Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

From the bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue comes a spellbinding queer love story following the desires and dreams of a trio of enigmatic young women.

Waterstones Science Fiction & Fantasy Book of the Month for August 2026

This is a story about hunger.

1532. Santo Domingo de la Calzada. A young girl grows up wild and wily - her beauty is only outmatched by her dreams of escape. But María knows she can only ever be a prize, or a pawn, in the games played by men. When an alluring stranger offers an alternate path, María makes a desperate choice. She vows to have no regrets.

This is a story about love.

1827. London. A young woman lives an idyllic but cloistered life on her family’s estate, until a moment of forbidden intimacy sees her shipped off to London. Charlotte’s tender heart and seemingly impossible wishes are swept away by an invitation from a beautiful widow - but the price of freedom is higher than she could have imagined.

This is a story about rage.

2019. Boston. College was supposed to be her chance to be someone new. That’s why Alice moved halfway across the world, leaving her old life behind. But after an out-of-character one-night stand leaves her questioning her past, her present, and her future, Alice throws herself into the hunt for answers . . . and revenge.

This is a story about life . . . how it ends, and how it starts again.

MEDIA REVIEWS

Schwab at her finest. She’s gifted us a dark, irresistible saga that asks what it means to be human – to live, to love and above all, to hunger - Peng Shepherd, bestselling author of The Cartographers, on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Nobody can write like V. E. Schwab . . . an unmissable addition to your To Be Read pile - Jodi Picoult, author of My Sister’s Keeper, on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Schwab sends you whirling through a dizzying kaleidoscopic adventure through centuries filled with love, loss, art and war – all the while dazzling your senses with hundreds of tiny magical moments along the way - Naomi Novik, bestselling author of Uprooted, on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

A rich, lush labyrinth of a book . . . It had me by the throat from the first page - Emma Stonex, author of The Lamplighters, on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Lush, gorgeous prose and a gripping new take on the vampire that pays homage to the greats while doing something deliciously new - Lex Croucher, author of Gwen and Art Are Not In Love, on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Perfectly suspended between darkness and light . . . unforgettable - Alix E. Harrow on The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Bloody, toothsome and entirely riveting. Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil is a singular story that will stay with me for years to come - Alexis Henderson author of House of Hunger and The Year of the Witching

Entrancing . . . Lyrical and immersive, it's ideal for losing yourself in summer thanks to its sweeping history, deep emotions and a touch of magic - Cosmopolitan on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

[Schwab's] take on hidden desires, hunger and corruption puts it up there with the classics of the genre - Daily Mail on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Gorgeously gothic . . . A romantic, lyrical read, perfect for immersing yourself in - The Mirror on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

A fresh and addictively readable take - The Guardian on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Schwab has impressively woven a compelling character drama and feminist critique into a horror thriller . . . sumptuous descriptions of place and time, and the slow-burn melodrama between each of the women - The New York Times on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

Some of the best feminist fiction doesn’t stop at promoting women’s rights, but allows us to revel, cathartically, in women’s wrongs. In Schwab’s capable hands, those wrongs feel oh so right - Chicago Review of Books on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

V. E. Schwab is one of those rare talents who refuses to be confined to a single genre . . . This is a story that will leave you starving for just one more page - Radio Times on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil