** Thanks to NetGalley, Ronald Hutton, and Yale University Press for this ARC **

Queens of the Wild: Pagan Goddesses in Christian Europe: An Investigation is available for purchase now!

In this account of four figures - Mother Earth, the Fairy Queen, the Mistress of the Night, and the Old Woman of Gaelic tradition - Hutton makes the case that these figures are neither relics of pre-Christian pagan beliefs nor a product of Christianity itself. Rather, he asserts, they are the result of 19th century scholars attempting to prove that Pagan beliefs persisted undetected into the age of Christianity.

Parts of this were very interesting! I enjoyed learning about these figures and the ways in which they came about. I also found it fascinating to look at such a vivid example of what happens when the history we create becomes the accepted reality, whether or not it ever happened. This was a wonderful reminder of the power of the storyteller to dictate the past, and that our understanding of history is, often, the assertions of those who lived centuries after.

With that being said, I am really not sure who the audience of this book was intended to be. It was very dense and referenced many niche people and topics related to Pagan goddesses in Europe. At the same time, it seemed to be trying to appeal to a more general audience. This felt like a journal article that almost made the leap into popular nonfiction, but just missed.

Side note: Did I pick up this book in part because of its gorgeous cover? Absolutely yes.

An exploration into the 19th century European, primarily British, romance regarding presumed pagan continuity of various characters and stories: mother earth, the fairy queen, the lady of the night, the cailleach, and the like.

For each character the author explores what can actually be known from days past. Mother Earth is primarily a projection; not nearly as influential in antiquity as it would be in the 19th and especially 20th and 21st centuries. There's some continuity in terms of fairies, but otherwise most of the stories as believed to persist throughout the medieval era do not have that kind of evidence; either they existed beforehand or became more influential in later mythology.

The author does well to show that Christianity did pervade English and European thinking; certain elements of previous pagan beliefs were incorporated in various ways into that Christian perspective, but pagan views as such did not persist throughout the ages. It was mostly a fantasy of the 19th and 20th century romantics who imagined such things, and the view persists in many circles to this day.

The author of this book is clearly an authority and the text is exhaustively researched. While a fine source for any scholarly inquiry it is also a pleasant read for the average reader with an interest in the subject. The book begins with a discussion of whether or not figures such as Nature (or a Mother Goddess) are pagan holdovers or more rightly grew out of other cultural trends. Four female figures and the Green Man are then examined individually. I was introduced to new ideas and history that have sparked ideas I can explore more on my own. This isn’t a quick or casual read but I did enjoy it.

My thanks to Yale University Press for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Queens of the Wild: Pagan Goddesses in Christian Europe: An Investigation’
by Ronald Hutton in exchange for an honest review.

Professor Hutton is a renowned British historian, who has written a number of works on British history and folklore as well as on Pre-Christian religions and Contemporary Paganism. While this meets the criteria for an academic work in terms of detailed footnotes and references, I found it an accessible and informative read.

Hutton draws on a wide range of disciplines and sources, including anthropology, archaeology, literature, and history, to explore the presence of goddess-like figures in Christian Europe. Specifically he debates the long held assertion that these are surviving remnants of pre-Christian goddesses.

Having presented this challenge in his opening chapter, ‘What is a Pagan Survival?’, he then seeks to make his case for what else these female figures might be. To do this he focuses on four figures found in the European imagination: Mother Earth, the Fairy Queen, the Mistress of the Night, and the Old Woman of Gaelic tradition.

In the Epilogue he then examines the figure of the Green Man. In this he cites an environmental project that I was employed by during the 1980s, ‘Trees, Woods, and the Green Man’. Until I read this section I was unaware of certain controversies that had arisen about one of our main publications. So that made for interesting reading!

While I might not agree with all of Professor Hutton’s ideas, overall I found ‘Queens of the Wild’ a well researched and thought provoking work. I read it fairly quickly though I expect to return to it for a more considered reading as well as following up on some of the material, including the Green Man debate.

I have purchased its hardback edition, which is elegantly bound with evocative cover art. It also contains a number of illustrations and an index.

‘Queens of the Wild’ is bound to appeal to readers interested in folklore, mythology, and the history of religion. It also may ruffle some feathers; though it is in the nature of scholarly texts to present new ideas and encourage informed debate.

As always Professor Hutton has given us a beautifully well-written book that is fascinating to read and makes you come away having learned something without ever realising you have.

A hugely compelling and incredibly detailed insight into Pagan Folklore, this has to be one of the most thoroughly researched books that I have read this year.

Hutton focuses on four Goddess figures in this study: Mother Earth, the Fairy Queen, the Lady of the Night and the Cailleach. He takes us from where it is believed these mythical beings are said to have been born along with their development along the passage of time.

