In Bloom by Liz Allan

‘I loved this book . . . raw, grungy and frenetic’

Alice Slater, author of Let the Bad Times Roll

‘Part Virgin Suicides, part Veronica Mars’

Louise Hegarty, author of Fair Play

‘Effervescently paced and outrageously funny . . . jaw-dropping’

Luke Kennard, author of The Transition

‘I was totally absorbed . . . amazing and unlike anything else’

Saraid de Silva, author of Amma

The Bastards aren’t afraid of anything.

It’s the mid-nineties, and in the small, shitty coastal town of Vincent, four girls – each hailing from single-mother, multi-sibling families, form a band. Friends since they were children, they consider themselves ‘forgettable girls’ – distracted, disillusioned, and desperate to escape the fates of their mothers.

Winning the Battle of the Bands is their ticket out – they might not have talent, but they can play three chords and scream until their vocal folds burst out of their throats – and nobody wants it more than them.

But when lead singer Lily Lucid quits, and accuses their idolized music teacher of sexual assault, the three remaining girls are left with nothing. They’ll do anything to keep their dream alive, even if it means sacrificing school, Lily and their mothers. But how far out of control can they spin before there’s no turning back?

The cult appeal of The Virgin Suicides meets the compulsiveness of The Girls: four teenage girls in a band plot their way out of their run-down town, going to extreme lengths to keep the dream alive.

About the Author: Liz Allan is an Australian writer and teacher living and working in the UK. Her short story, ‘Our Voices, Fierce’ was awarded the Rachel Funari Prize for fiction in 2018 and her stories have been shortlisted for the Alan Marshall Short Story Award and the Aesthetica Creative Writing Prize, and longlisted for the Leicester Writes Short Story Prize. Her manuscript ‘The Elementals’ was shortlisted for the 2023 Penguin Literary Prize and her manuscript ‘Equilibrium’ was shortlisted for a 2019 Overland Writers Residency. Her fiction has appeared in Overland, Verge, Yen magazine, Aesthetica and Best Summer Stories 2018.

27 Jan 2026
 

In Bloom: A raw and gripping debut novel for fans of The Virgin Suicides by Liz Allan ISBN 9781399748285