
A Sense of Occasion
$31.09
- Hardcover
320 pages
- Release Date
22 September 2026
Summary
A death in the (dysfunctional) family - can they hold it together long enough to organise the funeral?
‘Sexy, terrifying, keen and startling’ DAISY JOHNSON ‘At once shrewd and ethereal’ CHRIS KRAUS ‘A rare, funny novel’ NICOLA DINAN
When Mary dies, Patch can barely keep track of her mother’s journey from the hospital to the mortuary, let alone host a wake in her childhood home.
Mary’s ex Robin wants to support his daughter but, instead of acting like a responsible fath…
Book Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781787335868 |
|---|---|
| ISBN-10: | 1787335860 |
| Author: | Brodie Crellin |
| Publisher: | Vintage Publishing |
| Imprint: | Jonathan Cape |
| Format: | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages: | 320 |
| Release Date: | 22 September 2026 |
| Weight: | 422g |
| Dimensions: | 224mm x 147mm x 32mm |
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What They're Saying
Critics Review
Crellin has a genius for tracking the internal logic behind all kinds of catastrophically bad behavior. A Sense of Occasion is a wonderful book, at once shrewd and ethereal. – Chris Kraus
Crellin is an astonishing writer, their sentences ring like bells and are so sharp and perfect. This book is sexy, terrifying, keen and startling – Daisy Johnson
An outstanding debut by a singular voice. A Sense of Occasion favours honesty over sentimentality, embracing the claustrophobic atmosphere of totally dysfunctional families. A rare, funny novel – Nicola Dinan
Perfectly paced; sexy and intelligent and truly profound on the costs of living and performing one’s sexuality in public and private – Merve Emre
So smart, often so funny, and incredibly moving, Brodie Crellin explores love, desire, family, and dynamics of power, care and dependence with total honesty. Brodie’s amazing on the complex, often fraught relationships between the family and the individual, on the psychological asymmetries inherent to intimacy, and on the ways that reality can start to feel contingent on the presence of another person. Masterfully constructed, yet so vivid and absorbing that I frequently forgot it was constructed at all. A profound, immersive, visceral, tender, deeply accomplished and completely unique novel – Harriet Armstrong
An immensely fun read in which prickly, awkward people do prickly, awkward things in such soft, funny, human ways that you cannot help but be charmed by them all. A delight! – Lizzy Stewart
Unforgettable… Crellin explores the boundless complications of sexuality, desire and love with rigor, intelligence and humor. Here are characters and relationships which feel strange, distinctive and always true – Rachel Connolly
A stylish debut, funny and fluent and surprising. Brodie Crellin is interested in the things we talk about, think about and do with our bodies to avoid squaring up to grief – Tom Lamont
A Sense of Occasion is a magnificent debut, and a game changer. I can’t remember the last time I read something so bold, tender, sexy and funny – Camilla Grudova
A cracking read, unapologetic in its transgression: a dark domestic comedy of kinks and class… a wickedly sharp and impressive first outing for those with the stomach * Daily Mail *
About The Author
Brodie Crellin
Brodie Crellin lives in London and is an editor at Granta magazine. A Sense of Occasion is Brodie’s first novel.
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