Ecstasy - by Ivy Pochoda (Hardcover)

About the Book

"In this dark horror reimagining of a Greek tragedy, a hedonistic cult leader teaches a new widow the true price of female freedom. Lena wants her life back. Her wealthy, controlling, humorless husband has just died, and now she contends with her controlling, humorless son, Drew. Lena lands in Athens with her best friend in tow for the unveiling of her son's, pet project-the luxurious Agape Villas. Years of marriage amongst the wealthy have whittled Lena's spirit into rope and sinew, smothered by tasteful cocktail dresses and unending small talk. In Athens she yearns to rediscover her true nature, remember the exuberant dancer and party girl she once was, but Drew tightens his grip, keeping her cloistered inside the cavernous, marble rooms of Agape, demanding that she fall in line. But Lena is intrigued by a group of women living in tents on the beach in front of the hotel. She can their music at night, hear them calling her to dance. Soon she'll find that an ancient God stirs here on the beach, and women are waking up all around the island, driving mother and son toward a monstrous, gory battle, where only one of them will make it out alive"--

Book Synopsis

A deliciously dark horror reimagining of a Greek tragedy, by Ivy Pochoda, winner of the LA Times Book Prize.

Lena wants her life back. Her wealthy, controlling, humorless husband has just died, and now she contends with her controlling, humorless son, Drew. Lena lands in Naxos with her best friend in tow for the unveiling of her son's, pet project--the luxurious Agape Villas.

Years of marriage amongst the wealthy elite has whittled Lena's spirit into rope and sinew, smothered by tasteful cocktail dresses and unending small talk. On Naxos she yearns to rediscover her true nature, remember the exuberant dancer and party girl she once was, but Drew tightens his grip, keeping her cloistered inside the hotel, demanding that she fall in line.

Lena is intrigued by a group of women living in tents on the beach in front of the Agape. She can feel their drums at night, hear their seductive leader calling her to dance. Soon she'll find that an ancient God stirs on the beach, awakening dark desires of women across the island. The only questions left will be whether Lena will join them, and what it will cost her.

Ecstasy is a riveting, darkly poetic, one-sitting read about empowerment, desire, and what happens when women reject the roles set out for them.

Review Quotes

"Ecstasy is a lyrical, fevered, and furious re-imagining of a classic Greek tragedy. Tense and phantasmagoric, the novel sinks its considerable teeth into the patriarchal 21st century capitalist machine. And gloriously, no one is spared." --Paul Tremblay, author of the New York Times bestseller Horror Movie

"Ecstasy is a superb and horrific reimagining of a Greek tragedy. Pochoda's writing is a lyrical scalpel reopening old wounds, dissecting abandoned dreams, and slicing to the core of motherhood and female friendship with style to spare. Don't miss it." --Gabino Iglesias, author of House of Bone and Rain

"Lyrical and dreamlike. . . Perfect for fans of Greek retellings and novels that explore feminine rage and empowerment, like Rachel Yoder's Nightbitch or Kirsten Miller's The Change." --Booklist

"[A] defiantly feminist reimagining of Euripides' The Bacchae . . . Pochoda's sun-drenched, blood-soaked literary fever dream pits hubris against hedonism, likens religion to rave culture, and explores the transformative power of female rage. Incandescent prose, present-tense narration, and frequent perspective shifts impart urgency, rendering the characters' passions palpable. It's a gleefully transgressive tour de force." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"There's been no shortage of feminist retellings of ancient myths and classics in recent years, and this next one definitely deserves a place on your shelf. With elements of horror and suspense, it revisits Euripides' The Bacchae, following a woman drawn in by a cult of women who appear to be living much more freely than she's been allowed to." --Marie Claire

"Fierce and fearless, Ecstasy is a tempest of a novel that reminds women that we are born forces of nature and woe be upon anyone who would stand in our way. Ivy Pochoda again proves she's a literary priestess of the highest order." --Alma Katsu, author of The Hunger

"Ecstasy pulses with the hypnotic rhythm of a rave set in Plato's allegorical cave. A mind-bending story about yearning to break the chains that bind us, and how our greatest adversaries can often be the ones we love most. Thrilling, provocative, and darkly funny. This isn't the perfect summer read. It is the summer." --Gus Moreno, author of This Thing Between Us

"Ecstasy is a stunning, hallucinatory trip of a novel that explores female friendship, the dark side of motherhood and liminal experience. This addictive novel is an explosion of the feminine unbound. Pure, primal Pochoda. Drop everything and read it now." --Danielle Trussoni, New York Times bestselling author of The Puzzle Box

"Pochoda's turn into horror and mythology will bring ample rewards to her readers." --Crime Reads

"Described as both 'hallucinatory' and 'addictive, ' with a synopsis that gives the perfect whiff of Suspiria vibes, Ecstasy promises an exploration of themes like female identity and desire. . . [A] killer one-sitting summer read." --The Lineup

About the Author

Ivy Pochoda is the author of the critically acclaimed novels Wonder Valley, Visitation Street, These Women, and Sing Her Down which won the LA Times Book Prize. She won the 2018 Strand Critics Award for Best Novel and the Prix Page America in France, and has been a finalist for the the Edgar Award, among other awards. For many years, Ivy has led a creative writing workshop in Skid Row Los Angeles where she helped found Skid Row Zine. She is currently a professor of creative writing at the University of California Riverside-Palm Desert low-residency MFA program. She lives in Los Angeles.