This is an oddly compelling book, centering around the metamorphosis of the central female character seen through the eyes of her mother, lover and "friend". Its difficult to think it's a debut novel as the writing is so polished and thoughtful. Ms Metcalfe manages to lead the reader through a wide range of emotions, while exploring contemporary issues of Internet influence and the age old emotions of human relationships. Certainly an author to take notice of. Thank you to netgalley and Granta for an advance copy of this book

An incredibly sophisticated debut. Filled with delicate perceptions that have been intricately crafted into singing, crystalline sentences. Metcalfe brings together the dream-like transformations of Han Kang’s The Vegetarian and the searing zeitgeist of Patricia Lockwood’s No one is Talking About This, whilst still managing to create something wholly unique and utterly haunting.

I read this novel as it is the second novel, to be published in June 2023, from an author who in late April 2023 was selected for the decennial Granta Best of Young British Novelists list. Both in her choice of epigraph, and in some interviews after her debut novel, the author has made clear that a key inspiration was the late artist Paula Rego and a quote from a 2004 Guardian interview about her work – “I can turn the tables and do as I want. I can make women stronger, I can make them obedient and murderous at the same time”. The novel itself explores precisely that theme – an unnamed narrator, who has almost been trained for obedience from day one of her life in a life of service which turns to sacrifice to conscious self-abnegation The book is set when the English narrator is a fairly unsuccessful adult, with almost no non-familial ties and working as an audio typist at a legal firm (a role she can easily perform remotely). She accepts (of course in obedience) a request from her recently separated oldest brother (who has always made it his personal mission to refine her self of self renunciation and service) to act as a housekeeper/valet/housesitter for him while he concentrates on running his increasingly successful business interests in an unnamed cold and traditional region in a distant Northern country from which their persecuted ancestors (the family appear to be some form of obscure Jewish people) originate. There she is regarded with something between hostility and wariness by the superstitious locals, something not helped by her, despite her linguistic skills as a student, being unable to grasp the language and so cut off from the myriad customs and conventions of the nearby town – in contrast to her brother (who is absent for most of the book on business travels) apparently complete integration. Her and the locals difficult relationship is not helped by a series of animal-victim incidents which appear to start after her coming, introducing menace and fear to the town. For much of the book we see the narrator (filtered of course through her own thoughts) as a victim of injustice and exclusion bought on by coincidental circumstance: but in keeping with the Rego quote, a second strand starts to emerge – the villagers start to be more fearful than hostile, we begin to question both her reliability and professed innocence in the incidents. What initially seems like a token attempt to make overtures to the villagers via the nocturnal placing of some grass dolls she makes, starts to take a darker interpretation as we see how the villagers react and question her motives. And this feeling of taking control, of turning the tables not just on the villagers for their sleights to her and possibly their atrocities to her ancestors, but to her family for the role they trained her to adopt - only becomes stronger when her brother returns and immediately starts to suffer with some form of unspecified ailment with the narrator increasingly controlling him. Towards the end (reminding me of “Pew” in a book which already reminded my of Catherine Lacey) there are some fascinating power dynamics in a scene at a church service This is a very enigmatic story – one which I think would repay a re-read but which I think even then is unlikely to reveal its secrets as it is not the type of book designed to have a solution or explanation – the author said of her debut “One question I struggle with most is what the book is about” and I think the same applies here as it is really more of an oblique exploration of themes such as familial and societal pressures to conform, and the historical and present day rejection of the outsider.. Overall recommended.

Endlessly fascinating, confusing, intricate. I think I'll look back on this book more and more fondly with time. Told from the perspective of three chronically dependent and lonely people, who at one point all fixate on one specific woman as the only person in their life. A quote on the back states the book portrays desire; to me, it felt more like desperation. The frantic scrabble for meaning in the modern world when you have nothing to rely on and nobody depending on you. These four main characters, including the focal woman herself who I don't think is ever named, all fixate on her as a source of ultimate meaning. Do we place any blame on her for the way people depend on her? Do we criticise her for receiving their attention and care, letting them buy her things and model their lives around her, with no qualm or repayment or acknowledgement? The whole book is a grey area. She is kind of horrible and admirable at the same time. confusing. compelling. I would have liked there to be some narration from her perspective, but I understand why that was not included - it makes perfect sense within the themes of the book. We never gain any true insight into how authentic she and her lifestyle are. She clearly doesn't feel any responsibility for the way people respond to her words and actions. And should she, if people simply pick them up and run? I don't know. much to think about.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this one - and I definitely could not have predicted where this novel would go! I enjoyed the journey without knowing what our destinations was. The writing style was good and absorbing. I was half expecting to see the point of view of HER, our nameless female character, and I was mildly disappointed we didn't get to see the inside of her mind. It was an interesting transition nonetheless, and I loved the idea of building strength and finding stillness. This novel was a little different, which I enjoyed, but there is an overall feeling of vagueness and lack of direction. Certainly one for the "weird and wonderful" shelf!