They Can't Burn Us All

byCathryn Kemp

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Iceland, 1655

When a land of ice and fire, legends and sagas is swept into the Protestant Reformation, a witch-hunting craze begins. Unusually, those condemned and burned as witches are not women, but respectable men of learning.

Þuríður Jónsdóttir has grown up praying to the old gods, and watching her father and brother practise rune magic. When the two men are accused of witchcraft and condemned to burn at the stake, Þuríður is helpless to save them.

But as Lutheran Pastor Jón Magnússon's accusing gaze turns to Þuríður, he will find that she is a woman prepared to fight back.

In an age of fear and persecution, whose side will the village take? Who will fight for justice?

Set against a backdrop of sweeping religious and social change, this is a story of the most famous witch trial in Iceland – where one woman stands up to the patriarchal forces against her.

© Cathryn Kemp 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

They Can't Burn Us All is a thrilling, fiery fable, full of compassion, rage and magic. Kemp brings 17th century Iceland to vivid life; a place of deadly storms and even deadlier curses, of long-hidden secrets and lingering resentments. A timely and important reminder of the enduring power of women's voices.

Danielle Giles, author of MERE

About Cathryn Kemp

Cathryn Kemp is a Sunday Times bestselling ghostwriter and author, with a prolific career writing celebrity, inspirational, true crime, addiction and nostalgia titles. Her personal memoir Coming Clean won the Big Red Read Prize for Non-Fiction.


A Poisoner’s Tale is her first foray into historical fiction. When not researching dark, dangerous and beguiling women from history, Cathryn can be found on the south coast with her son and her familiar, a ginger cat called Gingey.
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