Heatstroke

By: Meredyth Cole

This deliciously unhinged debut novel, for readers of Ottessa Moshfegh, Marlowe Granados and Mona Awad, follows a young woman's descent into a feral and glamorous hell.

A devoted lover and wannabe screenwriter, January is unable to love or write after finding out her (now ex) girlfriend has cheated. Restless and questioning it all, January and her stoic bestie Laura travel to a menacing California in search of recreation and inspiration—anything to alleviate the grief.

There, January submerges herself into a life of indulgence—until she makes eye contact, poolside, with a telepathic bunny. Inhabited by the spirit of Caroline Lamb, the eclipsed muse of Lord Byron and a self-described footnote in the history of English literature, this magical, brassed doe coaches January through the messy past and the increasingly sinister present. And she may not be the only lost soul hell-bent on capturing January's attention.

A Faustian bargain for modern times, Heatstroke unwinds through a rippling tale of heartbreak, obsession and creativity. With it, Meredyth Cole signals her prodigious talent and offers us a spicy, boundless realm where "going insane is low-key sexy."