Damnation

Gallows Hill #0.5

by Katelyn Taylor

What happened before the Gallows Hill trilogy?
Before the Brethren?
What really happened to Salem in 1692...

Genres: Dark Romance, Audiobook, Novella, Dark, Romance, Witches, Historical

132 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 8, 2025

About the author

Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Katelyn is known for her quick-witted humor, positive energy, and big personality that always makes a statement, both on and off the page.

When she’s not busy wrangling her three kids or traveling to book signings, she’s writing binge-worthy stories that keep readers saying “just one more chapter” until they have an accidental all-nighter.

Katelyn loves creating stories that elicit physical reactions in her readers, from their hearts palpitating to their stomachs dropping; she strives to write stories that make you feel.

She considers herself extremely lucky to get to do what she loves and always looks forward to connecting with her readers and being involved in the book community.

Reviews

[Brittany Ferraro]

4.25 ⭐️Welp…. This book made me want to punch every single man in the face.

I already knew where this was going, it’s not a happily ever after, and we all know what the fuck was happening in Salem back in the day. Even though it made me absolutely rage, the story was so good, and the audiobook was incredible.

A man better not make eye contact with me for the next 7–10 business days.

[Haly Hoards Books]

3☆
This is Katelyn Taylor's prequel to the trilogy, Gallows Hill. It is loosely based on two historical individuals during the 1692 Witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts.

This novella focuses on a completely fictional steamy relationship between Sarah Good and Thomas Putnam. In reality Putnam lead the charge in having Sarah Good charged and hung as a Witch! I wonder if they are rolling over in their graves about this fictional forbidden love affair?

Too much literary license has been taken in regard to a terrible travesty in history for me. I will not be reading the trilogy.

Favorite Quote:
"After all, name a man who is more powerful than a man with nothing to lose."

[Smutty Little Books]

The story of what REALLY happened in Gallows Hills....

This book made me feel RAGE. As much as I enjoyed going to the beginning and see what happens before the Gallow Hills Trilogy, I wanted revenge for Sarah. This novella is a short and fast. There is no HEA and only rage and heartbreak. That being said, it's a must read! I mean, aren't all Katelyn books must reads?


#Forbidden Romance
#Salem Witch Trials
#Check Triggers
#NO HEA

[She Reads]

The blasphemy!

[💕📚Cassie📚💕]

5⭐️listen 3.9🌶️ Narration 🎤5


‼️Warning make sure to check T/Ws ‼️


When I first heard the sound clips for this, I shouted out loud, “Omg I need to listen to this!” lol true story. Anyone who knows me knows I love anything fantasy especially witch vibes.

Damnation is one of the best books/prequels I’ve had the privilege of being able to listen to. Everything about this was done amazingly from the storytelling, to the plot, to the narration.

Amy Hall & Sebastian York did an incredible job bringing this to life. Making the story feel so real, pulling you in making you want more. The author knew exactly what she was doing from start to finish, from all angles.

The storyline is set during a historical moment the Salem witch trials. As the story goes on, you meet Sarah Good, who’s someone you can’t help but want to know more about her. She quickly became one of my favorite characters. She’s special in so many ways, most of all she’s caring & loving. Even in dark moments, she’s someone you can feel connected to in some way.

You also meet Thomas Putnam. For me, I’d say he’s the kind of guy everyone wants to meet, know, & be around. But be prepared you’ll have a lot of hot & cold thoughts about this guy lol. It’s part of the storyline, & it makes complete sense once you see the why and how of it all.

Overall, I enjoyed this from start to finish. My heart went in so many different directions for Sarah. I cheered for her & cried for her.

What to expect with this story:

* No HEA
* Heartache
* Secrets
* Betrayal

& possibly a few other things I won’t list since I don’t want to spoil it for anyone.

Rest assured, this audio is absolutely worth taking a moment to listen to everything about it is amazing.

Thank you to Blue Nose Audio & author Kaitlin Tyler for creating this & allowing me to be part of this ALC! thank you to narrators Amy & Sebastian you nailed it with this performance.

As always, these are my honest thoughts for my review.

[Nadja ♡]

The bear would never have done this!

While I hate Thomas Putnam and every man in this book with burning passion, I can't deny that that's part of the reason for 5 stars. Because yes, I am seething mad, and that means the book left a mark, it hit a point.

I am mad, I almost cried, and I laughed a bit hysterically. I knew how things were going to end, I knew what was going to happen and the betrayal of it all still hit me all the same.

Also, this is making me want to reread the Gallows Hill trilogy so I will potentially be doing that soon. Played Labour on repeat the last 30-40% and this is exactly what kind of men this song was written about.

