The Ruin of All Witches

“Malcolm Gaskill shows us with filmic vividness the daily life of the riven, marginal community of Springfield, where settlers from a far country dwell on the edge of the unknown. His attention to their plight—material, psychological, spiritual—goes far to explain, though not explain away, the alien beliefs of a fragile, beleaguered community, torn between the old world and the new. The clarity of his thought and his writing, his insight, and the immediacy of the telling, combine to make this the best and most enjoyable kind of history writing. Malcolm Gaskill goes to meet the past on its own terms and in its own place, and the result is thought-provoking and absorbing.” —Hilary Mantel, best-selling author of Wolf Hall

“Riveting.” –Caroline Fraser, The New York Times Book Review

“This is one of those rare history books that stays with you and haunts you long after you have turned the last page. Superb.” –Christopher Hart, The Guardian

“Gaskill combines first-rate historical research with a driving narrative in this captivating study. A riveting reading. This portrait of early America fascinates.” –Publishers Weekly

“[Gaskill]] creates an immersive atmosphere by describing in raw, visceral detail how these people actually lived . . . An outstanding achievement, haunting, revelatory and superbly written — a strong contender for the best history book of the year.” –Andrew Lynch, The Irish Independent

“Incredibly detailed . . . with such a convincing voice that the text bears a fictionlike quality.” –Kathleen Townsend, Booklist
 
“Contextually rich. Gaskill presents a meticulous, multilayered snapshot of this smoldering society, combining history, theology, and psychological speculation … An elucidating study on the forces that fed witchcraft hysteria in early America.” –Kirkus Reviews