Twilight of the Godlings: The Shadowy Beginnings of Britain's Supernatural Beings

Twilight of the Godlings examines how Britain’s fairies, elves and other supernatural beings took shape across centuries of cultural change. Francis Young considers the influence of Roman religious traditions, Germanic folklore and Christianisation, arguing that these figures were repeatedly assembled, renamed and reimagined rather than preserved unchanged from a distant pagan past.

The book follows ideas about supernatural beings from the ancient world into medieval Britain, including the shifting meanings of elves and fairies and the influence of learned writing alongside popular belief. It also challenges the familiar notion that British fairies are straightforwardly Celtic or pagan survivals, presenting them instead as products of changing religious and cultural understandings.