[Lauren ❤️‍]

Another book confirming how shitty men are 💔

[Tia Toro]

Fuck the patriarchy 🖕

This was a short, fun & interesting twist on the Salem Witch trials which led us to the Gallows Hill trilogy.

Thomas Putnam & Sarah Good had a love that burned bright and burned quick, but was quickly snuffed out.

Definitely recommend for a quick & easy read, just know it is a non-hea 🙂‍↕️

[Talina Jacobsen]

I loved the twist on the Salem trials!! The gallows hill trilogy is one of my favorites and it was so fun to go into the past to see what started the brethren. Oh boy the rage I felt😩 she deserved so much more

[Renita]

Oh I absolutely ate this book up. I read this book in a couple of hours, I did not want to stop reading. I absolutely loved the Gallows Hill trilogy and have missed the world since ending Deliverance so it was so good to be back into that world. One thing Katelyn Taylor is best at, is ripping your heart to pieces and call me an emotional masochist because I love it every time. This book is no different. The non HEA made me love it that much more but the whole book was full of heartache as well. I absolutely loved seeing how the brethren began and I loved reading Katelyn’s theories on the Salem witch trials. And at the end of the day ladies, just remember, you can’t trust no man. 👏🏽

[Courtney Hall]

HAPPY RELEASE DAY to my boo 🖤🖤 whatever Katelyn writes I need immediately injected into my veins 💉

Ever wonder how the Brethren was started in the Gallows Hill series? 😈

This novella takes you back to 1692, during the peak of the Salem witch trials. Old English & all 🤪 Thomas Putnam (a prominent businessman) finds himself in an affair with Sarah Good (the town healer witch) & has to watch as the whole town slowly turns against her. This was forbidden, spicy, emotional & perfect for spooky season 👻

💀 Historical Romance
💀 Salem Witches
💀 Secret Society
💀 Forbidden Love
💀 Spicy
💀 No HEA

Audible coming out Sept 11 🖤

[Kristina (currentlybookedout)]

Damnation by Katelyn Taylor 🖤
ARC REVIEW

The Origin story to the Gallow Hills trilogy and what a treat it was to be back in this world but make it the past.

The old English setting was a fun change, I actually enjoyed it more than I thought I would.

I knew this was going to be a non HEA but I didn’t expect to get emotional. That’s just what Katelyn can do in 130 pages. My heart hurt, what women went through in the past was just cruel 🫠

Though the short love story of Thomas Putnam and Sarah Good was perfect. The forbidden aspects to their relationship made it more exciting but unfortunately things had to come to an end.

This was a great novella to showcase the past and give an understanding on how everything started with the secret society, the Brethren.

Now it makes me want to go back and reread Gallow Hills, truly is a fantastic series and i’d highly recommend. You can definitely start with this little novella that gives you an insight into the society otherwise you can jump straight into the trilogy 🖤

Thankyou to the queen, Katelyn for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review 💋

[Summer]

~Arc Review~
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶

~Damnation~~Katelyn Taylor~

"Hang me at the Gallows, I have little care, but your troubles are far from over."

♡Damnation was the perfect journey back to the past of Gallows Hill! This origin story was short but packed a twisty punch & gave me exactly what I needed! I didn't think this story would make me emotional as I knew some of the backstory from the trilogy but in true Katelyn fashion, she proved me wrong!

This is the perfect story to begin your Gallows Hill journey or if you are like me & have already been to Gallows Hill this is the perfect journey back to the beginning!♡

~As Always Happy Reading~

[Natália Loureiro]

Wow!!

It’s so infuriating to see how ignorance and the pursuit of power can simply blind people.
It’s striking to see how men have always been afraid of women, whether they’re free or whether they’re “witches.”

______________________________________

É tão revoltante ver a ignorância e a busca pelo poder simplesmente cegar as pessoas.
Impressionante de ver como os homens sempre tiveram medo das mulheres, sejam elas livres, sejam elas “bruxas”

[vicki kugach]

good timing for reading this since I just came back from Salem and have pictures of gravestones from the two Sarah’s. Also saw a trial reenactment and the jails where the witches were kept and heard some of the stories about what went down. Having seen all that, I felt this book described everything very well.

[Kelsey 📖]

Punching air. However, I feel like it is so realistic regarding how Gallows Hill trilogy is! I mean I feel like it was how it should be and even though I’m mad about it. I totally get it 😂 but devoured it up. And I absolutely loved the background of how the secret society started (the brethren). 10/10. The queen did it again!

[Emilee - The Booked Baddie]

eARC Review
𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 9/8/25
𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞: 🌶️🌶️

🖤Forbidden Romance
🖤Salem Witch Trials
🖤Forced Proximity
🖤Secret Society
🖤Historical Romance
🖤 Non HEA
⚠️ Check TW

First off, HUGE thank you to @katelynntaylor for providing me with this ARC!

