Kylie Whitehead
Absorbed
Allison has been with Owen since university. She's given up on writing her novel and is working a dull office job at the local council – now it feels like the only interesting thing about her is that she's Owen's girlfriend. But he's slipping away from her, and Allison has no idea who she'll be without him.
Panicking, she absorbs him...
Soon Allison begins taking on Owen's best qualities, becoming the person she always thought she should be. But is Owen all she needs to complete herself? Will Allison ever be a whole person?
Absorbed is the original and timely debut novel from Kylie Whitehead; a darkly comic story of female insecurity, body horror and modern relationships.
Coming May 2021.
“An eerie take on the all-consuming nature of romantic relationships.”
“Kylie Whitehead has created a rich and full character who enables an exploration of identity and anxiety, femininity and queerness, selfhood and romantic relationships – all under the guise of a nightmare come true.”
“Uncomfortable psychological accuracy, dark humour and out and out horror”
“A disorienting but thoroughly engaging read”
“A consuming exploration of the madness of love and its distortions of the lover and the loved. A literary debut that has so much to say.”
“Uncomfortable and unnerving - the best kind of blackest comedy”
“Full of existential dread and sardonic humour, I enjoyed it immensely.”
“This quiet novel has a wonderfully dark and savage little heart. Not only did it move me, its horror still lingers. A fantastic debut.”
“Fresh and compelling, this claustrophobic debut will suck you in and never spit you back out.”
Kylie Whitehead
is originally from rural Mid Wales and currently lives in London.
She works in marketing with technology startups.
Absorbed is her first novel.