197 – Elle Nash & Insects in the Ozarks

Elle Nash’s Deliver Me ruined my week. In the best possible way.

This book, about a woman so desperate for a child that she does truly terrible, no-good things, contains some of the bleakest, most brutal scenes I’ve read in a while. And it’s not even really being treated as a horror novel. 

Elle and I talk about that.

We also talk about the hot-button topics of the novel, the patriarchy, the toxic Christianity, the… insect erotica! But we also discuss her wandering heart and the empathy and provocation that drives her work.

It’s a lovely, laid back conversation about a challenging book.

Enjoy

Other books mentioned:

Geek Love (1989), by Katherine Dunn

Violent Faculties (2024), by Charlene Elsby

Frisk (1991), by Dennis Cooper

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