Dr. Scott Culpepper, a history professor at Ƶ, explores family legacy, faith, and spiritual warfare in his debut suspense novel, which follows sisters grappling with their parents’ controversial past in the supernatural investigation world.
Dr. Scott Culpepper, a professor of history at Ƶ, has recently authored his first fiction novel. The Demonologists’ Daughters, a suspense and psychological thriller with elements of horror, tells the story of a young woman reuniting with her family’s dark secrets of the past.
Culpepper drew inspiration from Ed and Lorraine Warren, who were loosely affiliated with the Catholic Church and active in the 1970’s and early 2000’s. Essentially, “Ed and Lorraine Warren would investigate ghostly or supernatural reports and write books based on their cases,” says Culpepper. “Some people celebrate them as devout, but many scholars consider them con artists, taking advantage of vulnerable people and always classifying phenomena as demonic influence."
He was also intrigued by their daughter, Judy Warren, who "has kind of become the caretakers of her parents' legacy and has been very positive about their legacy, at least outwardly.”
“These stories pose over-the-top situations, but they’re also ripe for what Tolkien called ‘the escape to reality’—a fictional world where you’ll learn valuable lessons about the real world, too.”
This sparked his curiosity. “What would it be like if this were a family where instead of there being an only child, there are four daughters, and maybe one of them was very happy and proud to be a part of her parents’ legacy, but the three others were not?" says Culpepper. "What kind of scars would you carry, and what would it be like if you had escaped that culture and then you're forced to come back and face it again?"
Culpepper says the novel blends the beloved family dynamics of Little Women with the complexities of a culture caught in spiritual warfare, posing unique yet relatable moral dilemmas.
As a professor of history, Culpepper believes fiction provides a unique lens to further study the human experience. “These stories pose over-the-top situations, but they’re also ripe for what Tolkien called ‘the escape to reality’—a fictional world where you’ll learn valuable lessons about the real world, too.”
“Ideally, we don't have to suffer through some of the same pains to learn those lessons again,” adds Culpepper.
According to Culpepper, fiction, like history classes, offers a rich space to explore various perspectives and themes. His time teaching at Dordt, especially his personal interactions with students and colleagues, also played a role in the development of themes and characters in the novel.
“The book explores faith and doubt, how faith intersects with our lived realities, the struggles that we have, and that's very much fueled by the kind of conversations we have all the time that are second nature to us.”
The book is available for purchase at , , and other bookstores.
About Ƶ
As an institution of higher education committed to the Reformed Christian perspective, Ƶ equips students, faculty, alumni, and the broader community to work toward Christ-centered renewal in all aspects of contemporary life. Dordt, located in Sioux Center, Iowa, is a comprehensive university named to the best college lists by U.S. News and World Report, Forbes.com, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Monthly, and Princeton Review.
Dr. Onsby Rose, associate professor of music at Ƶ, was commissioned by "The President’s Own" U.S. Marine Band to compose a symphony in honor of the Marine Corps' 250th anniversary.
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