This novella was everything I hoped for when she announced it. But the scream I scrumpt when I got my ARC acceptance email could’ve easily been heard all the way back to 1692. 😅

Damnation follows Thomas Putnam and Sarah Good during the Salem Witch Trials, and what really went wrong. We also the beginnings of how the Brethren first began, which makes this prequel to The Gallows Hill world feel like a dark little puzzle piece snapping perfectly into place.

Katelyn Taylor has yet to disappoint me, and she nailed it again here. It’s quick, atmospheric, and just unsettling enough to keep you wide eyed the entire time. You could read it before The Gallows Hill series, but personally I think it hits harder after.

⚠️Definitely check trigger warnings before diving in, because while it’s short, it doesn’t shy away from heavy themes. And just a heads up…it’s a NON-HEA. But honestly? That’s exactly what makes it so hauntingly good.

✨Highly recommend this one! It will be available tomorrow 9/8 on KU, Ebook and paperback!

[Melissa]

4.25/5 ⭐️

[Brooke Reads Books]

Good wee novella to get an understanding of how the brethren started in gallows hill. Men though - cowards since 1692

[Ivory]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Just finished Damnation by Katelyn Taylor and wow… for a short book it packs a lot of emotion. Seeing Sarah’s story during the Salem witch trials was heartbreaking, and the injustice of it all really makes you want revenge for her.

And Thomas Putnam… grrr. 😤

Such a strong, emotional prequel that pulls you right in. Definitely picking up Deceit right away because I need to see what happens next

[angie_bookrecs]

All I'm saying is...never trust a word coming out of a man's mouth. Fuck.

[Alisha Ukunde]

men.





This is not a HEA, and fair enough.

Damnation perfectly captured what I imagine the chaos and horror of the Salem witch trials must have felt like. It's a brutal reminder that throughout history, women have often been punished simply for being intelligent, outspoken, independent, or powerful. Men accused women of witchcraft whenever they felt threatened, and what makes this story so unsettling is how familiar that mentality still feels today.

Having recently watched Obsession before reading this book, I couldn't help but draw parallels between the two. Both explore men who convince themselves they're the "nice guy" while justifying increasingly harmful actions. They create fantasies about women, project their desires onto them, and when those women inevitably reveal themselves to be real human beings rather than idealized versions, the response isn't self-reflection—it's resentment, control, and destruction.

What broke my heart most was Sarah's story. The fact that she names her child Mercy felt symbolic in so many ways, as though she was constantly asking the world for compassion that never came. Instead, she became another casualty of a system determined to punish women for simply existing outside of the boxes men had created for them. Watching her agency repeatedly stripped away was infuriating, especially because so much of it is rooted in reality.

And that's the most devastating part of this book: around 80% of it is historically accurate. The affair may be fictionalised, but much of the suffering, persecution, and injustice really happened. Knowing that makes every page hit harder.

More than anything, Damnation felt like a commentary on how little some patterns of thinking have changed. The belief that a woman exists to save a man from his loneliness, that her rejection is somehow a personal attack, or that she owes him something simply because he desires her—those ideas continue to cause harm centuries later. The setting may be Salem, but the themes feel painfully timeless.

This was a heartbreaking, infuriating, and deeply thought-provoking read that left me angry in all the ways I think it intended to.

[Sapir_library ✨]

4.25 ⭐

Damnation is the prequel to the Gallows Hill Trilogy.
This book left me angry and sad, but I was eager to revisit the past and see how the Brethren secret society was created, even though I dove into it with the knowledge of its tragic ending, as well as the Salem witches' fate.

Set in 1692, during the infamous Salem witch trials, the story centers on Thomas Putnam, a wealthy businessman, and his forbidden romance with Sarah Good, the town's healer and accused witch. Both of them are married and have children. As the town turns against her, he is forced to watch helplessly. The brief, yet intense love between Thomas Putnam and Sarah Good was a captivating origin story, and I enjoyed the old English setting, and the audiobook narrators delivered it beautifully. As mentioned before, knowing the story won't end on a happy note, the emotional impact was intense (tears were shed), demonstrating the cruelty and unfairness women faced in the past.

If you are new to this series, I recommend reading this prequel before reading the trilogy.

🖤Tropes🖤
💀 Historical Dark Romance
💀 Salem Witches
💀 Set in Salem, Massachusetts
💀 Secret Society
💀 Forbidden love & emotional heartbreak
💀 Spicy
💀 No HEA (no happy ending)

[Alexa]

I know I’m late to the game, but holy moly!
I haven’t started the Gallows Hill Trilogy yet but if you don’t bet your sweet little self that I am about to the same day as I just finished this rollercoaster of a prequel…

I ATE THIS UP! Start to finish, I never put it down.
If you want to feel all the emotions (literally) from tears from your eyes to your thighs, to those ‘wtf’ moments all the way to wanting to SCREAM at the MMC, then add this to your TBR.

