Katherine Howe, a novelist who lives in Marblehead, Massachusetts

Marblehead, Massachusetts

Marblehead is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,808 at the 2010 census. It is home to the Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary and Devereux Beach...

, is the author of the New York Times Bestseller "The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane is the first novel written by Katherine Howe, published by VOICE, an imprint of Hyperion . Physick Book debuted at #2 on the New York Times Hardcover Fiction Bestseller list on June 20, 2009.- Setting :...

" (Hyperion, 2009 ISBN 978-1401340902).

Howe, who was raised in Houston, Texas and is a graduate of the Kinkaid School and Columbia University

Columbia University

Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

, began writing fiction while working on her doctoral dissertation in American and New England Studies at Boston University

Boston University

Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...

. Howe and her husband, the economic historian Louis Hyman (author of Debtor Nation

Debtor Nation

Debtor Nation: The History of America in Red Ink is the first history book written by Louis Hyman, who received his PhD from Harvard University in 2007.- Argument:...

), are core members of a group informally known as the "Springfield Street Table," a small club of Cambridge-area writers and scholars who gather to play poker while trading barbs and debating culture and ideas.

The bestselling novelist Matthew Pearl

Matthew Pearl

Matthew Pearl is an American novelist and educator. His novels include The Dante Club, The Poe Shadow and The Last Dickens and have been published in more than 40 countries.-Biography:...

 is also a core member of this group, and is sometimes credited with helping to launch Howe's literary career.

Howe, whose family settled in Essex County, Massachusetts in the 1620s, is related to accused Salem

Salem, Massachusetts

Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...

 witches Elizabeth Proctor

Elizabeth Proctor

Elizabeth Proctor was accused of witchcraft in the Salem Witch Trials. She was the third wife of John Proctor, and remarried after his execution. Part of her life was fictitiously dramatized as part of Arthur Miller's play The Crucible and later adaptations.-Early life:Elizabeth was the daughter...

 and Elizabeth Howe

Elizabeth Howe

Elizabeth How was one of the accused in the Salem witch trials. She was found guilty and executed on July 19, 1692.- Background :Elizabeth Jackson How was born in or about 1635 in Yorkshire. She was born to William and Deborah Jackson. Elizabeth married James How in April of 1658; the couple had...

.