Doll Parts - by Penny Zang

About the Book

"For Nikki and Sadie, life at Loch Raven College was supposed to be filled with poetry and days spent trying on thrifted clothes. But there's a dark story that plagues the school halls that of the Sylvia Club, a campus legend surrounding the death of multiple Sylvia Plath-adoring girls, all written off as suicides. Aspiring writer Nikki finds herself drawn to the stories, so much so that dead girls begin to haunt her dark imagination. To satiate her obsession, Nikki begins to dig into the deaths, and she soon suspects there's more to the story than just a tragic group of sad girls - a suspicion that will lead to a tragedy of its own, one that will tear her and Sadie apart. It's been twenty years since Sadie saw her estranged friend. Now, Nikki is dead. And when Sadie ends up pregnant with Nikki's grieving husband, she finds herself stepping into her seemingly perfect life. But Nikki's eerily preserved home seems to hold clues for Sadie from beyond the grave, and soon, she's spiraling into a deep obsession that will make her question her own reality. Because it seems Nikki never stopped looking for answers about what happened to the girls of the Sylvia Club, and she may have been its latest victim"-- Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

The Virgin Suicides meets I Have Some Questions For You in a dual timeline suspense following one woman as she begins to uncover the truth of the death of her estranged best friend and the Sylvia Plath adoring sad girls they attended college with decades ago, all while holding a secret that will slowly unravel her new, suburban dream life.

Some stories refuse to stay buried.

For best friends Nikki and Sadie, college was supposed to be a fresh start, a way to blast Courtney Love from car speakers and leave their youth behind. But along with sadness-obsessed girls and intrusive professors, a dark story plagues their small all-women's school: the Sylvia Club, a campus legend surrounding the deaths of multiple Sylvia Plath-adoring students, all written off as suicides. Aspiring writer Nikki finds herself drawn to the tragic tales, so much so that dead girls begin to haunt her dark imagination. As she digs deeper, Nikki soon suspects there's much more to the story - a suspicion that will lead to a tragedy of its own, one that will tear her and Sadie apart.

It's been nearly twenty years since Sadie last saw her estranged friend. Now, Nikki is dead, and when Sadie ends up pregnant by Nikki's grieving husband not long after the funeral, she finds herself stepping into her ex-best friend's seemingly perfect life. But the longer Sadie lives in Nikki's eerily preserved home, the more she sees her appear and soon, she's convinced that Nikki is sending her clues from beyond the grave. Because it seems Nikki never stopped looking for answers about what happened to the girls of the Sylvia Club, and she may have been its latest victim.

Told in a dual timeline, Doll Parts is an evocative and irresistible debut, at once an exploration of the dark chasms that break apart friendships, an ode to the aching beauty of girlhood, and a sharp portrayal of grief that can physically haunt you.

Review Quotes

"Q: What should you read if you're looking for a book haunted by Sylvia Plath? If you crave an old-fashioned whodunnit shot through with longing and lyricism? What if you want a book that honors your backlog of dead girls, your long list of former selves, loving and laughing at them all at once, while getting all the best grrrrl songs going like a riot in your head?

A: Doll Parts. Nikki and Sadie will steal your heart (and your fishnets). I couldn't put it down." -- Emily Van Duyne, author of Loving Sylvia Plath: A Reclamation

"Zang's compelling debut delves insightfully into topics such as friendship, grief, and Plath's place in literature as well as exploring the dangers of romanticizing suicide...Book group clubbers will come for the thoughtful exploration of serious themes, while fans in search of character-rich, academia-set suspense tales will enjoy the twisty plot." -- Library Journal

"Doll Parts drew me in like a ghost to a stage light. A lyrical, haunting, and oh-so-alive ode to the loves of our lives--friends, mothers, daughters--and the stories we tell and retell and un-tell in their absence, enshrouded in dual mysteries unfolding twenty years apart. Assured, beautiful, unsettling--read this novel when the sky is heavy and the bruises in your heart are tender. Penny Zang is a monumental talent." -- Katie Gutierrez, bestselling author of More Than You'll Ever Know

"Sad Girl Cult but make it crime fiction: the genre-blending Doll Parts is as dark and evocative as tear-smudged eyeliner, as rebellious and moody as a song by Hole. Part mystery, part bildungsroman, and part paean to female friendship, Zang's debut examines our cultural obsession with beautiful dead women--and, against a world that might prefer them silent, cold, and pretty, the lengths to which two best friends will go to remain vital, messy, and true to themselves, their bravery reverberating across timelines. " -- Ashley Winstead, USA Today-bestselling author of Midnight is the Darkest Hour

"Penny Zang brilliantly threads the haunting legacy of Sylvia Plath through a stunning plot that incisively unravels the mystery behind a tragic series of deaths. At once devastating and hopeful, this profound, exquisitely written suspense will wholly capture you and leave an indelible mark." -- Samantha M. Bailey, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of Hello, Juliet

"Haunted and haunting, Doll Parts is an exquisite exploration and scathing critique of our cultural obsession with pretty dead girls, as well as a riveting mystery pieced together by two fascinating and complex protagonists. Like a beloved collection of poetry, this story is worth carrying around, dog-earing, highlighting, returning to again and again. I loved this book from its very first sentence." -- Megan Collins, author of Cross My Heart

"Twisty, bold, and pulsing with the fever dream of 90s girlhood, Doll Parts is a genre all its own: part mystery, part dirge, part love letter to Baltimore, a postpartum story and a celebration of fierce female friendship. Penny Zang has written a glorious indictment of our cultural obsession with dead girls, so well-written and so fun that you don't see its true depths until you've gleefully dived in. " -- Julia Fine, author of The Upstairs House

"Doll Parts is a dark, atmospheric exploration of friendship, exploitation, and female rage. Delving into the most vulnerable and turbulent stages of womanhood, it's perfect for fans of Megan Abbott and Ashley Audrain." -- Robyn Harding, International Bestselling author of The Drowning Woman

"Doll Parts is the most mesmerizing and original book I've read in a long time. It's eerie and addictive, a story that pulls you in and won't let go. Penny Zang has a gift, and I would read anything she writes." -- Samantha Downing, Internationally Bestselling Author of My Lovely Wife and Too Old For This

"I'm blaming Penny Zang for having me up way too late trying to fit the pieces together of her haunting dual timeline novel. Just the right blend of dark academia and psychological suspense, Doll Parts features ghosts of the past, fractured friendships, and the most clever use of a newsletter I've seen. With just one book, Zang has established herself as a must-read author." -- Kellye Garrett, award winning author of Missing White Woman

"Doll Parts is one of the most unexpectedly imaginative, and soulful, suspense novels I've read in some time. Following dual mysteries, that of Sadie as she navigates motherhood and life in her late husband's first wife's shadow, and Nikki, years earlier, chasing a shadow of her own, Penny Zang creates a unique world infused with deep friendship, grief, and the quiet resilience of becoming. Doll Parts miraculously succeeds on both a level of suspense and lyricism, which, if done well, of course, is the very definition of great poetry." -- Lee Kravetz, author of The Last Confessions of Sylvia P.