An Observer top ten best new novelist for 2024
Longlisted for the Polari First Book Prize
'Emma Cline's The Girls meets Lord of the Flies . . . compelling, cultish and utterly feral'
ALICE SLATER, author of Death of a Bookseller'
A simmering debut, heady with the righteousness of female rage'
KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE, author of The Mercies
'Lush and dreamlike - a sweltering novel, where the sunlight pulses with nightmarish dread'
COLIN WALSH, author of Kala
'A modern-day Dionysian cult of women in the woods - haunting and exhilarating'
JENNIFER SAINT, author of Ariadne
THEY THOUGHT THEY KNEW EVERYTHING ABOUT US. THE KIND OF WOMEN WE WERE.
Iris seeks a different kind of life. Promise comes in the form of Hazel, who lives at Breach House - a women's commune on a remote farm. At Breach House, the women live and eat in abundance, are guided by landscape and ritual, all while under the leadership of their gargantuan matriarch, Blythe.
But is Breach House truly the haven it seems? When an unforgivable transgression comes to light and power struggles intensify, the women find themselves hurtling towards an act of devastating violence that will threaten everything they've fought to create.
? What readers are saying: ?
'I could not recommend this more if I tried... A powerful, remarkable debut novel filled with sublime prose, a warm quiet queerness, and a feral female rage' ? ? ? ? ?
'Simply breathtaking, this book was unstoppable' ? ? ? ? ?
'When I tell you I absolutely devoured this book, I mean it. She's sapphic, she's feral, and she's very difficult to put down' ? ? ? ? ?
'The poetry of Twigg's words...I wanted to swallow them whole and have them sit in me forever. They were just so good' ? ? ? ? ?
Rezensionen / Stimmen
A simmering debut, heady with the possibilities of language and the righteousness of female rage -- Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of 'The Mercies' Lush and dreamlike - a sweltering novel, where the sunlight pulses with nightmarish dread -- Colin Walsh, author of 'Kala' A modern-day Dionysian cult of women in the woods - haunting, exhilarating and full of female rage -- Jennifer Saint, author of 'Ariadne' This lusciously verdant novel is about female identity and obsession, desire and autonomy. It asks important questions about what we owe, and to who. It is rich in grit and dirt, in sensuality and oblivion, working towards a complicated and devastating end -- Lara Williams, author of Supper Club Emma Cline's The Girls meets Lord of the Flies, Spoilt Creatures is compelling, cultish and utterly feral. I'm drinking the Amy Twigg Kool-Aid, and it tastes like blood and rotten summer berries. A firecracker of a debut!" -- Alice Slater, author of 'Death of a Bookseller' A sun-drenched, blood-soaked fever dream of a novel. Amy Twigg's prose is as exact as her setting and characters are wild, and she unflinchingly portrays female rage in its full, terrible glory -- Erin Kelly, author of The Skeleton Key I haven't stopped thinking about Spoilt Creatures and the women who live at Breach House. It's a deeply stirring, startling and savage novel for the weird girlies. Amy Twigg beguiles, penning an unflinching cult novel that is both a rare pleasure and a breathless, suffocating pressure cooker -- Lucy Rose, author of The Lamb A powerful, angry, dark and compelling feminist debut novel. It pulls you in to the visceral world of the women in the commune and it shocks and moves you. Beautifully written -- Georgina Moore, author of 'The Garnett Girls' An intimate and intense tale of how a safe haven can become a dangerous place, told with much insight and humanity -- Ewan Morrison, author of 'Nina X' Earthy and visceral, Spoilt Creatures is a depiction of female physicality unlike any I've read before -- Ben Tufnell, author of 'The North Shore' This is a book that sinks its claws in and doesn't let go. Filled with atmosphere and incredible prose, it's compulsive reading right up until its terrible, inevitable end -- Jennie Godfrey, author of 'The List of Suspicious Things' A gripping, beautifully imagined reflection on women and anger - I couldn't put it down -- Emily Howes, author of 'The Painter's Daughters' Spoilt Creatures is a poignant exploration of loss, female anger, and just how far we can each be pushed. The book is sensual and sinister and achingly sad. A chilling cautionary tale, it's perfect for fans of The Girls by Emma Cline -- Flora Carr, author of The Tower The most talked-about debut of 2024. It's the perfect find for fans of Sophie Mackintosh and Julia Armfield * Stylist * Amy Twigg's striking debut offers a new twist on the cult narrative... Twigg writes perceptively about loneliness and disconnection and the appeal of a haven from "the malfunctioning world of indecision and patriarchy" * Observer * If there's one debut you read this year, make sure it is Spoilt Creatures. A story that is dripping in satire, female rage and cultish obsession, this is a read in one sitting kind of book... There is such a surreal, dreamlike quality to the prose, which is rich with atmosphere and fierce with its brute power. Twigg is here to stay * Glamour * A fascinating blend of human vulnerability and grimy delights -- Camilla Grudova * Telegraph * A firecracker of a debut... expect power struggles and female rage * Elle * An extremely accomplished debut * Good Housekeeping * With rising tension, this is a really strong debut and if, like me, you are fascinated with cults, you will devour it * Prima Magazine * For fans of The Girls * Grazia * This rivetingly dark debut stands out among a new generation of novelists working under the spell of the 20th-century horror writer Shirley Jackson, whose chilling tales portray the violent urges simmering beneath civilised norms... Twigg's sinister portrait of brain-washing unspools in the manner of a true-crime testimony, narrated with masterful control and teasing us with hints of the devastatingly brutal climax to come, as the novel's doomy cadences generate maximal dread * Daily Mail * Amy Twigg's debut - about an all-female commune where things get sinister - is gripping * Fabulous Magazine * Twigg's storytelling is both captivating and unsettling, drawing readers into the complex emotional landscapes of her characters. The narrative unfolds slowly under the oppressive summer sun, building to a gripping climax * Scotsman * Twigg's storytelling is captivating yet unsettling, drawing readers into a complex emotional landscape of characters - 9/10 * Daily Mirror * Amy Twigg's fierce debut needs to find its way to your bedside table... An unapologetic and all-encompassing exploration of female rage, power structures, and the entrapment of cults, I guarantee readers will be both enthralled and disgusted by this fascinating, furious, and utterly feral novel * NB Magazine *
Amy Twigg was born and raised in Kent. After studying Creative Writing at university, she moved to Surrey where she works as a freelance copywriter. Her debut novel, Spoilt Creatures, was an Observer best debut novel of 2024, won the BPA Pitch Prize and was longlisted for the Mslexia Novel Competition and Blue Pencil Agency First Novel Award. She is also an alumnus of the Curtis Brown Creative novel writing course.
