Fervour

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What to expect

The Secret History meets Jewish horror meets Jonathan Safran Foer in this exciting debut novel about a Jewish family in contemporary London.

Hannah and Eric are a successful couple living in North London with their three children and Eric's father, Yosef, a survivor of the camps. They are devout Jews who believe in the literal truth of the Old Testament, all except for their youngest son, Tovyah.

The death of Yosef fractures the family's apparent harmony and has a disastrous effect on Elsie, the model daughter, who disappears for four days, plunging her parents and siblings into a living nightmare. When she returns, just as mysteriously as she left, she is strangely altered.

Witnessing the complete transformation of their daughter's personality and some increasingly hard-to-explain events, Hannah and Eric begin to suspect Elsie is under the influence of black magic while Tovyah, a brilliant university student, believes his sister is suffering a mental collapse caused by his parents' antiquated beliefs.

But who is right? And can the family be reconciled before tearing itself apart?

(P)2024 Hodder & Stoughton Limited

Critics Review

  • Lloyd’s suspenseful debut novel propels the reader deep into the heart of an idiosyncratic family . . . Infused with motifs from Jewish folklore and classic horror films, Fervour animates themes of betrayal, belief and the past’s long tail

    Observer

  • A North London Jewish family, by turns close-knit and dysfunctional, take centre stage in Lloyd’s remarkable debut . . . Lloyd has given himself a large canvas, peopled with complex characters, but produced a work of real poignancy

    Daily Mail

  • Intriguing, propulsive and profoundly disturbing, this is a fearless look into the dark heart of family politics from a naturally gifted storyteller

    Jonathan Coe, author of BOURNVILLE

  • Fervour is the book we need now. Bracing, compassionate, wise, terrifying – this beautifully written novel will haunt your dreams. That is, if you can put it down long enough to get any sleep

    Darin Strauss, author of MORE THAN IT HURTS YOU

  • Both a provocative work of Jewish horror and a modern biblical tale, Fervour is the tightly coiled story of an idiosyncratic family whose unlikely survival skills also spell its doom

    Francisco Goldman, author of MONKEY BOY

  • A gripping and powerful story of a British Jewish family visited by ghosts and divided by politics . . . Fans of Isaac Bashevis Singer and Stephen King alike will thrill to this superb modern folk tale

    Publishers Weekly

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