In ‘Mrs March’ Virginia Feito gave us a just a taster of how well she writes about an unravelling woman. But in ‘Victorian Psycho’, the protagonist is clearly beyond unravelled, and verging on the utterly bonkers, from the outset.
Winnifred Notty, new governess to the entitled and bratty Andrew and Drusilla Pounds, is a Tsunami of Psychotic and I love her! Such a fantastic character.
There are strong hints that she’s not the usual demure Victorian Governor - Mary Poppins she’s definitely not. The quote from Jake the Dog in Adventure Time, immediately came to mind - “I’m not cute! I’ll mess you up!”
This book is a darkly humorous gore-fest. Winnifred Notty has a seemingly endless amount of ways to inflict terror, damage and pain. Nevertheless, you can’t help but be on her side as she endures her work at Esnor House for the entitled, pompous and hideous Pounds family .
A solid Five Stars!

On paper, this was the perfect book for me - Gothic, historical, horror, comedy. In execution, I found it ever so slightly lacking. While I loved the setting, the humour, and the writing itself, I didn’t find the ‘reveal’ to be that satisfactory, and felt that the final act came too quickly. I would absolutely read what Virginia Feito reads next, however, and look forward to reading Mrs March at some point! 3.25/5

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Victorian Psycho has the right amount of shock factor, gore and tension. The Victorian setting adds a layer of eeriness to the novel as well. The protagonist is funny, psychotic and well developed.

A really good all rounder for horror lovers. I have nothing bad to say about this.

What can I say about Victorian Psycho other than it is completely insane and a wild ride of twists and turns in a dark Victorian setting.
Brilliant characters with depth to even the minor players and a storyline that kept me guessing throughout

Sure to be the hit of the summer this novel is a blaze of light in its genre. Deftly written, gripping and well plotted this should be the read of the summer.

Possible contender for the most nuts thing I’ll read in 2025, this was exquisitely written – the beauty of the prose contrasting sharply with the grotesquery of the subject matter. The main character is exactly as the title suggests – someone so far on the antisocial personality disorder spectrum that she could rightly be called a psychopath complete with ticks and desires most people would find abhorrent and a complete lack of empathy and remorse. That said, there is method in her madness and it’s an interesting journey to follow her on – an interesting killing spree at least. There are moments of ghoulish dark humour and buried beneath the gore, a meditation on whether or not we all have something monstrous withing and whether women are subjected to a different expected standard than men. This pulls no punches and delights in its slasher style narrative – read in one sitting.

That title! That cover! With my background in Victorian literature and love of all things Gothic, I knew Victorian Psycho would be right up my alley.

I think the best way to describe Victorian Psycho is ‘batshit fucking crazy’. It’s a short book but it packs a serious punch, immedietly drawing us into Notty’s world and mind. Through the madness, Feito writes a refreshing take on Victorian society, class, and the Victorian family.

I think there’s a lot of places in which this book could have fallen flat, but it came together and worked so well. The main reason for this is Notty’s wonderful, totally compelling voice. She’s completely unhinged, but also funny, witty, and extremely charismatic. The decision to write this book in a first person POV was absolutely the correct one – I don’t think it would have worked without the view into Notty’s head.

Victorian Psycho is one for the ‘weird books for weird people’ crowd (like me). This most certainly not be for everyone, but the right reader will love this messed up, compelling, gory tale.

Do not read if you can't stomach violence. Irreverent, weird, ridiculous. If you're a reader who can't get over illogical happenings (I get it), this one probably won't be for you but it worked for me.

It's dark, gruesome, and intense. With that said, it's sometimes difficult to follow the plot. Also, if you're like me and look for someone to relate to, you won't find it here.

A grim and compelling gothic story about a governess wreaking havoc at a stately home where she has been employed to teach the two children, Andrew and Drusilla. Written very much in the style of a Victorian novel, it is quick to read and guesomely engaging.

With thanks to the author, NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy.

This is such a hard book to review - it's so dark and gruesome, disturbing and odd, Gothic and horrific, yet also strangely compelling. I found that I couldn't put it down, even as I was being pulled into the twisted workings of the protagonist's mind.

