Nightbitch: A Novel

In this blazingly smart and voracious debut novel, an artist turned stay-at-home mom becomes convinced she's turning into a dog. - "A must-read for anyone who can't get enough of the ever-blurring line between the psychological and supernatural that Yellowjackets exemplifies." --Vulture
One day, the mother was a mother, but then one night, she was quite suddenly something else...
An ambitious mother puts her art career on hold to stay at home with her newborn son, but the experience does not match her imagination. Two years later, she steps into the bathroom for a break from her toddler's demands, only to discover a dense patch of hair on the back of her neck. In the mirror, her canines suddenly look sharper than she remembers. Her husband, who travels for work five days a week, casually dismisses her fears from faraway hotel rooms.
As the mother's symptoms intensify, and her temptation to give in to her new dog impulses peak, she struggles to keep her alter-canine-identity secret. Seeking a cure at the library, she discovers the mysterious academic tome which becomes her bible, A Field Guide to Magical Women: A Mythical Ethnography, and meets a group of mommies involved in a multilevel-marketing scheme who may also be more than what they seem.
An outrageously original novel of ideas about art, power, and womanhood wrapped in a satirical fairy tale, Nightbitch will make you want to howl in laughter and recognition. And you should. You should howl as much as you want.
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Community Reviews
I received the ebook ARC for this one but wasn't in the right frame of mind whenever I thought about actually reading it. So when I saw it on Audible a while back, I bought it. And Cassandra Campbell is a great narrator.
I finally started listening yesterday and just got sucked right in. I'm certain I've never read anything quite like Nightbitch. Also, I fucking love the name of the book and how the main character (and only POV character) refers to herself as Nightbitch.
The first at least half of the book struck me as a call out for the importance of birth control for heterosexual females. It still makes me feel incredibly grateful that our son was raised in a two-mom household. But as the book moved on, and Nightbitch discovered her own power and strength, it's much less about how shitty parenthood can be for women.
I will absolutely read this one again. Just to catch the small things I missed the first time. There were lots of laughs mixed in with the gruesomeness, too. And lots of howling. Such beautiful howling!
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for bringing this interesting, smart, and unique book to my attention.
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