{"id":524689,"url":"\/the-general-witchfinders-book-club\/","layout":"standard","version":"2026-08-03T20:11:05.000000Z","blocks":[{"id":5175716,"type":"banner","published":1,"size":{"x":12,"y":0},"order":0,"items":[],"properties":{"type":{"id":130823352,"value":"standard"},"title":{"id":130823353,"value":null},"copy":{"id":130823354,"value":null},"titleColor":{"id":130823355,"value":"#{banner.title.color}"},"titleBackground":{"id":130823356,"value":"#{banner.title.background.color}"},"copyColor":{"id":130823357,"value":"#{banner.copy.color}"},"copyBackground":{"id":130823358,"value":"#{banner.copy.background.color}"},"contentWidth":{"id":130823359,"value":"95%"},"textShadow":{"id":130823360,"value":"#{banner.text.shadow}"},"borderRadius":{"id":130823361,"value":"0px"},"buttonBorderRadius":{"id":130823362,"value":"#{button.border.radius}"},"buttonBackgroundColor":{"id":130823363,"value":"#{button.primary.color}"},"buttonStyle":{"id":130823364,"value":"secondary"},"buttonSize":{"id":130823365,"value":"standard"},"overlayOpacity":{"id":130823366,"value":"0"},"overlayColourStart":{"id":130823367,"value":"#000000"},"overlayColourEnd":{"id":130823368,"value":"#000000"},"overlayDirection":{"id":130823369,"value":"90"},"image":{"id":130823370,"value":"{\"src\":\"https:\\\/\\\/images.podos.io\\\/pdsudhtrvhhs0bffjpwph52ihwuokrd0llv5haixydluz3pq.jpeg.jpg?w=auto&h=auto\",\"alt\":\"\"}"},"video":{"id":130823371,"value":null},"videoThumbnail":{"id":130823372,"value":null},"media":{"id":130823373,"value":"image"},"align":{"id":130823374,"value":"center"},"verticalAlignment":{"id":130823375,"value":"center"},"font":{"id":130823376,"value":"#{heading1.font}"},"actions":{"id":130823377,"value":"[{\"text\":\"\",\"href\":\"\"},{\"text\":\"\",\"href\":\"\"}]"},"template":{"id":130823378,"value":"banner"},"padding":{"id":130823379,"value":"6"},"fullWidth":{"id":130823380,"value":"1"},"fullBackgroundColor":{"id":130823381,"value":"#{banner.fullBackground.color}"},"published":{"id":130823382,"value":"1"},"conditions":{"id":130823383,"value":"[]"}}},{"id":5175717,"type":"textBlock","published":1,"size":{"x":12,"y":0},"order":1,"items":[],"properties":{"html":{"id":130823384,"value":"

The General Witchfinders Book Club<\/strong><\/h3>

We want to build a community around these books. Locally, that means teaming up with our friends at Teasel & Skylark<\/u><\/a> book shop in Dorchester. Remotely, it means bringing our podcast listeners<\/u><\/a> and zine readers<\/u><\/a> into the conversation. You can read along, share your thoughts on our Instagram<\/u><\/a> and Bluesky<\/u><\/a> pages, and listen to Ross discuss each choice with special guests on a bonus podcast episode every two months.<\/p>

This is also a way to support independent bookshops. If you are close enough to Dorchester, please order your copy through Teasel & Skylark<\/u><\/a> and pop in to collect it \u2013 you will get 10% off the book. If you cannot get to West Dorset, please find your local indie store<\/u><\/a> and buy it from them instead.<\/p>

