martha becomes a silent witness to a witch hunt, led by sinister new arrival Silas Makepeace. As a trusted member of the community, she is enlisted to search the bodies of the accused women for evidence. But whilst she wants to help her friends, she also harbours a dark secret that could cost her own freedom. In desperation, Martha revives a wax witching doll that she inherited from her mother, in the hope that it will bring protection. But the doll's true powers are unknowable, the tide is turning, and time is running out . . . A spellbinding and intoxicating novel inspired by true events, The Witching Tide is a magnificent debut from a writer to watch.