First published 2008
Güde Müller watches a friar enter her German village in 1507, carrying the Malleus Maleficarum under his arm. Tierkinddorf has endured months of famine, and the villagers gather eagerly around this holy man who promises to restore their prosperity. He will find the witch who brought God's wrath upon them, he declares, and burn her to lift the curse. The crowd erupts in hope. Neighbors begin whispering secrets to the friar, each eager to point suspicion elsewhere. Güde feels terror creep through her bones. She has been seeing visions lately, strange sights that make no earthly sense. Her daughter-in-law already views her as a burden, another hungry mouth when food grows scarce. As the friar begins his methodical examination of each villager, Güde knows she stands vulnerable. Her advanced age, her frightening visions, and her daughter-in-law's resentment form a deadly combination in a community desperate for a scapegoat.
Genres: historical-fiction, mystery, supernatural, thriller
Vibes: dark, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: persecution, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Germany, Tierkinddorf
Period: 1507
310 pages · Paperback · Hodder And Stoughton Ltd.
Content warnings: death, violence