‘I devoured this’ V.E. Schwab
A gorgeous new fantasy horror – a book about stories and fairy tales with family and love at its dark heart…
Perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman, Susanna Clarke, and Let the Right One In
Hidden across England and Scotland live six old Book Eater families.
The last of their lines, they exist on the fringes of society and subsist on a diet of stories and legends.
Children are rare and their numbers have dwindled, so when Devon Fairweather’s second child is born a dreaded Mind Eater – a perversion of her own kind, who consumes not stories but the minds and souls of humans – she flees before he can be turned into a weapon for the family… or worse.
Living among humans and finding prey for her son, Devon seeks a cure for his hunger. But time is running out – for her family want her back, and with every soul her son consumes he loses a little more of himself…
This is a story of escape, a savage mother’s devotion and a queer love that will electrify readers looking for something beguiling, thrilling, strange and new.
Review
‘An exciting blend of gothic horror and action, smart and haunting’ Laura Purcell, bestselling author of The Silent Companions
‘A vampire-themed Handmaid’s Tale, with effective thrills that are intensified by social commentary’ Guardian
‘A gripping and beautifully plotted story told with verve and deliciously dark wit’ Daily Mail
"Some novels are intended to be devoured in one sitting. Such is the case with Sunyi Dean’s The Book Eaters. Innovative, unique, poignant, and told with a voice as original as the story itself. I finished this novel in that one sitting, yet I’ll be pondering it for a long time to come. This is the debut of a new master of the modern fantasy. Don ’t miss it’
James Rollins, #1 NYTbestselling author of The Starless Crown
‘A delightfully weird exploration of motherhood, queerness, and escaping patriarchal norms’
Buzzfeed
‘Raw and imaginative, this gritty, gothic anti-fairytale knows the truth: love will make a villain out of anyone’
Olivie Blake, NYT bestselling author of The Atlas Six
‘Sunyi Dean’s The Book Eaters is a darkly sweet pastry of a book about family, betrayal, and the lengths we go to for the ones we love. Great reading for a rainy morning, with tea or coffee on, a cat in your lap, and nowhere to be but lost in a delicious modern fairy tale’
Christopher Buehlman, author of The Blacktongue Thief
‘A riveting tale that consumed me as earnestly as I devoured it. Full of grit and humanity, Sunyi Dean expertly weaves the complexities of motherhood, loyalty, and found family in a world not far from our own. Dean's debut has already established her as a master of craft. If I were a book eater, this novel would be one to savour’
Saara El-Arifi, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Final Strife
Book Description
2022’s most anticipated gothic fantasy horror – a debut to sink your teeth into
About the Author
Sunyi Dean is an autistic author of fantasy fiction. Originally born in the States and raised in Hong Kong, she now lives in Yorkshire with her children. When not reading, running, falling over in yoga, or rolling d20s, she sometimes escapes the city to wildswim in lonely dales.
Her short stories have featured in The Best of British Scifi Anthology, Prole, FFO, Tor Dot Com, etc.
The Book Eaters is Dean’s debut novel.
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