The novel follows Winifred Notty as she arrives at Ensor House, the home of the fairly odious Pounds family. Her role is to be governess to the children, Andrew and Drusilla, although her unconventional bedtime stories and tendency towards brutality are at first dismissed as merely eccentricities compared to their previous governesses. As she begins to draw the attention of the master of the house, strange things begin to happen - someone defaces the family portraits and even the staff start to go missing... When guests begin to arrive for Christmas celebrations, it becomes obvious that Winifred is going to continue on the path of destruction that led her to Ensor House in the first place.

Wow, this book is so dark - we are literally taken inside the mind of a killer whose twisted way of looking at the world means that no-one around her is safe. Her thoughts and actions are presented in graphic detail and her total lack of remorse or empathy is chilling for the reader - although her voice is also often humorous and knowing and so not totally alienating for the reader. The book often focused on the macabre and grotesque - this is a book where description is frequently visceral and repellent. There's lots of blood, bodily function, gorging on stomach-churning things, decay and rot, filth and death. Yes, it's disgusting, but also shocking and interesting and unlike much I've read before.

As is evident from the above, Winifred isn't a character we grow to love - this isn't a book for anyone who needs to like the characters in what they read. In fact, every one of the characters is awful in their own way. Indeed, we are shown a procession of greed and lust and any of the other deadly sins you can name - and it's probably best you don't get attached to any of the characters anyway as they don't have long life expectancies!

The writing is clever, although references to 'fall' for autumn jarred a little within a story set within Victorian England - for an otherwise immersive book, I found this tricky to skim over.

So, if you're of a strong disposition then there's much to get caught up in within the world of 'Victorian Psycho' - I'm not sure it is a wholly enjoyable experience, but it's one you won't forget!

I absolutely adored this book, it was everything I wanted it to be and more. Feito’s debut novel Mrs March was one of my top books of the year when I read it and I knew it was going to be hard to follow, but somehow she topped it.

Victorian Psycho is what it says on the tin - it’s about a governess called Winifred Notty who is a complete psychopath à la Patrick Bateman - the reference to ‘American Psycho’ in the title being no coincidence. Whilst Victorian Psycho doesn’t critically compare to Ellis’s masterpiece, Feito knows exactly what she was doing with this novel and its dry humour, body horror and strong narration creates the absolutely perfect novel. The book - weirdly, even though it is set pre-1980s - knows that American Psycho is its unbeaten predecessor and doesn’t try to emulate or copy in a way which comes across lazy, awkward or cheesy (like the recent Maeve Fly). Feito preserves the wit, charm and dark humour that makes American Psycho such a well written novel, and Victorian Psycho triumphs in exactly the same way.

The novel takes the ‘unhinged woman’ trope and timeses it by 100. Instead of Winifred being a woman we see ourselves in and someone we can cheer on, she is just as monstrous as any male killer or psychopath. The book doesn’t want to explore female rage safely, it explores it in all its true horror and unkempt blind rage, even to the detriment of other woman in the world. Winifred doesn’t care about anyone but herself - she is a narcissist and completely devoid of emotion, killing people sometimes just because they happen to accidentally be in her way. It is interesting to explore how with-in the boundaries of such a strict Victorian society, where woman were even more controlled than they are now, such rage could be even more explosive and terrifying than we are used to in the modern female rage novel.

Victorian Psycho was an absolute pleasure to read. I was confused by the tone in the first chapter, reading the phrase about her breasts jiggling in her corset and thinking “why was that even necessary?” But then the more I read I realised that this is all Winifred’s captivating and manipulative personality, and she absolutely shines off the page. I recommend this for anyone who enjoys horror or disturbing books, or for anyone who is a fan of Ellis and is looking for a writer who truly pays homage to his legacy. Feito is so clever in how she maintains her own style and ideas whilst letting her readers know that he has been a massive influence in her work, and I’m truly here for it!

Winifred Notley has urges that she struggles to control. An unwanted child, she is forced to make her living as a governess and she comes to Ensor House in that role. As Winifred tries to control herself, her actions and imagination swirl in an unhealthy atmosphere.
Did I like this book? No, I can't say that I did but despite myself I found myself reading on. It's not for me but there is lots to admire in the writing within a fairly narrow genre.

A 5 star read!!

Miss Notty is one of my favourite protagonists of recent years...never have I routed for someone quite so unhinged. As immoral as she is there is a wonder to her, a sense of whimsy and I think this is what draws me to her. Her quick wit and surefire vision that what she is doing is simply a mistake like dropping coffee on yourself or is completely justifiable.

