A Puritan tale of the first divorce proceedings in the American colonies. This was a bit of a slow-paced read, but does well to demonstrate the difficulties behind domestic violence and the way it often becomes a he said/she said situation.

The writing is very authentic to the time, which will likely grate on some readers, but that built a very strong sense of atmosphere for me. There wasn't anything particularly hard-hitting in it from my perspective, but it was still well-crafted and worth the reading time. I found it enjoyable and moderately compelling with a good structure to the narrative.

Though the pacing was slow, it didn't feel plodding. It was simply one of those quietly building plots. The intensity does increase in the second half and this pushes the pace up a slight notch.

I quite enjoyed my read and found the ending satisfying. It wasn't necessarily gripping enough to be a thriller, but it was a book I kept wanting to get back to and the mystery element to it was definitely entertaining. The writing style worked great for me and the atmosphere may have been my favorite part. Colonial America was 100% evoked in every way.