This Immaculate Body
Paperback Published on: 05/02/2026
Price: £10.99
Bookseller Reviews
View all
The best kind of horrifying!
This is the kind of story that’s going to linger in my head for a long time. I’m still trying to process what I’ve just read!
This Immaculate Body is co... READ MORE
Propulsive, grim, an impressive debut
This was good! Propulsive, addictive, unhinged, grim moments tempered with beautiful prose! When I say grim, I mean really grim!
The synopsis is below.... READ MORE
Utterly unnerving!
This story keeps you on the edge of your seat with a chill running down your spine. The topic - obsession and undoubtedly mental illness is a darkly uncomf... READ MORE
Addictive, unsettling and truly fascinating!
An addictive, unsettling and truly fascinating story with beautifully written, descriptive prose. A previous review hit the nail on the head when describin... READ MORE
Obsessive and unhinged, I loved it
My goodness, I loved this novel. I think This Immaculate Body wins the award for most unhinged novel that still somehow manages to make you pity the main c... READ MORE
Unhinged
This a truly compulsive novel following Alice, a woman obsessed with a man she's never met.
Alice cleans Tom's apartment every Wednesday and becomes mor... READ MORE
Unhinged excellence!
I knew that this debut was going to get weird when the narrator began their tale of obsession by sucking on a stranger’s toothbrush…
Uncomfortable, inte... READ MORE
ultimate obsessive weird girl literature...
I enjoyed this so much! Just like the main characters obsessions I could not put this book down. There is a dry humour which adds to the reading experience... READ MORE
Synopsis
'Stirring to its very core, This Immaculate Body enthrals beyond measure' LUCY ROSE, author of THE LAMB
'Momentous, kaleidoscopic . . . A wild ride from start to finish' HANAKO FOOTMAN, author of MONGREL
'Stunningly accomplished' NUSSAIBAH YOUNIS, author of FUNDAMENTALLY
'Shocking . . . darkly funny' OYINKAN BRAITHWAITE, author of MY SISTER THE SERIAL KILLER
'It's a ride you don't want to end' COSMOPOLITAN
_____
Can you climb inside a stranger's life and make him love you?
Alice knows every detail of Tom's life. She has taken a side hustle as a cleaner just to feel close to him, to wipe every smudge from his coffee cups, smooth every crease of his bed, read every email in his inbox. She is in love. And Tom will love her too - once he has met her.
While Alice masterminds the bone-shattering romance she knows they will have, she tries to morph into the woman Tom will want. And when this happens, no one - not her mother, not her sister, not her sneering co-workers - will be able to look down on her anymore.
_____
'Obsessive, delusional, disastrous - but so intricately woven with heart, warmth and empathy' ALICE SLATER, author of DEATH OF A BOOKSELLER
'Original, darkly funny and addictive with twists that will leave you reeling' GLAMOUR
'An evocative story that deserves immediate cult status' DAZED
'If this doesn't make you cancel your cleaner, nothing will' THE TIMES
[published in the US under the title Creep]
Publisher information
- Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
- ISBN: 9780349127323
- Number of pages: 256
- Dimensions: 196 x 124 x 26 mm
- Weight: 220g
- Languages: English
Customer Reviews
View allDark and Unsettling Debut
Thank you to the publishers for this early review copy.
This is a dark and unsettling debut which I found highly addictive.
Obsession, infatuated, stalki... READ MORE
Dazzling, terrifying
Dazzling in its prose and pace. Dark and terrifying. This is one of the big novels of 2025. A fantastic debut from Emma Van Straaten.
Dark and compelling debut
There seems to be a spate of novels where the protagonist is someone with deep character flaws - extreme neediness, an inflated ego alongside cripplingly l... READ MORE
I knew this book and I were meant to be together, this is "The One"
I confess I am obsessed with Alice. I adore books about unhinged women. I feel Emma Van Straaten has created an absolutely ICONIC character in Alice but al... READ MORE
Great storytelling
Great storytelling that will leave the reader unsettled. Some edge of the seat moments throughout. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance co... READ MORE
A very uncomfortable read
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.
I am not quite sure what to say about this book. The beginning is strong stuff a... READ MORE
Deliciously unhinged!
