Distortion - by Kathryn Bromwich (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A knife-sharp, deliciously sexy story about a young actress and the lengths she will go to fulfill her dream, under the guidance of a shadowy and eccentric auteur director.

"An exquisite work: darkly gripping and sensuous, a Milgram experiment-esque horror meets Eyes Wide Shut, posing disconcerting questions about bodies as projection screens and the cost of making art." --Daisy Lafarge, author of Paul

Natalie is prepared to give up acting forever before being abruptly cast in a leading role in maverick director Robert Langford's secretive new horror film. It's the opportunity of a lifetime, so while Natalie has questions about the actress who mysteriously dropped out of the role before her, as well as how her disability will be portrayed in the film, she brushes them aside. Natalie joins the star-studded production for weeks of rigorous rehearsals that employ strange methods and arcane talismans, leading to dangerously deep bonds between cast members.

Once shooting starts on location at a remote Scottish castle overlooking the sea, a series of unsettling phenomena haunt the set, leading to whispers among the local population that the film is cursed. As filming progresses, Natalie debates whether she is using Robert's film or it is using her, as well as what must be sacrificed in the service of art.

Hypnotic, disquieting, and surprising, Distortion is a modern gothic tale of seduction and survival.

About the Author

KATHRYN BROMWICH is a writer and editor based in London. For more than a decade she worked at the Guardian and the Observer, commissioning and writing articles about film, music, books, disability, chronic illness and more. Her work has appeared in publications including Dazed, Little White Lies, Polyester, Sight and Sound, The Independent, Time Out and Vice. Her debut novel At the Edge of the Woods was published in 2023 by Two Dollar Radio, and was chosen as an American Booksellers Association "Indies Introduce" Pick.