Victorian Psycho is soon to be a feature film from A24 starring Margaret Qualley and Thomasin McKenzie
Mark your calendars, LitStackers! Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito is in presale (the best time to buy a book), and ready to hit the bookshelf on February 4, 2025. Our anticipation is palpable. Published by Liveright, this genre bending novel is already making waves with early readers. Here’s a sneak peek at what’s on the cover from the publisher’s official description to early reviews that will help you pre-order your copy ASAP. Let’s dive in!
In publishing, presales are a crucial indicator of a book’s potential success. Presales generate buzz and excitement before a book hits the shelves. Strong presale numbers translate to increased visibility, higher initial print runs, and a greater range of exposure. A high volume of presales signals to bookstores that a book is in demand, leading to better placement and more prominent displays. Ultimately, robust presales can significantly boost a book’s overall performance and reach a wider audience. Buy a presale now to support the author.
In This Spotlight On Victorian Psycho
About Victorian Psycho
Named one of the Most Anticipated Books of 2025 by Vulture, Oprah Daily, Reader’s Digest, Polygon, Lit Hub, and Paste
From the acclaimed author of Mrs. March comes the riveting tale of a bloodthirsty governess who learns the true meaning of vengeance.
Virginia Feito’s Mrs. March was hailed as “a brilliant debut . . . [by] a writer who keeps pace with the grandees she invokes” (Sarah Ditum, Guardian)—from Daphne Du Maurier and Shirley Jackson to Patricia Highsmith. Now, Feito returns with her “silver-polish sentences and her eerie psychological acumen” (Constance Grady, Vox) to unleash an entirely new antihero on us all.
Grim Wolds, England: Winifred Notty arrives at Ensor House prepared to play the perfect governess—she’ll dutifully tutor her charges, Drusilla and Andrew, tell them bedtime stories, and only joke about eating children. But long, listless days spent within the estate’s dreary confines come with an intimate knowledge of the perversions and pathetic preoccupations of the Pounds family—Mr. Pounds can’t keep his eyes off Winifred’s chest, and Mrs. Pounds takes a sickly pleasure in punishing Winifred for her husband’s wandering gaze.
Compounded with her disdain for the entitled Pounds children, Winifred finds herself struggling at every turn to stifle the violent compulsions of her past. French tutoring and needlework are one way to pass the time, as is admiring the ugly portraits in the gallery . . . and creeping across the moonlit lawns. . . .
Patience. Winifred must have patience, for Christmas is coming, and she has very special gifts planned for the dear souls of Ensor House. Brimming with sardonic wit and culminating in a shocking conclusion, Victorian Psycho plunges readers into the chilling mind of an iconic new literary psychopath.
Praise for Victorian Psycho
“Simmering with rage, propulsive and laugh out loud funny, Victorian Psycho speaks profoundly of horror both within and without us.”—Catriona Ward
“This book will be the bloody belle of the 2025 literary ball; preorder now!”—Oprah Daily
“A deliciously devious new book.”—People
“Her bold approach to storytelling peels back the layers of Victorian society, exposing its contradictions, power struggles, and hidden darkness. Through her unapologetic portrayal of a cold-blooded female psychopath, Feito questions whether societal pressures and repression can truly explain such violent behavior—or if, perhaps, the madness runs much deeper.”—Eric Akoto, Litro Magazine
“I don’t read a lot of historical fiction, but the protagonist of this book—the living embodiment of #nofilter—was just so compelling, I couldn’t stop reading. This woman’s deeds are truly heinous, and the book pulls no punches in describing them. At the same time, I couldn’t help rooting for her because, deep down, I felt the source of her ire deserved everything he got. Bonkers as this book is, it provided some fantastic commentary on womanhood and sexuality and desire.”—Steph Auteri, Feminist Book Club
“A murderous woman dropped into a gothic novel is a recipe for delightfully disturbing and grimly comedic bloodshed . . . Fans of gothic literature who don’t mind gruesome deaths will savor watching Winifred go beyond simply eating the rich in this seemingly by-the-book gothic story that subverts some of the genre’s conventions.”—Library Journal, starred review
“A twisted, bloodthirsty governess celebrates Christmas with her new employers. Where ironic horror and horrific irony meet, this unbridled madhouse of a novel dazzles like a bloody jewel.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Feito unspools a bold and mordant gothic novel about a murderous governess… ‘In three months everyone in this house will be dead,’ reads a caption under a drawing of an estate. The novel’s perverse thrill is in slowly uncovering how and why the Poundses meet their fate. Along the way, Feito provides readers with searing glimpses of Winifred’s derangement…Fans of psychological horror will be enthralled.”—Publishers Weekly
“Riotous, devilishly clever, and deliciously appalling, Victorian Psycho is flat-out brilliant. No one is spared (not even us) from Winifred’s wrathful whims while Virginia Feito deftly presents the case that Winifred is being quite reasonable. Long live Winifred! She is the antihero this, or any other, century deserves.”—Paul Tremblay, New York Times best-selling author of Horror Movie and A Head Full of Ghosts
“Victorian Psycho is that rare, extraordinary book that both delivers and completely confounds all your expectations. . . . By drawing from the roots of the gothic, Virginia Feito seems to have invented an entirely new kind of storytelling. From the first to the last line, this novel is nothing less than a masterpiece.”—Catriona Ward, author of The Last House on Needless Street
“Relentlessly moody, in the best possible way, Victorian Psycho asks how anyone could live sanely in a time so systemically cruel. Atmospheric, funny, bloody as hell—I finished it in one sitting.”—Ainslie Hogarth, author of Motherthing and Normal Women
About Virginia Feito, Author of Victorian Psycho
Virginia Feito, raised in Madrid and Paris, studied English and drama at Queen Mary University of London and advertising at Miami Ad School. She writes regularly for Vanity Fair Spain and is the author of the acclaimed Mrs. March.
You can connect with Virginia Feito on her website.
Source: Publisher
Publisher: Liveright
ISBN: 978163149863
Pub Date: 2/4/2025
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Other LitStack Resources
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