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In the Shadow of Salem Kindle Edition

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 124 ratings

In 1692, the residents in Salem and Ipswich live with stories of witchcraft, religious extremism, and false accusations. Mock trials lead to questionable convictions and speedy executions. Most of the condemned are women, all but one are hung. Others, including two infant children, die in prison.

For Mehitabel Braybrooke, life began as the illegitimate child of a prosperous landowner. Now her stepmother is convinced the girl is a pawn of the Devil. During a time when women have few rights and even fewer allies in the courts, what will become of the falsely accused?

Written for the General Market (G) (I): Contains little or no; sexual dialogue or situations or strong language. May also contain content of an inspirational nature.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Donna Gawell is a genealogist, historian, and the author of several books, including Travel Back to Your Roots and The ABC s of Crime and Punishment in Puritan New England. She is also a lecturer on genealogy and family history writing. When not traveling to research her ancestral homelands in Europe and New England, she lives in Westerville, Ohio, with her husband, Mark. You can learn more about Donna through her website: DonnaGawell.com.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07BZ5Q6D2
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Heritage Beacon Fiction (June 18, 2018)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 18, 2018
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 5616 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 194 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 124 ratings

About the author

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Donna B Gawell
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Donna Gawell is an author, genealogist, and family historian. Her first historical novel "In the Shadow of Salem" was released in 2018, by Heritage Beacon, an imprint of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas.

Donna is the author of "Travel Back to Your Roots" a book meant to inspire descendants of European immigrants to begin research in genealogy. The goal of the book is to allow readers to find enough about their ancestors in order to visit the ancestral villages and possibly meet cousins or other relatives like she did in 2014 and 2016. Her most recent publication is "The ABC's of Crime and Punishment in Puritan New England."

Donna likes to tell people she began her professional writing career in a cemetery. Her very first article "Charles C. Chapman" was published in a local Medina, Ohio newsletter for “Friends of the Cemetery,” a local non-profit. She has also published numerous articles in history and museum journals.

She holds volunteer leadership roles with Samaritan’s Purse as a Drop Off Center Coordinator for Operation Christmas Child and is a volunteer coordinator for International Friendships, Inc. Donna is also a lecturer on genealogy and family history writing.

Donna earned a master’s degree in Speech Pathology and worked in the field of education for over thirty years. She lives in Westerville, Ohio with her husband Mark when not traveling to research her ancestral homelands in Europe and New England. Her new website, “DonnaGawell.com,” allows her to meet readers with similar interests in historical fiction, history, genealogy and world travel.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
124 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers enjoyed the book's narrative and found it well-written and relatable. They found it entertaining and hard to put down, with realistic characters based on real people. The book was described as informative and based on thorough research.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

13 customers mention "Story quality"13 positive0 negative

Customers enjoyed the story's quality. They found it well-written and relatable, with a good narrative of perseverance and forgiveness. The book was described as an excellent historical novel that moved along smoothly.

"...Mehitabel’s saga out of history, and presented it in a highly readable manner that contains lessons applicable to this day." Read more

"...She did an incredible job of recreating her life story using real events and research to build an amazing narrative of a very sad time in American..." Read more

"Good writing of this historical era of U.S.history. Based on very real persons and an accurate portrayal of puritan lives...." Read more

"...Donna did a masterful job of writing authentic dialogue and showing (not telling) us how perilous life was in the 17th century, for these innocent..." Read more

11 customers mention "Readability"11 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy reading the book. They find it entertaining and hard to put down. The book holds their interest consistently and was read within two days.

"...is told in the first person from Mehitabel’s viewpoint, and is entertaining and hard-to-put-down even if you already know the basics of the..." Read more

"...This book was read within two days." Read more

"...It was very interesting." Read more

"...level of interest in this era—you will learn much, and be entertained at the same time." Read more

4 customers mention "Character development"4 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the character development. They say the characters are based on real people and an accurate portrayal of puritan lives.

"Good writing of this historical era of U.S.history. Based on very real persons and an accurate portrayal of puritan lives...." Read more

"...I enjoyed it and enjoyed it more because the characters were actual people." Read more

"...Donna has researched thoroughly and knows her characters. I now feel that I do too." Read more

"...The historical connection was good and the main character was interesting. The story moved along well." Read more

3 customers mention "Scholastic content"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book informative and well-researched. They appreciate the author's knowledge of the characters and the factual content.

