Bestselling author Philip Matyszak explores how the Greeks and Romans used magic, who performed it – and why. Magic was everywhere in the ancient world. The supernatural abounded, turning flowers into fruit and caterpillars into butterflies. Magic packed a cloud of water vapour with energy enough to destroy a house with one well-aimed thunderbolt. It was everyday magic, but it was still magical. Philip Matyszak takes readers into that world. He shows us how to make a love potion or cast a curse, how to talk to the dead and how to identify and protect oneself from evil spirits. He takes us to a world where gods, like humans, were creatures of space and time; where people could not just talk to spirits and deities, but could even themselves become divine; and where divine beings could fall from – or be promoted to – full godhood. Ancient Magic offers us a new way of understanding the role of magic, looking at its history in all of its classical forms. Drawing on a wide array of sources, from Greek dramas to curse tablets, lavishly illustrated throughout, and packed with information, surprises, lore and learning, this book offers an engaging and accessible way into the supernatural for all.

Cotton Mather chronicles the Salem witch trials which took place in New England in the late 18th century. Together with the trials, this book holds detailed accounts of devilish phenomena Mather believed were linked to the discovery of the local witches. Mather discusses a range of spiritual phenomena reported by various figures in the fledgling society of New England. Sudden apparitions, visions, and other strange goings on which she believed were linked to the frequent finding of witches are cataloged. The bulk of the text however is concerned with the trials of many witches, the causes of their accusations, and the circumstances under which they were tried. Mather's book is today one of the best and most complete primary narratives of what came to be known as the Salem witch trials; with accounts of witnesses, judges, and evidence put forward all present. Furthermore, Mather's book was published in 1693, shortly after the trials were concluded.