The author is generous with their information, taking the time to explain complicated history such as differentiating between "Pagan Survival Folklore" and "Surviving Paganism Folklore" that is essential to the general understanding of the Goddesses.

This book deserves to be given the time to be considered thoughtfully and digested thoroughly. It is moderately academic at times, but due to Hutton's excellent writing, it is still an easy and accessible read for the non-scholar.

Thank you to the author and @yalebooks for allowing access to this book on @netgalley

This was an interesting read! I was initially attracted to this book's cover but quickly found that the content itself was worth reading. I enjoyed the stories and different interpretation and found that the writing style was easy to read. I would look for more books by this author.

I was interested in the concept of this book but very quickly realized that it was much denser than I expected it to be. From the description, I thought this would be more of an introductory text, but I lacked the background information I needed to understand the research and writing. I appreciate this author's work and detailed analysis, and I will recommend this book to those who have a foundational knowledge of this subject. However, this may not be the best first option for a casual reader in this field.
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

I found this book rather difficult to get into. There’s a lot of great information but the formatting and organization left me fatigued and struggling to finish.

I'm huge fan of Ronald Hutton's work since I read The Triumph of the Moon and this was another exceptional and well researched book that helped to clarify a lot of misinformation about myths and characters that are part of the contemporary popular culture or pagan religion.
It was an interesting and gripping read, I learned a lot and appreciated the storytelling and research.
It's strongly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This book is probably not for a casual fan of paganism and folklore. But, if you're interested in seriously learning about the topic it's a fantastic place to start.
It offers an incredibly detailed insight into the historiography of paganism/folklore which in turn helps to debunk so many myths and anachronisms relating to the topic. Though dense at times, Hutton's explanations and arguments are easy to follow and understand. There are plenty of case studies and references to specific stories which were particularly engaging. Another aspect I particularly liked was the breadth of the material- a range of women like figures were discussed, and it covered most of Western Europe (though did focus a lot on Britain and Ireland in specific chapters).
Overall Hutton's argument was convincing and interesting.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing this ARC.

As someone who is having a really great reading year with non-fiction, I was hoping that this book would carry on that trend. And while this book isn't bad, it isn't especially accessible for most readers. It reads like a resource for a university class, a well research resource, but there is just so much information. It's interesting to follow the author as he discusses the path of paganism, from pre-Christianity until the modern times, but this book needs to be read slowly so that all the information can be digested. He covers Mother Earth, the Fairy Queen, The Lady of the Night, and the Cailleach in extreme detail, with a bonus on the Green Man at the end. He uses archaeology, anthropology, and literature to expand and support his findings and is kind enough to provide a rather expansive notes section for those who want to find them. My favorite section was probably on the Lady of the Night, I hadn't really heard much about her before this and I find the idea of "traveling" with the Lady really compelling. I feel like I might be doing a little more research of my own in the future.

Overall, I think this is a good pick for readers already interested in this subject as long as they are aware that it is going to take a bit of mental energy to read. Don't expect to just breeze through this in a day. However, do expect to learn a fair bit about these enthralling figures who have followed humanity for centuries.

Ronald Hutton is one of those authors whose works are always thoroughly well-researched and -written, nuanced and with a delicate handling of the subject. In 'Queens of the Wild' he follows and develops the trajectory of pagan traditions until the modern times.
Hutton draws from decades of research in art history, literature, archaeology, and oral traditions to analyse four female archetypes/Goddesses and their evolution over time. It is mainly about the people who 'wrote' these characters and what they saw in these deities to worship them. Hutton also highlights very well how pagan traditions survived and thrived in christianised Britain, and how different beliefs coexisted.

The book is dense and scholarly, and not one that can be read in one sitting. At the same time it is concise and doesn't feel like an academic textbook. I read it over the course of a couple of weeks with good time to digest and ponder what I had read.

A highly recommended, fascinating and thoroughly well-researched book!

Professor Hutton gives readers much to mull over in his discussion of 4 powerful female figures in European history, through literature, archaeology, and anthropology and finishes with the figure of the Green Man and Robin Hood. He starts with Mother Earth, discusses the Fairy Queen, the Mistress of the Night and the Cailleach. Some of the figures were more popular in the British Isles and some on the continent and he takes readers through time and presents the opinions and research of authors and philosophers through the ages. There are very helpful notes and sources for those who might want to go back to those earlier sources. The professor also gives his own thoughts about how society reinterprets the past to fit the present. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very erudite and detailed scholarly work of research on the subject of goddesses/goddess-like figures that are central in European pagan mythology. The author delineates how certain figures are examples of surviving paganism--where a pre-Christian religion or cult has remained below the surface of Christianity and pagan survival, where such figures and beliefs have been incorporated into Christianity itself.

