Penance

A Guardian Best Book of the Year A Dazed Best Novel of 2023 'An unmissable banger.' ALICE SLATER 'A meta-meditation on the mysteries, malice, and minutiae of adolescence.' TOM BENN 'You've never read anything like this.' JULIA ARMFIELD Do you know what happened already? Did you know her? Did you see it on the internet? Did you listen to a podcast? Did the hosts make jokes? Did you see the pictures of the body? Did you look for them? It's been nearly a decade since the horrifying murder of sixteen-year-old Joan Wilson rocked the small seaside town of Crow-on-Sea. Based on hours of interviews with witnesses and family members, and even correspondence with the killers themselves, journalist Alec Z. Carelli has constructed what he claims is the 'definitive account' of the crime. It's a riveting snapshot of lives scarred by tragedy, and a town left in turmoil. The only question is: how much of Carelli's story is true? 'Deeply disturbing and hilarious.' IMOGEN CRIMP 'Insanely propulsive . . . She's a master of structure that Clark.' JENNY MUSTARD WHAT READERS ARE SAYING: 'This will no doubt be THE book of the summer. You need to pre-order this NOW.' @books.with.han 'Once again, Eliza Clark conjures her dark magic to pen something disturbing and addictive.' @mostardentlyalice 'Eliza's writing is pure brilliance and she captivates you with every page.' @zoreadsbooks 'Taking aim at our relationship with true crime, the brutality of teenage girls and classicism, it was easily my favourite read of 2023 so far.' @charlotte__reads_ 'So cleverly written I am mind blown.' @jordslibrary 'Eliza Clark is a genius.' @mydarkgrace **Eliza Clark's incendiary debut, Boy Parts , is available now**

A Guardian Best Book of the Year A Dazed Best Novel of 2023 'An unmissable banger.' ALICE SLATER 'A meta-meditation on the mysteries, malice, and minutiae of adolescence.' TOM BENN 'You've never read anything like this.' JULIA ARMFIELD Do you know what happened already? Did you know her? Did you see it on the internet? Did you listen to a podcast? Did the hosts make jokes? Did you see the pictures of the body? Did you look for them? It's been nearly a decade since the horrifying murder of sixteen-year-old Joan Wilson rocked the small seaside town of Crow-on-Sea. Based on hours of interviews with witnesses and family members, and even correspondence with the killers themselves, journalist Alec Z. Carelli has constructed what he claims is the 'definitive account' of the crime. It's a riveting snapshot of lives scarred by tragedy, and a town left in turmoil. The only question is: how much of Carelli's story is true? 'Deeply disturbing and hilarious.' IMOGEN CRIMP 'Insanely propulsive . . . She's a master of structure that Clark.' JENNY MUSTARD WHAT READERS ARE SAYING: 'This will no doubt be THE book of the summer. You need to pre-order this NOW.' @books.with.han 'Once again, Eliza Clark conjures her dark magic to pen something disturbing and addictive.' @mostardentlyalice 'Eliza's writing is pure brilliance and she captivates you with every page.' @zoreadsbooks 'Taking aim at our relationship with true crime, the brutality of teenage girls and classicism, it was easily my favourite read of 2023 so far.' @charlotte__reads_ 'So cleverly written I am mind blown.' @jordslibrary 'Eliza Clark is a genius.' @mydarkgrace **Eliza Clark's incendiary debut, Boy Parts , is available now**

'Kanae Minato is a brilliant storyteller' Emily St John Mandel, author of Station Eleven When a group of young girls are approached by a stranger, they cannot know that the encounter will haunt them for the rest of their lives. Hours later, Emily is dead. The surviving girls alone can identify the killer. But not one of them remembers his face... Driven mad by grief, the victim's mother demands the girls find the murderer or else atone for their crimes. If they do neither, she will have her revenge. She will make them pay... From the critically acclaimed author of Confessions, Penance is a dark and disturbing tale of revenge that will leave you reeling.

'Kanae Minato is a brilliant storyteller' Emily St John Mandel, author of Station Eleven When a group of young girls are approached by a stranger, they cannot know that the encounter will haunt them for the rest of their lives. Hours later, Emily is dead. The surviving girls alone can identify the killer. But not one of them remembers his face... Driven mad by grief, the victim's mother demands the girls find the murderer or else atone for their crimes. If they do neither, she will have her revenge. She will make them pay... From the critically acclaimed author of Confessions, Penance is a dark and disturbing tale of revenge that will leave you reeling.

