The Owl Killers

The Owl Killers is a dark historical novel by Karen Maitland about religious women settling outside an isolated English village in 1321 and provoking the local pagan Owl Masters, ideal for readers who enjoy immersive medieval settings, multiple first-person perspectives and conflicts between faith and superstition.

Synopsis
England, 1321
Welcome to the Dark Ages

In the heart of the countryside lies an isolated village, where pagan Owl Masters rule through fear, superstition and murder.

When a group of religious women ill-advisedly settles outside the village, they awaken dangerous jealousies. Why do their crops succeed? How do their cattle survive the plague? Are they concealing a holy relic which protects them from harm?

The Owl Masters cry 'Witchcraft' and sharpen their talons. As torment and hellfire rain down, the women must look to their faith to save them from the darkness spreading across the land.

Fear is a question of what you believe.
And death alone the answer.


Perfect for readers who like...

• Dark historical fiction set in medieval England.
• Immersive, oppressive rural settings shaped by superstition and folklore.
• Multiple first-person narrators offering different perspectives on the story.
• Conflict between Christian faith and pagan belief.
• Female-centred historical fiction exploring the lives and hardships of women.

Books like The Owl Killers

• Matrix by Lauren Groff
• The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling
• The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Themes and story elements

• Faith and superstition
• Paganism and Christianity
• Witchcraft accusations
• Religious community
• Women in medieval society
• Fear and persecution