Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

In Amy Twigg’s debut, Iris, a rudderless and almost unbelievably naive 32-year-old, finds her way to Breach House, a community of women. Here she falls under the spell of leader Blythe and into an infatuation with fellow member Hazel. But is this a place of refuge or a dangerous cult?

Twigg structures the book very effectively, especially in its first half. We occasionally flip forward to a later point (2018) in which Breach House has become notorious, even infamous. In itself, this device is old hat, but I felt its use here was a masterclass: I was, undeniably, compelled. Similarly, occasional flashbacks to Iris’s previous life with boring boyfriend Nathan are used sparingly to great effect. Like Hazel, we’re eager to know more about Iris, and like Iris, we’re eager to know more about Blythe; Twigg gives us just enough information to stay interested, yet not entirely satiated.

There’s something slightly out of date about the depiction of ‘female rage� here, and for a while I found it kind of embarrassing to read about, so childish in its simplicity; this is most obvious in the scene where the women literally throw rocks at a car carrying two men. I think maybe that’s the point, though? Although she’s in her thirties, Iris is childlike; her life up to the point of joining Breach House has been sheltered. When they’re together, the group regress, until it all devolves into Lord of the Flies-style chaos more appropriate for teenagers than adult women. Of course the motives are shallow � it’s because the motives are shallow that the climactic scene is so horrific.

As far-fetched as the story occasionally gets, I also found its explanations for how the group stays under the radar, and Iris anonymous as a member, clever and believable � often a sticking point for modern novels dealing with isolated cult-like communities (Rebecca Wait’s The Followers springs to mind).

I was drawn to Spoilt Creatures in the first place because of the premise’s vague similarity to Catherine Chanter’s The Well, and indeed, there are echoes of Chanter’s novel in Iris’s reverence for Hazel and the eventual fate of the commune. I’d also compare it to The First Book of Calamity Leek by Paula Lichtarowicz and Supper Club by Lara Williams.