Mary is a 35-year-old Puritan housewife living in Lancaster, Massachusetts. Married to the town minister, she is expected to be entirely subservient and strictly follow Puritan doctrine, but her quiet defiance begins when she assists a disgraced young woman in childbirth. Following an attack on her village, she is captured by the Nipmuc people, plunging her into a harsh wilderness existence that challenges her religious beliefs and understanding of freedom.

Joseph is the fiery and devout town minister of Lancaster, Massachusetts. He holds strict Puritan beliefs, expecting absolute obedience and deference from his wife and children. His rigid adherence to religious law often makes him unsympathetic to those who falter or fall outside societal norms, acting as a primary enforcer of colonial patriarchy.

Born Wowaus, James is a Nipmuc man who converted to Christianity and was educated by English colonists as a printer's apprentice. Caught between two worlds, he lives with the Nipmuc forces after his village was attacked. He provides crucial aid to Mary, sharing food, teaching her the Nipmuc language, and offering a perspective on freedom that contrasts sharply with her Puritan upbringing.

Marie is Mary and Joseph's surviving daughter. Separated from her mother during the attack on their town, she is taken to live with a different Indigenous American family. Her experiences in captivity expose her to kindness outside the strict bounds of Puritan society, leading her to quietly question the doctrines she was raised with.

Mary and Joseph's son. He is taken captive by an Indigenous warrior who treats him well and takes him on raids. The relative freedom he experiences in the wilderness makes him increasingly resentful of his father's strict rules and the confines of English colonial society.

A powerful Wampanoag leader and the sister-in-law of Metacomet. She is a difficult, volatile mistress who holds Mary captive. Despite her sometimes harsh treatment and demands for hard labor, she rules her people with an authority and independence that shocks and fascinates her Puritan captives.

An Indigenous warrior and husband to the Wampanoag leader Weetamoo. He participates in the raids against the English colonies and serves as one of Mary's captors, though he occasionally treats her with passing kindness compared to his demanding wife.

Mary's youngest daughter. She is severely injured by musket fire during the attack on Lancaster and is carried into the wilderness alongside her captive mother.

An indentured servant and the daughter of a poor farmer in Lancaster. She faces total isolation from the Puritan women for conceiving a child out of wedlock with an enslaved Black man, a situation that tests Mary's obedience to Puritan doctrine.

A Black man enslaved by a deacon in Roxbury, and later by Daniel Gookin. He is the father of Bess Parker's child, a relationship that subjects them both to severe punishment and separation under colonial law.

A poor farmer in Lancaster. Desperate and socially isolated, he relies on Mary's charity when the rest of the town shuns his pregnant daughter due to her scandalous relationship.

A high-ranking, influential Puritan minister in Boston. He views the ongoing war as a divine struggle and seeks to use the experiences of captives to promote orthodox Christian messaging and colonial propaganda.

The Wampanoag sachem, known as King Philip to the colonists. He leads a massive coalition of Indigenous forces against the English settlements, driving the primary conflict of the war.

An enslaved woman from the Mohawk tribe who serves Weetamoo. Having previously escaped an abusive English family, she offers Mary practical advice, food, and companionship during her captivity.

An Indigenous warrior who takes an unwanted interest in Mary. His attempts to claim her as a wife are sharply rebuked by Weetamoo, demonstrating the female leader's power.

A lawyer from Concord tasked with returning Mary to English society. He acts as the immediate bridge between her wilderness captivity and her return to Puritan life.