The best books about witches & witchcraft
From heart-breaking tales inspired by true stories to modern-day thrillers and non-fiction explorations of the criminalization of female power, here are our favourite books about witches, introduced by Kate Foster.
What is it about witches and the way they capture our imagination? From childhood stories to horror tales, there is something about wicked women that fascinates readers. Books about witches are stories about fear.
I decided to write The King’s Witches because I had been reading some incredible historical novels inspired by the lives of real people accused of the crime of sorcery. Women at the centre of power struggles and persecution.
I wanted to write a story about the very origins of Britian’s witch panic that peaked in the seventeenth century, and has its roots in Scotland, near where I live. When King James VI of Scotland was betrothed to Princess Anna of Denmark, in 1589, her sea voyage to meet her new husband almost ended in disaster because of a storm. The storm was blamed on witches conspiring against the royal union and King James made it his mission to hunt them down. The Scottish witch trials paved the way for many more.
Witch-lit is, at its heart, a retelling of women’s histories. These were people who were different, who were persecuted because they lived outside society and did not conform.
The best books about witches give us insight into this past and let us reflect on where we are today. Here are some of our favourites.