Voice Like a Hyacinth

Five young women eager for success rely on the unspeakable to make their dreams come true in a chilling novel about martyrdom, ritual, and obsession by the author of We Ate the Dark.

Art student Jo Kozak and her fellow classmates and best friends, Caroline, Finch, Amrita, and Saz, are one another's muses--so close they have their own language and so devoted to the craft that they'll do anything to keep their inspiration alive. Even if it means naively resorting to the occult to unlock their creativity and to curse their esteemed, if notoriously creepy, professor. They soon learn the horrible price to be paid for such a transgressive ritual.

In its violent aftermath, things are changing. Jo is feeling unnervingly haunted by something inexplicable. Their paintings, once prodigious and full of life, are growing dark and unhealthy. And their journey together--as women, students, and artists--is starting to crumble.

To right the wrong they've done, these five desperate friends will take their obsession a step too far. When that happens, there may be no turning back.

Mallory Pearson is the author of We Ate the Dark. She is a writer and artist portraying themes of folklore, queer identity, loss, and the interaction of these elements with the southern United States. She studied painting and bookbinding, and now spends her time translating visual art into prose. She is an avid fan of horror movies and elaborate stews cooked in big witchy pots, and her work has appeared in Electric Literature, Capsule Stories, and Haverthorn Press. Mallory was raised in Virginia and now lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her dearest friends. For more information, visit http: //mallorypearson.com.