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Content snapshot
Flag an inaccuracy →What's in this book, at a glance — five things readers want to know before they start.
Violence
A lot
Horror deaths and graphic violence; a curse that manifests in disturbing ways; some body horror
Language
Some
Strong language in a literary horror register
Sexual Content
Some
Queer romantic and sexual content across both timelines; some explicit scenes
Substance Use
Barely any
Alcohol use in both historical and contemporary settings
Emotional Intensity
A lot
A school's capacity to become an institution of harm; the particular danger of obsession; a curse that punishes the wrong people
What this book is about
1902. Brookhants School for Girls in Rhode Island is cursed — or so everyone says — after two students who loved a subversive book are found dead in a yellow jacket's nest. 2019. A filmmaker is adapting the Brookhants story, and the cast and crew have gathered at the original location to film it. Two timelines interweave, both haunted by obsession, by female desire, and by the particular viciousness of institutions that cannot stand to be seen clearly. Emily M. Danforth's gothic horror novel is lush, witty, and genuinely unsettling, building to a conclusion that earns its dread.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
graphic horror violence
queer sexual content
strong language throughout
body horror elements
Reader Verification
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