I absolutely loved getting into the backstory before I jump into the trilogy (the same day, because I’m obsessed).

Katelyn never fails and this is just another reason out of millions why I love her work!

“We have not only committed a sin, we have become sin. Especially due to the fact that this will not be the last time. I will not allow it.” 🥵

[The_reading_redhead_sc tabitha]

Do you ever wonder how the brotherhood got started and what all happened with the Salem witch trials? If so this book is for you. This is the story before the gallow hills story.

Tropes:
Historical Romance
Forbidden
No HEA
Salem Witch Trails

If you haven’t read the Gallow Hill Series then this is the book to start with. If you have read the Gallow hill series this is the story of how the brotherhood started and how the university came about. It also gives all the information about the Salem Witch trials. This is Novella is short but mighty with all the information you will want.

I love Katelyn Taylor and her books. They are always amazing and even though this book doesn’t haven’t HEA it was definitely still a good book.

** I want to thank Katelyn Taylor for giving me the chance to read Damnation as an ARC. In exchange for my honest review and thoughts.****

[Emily (emilysdarkcorner)]

Damnation by Katelyn Taylor
We will never know exactly what happened during the Salem Witch trials.
In this book we follow Thomas who is very well known in the town he lives in. He has a wife and 7 children. But he always finds himself staring too long at the woman who is begging on the street corner for money.
Sarah is married and has a daughter and while she has to live with a not so kind husband she is out trying to earn money for the family. What she doesn't expect is to always catch the eyes of Thomas staring at her for far too long.
What happens when two people who are not supposed to be together find themselves together late at night alone?
This is a heart breaking book of two people who are in love when they aren't supposed to be. The amount of emotions I went through while reading this novella was actually wild because WTF

[Abbie-Rose]

3.5 ⭐️

Thankyou so much to Katelyn for the Arc copy of this book.

Woah! I think it’s going to take some time to process this one but as always Katelyn has delivered such exceptional writing. In old English this time which highly enjoyed for a change.

Sarah’s story left me full of rage and feeling devastated and heartbroken for her and what she endured during her life. Having a little insight into the lives of those affected by the trials and all its unfairness. This one hit hard! I knew going into this it was a story with no HEA and I loved being able to see where the origin story of Gallows Hill. I highly enjoyed the trilogy and recommend it but definitely check all the triggers with the series.

[Sarah S.]

I was lucky enough to get this as an ARC read from the queen herself, Katelyn Taylor! Damnation takes us all the way back to 1692 Salem - you know what that means - witch trials. This is the origin story on how the secret society in Gallows Hill, The Brethren, came to be. Thomas Putnam is our MMC - self-proclaimed righteous man, good Puritan, etc.

However, he is unhappy in his marriage, and can’t stop his eyes from wandering to a woman who begs within the town square. This is Sarah Good, our FMC. Her husband is vile and worthless, hence why she has to beg.

Thomas and Sarah cannot deny the sparks between them for long. Meanwhile, the whispers of witchcraft are descending upon Salem, and the accusations begin.

Oooh, I loved this!!! It was such a treat to see where Gallows Hill started. We got rewarded with a nice little nugget of information at the very end that puts a lot of puzzle pieces together.

Five stars from me. Please, please read this when it comes out!

[Mariah Flores]

ARC 🖤


⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
.5🌶️

This is such a wonderful beginning to the gallows hills trilogy. The writing was phenomenal as always. I loved how she brought out the old English throughout the story. It goes to show just how crazy the witch trials were and how we got to the brethren.

The story follows Sarah and Thomas as they go through their affair, birth and death as well as the challenges in between!



Tropes:

- Affair
-witchcraft
- witch trials
- mild spice
- Death
- Attempted death
- lies & betrayal
- abuse
- infant loss
- Non HEA

[Shawnee Robertson]

4.5 Star ⭐

🕯️𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒏 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅, 𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒏 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅. 𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒋𝒐𝒚, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒆𝒄𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚 𝑫𝒂𝒎𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏.🕯️

I would be lying if I said it didn't take a bit to get used to the old English but omg was it ever worth it!
This is coming from someone who has not read the Gallow Hills Series yet, and I cannot express how fast I am running to check it out now!!

an absolute addiction, stomach turning, jaw dropping prequel to a series that seems to have won hearts of sooo many people!
Katelyn Taylor can do no wrong and this is proof!! I am absolutely speechless, and the fact the characters are true historical people!!!! speechless!! Amazing!!!!