Episode 11.5: ‘Spoilt Creatures’ by Amy Twigg
This episode of the podcast has been an evolution. If you’re a reader of our Substack (if not, um why?) then you’ll probably be confused that ‘Spoilt Creatures’ is making an unexpected appearance on season 11. Let me tell you, it was a journey to get here.
The previous title we picked wasn’t right for the podcast and then option two was putting me (hi, it’s me Sophie) into a reading slump and I’d only just escaped one, so we changed tacks one more time. Thankfully it stuck and we both raced through 'Spoilt Creatures’.
THEY THOUGHT THEY KNEW EVERYTHING ABOUT US. THE KIND OF WOMEN WE WERE.
Iris seeks a different kind of life. Promise comes in the form of Hazel, who lives at Breach House - a women's commune on a remote farm. At Breach House, the women live and eat in abundance, are guided by landscape and ritual, all while under the leadership of their gargantuan matriarch, Blythe.
But is Breach House truly the haven it seems? When an unforgivable transgression comes to light and power struggles intensify, the women find themselves hurtling towards an act of devastating violence that will threaten everything they've fought to create.
Cult-y sad women making bad decisions in literary fiction with dark academia vibes? Yep yep yep. But how strong are those dark academia vibes?
In this episode we discuss:
The intersection of cults, high education and secret societies
The rise and reign of femgore - literary feminist horror
The trend of women creating their own curriculums
You can listen to it here:
TEXTS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
‘Spoilt Creatures’ by Amy Twigg
‘Sunstruck’ by William Rayfet Hunter
‘Lord of the Flies’ by William Golding
‘The Girls’ by Emma Cline
OTHER MEDIA AND POP CULTURE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
‘Orange is the New Black’ (2013-2019)
Please sign up to The Dark Academicals Book Club mailer for exclusive book club content, extra episodes and special content!