SPOILER* - The scene with the baby swap will stick with me, the dark humour of it all truly bubbles up to the surface in this section and that is what shines for me in this book.

With short snappy chapters, you will fly through this. Or if you prefer an audiobook the narrator for this does a stunning job.

Highly Highly Recommend for a romp into the unhinged.

Wow wow wow. I was expecting something dark and twisted but this is next level!
I must admit I am partial to a Victorian novel with a governess as protagonist.
If Jane eyre had been more like Fred mr Rochester would’ve definitely had a different ending ….

The story fell flat for me. The concept was interesting and I was really excited for it. However, the story didn't fulfill that interest

What a brilliant book. The dark Ms Notty is a nanny to the Pounds children but has very little tolerance for the rest of the household and staff. People disappear, secrets are revealed and I loved it. Dark, funny and just brilliant.

F*** me up Florida this was fab, and I read it so quickly! I love blood, guts, gore and angry girlies. It never gets old, give me 5000 more. I definitely will be chatting everyone’s ear off in our bookshop about this one. Perfect for lovers of subversive horror, and female rage. It’s a unique play on typical historical fiction tropes, filled with twists, dreamscapes and a really gorgeous degree of dark humour. I loved the blend of reality and Fred’s twisted imaginings throughout, and the prose was deliciously horrifying. What a beautiful wee beast of a book!

Victorian Psycho is a bloody triumph. Feito creates a vivid, absurd, but oddly relatable world, which Miss Notty slashes her way through. Her energy: sadistic and sarcastic in all the right ways. This is the kind of book I'll be thinking about for a long time to come, I can't wait to go back and read Feito's debut, Mrs March.

I chose to read a free eARC of Victorian Psycho but that has in no way influenced my review.

There I was, minding my own business on Goodreads (actually, that's the opposite of what I was doing - I was having a nosey at what everyone else was reading!) when this book suddenly popped up. One of the horror bloggers I very much admire was RAVING about it. The version I actually saw was the US version so I went looking to see if it was being published in the UK. It was, by Fourth Estate Books, and if I loved the US cover then I was completely smitten the the UK cover (that neon green! Those blood splatters!). It was then that I realised who the author was - Virginia Feito - author of Mrs March. A book I have been desperate to read for quite some time now (also, another FABULOUS cover - go check it out!). By this point, I felt it was written in the stars. I had to read this book and I wouldn't rest until I had a copy in my sweaty paws.

And what a bloody, macabre, twisted ride it was. Victorian Psycho is a fairly short novel at 184 pages but oh my gosh, it packs one helluva punch. Winifred Notty has arrived at Ensor House as new Governess to the Pound Family. Tasked with looking after the two rather obnoxious Pound children, Winifred spends her days entertaining herself with her own, somewhat dark thoughts. That is until Christmas morning arrives and the dark fantasies harboured by the Governess spill over into reality with gruesome results. Read with caution if you're uncomfortable with fairly graphic violence.

Personally, I loved Victorian Psycho. Extreme, violent, totally unrelenting and wholly unapologetic. Unlike anything I've read before (and I've read a number of Victorian Gothic thrillers where the Governess dallies with the dark side). Victorian Psycho really pushes those boundaries. Feito takes her main character further than most who write in the same sub-genre would dream, and it was a nerve-shredding, exhilarating experience. The book starts three months before Christmas but in that time the reader becomes acquainted with Winifred Notty and her innermost thoughts. She's dangerous, darkly funny, completely unpredictable and the last person suited to the role of Governess. No one, old or young, human or animal, is safe from the murderous hands of Miss Notty.

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. Victorian Psycho is a shocking, unsettling, creeping read that won't let you go until you've turned the final page. It's full-on, macabre and totally engrossing. I adored the feminist edge, I fell head over heels in love with Winifred (she's wholly unlikeable and evil to the core so I may be the only one there!). The dreary Victorian setting  of Ensor House and its grounds was uncomfortably vivid, creeping under my skin and giving me chills. The supporting characters were sublime, I whole heartedly believed in them. And I was entranced by the dark, disturbing plot which had me turning the pages at a rate of knots. Oozing darkness, totally irresistible and shocking to the core. Truly a Penny Dreadful for the modern times! Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Victorian Psycho. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

[Review will be published on 18th February]