The Betrayal of Maggie Blair

The Betrayal of Maggie Blair

Author: Elizabeth Laird
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
360 pages

Rating: 3.5/5

*Received as an ARC for an honest review

Product description from Amazon:


In seventeenth-century Scotland, saying the wrong thing can lead to banishment—or worse. Accused of being a witch, sixteen-year-old Maggie Blair is sentenced to be hanged. She escapes, but instead of finding shelter with her principled, patriotic uncle, she brings disaster to his door. 

Betrayed by one of her own accusers, Maggie must try to save her uncle and his family from the king’s men, even if she has to risk her own life in the process.

Originally published in the UK, this book has a powerful blend of heart-stopping action and thought-provoking themes.

 My Thoughts:

When I was looking through the list of available titles, this cover caught my eye. The lone girl standing in a shallow bed of water, the wind whipping her dress and hair, it was well put together and the colors made it seem dark and dreary. Then I read the title and the cover seemed that much darker. Yet, I was intrigued. 

I have to say the book started out, well, weird. A dead whale washed up on the beach of a small Scottish isle. Weird, and creepy. It took me awhile to get into the story, but once I did I enjoyed it. Although I have to admit there were some periods in the middle where I felt like skipping paragraphs because there was too much filler and not enough action.

The characters were fun and intriguing. The title's namesake was well developed. Maggie Blair begins the story as unsure young teenager who finds herself in a precarious situation; Maggie and her grandmother are named as witches. Granny does not help her cause, and at times I was wondering if she had the gift of the dark arts or not. Granny and Maggie are tried and found guilty, and sentenced to hanging and being burned at the stake. However, Maggie escapes the night before the sentencing is to be carried out and runs away to the mainland to her only other living relatives, her dad's brother and his family. The remainder of the story lies with Maggie finding her strength as an individual, and she goes through many more precarious situations to get there. The villain of this story was a vile young woman by the name of Annie, and let's just say she was very unlikeable. 

In the end I think this was a good overall read. There were some slow parts in the narration but the characters were well written and fun. It gives a brief look into 17th century Scotland and the trials the devout Christians faced to serve their Saviour. For a young reader it would be just enough knowledge with just enough laughter to balance out nicely.