The Mercies

Recommended by Janet Rich Edwards, Harvard epidemiologist and author of the novel “Canticle”

A lyrical and haunting novel based on the historical 17th-century Vardo witch trials. Christmas Eve, 1617: A sudden storm drowns the fisherman of the isolated Arctic community of Vardo, leaving the women to fend for themselves. The grieving widows and sisters rally, adopting local Sami mourning rituals and donning men’s gear to learn to fish and herd reindeer. The church sends an ambitious commissioner to oversee the community. As he takes control of Vardo, the women split into those who submit to his interrogation and those whose newfound strength becomes cause for suspicion. The perspective alternates between Maren, a daughter of the island, and Ursa, the commissioner’s wife with whom Maren falls in love. A gripping tale with complex characters that I’ve read over and over again.