After a freshman year she would rather forget, sophomore Nina Kaur knows being one of the chosen few accepted into The House, the most exclusive sorority on campus, is the first step in her path to the brightest possible future. Adjunct professor Dr. Sloane Hartley is struggling to return to work after 18 months at home with her newborn daughter. When invited to be The House’s academic liaison, Sloane enviously drinks in the way the alumnae seem to have it all.
As Nina and Sloane each get drawn deeper into the sisterhood, they learn that living well comes with bloody costs. And when they are finally invited to the table, they will have to decide just how much they can stomach in the name of solidarity and power.
by Else
A couple of months ago, I started hearing about this new book by Olivie Blake, the author of The Atlas Six, Gifted and Talented, and a bunch more books. This book was going to be a venture into a new genre for Blake; fiction instead of fantasy. But with a twist of horror in there as well.
I managed to convince the publishers to send me a review copy, because I had a feeling this was a book I would really enjoy, and I was right. I have already read excerpts of the first chapter to MANY of my colleagues, to their slight despair. I loved every page of this book, it is funny in the sarcastic, morbid kind of way, and the “I am tired of this society and its misogyny” kind of way. And good girls deserve a little treat. Good girls sometimes deserve to delve into some self care and cannibalism, if it helps.
This book is not for you if you cannot stomach (pun intended) feminism and being done with the Ideal Woman, the Good Woman. It questions everything about the Good Wife, the Good Mother, and how we can try our best until we cannot stand, but it will never be enough.
Also, a general aside that I want to mention, but endears this book to me even more: because of a chat I had with the representative of the publishing house, the first print run of the Trade Paperback edition has bright pink sprayed edges! I had an influence in international publishing! This is not relevant to the greatness of the book, I just also really loved it.
