Killing the Witches

The Horror of Salem, Massachusetts

By: Bill O'Reilly, Martin Dugard

Narrated by: Robert Petkoff

Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

With over 19 million copies in print and a remarkable record of #1 New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestsellers, Bill O'Reilly's Killing series is the most popular series of narrative histories in the world.

Killing the Witches revisits one of the most frightening and inexplicable episodes in American history: the events of 1692 and 1693 in Salem Village, Massachusetts. What began as a mysterious affliction of two young girls who suffered violent fits and exhibited strange behavior soon spread to other young women. Rumors of demonic possession and witchcraft consumed Salem. Soon three women were arrested under suspicion of being witches—but as the hysteria spread, more than 200 people were accused. Thirty were found guilty, twenty were executed, and others died in jail or their lives were ruined.

Killing the Witches tells the dramatic history of how the Puritan tradition and the power of early American ministers shaped the origins of the United States, influencing the founding fathers, the American Revolution, and even the Constitutional Convention. The repercussions of Salem continue to the present day, notably in the real-life story behind The Exorcist and in contemporary “witch hunts” driven by social media. The result is a compulsively listenable audiobook about good, evil, community panic, and how fear can overwhelm fact and reason.

A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin’s Press.

©2023 Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard (P)2023 Macmillan Audio

O'Reilly and Dugard Do it Again!

Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard do it again with this next "Killing" book. It's absolutely one of their best. Besides the history of the Salem Witch Trials in the 1600s, they tell the history of a modern-day witch that spawned the movie "The Exorcist". Believe me it was scarier than the movie.

Well done history of witches and hunts

While the subject matter is not particularly up my alley, I was interested in the historical aspects of witches and demons. Messrs. O’Reilly and Dugard researched the history and wrote a riveting narrative about the subject.

I consider the tying in the current day’s witch-hunt activities in cancel culture interestingly helpful. As Solomon said in Ecclesiastes, there is nothing new under the sun.

I recommend the book.

Love the witches!

The was a surprising recount of the witch killings and the historic facts. I love how its history is connected with present day events. My husband recommended this book because of my interest in the Witch trails. I would recommend this book for lovers of both witches and American History.

Interesting but divergent.

Read well and had a lot of very interesting facts but it lost me after about two thirds of the way in and became quite a different book. Also expected more information on the European witch hunts and executions. Was touched on and then “Salem”
I’ve read all of O’Reilly’s ‘Killing’ books and this seemed thrown together FOR HIM which still makes it a good book but not his best.

Excellent witch discussion

Excellent discussion of Salem witch hysteria. But disappointing discussion of “possession “ in the last chapters

Recommended and I learned a lot

I learned a great deal of facts. The narrator has a pleasant voice. Definitely recommended!

Captivating and informative!

I have no idea what to expect, but after reading, “killing the heroes” I was determined to read this book. Sincerely, I could not put it down.. It’s not a “Halloween“ book. Lol! It is a fascinating read, filled with facts and history that is written and narrated in a most intriguing way. I’m definitely going to be reading the rest of the “killing“ series of books.

Very interesting

Informative and entertaining, lots of facts and history, recommend the book to everyone interested in US history

Witch Trials

335 years! Somewhere it’s likely you have a witch in your family.

The author is great lots of details.

Excellent!!! A must read

In today’s double standard, PC culture, this book is a must. It is a glimpse of our past not so distant, and a reminder that history repeats if we don’t fight for our constitutional freedoms.