‘Learned, empathetic and immensely enjoyable’ Tom Holland
‘Every page is illuminating’ Philippa Gregory
‘Gaskill lifts the veil between past and present better than anyone I know’ Lucy Worsley

The supernatural has always been part of human experience. Divine and diabolical forces were as dangerous and mundane as rotten harvests and sweeping sicknesses. Miracles abounded. During the First World War, soldiers put faith in visions and protective charms, and Spiritualists were still believed to reach beyond the veil. When we understand the supernatural as a feeling, not an idea, we can grasp the truth behind our ancestors’ fears and passions.

In this thought-provoking book, Gaskill examines our haunted past from alchemical dens to witchcraft trials, and in uncanny encounters with mediums, vampires and flying nuns. Searching hearts as well as minds, he unlocks the secrets of the unseen world, opening a new perspective on the magical and marvellous.

Praise

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