Victorian Psycho
A Novel
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- £8.99
Publisher Description
SOON TO BE A FEATURE FILM STARRING MAIKA MONROE, THOMASIN MCKENZIE AND JASON ISSACS
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF THE YEAR
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by The New Yorker, TIME, Bookpage, and the Chicago Public Library
"[A] savage thriller... Victorian Psycho offers a wickedly subversive look at a woman on the verge of a murderous rampage." —Shannon Carlin, TIME
• The American Booksellers Association's #1 Indie Next Great Read! (Feb 2025)
• A Matty Maggiacomo Book Club Selection
“The bloody belle of the 2025 literary ball” (Oprah Daily), Victorian Psycho unleashed an iconic new antihero on us all.
“Simmering with rage, propulsive and laugh out loud funny” (Catriona Ward), Victorian Psycho hacked its way into the hearts of readers and critics alike. In this gruesome tale, Winifred Notty arrives at Ensor House prepared to play the perfect governess. But long, listless days spent within the estate’s dreary confines come with an intimate knowledge of the perversions and pathetic preoccupations of the Pounds family, and Winifred struggles to stifle the violent compulsions of her past. Blissfully, Christmas is coming, and she has very special gifts planned for these dear, ugly souls…
One of the most horrifyingly beloved novels of the year, Victorian Psycho “lives up to its literary namesakes, delivering unrelenting gore and shock” (Jac Jemc, New York Times Book Review) and affirming Virginia Feito as a master of the darkest craft.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The Brontës meet Bret Easton Ellis in this darkly comic gothic horror by Virginia Feito (whose psychological thriller debut, Mrs. March, we loved). Newly hired—and thoroughly psychopathic—governess Winifred Notty gradually introduces chaos into the English country estate of the unhappily married Mr. and Mrs. Pounds and their sulky, spoiled children. Strange conversations, small acts of vandalism, and growing sexual tension create an escalating conflict that explodes into shocking violence over the Christmas holidays. Enter into Winifred’s twisted world as she slowly reveals her bloody history and the desperate purpose that led her to the Pounds estate. You will definitely be amused by the scattering of black-and-white, vintage-styled illustrations (don’t worry, nothing gory) that accompany the charmingly grotesque narrative. We know all about English household dramas contrasting the upper-class mannered tension above with the seething, suppressed emotion of the servants’ hall below. But nothing could prepare us for just how deliciously and creepily violent that contrast can be when there’s a murderer in the household.
