''Cowboys for Christ: On May Day'' is a novel written by Robin Hardy, first published in 2006 by Luath Press. It is a partial sequel of Hardy's previous film ''

The Wicker Man ''The Wicker Man'' is a 1973 British folk horror film directed by Robin Hardy and starring Edward Woodward, Britt Ekland, Diane Cilento, Ingrid Pitt, and Christopher Lee. The screenplay by Anthony Shaffer, inspired by David Pinner's 1967 ...

'' (1973), dealing with many of the same themes and ideas, namely the clash between paganism and

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

. There are also similarities with the plot of Harvest Home by

Thomas Tryon Thomas Tryon (6 September 1634 – 21 August 1703) was an English sugar merchant, author of popular self-help books, and early advocate of animal rights and vegetarianism. Life Born in 1634 in Bibury near Cirencester, Gloucestershire, England, ...

. The book's plot revolves around two young Americans, Beth and Steve, who are members of a fundamentalist

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

Christian group in their home of Texas, U.S.A. Travelling to Scotland in order to preach, they arrive at Tressock, where they are welcomed by the local aristocrat, Sir Lachlan Morrison and his wife, Delia Morrison. What they fail to realise is that the Morrisons and many of the locals are members of a contemporary Pagan religion devoted to the worship of the goddess

Sulis In the localised Celtic polytheism practised in Great Britain, Sulis was a deity worshiped at the thermal spring of Bath (now in Somerset). She was worshiped by the Romano-British as Sulis Minerva, whose votive objects and inscribed lead tabl ...

, and that they plan to sacrifice the Texan couple on May Day.

Plot

Beth is a successful

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former descri ...

singer and a devout

Christian from

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

, United States. She and her boyfriend Steve both belong to a group known as the "Cowboys for Christ", who travel to "heathen areas" of the world to preach

. They travel to

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, Scotland, hoping to save some souls once there. However, they are shocked when they receive a very negative reception, Beth even being set upon by a large dog. After performing a concert at a local

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

, the duo are approached by Lord Lachlan and his wife Delia, aristocrats from the small village of Tressock in the Scottish lowlands. They invite Beth and Steve to come back with them to Tressock in order to preach. Meanwhile, Detective Orlando is sent to Tressock, posing as the local police officer, in order to secretly investigate reports of a pagan cult. Beth and Steve decide that they shall begin their preaching at the

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. Tr ...

celebrations in the village. Meanwhile, Orlando discovers that the people of the village worship the ancient

Celtic goddess The gods and goddesses of the pre-Christian Celtic peoples are known from a variety of sources, including ancient places of worship, statues, engravings, cult objects and place or personal names. The ancient Celts appear to have had a pantheon ...

. In an attempt to impress the locals, Steve and Beth agree to becoming the local

Queen of the May In the British Isles and parts of the Commonwealth, the May Queen or Queen of May is a personification of the May Day holiday, and of springtime and also summer. The May Queen is a girl who rides or walks at the front of a parade for May Day cel ...

and the Laddie for the festival. In this role, they must split up for the day, and it is during this that the Laddie is devoured by the locals on an island in the middle of the river Sulis. Beth discovers this, and tries to escape, but is captured and embalmed.

Film adaptation

''Cowboys for Christ'' provided the basis for the 2011 film, '' The Wicker Tree''. ''The Wicker Tree'' had its premiere"New Photos and Traier for Wicker Tree"
WeGotThisCovered.com at the

Fantasia Festival Fantasia International Film Festival (also known as Fantasia-fest, FanTasia, and Fant-Asia) is a film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. Regularly held in July of each year, it is valued by both hardcore ...

in Montreal in July 2011. Anchor Bay handled U.S. distribution."Preview 2011"
FantasiaFestival.comGingold, Michael (July 21, 2011)
"''Wicker Tree'': Fantasia film review"
Fangoria.com

References

{{The Wicker Man 2006 British novels Novels set in Scotland British novels adapted into films Novels about cannibalism