The Hounding
A Novel
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3.9 • 26 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
National Bestseller • A New York Times Editor’s Choice Pick • A New York Times Notable Book • Named a Best Book of the Year by NPR, TIME and Kirkus Reviews • The Crucible meets The Virgin Suicides in this haunting debut about five sisters in a small village in eighteenth-century England whose neighbors are convinced they’re turning into dogs.
ONE OF PEOPLE’S, APPLE BOOKS’, AND AMAZON’S BEST BOOKS OF AUGUST 2025
“A wildly inventive riff on the Gothic form, with enough suspense and mounting dread to rival Shirley Jackson’s ‘The Lottery.’”
—The New York Times Book Review
Even before the rumors about the Mansfield girls begin, Little Nettlebed is a village steeped in the uncanny, from strange creatures that wash up on the riverbank to portentous ravens gathering on the roofs of people about to die. But when the villagers start to hear barking, and one claims to see the Mansfield sisters transform before his very eyes, the allegations spark fascination and fear like nothing has before.
The truth is that though the inhabitants of Little Nettlebed have never much liked the Mansfield girls—a little odd, think some; a little high on themselves, perhaps—they’ve always had plenty to say about them. As the rotating perspectives of five villagers quickly make clear, now is no exception. Even if local belief in witchcraft is waning, an aversion to difference is as widespread as ever, and these conflicting narratives all point to the same ultimate conclusion: Something isn’t right in Little Nettlebed, and the sisters will be the ones to pay for it.
A richly atmospheric parable of the pleasures and perils of female defiance, The Hounding considers whether in any age it might be safer to be a dog than an unusual young girl.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Words spoken in anger lead to an explosion of mob violence in this neo-gothic historical fiction debut. In a rural English village in the 18th century, the five Mansfield sisters live on a farm with their blind grandfather. Not always interested in conforming to social standards, the sisters apparently offend local ferryman Pete, who spreads the malicious rumor that he saw them transform into dogs. Soon, people in the village are attributing every oddity they encounter—from dead chickens to an odd-looking sturgeon—to the women’s supposed supernatural connection. With plenty of allusions to the role of scapegoating in modern society, this eerie tale simmers with quiet rage. Author Xenobe Purvis cleverly tells the story from the perspectives of various villagers but never the sisters themselves, heightening both the mystery around them and the deeper truth of their predicament. The Hounding is a vivid exploration of the darkness of human nature and the danger women face every day.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Purvis attempts to channel the Brontës and Shirley Jackson in this inspired if undercooked debut about dangerous paranoia in an 18th-century English village. The "season of strangeness" in Little Nettlebed begins with the catching of an enormous "unnatural" sturgeon in the nearby Thames, which some see as a sign of the devil. The five Mansfield sisters—Anne, Elizabeth, Hester, Grace, and Mary, who live on a farm with their blind and recently widowed grandfather Joseph—elicit enmity from the villagers with their exclusive bond and seeming condescension. Thomas Mildmay, who works on the farm, becomes entranced by the eldest sister, the dark and powerful Anne, while ferryman Pete Darling nurses his resentment toward them after a handful of perceived slights. When Pete thinks he sees the Mansfield girls transforming into dogs, it's possible his grudge has clouded his reason. Either way, he spreads the claim widely, after which every awful event, including the killing of a coop full of chickens, is attributed to the sisters. Fear of the Mansfields spreads, and the novel culminates in a murder. The story alludes to modern-day paranoia and scapegoating without offering significant surprises or memorable insights, but it sustains an eerie vibe, and Purvis depicts the disturbing sisters and bucolic setting in sensual prose. Neo-gothic diehards will find enough to enjoy.
Customer Reviews
What a tale!
The author has perfectly captured the mood of stifling summer heat, small minded and suspicious villagers and the distrust and fear of “otherness”. Absolutely wonderful book.