Ill Be the Monster - Sean Gilbert, Duckworth Books

'The White Lotus&,nbsp,meets&,nbsp,My&,nbsp,Sister, the Serial Killer:&,nbsp,I’ll Be The Monster&,nbsp,is&,nbsp,a menacingly funny, daring debut&,nbsp,that deserves a spot at the top of every 2026 TBR pile.&,nbsp,With humour so biting and unease this sun soaked, this brilliantly vile pager turner cements Sean Gilbert as a bold new voice in literary fiction'&,nbsp,Lucy Rose, author of&,nbsp,The Lamb ------------ A homicidal couple embarks on a luxury holiday to save their marriage. After years of secrets and self-restraint, they’ve reached breaking point. But three days into the trip, they run into Benny, an acquaintance from their Cambridge days. And Benny is desperate to reminisce about a time – and a person – they would rather forget. Darkly funny and razor-sharp,&,nbsp,I’ll Be The Monster&,nbsp,follows a dangerous game of cat and mouse as it plays out under the&,nbsp,stifling heat of the Mediterranean sun. From a major new talent in literary fiction, this gripping debut is a love story about the worst people you know – and of what happens when a change of heart occurs too late. ------------ PRAISE FOR I'LL BE THE MONSTER 'From the moment I read the opening of&,nbsp,I'll Be The Monster&,nbsp,I was&,nbsp,gripped. An&,nbsp,ingenious premise, backed up with&,nbsp,pitch-perfect dialogue, arresting scenes, and a caustic humour...&,nbsp,one of our most promising emerging writers' Sophie&,nbsp,Mackintosh, author of&,nbsp,Cursed Bread ‘Gilbert’s narrative voice is&,nbsp,cool and superbly controlled, overlaying a filter of nihilism on a twisted young couple’s glossy Turkish vacation. Reading this daring novel is&,nbsp,like watching a cat toying with its prey before the kill&,nbsp,– it is&,nbsp,as if the elitist indolence of Donna Tartt’s&,nbsp,Secret History&,nbsp,met the millennial malaise of&,nbsp,Perfection&,nbsp,by Vincenzo Latronico’&,nbsp,Aube Rey Lescure, author of&,nbsp,River East, River West ‘Dazzling. Gilbert’s&,nbsp,extraordinary&,nbsp,prose&,nbsp,will take an emphatic hold of you until the last page’ Julia Raeside, author of&,nbsp,Don't Make me Laugh ‘Sexy, seductive, and very very dark,&,nbsp,I’ll Be The Monster&,nbsp,takes you deep into the company of people you don’t want to be with&,nbsp,and yet cannot resist’ Andrew Cowan, author of&,nbsp,Your Fault 'I'll be the Monster is a virtuoso debut. A gripping plot, brilliant dialogue, completely real characters and very, very funny. It's hard to know what more you could ask for' Aidan Cottrell-Boyce, author of The End of Nightwork