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Witch Trial

Don't miss the extraordinary brand new thriller from the Sunday Times, million-copy bestselling author, available to pre-order now!

Harriet Tyce author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Headline Publishing Group

Publishing:26th Feb '26

£18.99

This title is due to be published on 26th February, and will be despatched as soon as possible.

Witch Trial cover

**THE EXTRAORDINARY BRAND-NEW THRILLER FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF BLOOD ORANGE, AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER NOW**

Two teenage girls. One murdered classmate.
And a modern-day witch trial that will divide the nation. . .

'Mind-bending and brilliant' LISA JEWELL
'Deliciously twisted. . . Genius' CLAIRE DOUGLAS
'Daring, clever and compulsive' ANDREA MARA
'An utter masterpiece' SOPHIE HANNAH
_______________________________

When 18-year-old Christian Shaw is found dead in an Edinburgh park, the city reels - and the shock only deepens when police charge her best friends, Eliza Lawson and Isobel Smyth, with her murder.

As social media explodes and headlines scream for justice, rumours of bullying spiral into something darker: whispers of rituals, obsession, and a teenage pact gone wrong.

Matthew Phillips, a respected heart surgeon, is reluctantly called for jury duty. But as the trial unfolds - and the girls reveal a chilling defence no one saw coming - he begins to question everything: the motives, the evidence, even his own judgement.

Who's telling the truth? Who can be trusted?
And what really happened to Christian Shaw?

Let the Witch Trial begin . . .
_______________________________

YOU NEED TO READ IT TO BELIEVE IT.

'
I have never read a book like it. Exceptional' ⭐ Reader review

'Such a gripping book with twist after twist' ⭐ Reader review

'Set apart by the quality of the writing and depth of the characters' ⭐ Reader review

'Absolutely astonishing. I promise you won't see the ending coming' ⭐ Reader review

'A totally original plot that thrilled, shocked and engaged' ⭐ Reader review

AUTHORS ARE GRIPPED BY WITCH TRIAL:

'Mind-bending and brilliant. I couldn't read it fast enough!' LISA JEWELL

'Gripping, original and so very clever. . . A deliciously twisted thriller. And what an ending! Genius. . .' CLAIRE DOUGLAS

'Daring, different, clever and compulsive, a truly original novel' ANDREA MARA

'Grips like a vice throughout. . . An utter masterpiece' SOPHIE HANNAH

'Not just compulsive but unsettling, creepy and clever' JENNIE GODFREY

'Dark, wry and slippery, I adored it' SARAH PINBOROUGH

'The...

Audacious, mind-bending, and brilliant. I couldn't read it fast enough! * Lisa Jewell *
Harriet Tyce's best book yet. Gripping, original and so very clever. I was captivated by this deliciously twisted thriller. And what an ending! Genius. I loved it! * Claire Douglas *
Daring, different, clever and compulsive, a truly original novel. Delicious. * Andrea Mara *
Absolutely superb - grips like a vice throughout and has a perfect, bold ending that no one will see coming. An utter masterpiece of the murder mystery and the legal thriller genre. * Sophie Hannah *
A legal thriller unlike any you've ever read, this witchy, mind-melting page-turner is Tyce at her whip-smart best. * Ellery Lloyd *
Brilliantly clever and utterly addictive, I loved it. Courtroom drama at its finest. * Clare Leslie Hall *
Harriet Tyce is a master storyteller unafraid to tackle difficult themes. Supremely plotted, elegantly written and with an ending that will shake you up! An absolute triumph of a book that takes the legal thriller to new heights and which will stay with you for a long time after you've finished it. Best thing I've read this year. * Abir Mukherjee *
Wow. This courtroom drama is not just compulsive, it's unsettling, creepy and clever, the combination leading to a brilliant finish. This book got fully under my skin. I loved it. * Jennie Godfrey *
Witch Trial is like the lovechild of Alfred Hitchcock and The Crucible. Dark, wry, and slippery underfoot, I adored it! * Sarah Pinborough *
Tyce creates a swirling miasma of meaning and counter-meaningthat keeps the reader enthralled and tantalised by horrific possibilities, and in its audacious final act, revealing layer beneath confounding layer, Witch Trial pays fitting tribute to the James Hogg classic that inspired it. * Chris Brookmyre *
Compulsive reading . . . I was totally immersed in the story. One of the best courtroom dramas I've read in a long time. * Araminta Hall *
Give me witchcraft, a mind spiralling into madness, and questionable narrators any day - just my cup of tea. A brilliant and twisting new novel from Harriet Tyce. I flew through it. * L.V. Matthews *
Cancel all plans because this book is going to grab you by the throat and not let go till you turn the final page. It's a startlingly original courtroom drama story, and a psychologically astute depiction of a man in freefall. Deliciously chilling and like nothing I've ever read. I ate this up. * Chris Bridges *
An unputdownable, twisty legal trial from the queen of the courtroom drama. Spellbinding and sinister. A masterclass in plotting and pace. * Kate Gray *
So creepy and intriguing, like nothing I've ever read before. The writing just crackles with energy. . .like a fever dream, I was properly gripped. As for the ending, it was so clever, I actually laughed out loud in admiration. So so good. * Lucy Diamond *
I read WITCH TRIAL then I read it again. Compelling, perfectly drawn characters, twisty, and never have I said "Oh My God" out loud at the end of a book and meant it more. * Rachel Wolf *
Clever, propulsive, with a wickedly satisfying twist. Excellent. My favourite Tyce book yet. * C.E. Hulse *
Totally original and impossible to put down, Harriet Tyce has shown once again that she is the absolute master of the legal thriller with a twist . . . Brilliant! * G.D. Wright *
At first sight a legal thriller, Witch Trial is multi-layered and subtle, delving deeply into the intricacies of the relationships between teenage girls and perceptions of female cunning. We are plunged into a world where nothing is as it seems. Brilliant. * Heather Critchlow *
Harriet Tyce's masterful courtroom drama is intense, terrifying, and utterly addictive, with a devilish twist in its tail. * Gilly Macmillan *
I loved this clever book...stunningly written and this may be one of the best endings I've read. Despite being a deliciously dark read, I found myself chuckling in places. Harriet's best book yet! * Nicky Mackay *
Dark, twisty and unrelentingly brilliant. Tyce in top form * Femi Kayode *
Tense, creepy and very, very clever with a genuine jaw-drop of an ending. * Susi Holliday *
Harriet Tyce is truly the queen of plotting and suspense. This is a riveting, rip-roaring ride through a murder trial, which confounds expectations at every turn. I was torn between being desperate to rush straight to the end, and not wanting the story to finish. Simply brilliant. * The Secret Barrister *
Will spark a million water-cooler debates! Bold and brave, and eminently readable! * Jo Furniss *

A brilliantly unsettling, utterly original read that had me gripped from the first page.
I loved how Harriet Tyce explored truth, bias and belief, and how easily they can blur under pressure. The ending left me reeling in the best possible way. This is a dark, spellbinding courtroom thriller that had me doubting everything and everyone.

* D. S. Butler *

ISBN: 9781035411917

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

400 pages