'An unmissable banger that you need to preorder immediately.' ALICE SLATER 'You've never read anything like this.' JULIA ARMFIELD 'A meta-meditation on the mysteries, malice, and minutiae of adolescence.' TOM BENN 'One of the summer's most talked-about books.' SUNDAY TIMES Do you know what happened already? Did you know her? Did you see it on the internet? Did you listen to a podcast? Did the hosts make jokes? Did you see the pictures of the body? Did you look for them? It's been nearly a decade since the horrifying murder of sixteen-year-old Joan Wilson rocked Crow-on-Sea, and the events of that terrible night are now being published for the first time. That story is Penance, a dizzying feat of masterful storytelling, where Eliza Clark manoeuvres us through accounts from the inhabitants of this small seaside town. Placing us in the capable hands of journalist Alec Z. Carelli, Clark allows him to construct what he claims is the 'definitive account' of the murder - and what led up to it. Built on hours of interviews with witnesses and family members, painstaking historical research, and most notably, correspondence with the killers themselves, the result is a riveting snapshot of lives rocked by tragedy, and a town left in turmoil. The only question is: how much of it is true? 'Deeply disturbing and hilarious.' IMOGEN CRIMP 'Insanely propulsive . . . She's a master of structure that Clark.' JENNY MUSTARD A GRANTA BEST OF YOUNG BRITISH NOVELIST 2023 WHAT READERS ARE SAYING: 'This will no doubt be THE book of the summer. ' @books.with.han 'Once again, Eliza Clark conjures her dark magic to pen something disturbing and addictive.' @mostardentlyalice 'Eliza's writing is pure brilliance and she captivates you with every page.' @zoreadsbooks 'Taking aim at our relationship with true crime, the brutality of teenage girls and classicism, it was easily my favourite read of 2023 so far.' @charlotte__reads_ 'So cleverly written I am mind blown.' @jordslibrary 'Eliza Clark is a genius.' @mydarkgrace **Eliza Clark's incendiary debut, Boy Parts , is available now**

'An unmissable banger that you need to preorder immediately.' ALICE SLATER 'You've never read anything like this.' JULIA ARMFIELD 'A meta-meditation on the mysteries, malice, and minutiae of adolescence.' TOM BENN 'One of the summer's most talked-about books.' SUNDAY TIMES Do you know what happened already? Did you know her? Did you see it on the internet? Did you listen to a podcast? Did the hosts make jokes? Did you see the pictures of the body? Did you look for them? It's been nearly a decade since the horrifying murder of sixteen-year-old Joan Wilson rocked Crow-on-Sea, and the events of that terrible night are now being published for the first time. That story is Penance, a dizzying feat of masterful storytelling, where Eliza Clark manoeuvres us through accounts from the inhabitants of this small seaside town. Placing us in the capable hands of journalist Alec Z. Carelli, Clark allows him to construct what he claims is the 'definitive account' of the murder - and what led up to it. Built on hours of interviews with witnesses and family members, painstaking historical research, and most notably, correspondence with the killers themselves, the result is a riveting snapshot of lives rocked by tragedy, and a town left in turmoil. The only question is: how much of it is true? 'Deeply disturbing and hilarious.' IMOGEN CRIMP 'Insanely propulsive . . . She's a master of structure that Clark.' JENNY MUSTARD A GRANTA BEST OF YOUNG BRITISH NOVELIST 2023 WHAT READERS ARE SAYING: 'This will no doubt be THE book of the summer. ' @books.with.han 'Once again, Eliza Clark conjures her dark magic to pen something disturbing and addictive.' @mostardentlyalice 'Eliza's writing is pure brilliance and she captivates you with every page.' @zoreadsbooks 'Taking aim at our relationship with true crime, the brutality of teenage girls and classicism, it was easily my favourite read of 2023 so far.' @charlotte__reads_ 'So cleverly written I am mind blown.' @jordslibrary 'Eliza Clark is a genius.' @mydarkgrace **Eliza Clark's incendiary debut, Boy Parts , is available now**

One of Granta 's Best Young British Novelists 2023 "Eliza Clark's writing embraces the socially unacceptable and wryly explores themes of gender, power, and violence."-- Granta 's Best of Young British Novelists 2023 "Chilling, clever, and unputdownable."-- Guardian From the author of the cult hit Boy Parts comes a chilling, brilliantly told story of murder among a group of teenage girls -- a powerful and disturbing novel as piercing in its portrait of young women as Emma Cline's The Girls. On a beach in a run-down seaside town on the Yorkshire coastline, sixteen-year-old Joan Wilson is set on fire by three other schoolgirls. Nearly a decade after the horrifying murder, journalist Alec Z. Carelli has written the definitive account of the crime, drawn from hours of interviews with witnesses and family members, painstaking historical research, and most notably, correspondence with the killers themselves. The result is a riveting snapshot of lives rocked by tragedy, and a town left in turmoil. But how much of the story is true? Compulsively readable, provocative, and disturbing, Penance is a cleverly nuanced, unflinching exploration of gender, class, and power that raises troubling questions about the media and our obsession with true crime while bringing to light the depraved side of human nature and our darkest proclivities.

One of Granta 's Best Young British Novelists 2023 "Eliza Clark's writing embraces the socially unacceptable and wryly explores themes of gender, power, and violence."-- Granta 's Best of Young British Novelists 2023 "Chilling, clever, and unputdownable."-- Guardian From the author of the cult hit Boy Parts comes a chilling, brilliantly told story of murder among a group of teenage girls -- a powerful and disturbing novel as piercing in its portrait of young women as Emma Cline's The Girls. On a beach in a run-down seaside town on the Yorkshire coastline, sixteen-year-old Joan Wilson is set on fire by three other schoolgirls. Nearly a decade after the horrifying murder, journalist Alec Z. Carelli has written the definitive account of the crime, drawn from hours of interviews with witnesses and family members, painstaking historical research, and most notably, correspondence with the killers themselves. The result is a riveting snapshot of lives rocked by tragedy, and a town left in turmoil. But how much of the story is true? Compulsively readable, provocative, and disturbing, Penance is a cleverly nuanced, unflinching exploration of gender, class, and power that raises troubling questions about the media and our obsession with true crime while bringing to light the depraved side of human nature and our darkest proclivities.