Major goddess figures are discussed including Mother Earth and the Faerie Queen, among others. The research and discussion is extensive. The idea that paganism, in some form, continued to be an integral part of society into recent centuries was fascinating, It was intriguing to see how these goddesses have been woven into the mythology of Europe and into Christianity itself.

This is a scholarly work. It is focused on detail and supporting arguments and examples. It is by no means a dry read but definitely is dense as far as information.

Overall a very detailed and in depth exploration of these archetypes and their relation to Christianity.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this scholarly work, looking at the history of goddess-like figures within the context of Christian Europe. The received wisdom was that these were hangovers from pre-Christian pagan religion, but actually examining the historical evidence reveals that they're something quite different.

I couldn't help but reflect on the differences between the study of historical customs and religion compared with linguistics. Similarity between modern European languages seems to point to a proto-Indo-European root language which existed prior to written history, but similarity of modern customs and religious practices is far less likely to indicate a common ancient source.

I'm planning to read more by Professor Hutton - his areas of research are so interesting!

A concise history of the goddess-like figures who evade both Christian and pagan traditions, from the medieval period to the present day In this riveting account, renowned scholar Ronald Hutton explores the history of deity-like figures in Christian Europe. Drawing on anthropology, archaeology, literature, and history, Hutton shows how hags, witches, the fairy queen, and the Green Man all came to be, and how they changed over the centuries.
Looking closely at four main figures—Mother Earth, the Fairy Queen, the Mistress of the Night, and the Old Woman of Gaelic tradition—Hutton challenges decades of debate around the female figures who have long been thought versions of pre-Christian goddesses. He makes the compelling case that these goddess figures found in the European imagination did not descend from the pre-Christian ancient world, yet have nothing Christian about them. It was in fact nineteenth-century scholars who attempted to establish the narrative of pagan survival that persists today.

it's surprisingly good???? yes, it is. If you like the history of goddesses and religion, please do pick this book! Highly recommended!
I was sucked into the book and I like it!
Thanks Netgalley for the ARC!

Thank you so much to Yale University Press and NetGalley for an e-arc of this book.

2.5* rounded up to 3*

The author of this book is obviously very intelligent and very educated about his subject matter, unfortunately for me it wasn’t a particularly engaging tome.

I went into it with different expectations, I was anticipating it was more about the female deities and myth and legend, instead the book was more about the people who wrote about them. The book doesn’t go into detail at all about the female deities themselves which was disappointing for me.

I feel like this book is would be better suited perhaps to a novice scholar, somebody who is interested and already studying the topic, as it is a concise history and I don’t think it would be suitable for those already well-versed on the subject matter.

I found this book to include a lot of detail, however I found it to be a bit boring. There were plenty of interesting illustrations in the middle of the book but I found myself begging the author to become more interesting or move on about his subjects.

Thank you to NetGalley, Yale University Press, and to the author Ronald Hutton for this digital copy.

As an Arts student of the late 90s, who did do some mythology-type subjects, I have vaguely come across some of the ideas that Hutton explodes here. So that was quite the trip.

The main idea: that the four concepts, or beings, or narrative tools - Mother Earth, the Fairy Queen, The Lady of the Night, and the Cailleach - are in no way part of a pagan religion that has survived sin Europe since pre-Christian times. No matter all the stories about witches as pagans or Beltane feasts.

In the opening Hutton revives a differentiation (first proposed by himself in 1991) between two concepts: 'surviving paganism', where a pre-Christian religion has actually survived beneath/within Christianity; and 'pagan survival', where a belief of object has been redeployed from a pre-Christian to a Christian religious context.

This book has a LOT of historiography, as Hutton explores some of the why and some of the how for the development of the idea that four specific concepts have a long, pagan, pedigree. The very first chapter was probably my favourite, as he explores the development of the study of folklore and how various academic and non-academic types explored and theorised beliefs - especially peasant beliefs - and how attitudes to those sorts of things changed over time. Following the thread from one person to another - occasionally from just one article to an explosion of theories, books, films, and other academic articles - was astonishing.

In the four main chapters, Hutton seeks to find the four characters he has chosen to interrogate - to find the earliest mentions, to find their possible connections to pre-Christian ideas, to find the ways in which they've been used in the academic literature. In every case, he comes to the conclusion that none of these are true 'surviving paganism' - always with the caveat that more information may be found, and that of course there's a dearth of written information for so much of the early part of the pre-Christian/Christian boundary. He's pretty convincing, unsurprisingly.

Moderately academic, but I think accessible for a reader with only a basic knowledge of both the historiography and the characters he explores (which is me).