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The Muse

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The Muse

By: Mats Strandberg, Ian Giles - translator, Jane Davis - translator
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'Ari Aster's Midsommar and Bong Joon-ho's Parasite, mixed with Stephen King'
- Malin Nauwerck, Aftonbladet

The Muse is an electrifying and timely gothic folk horror about the cost of creativity and the monopoly of the cultural elite from Sweden’s cult horror king, Mats Strandberg

Divorced crime writer Hedda Strömberg can no longer write. Financial ruin is closing in on her and her eight-year-old son Hugo. She must find inspiration again. Now. It feels like a lifeline when her successful colleague, David Ridings, invites her to his family’s summer house. Far from the routines of daily life, perhaps her imagination can finally flow freely again.

The “summer house” turns out to be the grand Villa Thamyris, a sprawling mansion that, in the late 19th century, served as an important hub for the cultural elite of its time. During her stay, Hedda struggles against the paralyzing envy that David Ridings always stirs in her. The magnificent house and its inhabitants remind her of everything she lacks. The family possesses both wealth and cultural capital, rooted in generations of privilege.

At Villa Thamyris, Hedda finds her inspiration. Writing feels magical again. But she also discovers that the imposing brick walls hide dark secrets. Creativity has a steep price, and everything comes to a head when Hedda’s son arrives just in time for the Midsummer
celebration.

'A dark, literary triumph that is genuinely hard to put down'
- Göteborgs Posten

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Critics' reviews

Strandberg plays with gothic themes, and substantiates that which other works in
the genre often lock away in the basement or in the attic . . . Strandberg’s gothic standing
is undisputed

(Jonas Thente)

An irresistible mix of the folk horror film “Midsommar”, Donna Tartt and any example
of the plentiful cantankerous op-eds on “the cultural elite”

(Jenny Lindh)

It';s Ari Aster's Midsommar and Bong Joon-ho's Parasite, mixed with Stephen King . . . a writer
who has demonstrated a frightening dual nature

(Malin Nauwerck)
Mats Strandberg, just like the horror master King, excels at writing characters . . . And even though the horror aspect is present throughout the story, it’s the characters that stay with me after finishing. Strandberg's best novel so far
The narrative is dense and evocative, and the ending is an intense and terrifying descent into madness that barely lets the reader catch their breath. Strandberg mixes drama and horror in a highly commendable way
A dark, literary triumph that is genuinely hard to put down
Awe inspiring Greek muses, horrible secrets in the manor house cellar, a clever spin on creativity — Strandberg delivers a horror novel that has everything and more (Femina. five-star review)
Mats Strandberg’s greatness lies in the love and care with which he creates the characters that inhabit his dark world – but he is just as good at killing them (Niklas Natt och Dag, author of 1793: The Wolf and the Watchman, on The Conference)
Great characters, clever story, plenty of scares. A great read (John Ajvide Lindqvist, author of Let the Right One In on The Home)
What a stunning novel. Raw, real, smart, very thrilling and very, very wicked (Lev Grossman, author of The Magicians on The Circle)
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