Curdle Creek

A gorgeously written, surrealist folktale that goes bone deep. Compelling, thought-provoking, thrilling, haunting, Yvonne Battle-Felton’s Curdle Creek is simply a marvel. – Paul Tremblay, author of THE CABIN AT THE END OF THE WORLD and HORROR MOVIE

Curdle Creek is a thoughtful, sinister tour-de-force. Yvonne Battle-Felton writes so convincingly that the reader is forced to ponder what unthinkable choices we mask behind our own quest for belonging, and what wrongs we must answer for.

– Tananarive Due, L.A. Times Book Prize-winning author of THE REFORMATORYTautly written, utterly gripping, Yvonne Battle-Felton’s novel invites the reader into a world of mystery and mythology. Ultimately, Curdle Creek is about perseverance and hope, about remembering the past while boldly embracing the future and about posing the eternal question: how and where can a Black person simply be? – Carolyn Ferrell, author of DEAR MISS METROPOLITANFrom the start, there are echoes of Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery, but readers who think they know where this is going will be surprised, as Osira’s story has many weirder twists and turns ahead. – Lisa Tuttle * Guardian *With tight dialogue, elegant writing and a startling ending, this is a wonderful novel about the worst monsters of all: people. – Gabino Iglesias * The New York Times Book Review *Funny and terrifying. – Caroline Leavitt * People *Battle-Felton skilfully incorporates a lyrical flow in her writing that fuses together time travel, historical trauma, and alternative universe with great ease. Curdle Creek is a definite must read! * Essence *Battle-Felton skilfully weaves an allegory about the intersection of racism, paranoia, and cultlike authority masquerading as tradition and safety. It’s stunningly disturbing. – Leslie Gray Streeter * Johns Hopkins Magazine *Mind-bending … Battle-Felton is drawing from a deeper well of influences, including Toni Morrison’s lyricism, the time-travel elements of Octavia E. Butler’s Kindred and the alternative universe of Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad… . Battle-Felton imagines this world exceedingly well. And she never loses sight of the novel’s central theme: how the need for communities to protect themselves unleashes its own anxieties and traumas. * Kirkus Reviews *Strong world-building and genre-bending action would also make [Curdle Creek] a good fit for readers who enjoyed Matt Ruff’s Lovecraft Country (2016), Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad (2016), or P. Djèlí Clark’s Ring Shout (2022). * Booklist *This novel is perfect for fans of Shirley Jackson’s classic “The Lottery”. – Emily Martin * Book Riot *