This work features such characters as: superstitious fishermen, corrupt feudal landlords, starving tenants, and an old lady who talks to the birds and animals, and is branded as a witch by the local villagers.

When fifteen-year-old Murdo befriends Old Pheemie, he discovers the hard way that the East Neuk of Fife in the seventeenth century is not the place to be if you are associated with anyone believed to be a witch.

Caught up in matters beyond their control, Murdo and his friend, Alex, find themselves in a race against time to save Pheemie before the witch hunter, Silas Pow, arrives to find her witches' mark.

This is a gripping tale set against a backdrop of witch trials, superstition and smuggling.