A review I wrote in 2020:

The Somerset Tsunami by Emma Carroll (4 stars)

Fortune Sharpe, 13 years old, enjoys dressing as a boy, daring and adventure. But in England in
1616 it doesn’t pay for girls and women to mark themselves out as different and unusual, as King
James I has a thirst for witch hunts. Fortune’s hamlet is already under scrutiny as it is inhabited
solely by women, except for Fortune’s 15-year-old brother Jem; women all working trades and
earning their livelihoods, by cheesemaking, leather tanning and self-sufficient small holdings.

When Fortune comes under scrutiny for carving a logboat with her brother her mother sends her
away to find work, disguised as a boy. Fortune considers herself lucky taken on by the wealthy
lord of a manor house… how hard can it be working as a servant boy? Surely an easier living than
working as a hired farm labourer….

But Fortune may have stepped from the frying pan, straight into the fire… the lord of the manor is
a witch hunter and the occupants of the house are in grave danger…

Emma Carroll is queen of middle grade historical fiction and Somerset Tsunami doesn’t
disappoint. Highly recommended, especially for 10-14s. ( )

I think Carroll is an excellent storyteller and this story, about a thirteen-year-old in the early 1600s, is no exception. However, it involves two things I don’t particularly enjoy reading about in historical fiction: a natural disaster and a witch trial!

(After some pondering, I concluded I prefer encountering natural disasters and witch hunts in fantasy or science-fiction, when the setting gives me some distance -- more distance than four centuries does, apparently.) ( )

When I started reading "The Somerset Tsunami", having not read the blurb, I was expecting the novel to focus on the devastation caused by a tsunami. However, it focused more on the witch hunts of 17th century England when King James I was determined to rid the English of witches and witchcraft.

I loved the strong female characters in this book and the bonds that were formed between various characters. Also, Dr Blood made a perfectly evil villain.
"
Full of excitement, The Somerset Tsunami", was a thrilling historical novel for middle grade readers. I will be looking for other books by this author. ( )