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A Superior Spectre

Angela Meyer author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Saraband

Published:15th Aug '19

Should be back in stock very soon

A Superior Spectre cover

"A brilliant, deeply unsettling work." Books + Publishing. Jeff is dying. Haunted by memories and grappling with shame, he runs away to a remote part of Scotland with a piece of beta tech that allows him to enter the mind of someone in the past. Instructed to only use it three times, Jeff - self- indulgent, isolated and deteriorating - ignores this advice. In the late 1860s, Leonora lives in the Scottish Highlands, surrounded by nature. Contemplating the social conventions that bind her, her contented life and a secret romantic friendship with the local laird are interrupted when her father sends her to stay with her aunt in Edinburgh. But Leonora's ability to embrace her new life is shadowed by a dark presence that begins to lurk behind her eyes, and strange visions. A Superior Spectre is a novel about curiosity, entitlement and manipulation. It reminds us that the scariest ghosts aren't the ones that go bump in the night, but those that are born and create a place for themselves in the human soul.

'Weighty themes of lust, shame and the power of the male gaze are beautifully balanced by a moving narrative, then wrapped up by the neatest of twists.' Daily Mail; 'A hugely impressive debut novel: imaginative and original, erotic and a little bit magical.' Herald; 'Skilfully manages to weave historical drama and dystopian fiction together … a work of ambition … clever, intelligent and engrossing.' Jennifer McShane, Image Magazine; 'Like all great dystopian novels, it’s intensely political, with an overarching focus on social freedom … it’s consistently a thought-provoking and well-written stab at one of literature’s bleakest genre.' Alison Powell, Buzz Magazine; 'A Superior Spectre is an ambitious and curious venture. Meyer straddles historical drama and dystopian fiction, and yet manages to cross the divide.' Thuy On, Sydney Morning Herald; 'A brilliant, deeply unsettling work with the unapologetically feminist rage, passion and awareness of books such as The Natural Way of Things or Margaret Atwood’s seminal The Handmaid’s Tale.' Books and Publishing; 'This is one of those rare books that penetrates deep into the reader’s most secret self. Read it and hold it close.' The Saturday Paper; 'In turns horrible, sweet, erotic, tense, challenging, beautiful, disgusting, solemn, abhorrent and moving, A Superior Spectre is a novel no serious reader will forget in a hurry.' John Purcell, Booktopia

ISBN: 9781912235483

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

288 pages