Doll Parts is a haunting, lyrical exploration of grief, friendship, and the ghosts we carry—both literal and emotional. Told across two timelines, it follows Nikki and Sadie, best friends once consumed by the dark legend of the Sylvia Club, a series of eerie campus deaths tied to Sylvia Plath. Years later, Nikki is dead, and Sadie finds herself slipping into her old friend's life—only to uncover secrets Nikki never stopped chasing.

Zang’s writing is hypnotic, filled with a quiet sorrow and emotional precision. She captures the fragile, often brutal intensity of female friendship in a way that lingers.

While the atmosphere and character work are strong, the ending didn’t quite deliver the punch I hoped for. The mystery unravels a bit too softly, and some plotlines—especially around the professor—felt underdeveloped. A few pacing issues aside, this is still a beautifully written, gothic slow-burn that stayed with me long after the last page.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.

This starts off so slowly and there is a lot of repetition. There are a lot of vague hints about why Nikki and Sadie didnt speak for 18 years but I thought their secret was quite easy to guess and not very original.

After about a third of the way through we get on to the mystery Nikki was investigating and it gets a bit more interesting. I could not get along at all , however, with all the ghostly visions and I grew tired of hearing about the costumes, seances, offerings, tattoos and the other foolish and dramatic things the girls got up to at the college. A lot of songs are mentioned throughout the book., and there is a song list at the back of the book. I did not know most of these songs so maybe I missed out on another layer of meaning in the book.

Unfortunately, the book slows down again and I began to find it all a bit jumbled. There is a decent enough story there but I felt there was a lot of padding..

Not for me, not saying it's not good but overall I found it repetitive and depressing. The triggers of suicide didn't help, although this was in context of theme of long dead scarlets.

Zang’s prose is sharp, atmospheric, and emotionally resonant. The alternating timelines build psychological suspense while exploring themes of grief, guilt, female rage, and how romanticising tragedy can fracture lives. What starts as a moody ghost story becomes a tense character study of two women bound by friendship, secrets, and loss.

It’s a twisty, literary thriller, which would be perfect for a book club, that lingers long after the final page, challenging readers to question the narratives we tell about grief and the girls we mourn. Loved it!

I would like to thank NetGallery, Sourcebooks Landmark and the author Penny Zang, for providing me with an Advanced Readers Copy.

Nikki and Sadie were best friends, until an incident at college fractured their relationship. The incident lead to Nikki and Sadie not speaking for twenty years. Twenty years later, one friend is dead and the other is pregnant by her best friend’s husband. The premise had me hooked and I wanted to explore the mystery and intrigue that the story offered.

The story is told in a dual time line and I felt the author did an effective job of distinguishing between the past and the present without causing confusion.

Overall I found Sadie’s narration was relatable and enjoyable to read, (although, having a baby with my ex best friend’s husband is not a move I can condone).

I appreciated how grief was portrayed and how all consuming it can become. I liked how grief manifested within Sadie and presented itself within her life as a haunting.

The writing style evoked the haunting undertones that followed Sadie. This added to the chilling eerie aura shrouding the story.

I did like the dark academia vibe and that combined with the dynamics between the professor and the female students, reminded me of Alex Michaelides ‘The Maidens’. I enjoyed reading about the students infatuation with all things macabre and their rituals of dressing in black and holding séances. Their obsession with Sylvia Plath added to the cliché of I’m a college student with substance, by forming a niche group to appear as different. A tangent that made me cringe, but I must admit that I enjoyed reading.

The story had me invested to the final page and the twist is one that will surprise it’s readers.

Overall, I thoughly enjoyed ‘Doll Parts’ and I would recommend others to purchase the book when it becomes available. I look forward to reading Penny Zangs future work.

I had so much trouble getting into this one I thought it was compared to my dark Vanessa so I was expecting big things. But it didn’t work for me at all.

The writing I found pretentious and then the whole supernatural theme to it just lost me.

I’ve given it two stars cause there were some decent bits but overall I can’t go higher cause I gave up in the end.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Told in a dual timeline, Doll Parts is an evocative and irresistible debut, at once an exploration of the dark chasms that break apart friendships, an ode to the aching beauty of girlhood, and a sharp portrayal of grief that can physically haunt you.

Thanks for allowing me to read & review this book!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'Doll Parts' by Penny Zang. I usually like chapters that switch between character POVs in different timelines and this was no exception. It was set up at a good pace and the story line had me hooked with trying to workout what was coming next alongside one of the characters in the book. The ending I never would have guessed which left me shocked and wanting more. I would highly recommend reading 'Doll Parts' to anyone who is a fan of mystery/thrillers and will definitely be reading more from Penny Zang in the future!

This is a dual timeline novel featuring best friends Nikki and Sadie, filled with rage, sadness, love and nostalgia. I always enjoy a book that is accompanied by a playlist and I rediscovered a number of great songs as I read this. A really great debut, the story was well thought out. I had figured out the twist quite early but it didn't take away from the writing, and overall I recommend it. Strong suicide themes though.

A very nearly perfect book. This story captures the nostalgia, joy and heartache that accompanies female friendship at University. Nikki’s timeline felt so vivid and familiar.

The mystery running through both timelines was gripping and really well paced.

I really loved this book and can’t wait to recommend it to my friends.

Thanks to #NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an early copy to review.

I’m off to listen to the #DollParts playlist

I feel that this book SHOULD be right up my alley and while I did get all the references I couldn’t work out why the writing was so chaotic.

Plath in any book is a good thing in my mind and this book has plenty of potential.

I enjoyed the two main character voices which were distinct and memorable, along with the imagery used. The college scenes felt particularly vivid and the suburban oppression felt vivid.
The Sylvia Plath themes worked to an extent but.occasionally felt shoehorned in.
I did find the narrative felt slightly disordered and chaotic in places and overall the story didn’t quite gel for me.
The twist was well done and cleverly thought out.
Strong themes regarding suicide.