by Victoria Bromley
With issue 09 submissions opening today, we thought we’d offer a reading list of indulgent, obsessive, cannibalistic literature to inspire your writing. We hope this theme will bring a lot of interpretations and that this list will show the breadth of the theme.
The Lamb by Lucy Rose
I think cannibalism is the epitome of consumption and over-indulgence in folk-horror and gothic genres. Margot and her mother are cannibals, luring strays from the forest into their cabin for respite and care, not knowing that will be their final resting place. They desperately seek out and hunt lonesome folk, lost and hungry, to have a plentiful meal.
Margot craves the human meat, wanting to fill her stomach. Her animal instincts are primal, her desire running thick. But when she fears for her own life under her mother’s greed and newfound alliance to Eden, a woman they take in with no intention of slaughtering, Margot is desperate to escape.
The Compound by Aisling Rawle
The Compound is a novel set in a reality TV show where contestants, think of it as a dystopian Love Island, compete in competitions to earn basic rations, vote out their competitors, and strive to form romantic relationships in the desert. The rewards grow in value as time goes on, designer brands sending in their products for the exposure, contestants desperate to gain more than they could afford outside of the show. But without caring for the Compound, without working together, it crumbles and falls to ruin.
The novel really examines what people are winning to do to win, how greed and a chance to live a life of luxury is worth the price, whatever it is they must risk to get it.
The Husbands by Holly Gramazio
A novel where husbands descend from the attic and whenever they go back up there, another man comes down in his place. Lauren has a glut of men to choose from, constantly dismissing any husband who doesn’t tickle her fancy, then up the ladder he goes and a new man pops out.
The concept of husbands coming in and out of her attic was hilarious, and it was such an entertaining read. It got more and more absurd as it went on.
Happy Hour by Marlowe Granados
In New York City, everyone is in search of a good time. Isa and Gala are skint and want adventure, so get men to pay for their drinks and run into the night with abandon in search of glamour and something to dazzle them.
The girls gulp down cocktails and eat up the men they crave. They are in want of attention and luxury and alcohol. Their gluttonous ways get in the way of their friendship and threaten to wear them down and eat them alive.
I Make my Own Fun by Hannah Beer
This book is so much fun! It explores celebrity culture and what happens when you go a little bit too far. Marina is an award winning actress, the world loves her. When In London, she meets Anna who’s working behind the bar, and she makes it her mission to seduce her, to make her love her too, because Anna doesn’t seem interested in Marina, she’s not hypnotised by her beauty or begging on her knees for an autograph. Marina’s obsession with Anna intensifies as she tries to get her attention in the most outlandish ways.
Marina is a glut. She’s gorged on her own stardom for so long, she’s outraged when she finds Anna unaffected by her charm.
The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden
It is safe to say that if you have not read The Safekeep, then you need to read it immediately. This is a quiet yet arresting novel, with secret arousal and timid longing, but at its core, the novel is about obsession and indulgence.
The one scene which has stuck with me most is when Isabel eats the pear whole, every last bit of it, which is the reason it needed to be on this reading list. Isabel is starved of human connection as she resides in the house bestowed to her older brother when he’s ready to claim it, but in the meantime Isabel is content looking after her mother’s possessions in the large house all to herself. That is, until her brother insists his new girlfriend Eva stay with her while he’s away. When Isabel suspects Eva is stealing from her, she becomes even more controlling, and when her paranoia escalates, desire sneaks in as she yearns for Eva in a way she never anticipated.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
I think this list wouldn’t be complete without the classic which is The Great Gatsby. The height of opulence, indulgence, wealth, glitz and lavishness, to such detriment. A novel depicting the American Dream where enigmatic, millionaire Jay Gatsby throws vivacious parties and is desperate to win back his former lover. His grand gestures and fine efforts go to waste where he meets a devastating end.
Submissions for issue 09 gluttony are open until Sunday 5th October 2025. Find out how to submit here.
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