LISTEN TO THE FIRST EPISODE OF THE BOOK CLUB PODCAST HERE<\/strong><\/p>

On this inaugural episode<\/u><\/a>, Ross welcomes author Ray Newman<\/u><\/a>. Ray is the author of the novel The Grave Digger\u2019s Boy<\/em>, as well as three exceptional collections of short stories: Municipal Gothic<\/em>, Intervals of Darkness<\/em>, and Thin Places in Hard Concrete<\/em>. Together, they delve into Andrew Michael Hurley\u2019s acclaimed 2019 novel, Starve Acre<\/em>.<\/p>"},"borderRadius":{"id":130823385,"value":"#{text.border.radius}"},"textColor":{"id":130823386,"value":"#{text.color}"},"backgroundColour":{"id":130823387,"value":"#0000"},"truncateHeight":{"id":130823388,"value":null},"padding":{"id":130823390,"value":"6"},"fullWidth":{"id":130823391,"value":"0"},"fullBackgroundColor":{"id":130823392,"value":"#{text.fullBackground.color}"},"published":{"id":130823393,"value":"1"},"conditions":{"id":130823394,"value":"[]"},"template":{"id":133213599,"value":"text"}}},{"id":5175718,"type":"banner","published":1,"size":{"x":12,"y":0},"order":3,"items":[],"properties":{"type":{"id":130823395,"value":"standard"},"title":{"id":130823396,"value":null},"copy":{"id":130823397,"value":null},"titleColor":{"id":130823398,"value":"#{banner.title.color}"},"titleBackground":{"id":130823399,"value":"#{banner.title.background.color}"},"copyColor":{"id":130823400,"value":"#{banner.copy.color}"},"copyBackground":{"id":130823401,"value":"#{banner.copy.background.color}"},"contentWidth":{"id":130823402,"value":"95%"},"textShadow":{"id":130823403,"value":"#{banner.text.shadow}"},"borderRadius":{"id":130823404,"value":"0px"},"buttonBorderRadius":{"id":130823405,"value":"#{button.border.radius}"},"buttonBackgroundColor":{"id":130823406,"value":"#{button.primary.color}"},"buttonStyle":{"id":130823407,"value":"secondary"},"buttonSize":{"id":130823408,"value":"standard"},"overlayOpacity":{"id":130823409,"value":"0"},"overlayColourStart":{"id":130823410,"value":"#000000"},"overlayColourEnd":{"id":130823411,"value":"#000000"},"overlayDirection":{"id":130823412,"value":"90"},"image":{"id":130823413,"value":"{\"src\":\"https:\\\/\\\/images.podos.io\\\/brdowba7mh3a5ulafbxxuw3fyrof50arpvggybfqv24zvfth.jpeg.jpg?w=auto&h=auto\",\"alt\":\"\"}"},"video":{"id":130823414,"value":null},"videoThumbnail":{"id":130823415,"value":null},"media":{"id":130823416,"value":"image"},"align":{"id":130823417,"value":"center"},"verticalAlignment":{"id":130823418,"value":"center"},"font":{"id":130823419,"value":"#{heading1.font}"},"actions":{"id":130823420,"value":"[{\"text\":\"\",\"href\":\"\"},{\"text\":\"\",\"href\":\"\"}]"},"padding":{"id":130823422,"value":"6"},"fullWidth":{"id":130823423,"value":"1"},"fullBackgroundColor":{"id":130823424,"value":"#{banner.fullBackground.color}"},"published":{"id":130823425,"value":"1"},"conditions":{"id":130823426,"value":"[]"},"template":{"id":132923976,"value":"banner"}}},{"id":5175719,"type":"textBlock","published":1,"size":{"x":12,"y":0},"order":4,"items":[],"properties":{"html":{"id":130823427,"value":"

Our next book is J.B. Priestley\u2019s Benighted. Get your copy now and start reading ahead of the first week of August, when the next local meetup takes place and the discussion episode drops on the General Witchfinders podcast feed.<\/h3>

\u2018There are none too many stories comparable with this one\u2019 \u2013
The New York Times<\/p><\/blockquote>


A group of travellers find themselves marooned in the Welsh countryside by torrential rains and buffeting winds. Desperate to find shelter from the storm, Philip and Margaret Waverton and their friend Roger Penderel flee to an ancient, crumbling mansion. There, they are reluctantly taken in by the cloistered, erratic Femm family and their brutish servant, Morgan..<\/em><\/p>

\u2018J.B. Priestley is one of our literary icons of the 20th century. And it is time that we all became re-acquainted with his genius.\u2019 \u2013 Dame Judi Dench<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>


A Gothic treat shot through with the dejection and anxiety of a world recovering from the horrors of the First World War, Priestley\u2019s 1927 classic is a razor-sharp blend of dark social satire and psychological terror. Determined to make the best of the circumstances, the benighted travellers drink, talk, and play games to pass the time while the storm rages outside.

But as the night progresses and tensions rise, dangerous and unexpected secrets emerge. On the house\u2019s top floor are two locked doors; behind one of them lies the mysterious, unseen Sir Roderick Femm, and behind the other lurks an unspeakable terror. Which is more deadly: the apocalyptic storm outside the house or the unknown horrors that await within? And will any of them survive the night?<\/p>

Originally published in 1927, Benighted<\/em> served as the basis for James Whale\u2019s classic 1932 film The Old Dark House<\/em>. Priestley himself famously described the book\u2019s characters as \u2018forms of postwar pessimism pretending to be people.\u2019<\/p>

<\/p><\/blockquote>

Join us in Dorchester<\/h3>

Ross is leading the in-person discussions at the King\u2019s Arms Hotel. Spaces are limited, so sign up at the Teasel & Skylark shop<\/u><\/a>. Members of the local club get 10% off the featured books, plus 10% off all other books and gifts in-store (excluding original artwork). These discounts are only available in person at the shop.<\/p>

Join us from elsewhere<\/h3>

If you are not local, you can join in via the podcast. Read along at home and send your thoughts to generalwitchfinders@gmail.com<\/a> \u2013 audio voicemails are especially welcome.<\/p>

If you are based elsewhere, support your local independent bookshop or buy through the links below \u2013 an alternative to Amazon where independent bookshops receive a commission on online sales.<\/p>