Worlds of Fear and Wonder

By taking the beliefs of our forebears seriously, Malcolm Gaskill opens up whole dimensions of fascination. Learned, empathetic and immensely enjoyable – Tom Holland
Humorous and humane, Malcolm Gaskill’s a writer of rare wizardry. He lifts the veil between past and present - and between ourselves and our illusions - better than anyone else I know – Lucy Worsley
This is that rare thing: an accurate history of beliefs and phenomena that have never been accurately recorded. With critical intelligence and uncritical empathy, Malcolm Gaskill cuts through the prejudices of the present and the fears of the past, suspending disbelief about beliefs. Every page is illuminating – Philippa Gregory, author of THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL
Utterly fascinating, full of wondrous historical detail and ever stranger things, Malcolm Gaskill’s beautifully written book seeks to explain - with admirable empathy and objectivity - how we look to the supernatural to make sense of our metaphysical selves – Philip Hoare, author of WILLIAM BLAKE AND THE SEA MONSTERS OF LOVE
This is the most successful attempt I have read to make belief in the scary and disorderly supernatural understandable: a wonderful panorama of fear and ecstasy, sweeping across the Western world (and sometimes beyond) through recorded time. It engages its material with empathy, erudition and - above all - humanity – Ronald Hutton, author of THE WITCH
A compelling and fascinating examination of how emotions and belief shaped history and continue to give meaning to life today – Zoe Venditozzi, author of HOW TO KILL A WITCH
No one is able to take us back into the beliefs, fears, needs and impulses of those who lived before us more powerfully than Malcolm Gaskill. He does so with an incredible blend of historical rigour and human compassion - and he shows us that understanding the imaginations of the past is a way to understanding ourselves – Alice Hunt, author of REPUBLIC
Worlds of Fear and Wonder is a remarkable collection of essays that challenges us to rethink what we know, or what we think we know, about the supernatural in history. It ranges from medieval alchemists and sorcerers to modern spiritualists and horror films, without of course neglecting the grim, early modern, age of witch prosecutions. Impeccably researched yet also deeply personal, Gaskill’s book is by turns thought-provoking, exhilarating, and very moving. The pages flew by, but the ideas and stories will linger in my mind for some time – Jonathan Healey, author of THE BLOOD IN WINTER
As much warning as history, Gaskill’s masterful book explores both the human instincts that give rise to supernatural belief and the social mechanisms through which such beliefs are manufactured, manipulated, and abused. A fascinating and unsettling read – Madeleine Pelling, author of HOAX
A wide-ranging, elegant meditation on the history of the supernatural, its fearful thrills, dangers and persistence into scientific modernity – Marion Gibson, author of WITCHCRAFT: A HISTORY IN THIRTEEN TRIALS
Worlds of Fear and Wonder is a dark gem of a book. It brings the past into dramatic collision with the present, showing that, for better or worse, we have always lived in an enchanted world. Gaskill brings history to life and forces us to confront modern demons too – Tabitha Stanmore, author of CUNNING FOLK
Few historians are as gifted as Malcolm Gaskill at recreating the emotional landscapes and mentalities of past lives. In this enchanting book, he conjures worlds of fear and wonder, filled with witches and ghosts, flying nuns and vampires, and shows that the distance between our world and the past may not be as great as we think – Laura Kounine, author of IMAGINING THE WITCH
Outstanding … Delving into witch hunts, hauntings, and the post-mortem dismemberment of corpses to safeguard against vampires, Gaskill keeps readers enthralled while humanizing some of humanity’s most unpleasant impulses and preoccupations … a fascinating and accessible read * Library Journal *
Rich in personal reflections and scholarly insights, Gaskill weaves a fascinating story of the role of the supernatural in Western life over five centuries. Through a series of absorbing snapshots in time and place, the book also explores the profound impulses of fear and wonder in human existence – Owen Davies, author of A SUPERNATURAL WAR
Hugely entertaining and consistently insightful. Ranging from the Middle Ages to the present day, Malcolm Gaskill’s brilliant investigation of behaviour and emotions connected to the supernatural provides a powerful set of reasons for never patronising the past – Peter Marshall, author of STORM’S EDGE
This book is full of weird and wonderful stories - but, to the people who lived through them, they were real experiences, not just stories. As an accomplished historian, Malcolm Gaskill shows how a past that was haunted by demons and witches was different from the present. He also shows, even more importantly, how supernatural terrors still matter today – Julian Goodare, author of THE EUROPEAN WITCH-HUNT
In Worlds of Fear and Wonder Malcolm Gaskill never abandons the requirement of the historian to take our ancestors’ beliefs seriously, to allow the past to speak for itself. But he’s a skilled storyteller too, and what makes this wide-ranging study of supernatural beliefs such a pleasure to read is his infectious enjoyment of what he calls “the weirdness and wonder of it all” – Robert Lloyd-Parry, the MR James Project
A delightful romp through the angels, demons, wizards and witches that shape our modern superstitions. Gaskill shows us just how ghosts, ghouls and vampires were conjured up to send our ancestors shivering under the bedsheets, and reveals the truth about the supernatural is even more fun than the folktales – Kit Chapman, author of THE AGE OF ALCHEMY
PRAISE FOR MALCOLM GASKILL - ‘The best and most enjoyable history writing – Hilary Mantel
As compelling as a campfire story … Gaskill brings this sinister past vividly to life – Erica Wagner * Financial Times *
Mr Gaskill’s approach brings the fate of his subjects movingly to life * Economist *
Simply one of the best history books I have ever read … His deeply imaginative, empathetic and yet empirical exploration of a past moment of crisis is history at its finest – Suzannah Lipscombe * BBC History *
Gaskill invites you to rethink where memory ends and history begins – Dominic Sandbrook, ‘The Best Books of 2025’ * The Times *

Malcolm Gaskill is Emeritus Professor of Early Modern History at UEA, and the author of Hellish Nell, Witchfinders, The Glass Mountain, and the Sunday Times-bestselling The Ruin of All Witches. He is a regular contributor to the London Review of Books.

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