PRAISE FOR THE DIVINES
“THE DIVINES is a cool, chilling and elegant novel that intrigues and compels the reader, while filleting the absurdities of British class hierarchy with a very, very sharp knife. In Eaton’s stylish and controlled prose, the oppressive atmosphere of a girls’ boarding school becomes the site of a violent and mysterious act, but also a lens through which to examine the intoxicating and unnerving power of adolescent sexuality, the dangers and consolations of friendship, and the toxic nature of the class divide. It’s a terrific, entertaining and astute work and one of considerable relevance to the way we live now.”—Sarah Perry, Internationally bestselling author of THE ESSEX SERPENT and MELMOTH
“Twisty and twisted, THE DIVINES is exquisitely paced—a haunting novel about identity, the cruelties of youth, and the blurry line between nostalgia and obsession. In precise, lacerating detail, Eaton weaves two worlds together: one built around the odd rituals, brutal logic, and savage social structures put forth by a group of teen girls; the other centered on the traumatic implications of growing up privileged but unsupervised, elite but lonely, cut off from one’s desire. This is a blistering, brilliant debut.”—Kimberly King Parsons, author of BLACK LIGHT, longlisted for the National Book Award
“Girls are vicious, a character in THE DIVINES says towards the end, and Ellie Eaton has given us every ounce of that viciousness, meticulously portioned and weighed, the pain of it held up to the light. Seductive and uncomfortable in equal measure, the real raw strange runs through this book, that indigestible part of the human experience we all choke on from time to time.”—Rufi Thorpe, author of THE KNOCKOUT QUEEN and THE GIRLS FROM CORONA DEL MAR
“A fierce, stunning debut that you won’t so much read as burn through. Eaton captures all the time honored trapdoors of late girlhood that we know firsthand to be real, but in her wildly talented hands they feel brand new and completely fascinating.” —Caroline Zancan, author of WE WISH YOU LUCK
“A new mother tries to reconcile her former “mean girl” past at a shuttered boarding school in this riveting and darkly comic addition to the campus novel canon. THE DIVINES is as provocative and daring as teenagehood, itself.”—Courtney Maum, author of TOUCH and COSTALEGRE
“THE DIVINES is a scintillating coming-of-age story about the brutal bonds of female boarding school friendships, class prejudices, and the ways in which false memories can take the place of truth. Sephine is an unflinching and utterly convincing narrator. I lapped up every delicious detail.”—Susie Yang, author of WHITE IVY, longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize
“THE DIVINES is an absorbing, sharp exploration of the ways our adolescent secrets, relationships, and cruelties shape and haunt us into adulthood. Ellie Eaton's writing is thrilling and intoxicating, whether about the inexplicable power teenage girls have over one another or the challenges of defining a self outside of long-held traditions. A compulsively readable book; I couldn't put it down.”—Alexandra Chang, author of DAYS OF DISTRACTION
"From the very first page, THE DIVINES throws the reader headfirst into the crucible of adolescent girlhood, in all its insecurity and entitlement, brittle vulnerability and callous cruelty. Eaton turns a keen eye toward class, privilege, and trauma, but this novel is above all a ruthlessly compassionate exploration of the stories we tell ourselves about the past—our drive to assuage our regrets, even as we are reluctant to reckon with their repercussions. A confident, nuanced, impeccably paced debut."—Micah Nemerever, author of THESE VIOLENT DELIGHTS
'A potent novel about what it means to remember and how responsible we are for the actions of our youth. Seething with teenage sexuality, friendship and that peculiarly British obsession, class, this is an absorbing read.'—Araminta Hall, author of IMPERFECT WOMEN and OUR KIND OF CRUELTY
