Hex House

by Amy Jane Stewart

A beautifully told, dark and unsettling fairy-tale about a safe haven for women which transforms them into vessels of revenge, perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher, A. G Slatter and Julia Armfield

A woman in the woods alone is never the beginning of the story. It’s usually the end.

ELLY

Elly is running. Pregnant and still in her wedding dress, she flees the cottage that her new husband, Ethan, has rented for their wedding night. Because he’s not what people think he is, and she knows that one day he’ll hurt her in a way she can’t fix.

Freezing and alone in the woods in the dead of night, she accepts that she’s going to die. But just as she has given up all hope, a house appears out of nowhere, and a woman beckons her in. Welcome to Hex House. A place that can only be found by those who truly need it. A place that teaches broken women how to access a power more beautiful and more horrifying than anything they could have imagined.

SIOBHAN

Edinburgh, present day: Siobhan’s life is in ruins. Once a promising documentary filmmaker, she has given up on her dream, and kept all the terrifying footage she has of Hex House hidden away. She tries to erase all the horrors she witnessed with drugs and alcohol, and spends her time toying with a man in increasingly feral and dangerous ways. Her brother won’t speak to her, and she ignores the scar on her stomach that never fully heals

But despite everything, always, she feels the presence of that place.

And she knows, deep down, that she has to return.

Reviews of Hex House

'A dark, enchanted tale of feminine rage and feminine magic, and the secrets they hide in the woods and in their hearts… Hex House is a stunning debut from Amy Jane Stewart.' – Christina Henry, author of Alice and The Place Where They Buried Your Heart

'This is an accomplished tale of escape and return, secrets, lies and a house the reader won't forget in a hurry. A wonderfully dark, magical book.' – Gemma Amor, author of Itch!

'In Amy Jane Stewart's Hex House the line between saviour and sinner is horribly thin. A rich seam of rage sings through the bones of this novel. Hex House is a need answered. A home. A sanctuary. A horror. But also a kind of hope for the broken. Highly recommended.' – A. G. Slatter, award-winning author of The Cold House

'Hex House is a foundational text imbued with blood and absolute beauty. Amy Jane Stewart has flung the doors of the haunted house novel wide open and filled its rooms with fresh feminist folk horror, positively positioning herself as a cornerstone to the next generation of the genre. I want to live in her books.' – Clay McLeod Chapman, author of Wake Up and Open Your Eyes

'A stellar debut… Horrifying and magical in equal measure, you will devour this novel, and it might just devour you back.' – FanFiAddict

'A fierce debut.' – Priya Sharma, World Fantasy Award winner for Pomegranates

'Hex House is a tragic and enthralling story that thrusts you into an unexpected world from the very beginning. The haunting imagery makes this book a stand out.' – V Castro, Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of Maria the Wanted

'Filled with complex, intriguing characters, Hex House is a genuinely frightening novel which twists around you as you read to deny easy, empty redemption. I loved it.' – Rym Kechacha, author of The Apple and the Pearl

'Hex House is a dreamy modern-day fairy tale, suffused with magic, mystery, and a simmering darkness lurking just beneath the surface. As with all fairy tales, there is a lesson to be learned from its telling: a warning for all those who abuse power to harm the vulnerable. By turns joyful and horrifying, tender and savage, Hex House lets the monsters out to take their pound of flesh – catharsis has never tasted so sweet.' – M. K. Hardy, author of The Needfire

'A dark and beautifully written tale about power. Who has it? What would you be willing to do to get it? And once you have it, how might it corrupt you?' – Rhiannon Grist, award-winning author of Home Sick

'There's a house in the woods where the lost girls go, more Suspiria than cosy fairytale: Hex House is a gloriously violent, candid, propulsive take on female anger and revenge. I tore through it.' – Ally Wilkes, Bram Stoker award-nominated author of All the White Spaces

'A dread-filled fable of withered, broken spirits and of the rot, ruin that inevitably traps them. This haunting, deeply unsettling novel possesses all the eeriness and elegance of similar Gothic-tinged work (with some unpleasant ick factor) penned by Julia Armfield, Priya Sharma or T. Kingfisher. A stunning and remarkably compelling debut.' – Eric LaRocca, author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke

'Beautifully idiosyncratic in its obsessions and cleverly, inescapably structured, Hex House is a tale of broken bodies and fragmented identities, a poignant meditation on the cyclical nature of violence and on the ethical and political significance of bearing witness to someone else's struggle. Powerful and propulsive, it burns bright, searing itself into the reader's imagination.' – Andrea Morstabilini

'Powerful, moving and wonderfully feminist, Hex House had me gripped from the outset. The characters and setting are so vivid that I literally lived and breathed this world as I flew to a twisted place where dark secrets held me captive. The concept is so original and so well executed that this really was a vicarious reading experience from start to finish.' – Heather Davey, author of The Ghosts of Merry Hall

'Amy Jane Stewart's Hex House is a supernatural revenge saga with a very real spine. It leads you down a dark path, bristling with malice, festering secrets, and the feminine urge to burn it all down. I loved it.'
– Verity Holloway, author of The Others of Edenwell