Ulinka Rublack tells a story worthy of film. While reading, one feels as if they can hear the voices of the main characters. The mother of the famous astronomer Johannes Kepler is accused of witchcraft. Against the fascinating backdrop of a world transitioning between magic and modern science, Rublack compellingly and movingly describes how the accusation of witchcraft tears families apart. In concise excursions, Rublack portrays the moral landscape of a society on the brink of a reasoned, enlightened era.