Book Title: ONE FOOT IN THE ETHER: Whispers of the Pendle Witches by Kayleigh Kavanagh
Category: Adult Fiction (18 +), 400 pages
Genre: Historical paranormal fantasy
Publisher: Oriana Neoma
Publication Date: September 29, 2025.
Content Rating: PG-13 +M: Things are alluded to, not directly shown. one of the fmc is a midwife so these themes come up
Death wasn’t the end.
More than two hundred and fifty years after the infamous Pendle Witch Trials, the spirits of rival witches Demdike and Chattox remain tethered to their bloodlines—watching, waiting, and bound by unfinished business.
Now, in the late eighteen hundreds, a pragmatic midwife and a troubled young psychic—descendants of the two witches—are drawn into a haunting legacy. An ancient being is stirring—an angry god of the old world, hungry for vengeance and ready to consume the future.
To stop it, the living and the dead must unite, recovering the lost knowledge of their craft. Whilst facing age-old problems and new foes. Some spirits don’t rest easy, and in Pendle, they’re clawing their way back from the past.
Kayleigh Kavanagh is a disabled writer from the North-West of England. Growing up in the area, she learnt a lot about the Pendle Witches and launched her debut novel around their life story. Her main writing genres are fantasy and romance, but she loves stories in all formats. Kayleigh hopes to one day be able to share the many ideas dancing around in her head with the world.
connect with the authors: website ~facebook ~ instagram ~ goodreads
How did you do research for your book?
Mostly online. For the first book I went a lot more in depth, having studied the witches for my university essay. However, as this one delved more into the fantastical and it was more about checking if certain items would have existed during the time period rather than the specific knowledge I needed for the book 1.
Which was the hardest character to write? The easiest?
Probably Yana because she has a very naive and trusting nature which isn’t inherent to my personality.
In your book, you make a reference to midwives and standardisation. How did you come up with the idea to incorporate this into your story?
When I decided to look at the 1800s it kept coming up, particularly with the revival of doulas and midwives as alternative or preferred delivery partners in more recent years. When I discovered how much these women had been targeted and denigrated in favour of male doctors, I felt this would be a perfect subplot for my books.
There are many books out there about witches. What makes yours different?
I think the way I approached the subject. These were women who were victims and purposely targeted for political agendas. I wanted to give them sympathy, but to show they were also people—complex and complicated. There are a lot of stories locally about the witches still being around and haunting places. It made me think, “If they were still around, why? And what would they be sticking around for?” Dead witches with ties to the physical world and being guides to their families is definitely a less explored aspect of the genre.
What made you write a book about the witches in this unusual way?
I really didn’t want to just cover the trials. I wanted which felt natural but could leave a more hopeful ending and possibility for more in the future. Being spirits and reincarnation seemed like a great solution to this problem.
Where do you get inspiration for your stories?
From everywhere. I get so many ideas a day for stories, it would be impossible to write them all, but everything in life informs my creative process in some way. What could happen if one small detail was changed, how would some react if this event happened, there are so many things which could be amazing stories, we just need to have the time and patience to write them.
What advice would you give budding writers?
Cliche answer, but just keep writing. You’ll never get better if you don’t. Reading a lot and editing are also essential, as they help you grow and hone your craft.
This looks like a great. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a really interesting book. Thank you for sharing.
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