Product details
- ISBN 9781529947847
- Weight: 476g
- Dimensions: 163 x 244mm
- Publication Date: 11 Jun 2026
- Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd
- Publication City/Country: GB
- Product Form: Hardback
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'I loved this book. Memoir, myth and magic wrapped up together.' Emily Hauser
'Kim Willis is an expert storyteller' Emma Gannon
Through the threads of folklore, mythology, memoir, history and landscape, No Fair Maidens identifies a better way of being for modern women, and crafts a new vision for Britain where women are - and always were - a force of nature.
As Kim Willis drifts from the traditional path of marriage and motherhood, she yearns for a new set of stories to light her way. Here, she is pulled towards the source of the Severn, hearing whispers of ancient matriarchs: shape-shifting enchantresses, scaly nymphs and goddesses who once commanded our lands.
These are no fair maidens, but powerful warrioresses and animalistic beasts, snaking along the edges of watery places where we meet the otherworld in the shadows.
As she uncovers the ancient myths hidden in the rugged landscapes of the British Isles, the stories of women like Arianrhod, Melusine and Cerridwen awaken a forgotten power.
Journeying from the Severn to Skye, Eryri to Northumberland, Kim discovers new magic in the tales of old, unveiling forgotten truths about grief and healing, while charting a new course through sisterhood and sexuality, fertility and freedom.
'This book is an act of excavation, and an act of remembering.'
Kim Willis has spent twenty years working as a strategist, journalist and storyteller, working with myth to spark modern change.
She has worked for the UN, built comms strategies for 10 Downing Street, written for the Guardian, and founded the Heroine’s Journey project — with 2,000 women challenging the narrow narratives around women’s lives.
She is also the Chief Strategist at Cedar/Omnicom and co-founder of a national project to co-create a more hopeful and inclusive vision for Britain, one community at a time.
Kim lives and works between London and South Wales and travels the world for projects in systems change, strategy and story.
