Black & White nets The Last Witch of Scotland by Paris

Black and White has netted Philip Paris’ The Last Witch of Scotland, inspired by Janet Horne, the last person in Britain executed for witchcraft. 

Campbell Brown, managing director, acquired world rights directly from the author. The novel will be published on 13th April 2023. 

The Last Witch of Scotland is a “harrowing tale” that reimagines how Horne and her daughter came to be accused of witchcraft. It “sheds light on one of the country’s darkest, most complex and fascinating periods in history,” the publisher wrote. 

The synopsis reads: “Aila is beautiful, disfigured, disabled and highly intelligent… a dangerous combination for a woman in the early 18th century. When Aila and Janet move to a remote area in Sutherland, her appearance and Janet’s dementia arouse suspicion among the local population, especially the temporary minister, a man obsessed with cleansing the world of witches. Aila’s life is further turned upside down when she meets Jack, the leader of a travelling troupe of performers, and the two characters make an immediate and intimate connection because of a similar previous trauma in their lives.” 

Brown said: “We are delighted to be back working with Philip on his new novel. After the success of his previous historical fictions, The Italian Chapel and Effie’s War, we are very much looking forward to adding The Last Witch of Scotland to his well-researched roster of impactful stories.”  

Paris added: “As a writer it excites me to find an important event in history that no one has written about before in the form of a novel. This is what inspired The Italian Chapel and Effie’s War. It is certainly what has inspired this latest historical fiction.”