Strange Shape of Love

In this twisted story of revenge porn, aspiring reporter Charlotte Cooper has two weeks to find the person who threatened to post five nude photos of her online if she doesn't submit to their demands. Her secret past has come to haunt her and rob her of her recent on-air TV reporting job, her lover (reunited after six years), and the home she's made in London.

"Herta Feely's Strange Shape of Love is a tender, layered, and emotionally intelligent novel that captures the ways our past shapes our present, and how love, memory, and guilt can both nourish and haunt us.... For readers who enjoy smart women's fiction with a blend of mystery, romance, and self-discovery, Strange Shape of Love is well worth the read." - Kathryn Dare, Manhattan Book Review

"Meticulous in its characterization, intrigue, and blend of romance and heart-stopping realizations, Strange Shape of Love holds the power to appeal to romance and mystery audiences alike, offering a different blend of both which is satisfyingly realistic and thought-provoking." -- D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

"Herta Feely's Strange Shape of Love is a gripping, twisted mystery, a second-chance romance, and a provocative, adrenaline-filled thriller for fans of Gone Girl and Winnie M Li's Complicit. Through the lens of a pulse-pounding adventure, Feely confronts some of today's most urgent societal, cultural, and personal issues: gendered power dynamics, sex trafficking, race, class, and what it means to love and forgive despite the scars of the past. I tore through this book in two days and was amazed, both at the scope of the story and the courage and passion of its author."

--Rebecca Anne Nguyen, author, The 23rd Hero

Propulsive, escalating, and ultimately explosive, Strange Shape of Love delivers on all it promises: romance, intrigue, revelation, retribution and, ultimately, full satisfaction.

-Wayne Johnson, author, The Red Canoe

A rollicking tale that soars past the tabloid headlines to offer us a classic showdown between innocence and evil.

-Tim Wendel, author, Rebel Falls

Longlisted in Uncharted Mag's novel excerpt contest, The Strange Shape of Love is a gripping literary suspense novel that tackles the dark intersections of love, trauma, and technology. Timely and emotionally complex, the book explores the aftermath of revenge porn and the resilience of a woman who refuses to be silenced.

Charlotte Cooper, a thirty-year-old New York journalist, is assigned to London-a place steeped in memories she'd rather forget. A second chance at professional fulfillment and personal healing seems within reach, especially when she reconnects with Rafe, the artist she once loved. But just as her life begins to stabilize, Charlotte receives an anonymous envelope containing explicit photos of herself from years past. The message is clear: abandon her career or face public humiliation. With two weeks to uncover the source, Charlotte must navigate buried secrets, the powerful men who seek to control her, and the difficult truths that could cost her everything.

Feely's novels read like a blend of the riveting, suspenseful fiction of Jodi Picoult, Liane Moriarity, and Harlan Coben.

About the Author

Herta Feely is the author of Saving Phoebe Murrow, a critically acclaimed debut novel exploring the dangers of social media and teen mental health. A writer and editor based in Washington, DC, Feely's work has been published in numerous literary journals and recognized with awards for both fiction and nonfiction.