Love is this: when it is your greatest desire to slice open His chest and crawl inside Him to rest. A compulsion to drink his blood, great copper gulps of ... READ MORE
Extreme uncomfortable read with too much oversharing
I found this book to be a very uncomfortable read, which is no doubt intended, but there seemed to be very little insight or reward at the end of the drawn... READ MORE
Dark and compulsively readable
Beautifully written, this novel about obsessive love and self-loathing drew me in from the first page. While deeply sad and disturbing at times, I found it... READ MORE
Page-turner about obsessive love
Beautifully written, this novel about obsessive love and self-loathing drew me in from the first page. While deeply sad and disturbing at times, I found it... READ MORE
Difficult read for me
According to the book description it contains a lot of social comment on “women, mental health the lost in society”
For me it was too rambling and I found... READ MORE
Deliciously Creepy
I loved this. It's an accomplished debut with a prefect vibe. I was transfixed by this book. I loved the narrator voice and her dernagement was perfectly d... READ MORE
Unhinged in all the best ways
The kind of book that has you holding your breath and squirming - an excruciatingly excellent dive into the obsessive mind. Van Straaten’s playful bending ... READ MORE
Excellent.
Alice adores Tom. She cleans his flat, makes his bed, tops up his pickle jar. She'd do anything for him. Only problem is - she hasn't actually met him yet.... READ MORE
Dark and compelling
In This Immaculate Body we meet Alice who cleans Tom’s flat, once a week. She arrives after he goes to work and leaves before comes back. She’s been doing ... READ MORE
A Dark and Disturbing debut - its a must read
There seems to be a spate of novels where the protagonist is someone with deep character flaws - extreme neediness, an inflated ego alongside cripplingly l... READ MORE
A breathtaking read
Alice believes what she wants is what He wants - all parameters of reality shredded as her febrile plans continually preoccupy her. Her streaming, steaming... READ MORE
A book about obsession
Emma van Straaten manages to get across obsession in "This Immaculate Body" so well. Alice cleans for Him (Tom) every Wednesday. She is totally obsessed an... READ MORE
A beautifully written novel with a dark heart
This is an absolutely astonishing novel.
To begin with, Emma van Straaten has an incredible gift with her writing. She creates phrases that made me stop... READ MORE
Excellent.
Alice adores Tom. She cleans his flat, makes his bed, tops up his pickle jar. She'd do anything for him. Only problem is - she hasn't actually met him yet... READ MORE
Good premise
I liked the premise of this book, and thought it was a good debut novel with an unsettling, unlikeable narrator - always the best ones!
However, I did str... READ MORE
Wow. A one woman monologue that packs the most glorious punch
There is already a buzz around this novel and rightly so. From the moment you open the page you cannot stop turning the pages.
It’s a one-woman monologue ... READ MORE
Incredibly addictive
Oh, my goodness!!! I adored this book so much. This is very much a character-driven novel and one that is told from the perspective of Alice. It is one of ... READ MORE
Uncomfortable Read
Delusional Disorder is an actual psychological term for people who can't tell what is real and what is imagined. Written from the point of view of the inst... READ MORE
Fab!
This Immaculate Body by Emma van Straaten
Alice is Tom's cleaner and although she's never met him she's obsessed with him and convinced they belong toge... READ MORE
A creepy tale of stalking
I read this book with the title This Immaculate Body but some have this title as Creep: A Love Story' - which I think works better.
On balance, I did e... READ MORE
Funny, sharp and unsettling - I'll be thinking about it for a long time
Funny, sharp and unsettling, This Immaculate Body asks big questions and offers no straightforward answers. I'll be thinking about it for a long time.
The... READ MORE
Haunting and deeply unsettling
In This Immaculate Body, we are taken on a haunting and deeply unsettling journey through the thoughts of Alice, a cleaner obsessed with a man named Tom ( ... READ MORE
Wow!
This Immaculate Body by Emma van Straaten
Alice is Tom's cleaner and although she's never met him she's obsessed with him and convinced they belong toge... READ MORE
Not for the faint-hearted!
In This Immaculate Body, we are taken on a haunting and deeply unsettling journey through the thoughts of Alice, a cleaner obsessed with a man named Tom ( ... READ MORE