How to Kill a Witch: The Patriarchy's Guide to Silencing Women

For those who yearn for stories of the people history has tried to silence, HOW TO KILL A WITCH covers the witch trials in 1500s Scotland, a time period fraught with accusations, suspicion, and sexism, taking the reader through every step of the witch trial: how to identify, accuse, try, and ultimately kill a woman for being a “witch.”

In the summer of 1563, Scotland was in a bad way. The land was poor, the people were poorer; crops failed, and people starved. In times like these, people looked for anyone to blame, and who easier than the Devil himself? Or, better yet, the women the Devil used to perform his evil deeds.It was in these circumstances that the men of Scotland drafted the Witchcraft Act of 1563. The Act had one basic aim: to stop the Devil and his lackeys (mainly women) from wreaking havoc on a country already beset with problems. And it was from there that the witch-hunt craze spread across the world—eventually landing in the USA.With the wit and humor that have been hallmarks of their popular Witches of Scotland podcast, Claire Mitchell and Zoe Venditozzi explain the process of identifying, accusing, trying, and ultimately killing a woman as a witch, revealing the inner workings of a world organized to protect the patriarchy and preserve the status quo. HOW TO KILL A WITCH is a feminist take on a piece of deeply misogynistic history, perfect for readers of You Never Forget Your First and Killing the Witches.

About the Author

ZOE VENDITOZZI lives in NE Fife, Scotland and has worked in education for more than twenty years. CLAIRE MITCHELL, KC, works as a criminal lawyer. The authors are the creators of the Witches of Scotland podcast, and their work led to the First Minister of Scotland issuing a formal state apology in 2022 to all those accused of Witchcraft in Scotland—the first time in 300 years there had been any formal recognition of those who were wrongly accused.