March #BookClubbers: female gothic, curses and deadly wasps in ‘Plain Bad Heroines’

I know, I know, we’re already nearly halfway through March, but it’s better late than never, right?

If you follow us on socials (which you should, links above) you’ll already know that our Twitter friends and Patrons voted on the book for March and chose emily m. danforth’s ‘Plain Bad Heroines’ and we were both thrilled with the result because it was the one we wanted to read the most!

danforth’s first novel, ‘The Miseducation of Cameron Post’, was released back in 2012 when I was at university and I adored it. It remains one of my favourite books. I’ve been hoping for another novel from her ever since and it’s finally here!

Here’s what it’s all about:

BROOKHANTS SCHOOL FOR GIRLS: Infamous site of a series of tragic deaths over a hundred years ago. Soon to be the subject of a controversial horror movie about the rumoured ‘Brookhants curse’:

In the early 1900’s, Brookhants students Flo and Clara fell madly in love, brought together by their obsession for a scandalous memoir.

A few months later they were found dead in the woods, after a horrific wasp attack, the book lying next to their intertwined bodies.

Three more grisly deaths followed before the school was forced to close.

Now, the school’s doors are open once more. But as the crew of glamorous young actresses assemble to start filming, past and present begin to blur. And soon it’s impossible to tell quite where the curse ends and Hollywood begins…

The #BookClubbers is a book club open to absolutely everybody. Just read a long with us and join in with chats on Twitter and our monthly Instagram Live and BAM you’re a #BookClubber.

We do have a Patreon where we offer some special monthly perks for those that sign up that way - you can find some more info here. It would be amazing if you wanted to support us on there and get access to an exclusive Discord thread and b entered to win a copy of the book for every full month that you’re signed up.

‘Plain Bad Heroines’ by Emily M. Danforth was published on 4 March 2021 by The Borough Press.

You can buy your copy from our bookshop.org affiliate link here which will help us out massively.

Written by Sophie