"...It was based on facts and very relatable...." Read more

"...This book transported me there. Donna has researched thoroughly and knows her characters. I now feel that I do too." Read more

"A great historical novel done with incredible care and meticulous research..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2018
    The “historical” part of this historical novel, documented in Puritan court records from the second half of the 17th century, are that Mehitabel Braybrooke was born out of wedlock to a married Puritan immigrant and his indentured servant; that her father’s wife was ordered by the court to raise her even as she despised her; that Mehitabel was jailed for and convicted of arson at age 16 and sentenced to lashes; that soon thereafter she married a respectable land owner, having and raising six children; that at age 40 she was accused of witchcraft during the Salem Hysteria and jailed pending trial; that one of her cell mates was her father’s wife; that they were two of 10 female prisoner signatories on a letter petitioning the governor to allow them to be released on bail for the harsh winter; that this request was not granted but that ultimately the governor pardoned them before trial but after seven months in the Ipswich jail; and that after being ostracized and enduring hardship for much of her life, Mehitabel persevered to live to age 71, considerably longer than the average Puritan life of the time. No one could possibly have invented this plot.

    The “novel” part of this historical novel, is that author Donna Gawell thoroughly researched Puritan customs, lifestyle and religious beliefs to put the story in the context of life in a Puritan village, so that we can visualize what our ancestors’ lives might have been like 350 years ago. Dialogue is from that period. The narrative is told in the first person from Mehitabel’s viewpoint, and is entertaining and hard-to-put-down even if you already know the basics of the story.

    Gawell has painstakingly dug her (and my) ancestor Mehitabel’s saga out of history, and presented it in a highly readable manner that contains lessons applicable to this day.
    14 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on September 30, 2024
    I became fascinated with Mehitable's story after discovering from Ancestry.com that she is my 10th great grandmother. The author, Donna Gawell did a wonderful job of transporting me back to a time where just a finger point and an accusation could have deadly consequences. She did an incredible job of recreating her life story using real events and research to build an amazing narrative of a very sad time in American History.
  • Reviewed in the United States on April 22, 2020
    Hard reading but I love history , so I always said. This part of history, I had not read; but I cannot say I enjoyed it. I read to the end; but witchcraft I could not enjoy even though I guess it was history. I am glad studying history in school that this part was not taught. I had to finish it, I could only see how it ended. Read : if you dare!
  • Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2022
    Good writing of this historical era of U.S.history. Based on very real persons and an accurate portrayal of puritan lives. This book was read within two days.
  • Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2025
    This book is about one of my ancestors, so I bought a few copies for my children. It was very interesting.
  • Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2019
    This is the true story of Mehitabel Braybrooke of Ipswich, an ancestor of Donna’s. She recreated Mehitabel’s difficult life in painstaking detail, the result of digging deep to retrieve authentic court records, facts about Mehitabel’s family life (she was the illegitimate daughter of an indentured servant) and serving time in the Ipswich jail on a witchcraft accusation. She eventually married the man she loved (a rarity in 1692 Salem and Ipswich) and had children, living into her 70s. I’ve always been fascinated with the Salem witch trials and Salem history, and this story brought me back there as if I’d been transported. Donna did a masterful job of writing authentic dialogue and showing (not telling) us how perilous life was in the 17th century, for these innocent victims who were wrongly accused, imprisoned in dungeons under horrid conditions, and hanged (and one man pressed to death). I highly recommend IN THE SHADOW OF SALEM whatever your level of interest in this era—you will learn much, and be entertained at the same time.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2023
    After an Ancestry.com genealogical profile I learned that I am descended from Mehitabel and John Downing. This well written, historical account was mesmerizing on many levels
  • Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2020
    A historical fiction story of real people based in history at the time of the notorious Salem Witch Trails. The author obviously did her research. I'd like to see better character development, more showing and action, less telling and describing, and at times I felt that a fact was thrown in as an afterthought. Especially interesting is the list giving the biographies of the characters who were actual people living in and around the Ipswich, MA area in the 17th Century.

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