Temperance Miller: one of five daughters to an extremely Puritan family, she is somewhat wayward in her thinking and longs to escape the ordinary monotony of the life her family have planned out for her. She is in her late 20s, intelligent, thoughtful and more curious than a woman in her sphere of life ought to be. Not a natural rebel, she is nevertheless prepared to stand up for herself or others if she witnesses injustice. Her sense of responsibility to her younger sisters keeps her tied to the fate her father has in store for her.
Chastity Miller: Temperance's younger sister, a wild and wilful free spirit who causes her Puritan father much distress and consternation. Sexually aware in a way her older sister is not, she soon finds herself marked out for suspicion and punishment when strange events overtake the sleepy village in which the family live. Wrongly accused, she finds few people willing to believe her as her reputation for provocative behaviour precedes her. She must rely on her older sister's help when she faces a serious check to her promiscuous nature.
Ezekiel Miller: the girls' father, a widower, who has struggled to raise his large family alone for some years. He is a rigorous Puritan, and despairs of the wilful mind of his eldest daughter and the wilful spirit of his second, to the extent that when they fall foul of local suspicion he is torn between his loyalty to his family and his devotion to his faith. Severe, determined and prone to religious outbursts, he makes no secret of his distaste for the opulence of the King's men when they roll into town.
Christian Smith: another zealous Puritan, son of one of Wotton Basset's oldest families and good friends with Ezekiel Miller. He has known the girls since their infancy, and has known for many years that when the time was right he would claim the eldest as his wife. He knows also that his intended wife has little time for his religious intolerance, but believes that he will tame her soon enough when they are wed, using whatever means are necessary. He is a key player in the persecution of Temperance's own sister, a fact which does not exactly endear him to his betrothed.
John Pollard: a woodsman who lives outside the village in the open land between Wotton Basset and Awbery. He is older than Temperance by half a generation, but they are good friends, despite her father's antipathy. Uneducated and appearing a little simple to those who do not know him, he is simply more used to the company of animals than of people, and becomes awkward in social circles. He is more than a little in love with Temperance, and quite devoted to her, even offering her a route out of her troubles when the social stigma of shame threatens her. Living as he does in the open countryside, he is often the first to find the curious crop circles, and in one horrific case to make a more gruesome discovery...
The Visitors
John Wilmot, Lord Rochester: rake, poet, voluptuary and wit, he is one of the brightest lights of the King's Court, and travels to the West with his liege lord to escape the summer heat and boredom London. Never one to shy away from an amatory adventure, he is captivated by the pretty and sexually naïve Temperance, and resolves to have her, with devastating consequences. A sceptical observer of the curious events taking place in the Wiltshire countryside, he nevertheless comes to appreciate a little of the magick of the place and leaves Wotton Basset a slightly more contemplative man than he was when he arrived.
Charles II, King of England: no less a voluptuary than his good friend Rochester, the King is also fascinated by all things unusual. A sceptical man of science, he investigates the crop circles in an attempt to find an explanation, a mission which eludes even him. He makes no secret of his disgust at the shambolic witch mania which seizes the village in the wake of the weird markings in the fields, and makes it clear that he will intervene if necessary to stop barbarity being committed on an innocent, and very beautiful, young woman...
[15th June 2002]
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