Cumbrian dwelling in the North East. Writer of folktales and fables.
Lucy Rose’s fiction and non-fiction have been published by Dread Central, Mslexia and more, and her films have visited BAFTA- and Oscar-qualifying film festivals internationally. Lucy’s debut novel, The Lamb, is being published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson in the UK and HarperCollins in the US. Lucy lives on the north-east coast of England with her black cat, Figgy, and is currently working on her next story.
Rottenheart (2026) Kat Dunn "Rottenheart will transport you. It's a darkly intoxicating and fierce sapphic retelling of Hamlet, filled with longing, rage, and grief. Kat Dunn has crafted something haunting, beguiling, and mesmerizing, and I'm certain it's her most extraordinary novel yet."
Girl's Girl (2026) Sonia Feldman "Girl's Girl is a vibrant shot of summer, a heated and tender story about girlhood, friendship, crushes, and love. Sonia Feldman has penned an essential antidote to an absurd world and a story that feels like the promise of a friendship bracelet. With effervescence and sharp wit reminiscent of Greta Gerwig and Elena Ferrante, this debut will utterly consume you."
Offseason (2026) Avigayl Sharp "Ottessa Moshfegh meets Yorgos Lanthimos, Offseason simmers with wit and elegance. It's a startling fever dream of a novel. When Avigayl Sharp writes, it is impossible to look away."
I'll Be the Monster (2026) Sean Gilbert "The White Lotus meets My Sister, the Serial Killer: I'll Be The Monster is a menacingly funny, daring debut that deserves a spot at the top of every 2026 TBR pile. With humour so biting and unease this sun soaked, this brilliantly vile pager turner cements Sean Gilbert as a bold new voice in literary fiction."
He's the Devil (2026) Tobi Coventry "He's the Devil hums with menace. It's magnetic, claustrophobic, and wickedly alive. Charged with unease and darkly disarming humor, it's a story that creeps beneath the skin."
Darkrooms (2026) Rebecca Hannigan "Darkrooms is a powerful firecracker of a debut. It's an unflinching and brutal thriller, but a rare, bleeding and cadenced feminist story lurks just beneath. It is, in a single word, astonishing."
A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing (2026) Alice Evelyn Yang "A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing is a breathtaking meditation on memory and the quiet violence of history where the past refuses to stay buried. Richly layered and woven intricately with controlled lyricism, Alice Evelyn Yang conjures an unmissable and deeply felt folktale. This is a novel of rare depth and resonance."
The Dinner Party (2025) Viola van de Sandt "The Dinner Party is a profoundly confronting and claustrophobic novel which consumed me whole. It's tender, astonishing, and unflinching, and a deeply moving portrayal of experiencing sexual trauma in the domestic. Warning, dear reader, side effects may include utter speechlessness, a deep sinking feeling, and staring at walls for prolonged periods upon turning its final pages."
Itch! (2025) Gemma Amor "A deeply felt, haunting folk horror that crawls with secrets and darkness. This disturbing and tender novel possessed me and made my skin crawl. It will keep you up long into the night!"
Oddbody (2025) Rose Keating "This is weird girl fiction at its finest - an uneasy, bold and subversive collection of astonishing tales that left me hungry for more. With Rose Keating, we are witnessing the birth of a rare and precious talent in literature."
Life Cycle of a Moth (2025) Rowe Irvin "Muscular, moving and muddy, Life Cycle of a Moth is an unflinching woodland fable you cannot miss. It's astonishing and stirring; a debut novel tenderly cadenced and alchemical, and I'm still reeling from turning its final pages. Rowe Irvin is a born storyteller."
The Hounding (2025) Xenobe Purvis "Seamlessly crafted, The Hounding is an unflinchingly strange and savage novel ? a rare and twisted pleasure to read. Xenobe Purvis writes about the female experience with an unsettling and startling honesty. This is an unmissable must-read for every girl who has ever been made to feel strange. In a single word, The Hounding is breathtaking."
Awakened (2025) Laura Elliott "Awakened is a raw and unflinching dystopian horror story. Laura Elliott has crafted a deft fever dream and a deeply brilliant meditation on the very real terrors of capitalism, productivity, exploitation and healthcare. Fuelled by nightmares, this book is sure to leave you just as sleepless as me."
The Ladie Upstairs (2025) Jessie Elland "The Ladie Upstairs is a fever dream of a novel. Fuelled by sapphic femgore, it's sick and sultry, and a deeply beguiling masterclass in the perverse; I couldn't put it down!"
The Unworthy (2025) Agustina Bazterrica "Barbaric, brutal, and utterly beautiful. The Unworthy is a searing haunt of a novel that I will never forget."
Mere (2025) Danielle Giles "Mere is a deftly written, stirring debut novel and a folk tale I'd yearn to hear around a campfire. Haunting and beautiful, it is a deeply affecting read that will stay with me for a long time to come. Even in Mere's brutality, there is a rare tenderness to be found."
Greater Sins (2025) Gabrielle Griffiths "Greater Sins is a glimmering debut. A muddy, pastoral fable written with an equal measure of beauty and morbidity. Completely enthralling."
The Grapevine (2025) Kate Kemp "I absolutely adored this debut, which instantly creeps up on you. The Grapevine is claustrophobic and sharp, with a dry wit - an unapologetically feminist novel with a suspenseful murder right at the centre."
