The Decadence

Leon Craig

£10.99

At the height of lockdown, a group of flailing twenty-something friends makes an illicit break for freedom. A grand country house stands empty. Once the home of Theo’s great uncle, it seems like the perfect place to get high and hang out in the spring sunshine, as they eschew adult responsibilities. Since meeting as teenagers, rifts have grown amongst the group. Even as they are determined to enjoy themselves, tensions cast shadows between them – politics, sex and lies. The house, too, has its own dark history and exudes a palpable sense of menace. Where do the drugs end and the supernatural begin? Will anger and jealousy tear the friends apart, or will it be more ominous forces? Their stay at Holt House will change them all.

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Publish Date: 06/08/2026

Description

'A triumph of the queer gothic'
Jane Flett, author of Freakslaw

'Seductive and surprising at every turn'
Caitlin Blackwell Baines, author of How to Build a Haunted House

'Lush, sinister and blackly funny'
Kate Collins, author of A Good House for Children

At the height of lockdown, six friends make an illicit break for freedom. They're determined to enjoy their summer at Holt House, even if that means ignoring the deep fractures in their group.

Jan is secretly sleeping with Nadya, whose boyfriend, Theo – ever the gracious host – just wants everyone to get high. Kara and Luke can't stop fighting, and Jan's ex-lover, Ursie, feels out of place among their excess and privilege.

As tempers flare and old wounds reopen, their friendship begins to strain – politics, racism, antisemitism, sex and lies. And with drugs and desires blurring in the shadows of the house, a more ominous force threatens to ruin their trip…

'Both a deeply unnerving read and a sly commentary on the skeletons in Britain's closet'
Victoria Gosling, author of Bliss & Blunder

'A drug-fuelled cross between The Decameron and The Haunting of Hill House … Craig at her unsettling best'
Hesse Phillips, author of Lightborne

'Lush, complex, and close to the bone, The Decadence filled me with horror in the best way'
Krystelle Bamford, author of Idle Grounds

Additional information

Weight 228 g
Dimensions 196 × 128 × 26 mm
Author

Publisher

Imprint

Cover

Paperback

Pages

320

Language

English

Edition

1st paperback ed

Dewey

823.92 (edition:23)

Readership

General – Trade / Code: K