unfortunately unable to finish this, listened to quite a bit but never felt engaged and wish i could have sunk my teeth into the narrative a little more.

3.5⭐️
This book really did remind me of The Crucible. I must say that I think you have to be in the right mood to read something like this, but it was something different for me, and I enjoyed it! I loved the narrator too!

First off, this is one of my favorite books of the year. I absolutely adored it,

I mean, how can you resist this blurb? “… (A) haunting debut about five sisters in a small village in eighteenth-century England whose neighbors are convinced they’re turning into dogs.” Sign me up!

Come with me to the wonderfully-named Little Nettlebed, where the Mansfield sisters live with their blind grandfather. The sisters are quiet, wise, and live in a fine house. So obviously, the villagers hates them. Local ferryman Pete is so threatened, that he decides to start a rumor that he has seen the girls turn into dogs.

This is such a special book. The place and characters of Little Nettlebed are so precisely formed; I could instantly picture every detail of the drying lake, the sad pub, the landscape. And Purvis’s debut?! What an exciting career this young writer has ahead of them.

The ending made me cry. So beautiful and perfect.

I had the pleasure of listening to Olivia Vinall perform the audiobook. Her soft tone was a perfect match for the novel. Just an overall wonderful experience.

I especially recommend this to lovers of weird, vague fiction about small town strangeness. Amazing.

The Hounding, set in 18th-century England, follows five orphaned sisters raised by their grandparents in a very superstitious town. A local accuses them of transforming into dogs. The story explores how the villagers react to these rumors and the ramifications.

I listened to the audiobook and definitely found that entertaining. Olivia Vinall’s did a great job. Her narration and creating unique character voices, kept me engaged in the story.

The Mansfield sisters make for compelling enigmas—never fully understood, always the subject of speculation—and the way the narrative circles them, rather than speaking for them, adds to the tension and mystery. At times, the multiple voices risk slowing the pace, but they also deepen the reader’s understanding of how collective narratives form and twist.

Loved the Old English vibes of this small suspecting town where five orphaned girls reside. Their parents have recently died and they are being raised by their grandfather. Weird things are happening in the town and an eye is turned towards these unprotected young girls.

Total vibes of The Crucible and it gives the reader opportunity to reflect on how this translates to our time...

If you want a book that is short, makes you think, and is great for a fall read, let it be this.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the gifted ALC.

As soon as I heard one of the comp titles for The Hounding by Xenobe Purvis is The Virgin Suicides I knew I had to read it. This novel features five sisters and it’s also told from an outward gaze. The 18th century, England setting lends to the mystery of the sisters as they’re accused of becoming dogs. They’re seen as strange in their town. I liked the way the story was told from the perspective of looking at the girls as others in their town. I kinda wanted more from the girls though. I’d be curious to read this author’s next book too as I enjoyed the writing.

I was drawn to this book because of the cover but stayed for the story! The Hounding is perfectly atmospheric and well-paced. This novel explores the idea of “whether in any age it might be safer to be a dog than an unusual young girl.” You don’t want to miss this experience, step into the world of Little Nettlebed and be carried away. The audio is superb, I highly recommend listening to The Hounding!

"Temperance felt momentarily wounded, before remembering that Martha Heathcoat was a haughty b**** and always had been."

This line had me dying in laughter!

Anne, Elizabeth, Hester, Grace, and Mary are five sisters growing up under the care of their nearly blind grandfather in rural 18th-century Oxfordshire. The local ferryman, Pete, insists that the girls have turned into dogs and soon the "tail" spreads throughout the village, causing issues for the girls, their grandfather, the farmhands, and maids.

In a true literary style reminiscent of the classics, there are many messages within these pages but it is up to the reader's interpretation.

"We went out when we weren't supposed to, we were too free, and this - all of this - is our punishment. It has nothing to do with the idea of us becoming dogs, and everything to do with the fact of us being girls."

First, let’s have a moment for this cover because the vibes are great. Now, into the book. I think I didn’t have the right expectations for this book. I have read a lot of books lately about female rage and/or unhinged women, and this is NOT that. This is QUIET. It is historical. It is perfectly aligned with its source material. So, let me pitch the book correctly so you can decide if it’s for you. This book tells a story of girlhood not through the lens of the girls... but through the lens of other men in the village. It focuses on men and how they can place their own inadequacies and insecurities at the fault of women because that makes it easier. The story prioritizes male voices and does not give the girls a POV, which tracks with the source material, but it can be frustrating for someone who is typically reading rage. My other note is that I listened to this one, so it was sometimes hard to follow all the characters. Hopefully the physical book has a list?

Some “If you liked” style comparisons: The Crucible meets The Virgin Suicides (much more Virgin Suicides vibes)

3.5 stars rounded up!
This was one of my most anticipated reads- can we talk about that cover? Loooove.
The writing was beautiful, but I found the plot predictable. I do love stories where the line between paranoia and sense are blurred. This was like the Salem witch trials but dogs.
Lots of metaphorical language and I love supporting weird gals!
Basically just a misogynistic asshole who makes up lies about sisters.

