- Format
- Paperback
- Pages
- 386
- ISBN
- 978-1-951971-14-4
- Price
- $20
- Publication Date
- September 24, 2024
Necrology (the Dirty, #1)
Meg Ripley
It’s amazing what the spirit can cope with to preserve the body. My spirit is a mighty oak that just won’t fall.
In a fantastical aftermath of the Salem witch trials, magical women known as the Dirty have signed a contract swearing off their innate magic in exchange for freedom from violence by non-magical Freemen. Two hundred years later, in a Catskills orphanage, headmistress Whitetail has sprouted antlers—proof of a violated contract. When her wealthy benefactor visits, proposing marriage, her appearance sparks abuse. Rushing to her teacher’s defense, eight-year-old Rabbit curses the Beard dead, and Whitetail’s arrested on trumped-up charges.
As Whitetail awaits her trial and execution, Rabbit is groomed as the Freemen’s star witness and learns of the terrifying reality to which they aspire. With her magic at stake and a loose tooth in her mouth, Rabbit has little left to lose. And a revolution to gain.
Praise for Necrology (the Dirty, #1)
“Necrology is a life-giving novel that employs its own intoxicating vocabulary, embracing the dual meanings of words like “dirty,” which men use as an aspersion and which women claim with pride. Its mythology includes the necrology, a stone that contains the history of Dirty women; summonings of twin incarnations and the specters of the dead; and behind it all, the wild, which endows those who honor it with magic. The first book in a series, its gripping ending fires the first supernatural shot in a war to come—one that will determine whether women will be free.” —Foreword Reviews (starred review)
“Necrology has sentences with sharp teeth and characters that feel inhabited by lightning as they search for survival and autonomy in a world that seeks to snuff out their magic. Meg Ripley has created a visceral, vividly rendered cosmos of the mythic and animalistic; a story both familiar and fantastical, both ancient and fresh, highlighting the consequences of our historical narratives and of the history we continue to weave into our collective futures.” —Erin Slaughter, author of A Manual for How to Love Us
“Meg Ripleyʼs bewitching prose drifts off the page in formidable whispers and sighs, potent enough to leave you believing sheʼs reading directly to you and only you. Necrology is a commanding incantation, a captivating read that casts its magic from page one. Let its spell wash right over.” —Clay McLeod Chapman, author of What Kind of Mother and Ghost Eaters
“Necrology is a lush and stunning debut. This gaslamp horror is full of remarkable characters and a rich, detailed alternate history that will sink you into the story and keep you there. Long after you’ve finished the final chapter, you’ll be left with the feminist urge to get Dirty.” —Abigail F. Taylor, author of The Night Begins
“Wild, weird, and truly terrifying, the fanged beauty of Ripley’s prose plunges readers into a fantastical exploration of an all too familiar battle for liberation. An enthralling debut, captivating and powerful.” —Elizabeth Kilcoyne, author of Wake the Bones, a 2023 William C. Morris Debut Award Finalist
“Meg Ripley’s Necrology is a deft exploration of a dark and thorny world filled with magic and misogyny. This thrilling and compelling read will keep you turning pages late into the night.” —Natalka Burian, author of The Night Shift
“Witchy readers will enjoy this clever retelling of history and the Salem Witch Trials. Told from a young girl’s perspective, it gives a unique insight on the impact of suppressing one’s own magic. This is a feminist gem to have on your bookshelves.” —V. Castro, author of Haunting of Alejandra and Goddess of Filth
“Ripley chills with this atmospheric debut set in a world where magical women, called the Dirty, and nonmagical men, known as the Freemen, struck a truce after the Salem witch trials…Ripley builds a powder keg of suspense as the trial looms. With a dark tone, unique magical culture, and embodied prose, this is a promising start.” —Publishers Weekly
