Reviewed by Maalin Ogaja for Readers' Favorite

The Hag Stone by W. J. Small, set in late medieval England, reveals societal forces that frighteningly still shape women’s lives in subtle, systemic, and sometimes deeply personal ways. Cecily Heaton has just received news of her husband Ellis’s death on the battlefield of Calais. Although the marriage lacked passion, Cecily mourns the kind and gracious man he was. Her childlessness, a great sorrow, leaves her especially vulnerable when his younger brother Henry, so different from Ellis in many ways, claims what remains of her security and her place in the world. Seeking refuge with a friend, Cecily soon discovers she has a gift and an unusual stone that has a hidden significance. However, some lessons, especially those of trust, must be learned the hard way. As the plague ravages Europe, life leads her down an unexpected path, where unlikely friendships and mentors help nurture her gift, setting the stage for the difficult choices to come. Still, Cecily questions whether she will ever find a sense of belonging and a place she can truly call her own.

In The Hag Stone, W. J. Small explores the layered significance of women healers in medieval times, vital to their communities, yet often walking a precarious line between respect and suspicion, particularly when their knowledge challenges male authority or Church doctrine. Small also addresses a truth that endures even today: that women, especially those in middle age or older, are overlooked, dismissed, or rendered invisible in many cultures. Yet, through women like Cecily, we see how this invisibility can be an unexpected gift: a freedom to move without scrutiny and quietly develop hidden abilities. I couldn’t help but think that if Cecily had remained in her comfort zone, she might never have discovered her gift, become more perceptive, or claimed the quiet freedom of living free of others’ expectations. Ultimately, Small’s immersive storytelling will greatly satisfy readers who enjoy character-driven historical fiction and stories where women come into their own against the odds.