Thank you Macmillan Audio for my free copy of The Hounding by Xenobe Purvis — available now!

» READ IF YOU «
🐕 ever felt like a monster for just being yourself
🌾 go rabid for claustrophobic, historical small towns
👁 love a multi-POV tale that's unsettling

» SYNOPSIS «
In 18th century Oxfordshire, there are five young Mansfield sisters. They live on a farm with their nearly blind grandfather, after the loss of their parents and grandmother. When the jilted local ferryman makes an outlandish accusation, the girls will suddenly be in danger—it's a ridiculous claim, that the girls turn into dogs, but for some reason, everyone in the village in keen to believe it...

» REVIEW «
This is a looooovely and unsettling story that has an incredibly well-built sense of tension. I also think that the style of the narrative is a perfect choice: we never have a POV from any of the sisters, just the rest of the villagers, which deepens the sense of the "what if." The men in this town are generally (and unsurprisingly) quick to believe something awful about these five girls that won't give any of them the time of day, which unfortunately makes the book hella relevant, some 300 years later. It's still less dangerous to be a dog than an opinionated girl.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but it sure delivers on that creeping sense of dread! I think the ending is absolutely perfect, and I'm so impressed overall with this debut. Can't wait to read more from Xenobe Purvis!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

The description of “The Crucible” and “Virgin Suicide” mixed together is very accurate! I found the audiobook to be particularly interesting because of the way the narrator brought the book to life.

*4 stars*

I enjoyed The Hounding. I have not read The Virgin Suicides but I know that the same kind of perspective is used in both of these books where we get perspectives from townsfolk but not the five sisters. I wasn’t sure I would like this but I really enjoyed the little bit of mystery that it left in the story. While the general message of misogyny was a little heavy handed at times, I found that the thoughts of the characters to be so sinisterly normal.

The audiobook and narrator were great and easy to listen to.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ALC of this work. All opinions in this review are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan audio for an audiobook ARC!

The best way I can describe this book: this is what you get when you cross "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott with "Lapvona" by Otessa Moshfegh and "Nightbitch" by Rachel Yoder. "The Hounding" follows the goings on of a small village in England that is plagued by the presence of dogs. It is quickly revealed that the girls of the Mansfield family are the ones responsible for this influx of dogs. A rumor has spread throughout the village that the Mansfield girls transform into dogs and cause havoc on the village. This books is an absolutely wild ride.

The book utilizes multiple perspectives to illustrate the intensity of the situation.

As an audiobook, I found the narration style very entertaining and easy to follow. The only reason I this book is not rated higher is because the book does not fit my personal reading tastes. I have a feeling that a lot of people will end up liking this book!

Eerie book about girls just wanting to have fun, but Peter is too bored to let that happen!

I really liked his this was written, it really felt like I was looking into memories rather than a story, it was very immersive. I think the very limited setting and places highlighted the fluctuations in plot

I was really excited to read this book based on the synopsis, and luckily it did not disappoint! It reminded me a lot of ‘The Scarlet Letter’ or the ‘The Crucible’. I love that we had a lot of unreliable narrators throughout so the whole time you’re going back and forth on whether or not the girls truly are dogs. Overall, really good message and I loved the authors writing style and the narrators pacing and tone.

“𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐬, 𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐞𝐚𝐤. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐚 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭.”

𝗣𝘂𝗯 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲: 8/5/25

𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘆: Five sisters become the focus of a small villages paranoia after a local man believes he sees them becoming something abominable.

𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀:
🐕 Small village
🌾 18th century
🐕 Sisterhood
🌾 Superstition

“𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐝-𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐠𝐨𝐝, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲, 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.”

𝗠𝘆 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀:
The synopsis drew me in, and the story had a folklore feel that fit its rural village setting. Told through the shifting perspectives of the townsfolk, it explores themes of misogyny and superstition, where women bear the brunt of blame. The pacing was slower than I prefer, I often speed up the audio speed just to get past all the lulls. Tension finally builds when a drunken, hallucination-prone man claims to have seen the sisters transform into dogs, sparking rumors, fear, and a dangerous wave of paranoia. Elementally, strong and outspoken women scare weak men. 🤷🏻‍♀️

The narration was great, giving an authentic feel with the English accent.


𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 2.25/5 ⭐️⭐️✨


*Thank you @NetGalley and Brilliance Audio for sending this audiobook for review consideration. All opinions are my own.


#TheHounding

The Hounding is gothic, haunting, and wonderfully weird. Its unusual premise pulled me right in, and the cast of mostly unlikeable characters (in the best way) made the drama delicious, though I quickly grew attached to the Mansfield girls and Thomas. The historical detail feels well thought out, with gut-punching social commentary on women’s lives, including a heartbreaking scene of women carrying the bodies of those lost in childbirth. My only gripe? That climax ended far too soon. I cannot wait to read more from Xenobe Purvis!

I’m not afraid to say it. Misogyny is bad!!!!!!!!

(I did like the dog stuff this one’s just a tad forgettable)