Oh I’m sorry to say (and I really hate not raving about books pre-publication) but this one just didn’t hit as much as I wanted it to. I know so many of you loved Sunburn so I was convinced this would be a 5 star read for me.

Now don’t get me wrong it’s not a bad read at all, it’s full of suspense, portrays complicated sibling relationships well and you can clearly see the siblings carry trauma. I just didn’t feel attached to them in any way, the book felt a bit repetitive and I predicted the ending, also it all felt a bit too easily wrapped up. I’m sure this will get plenty of fabulous reviews though so don’t let me put you off.

This is the second - and much awaited - novel from Chloe Michelle Howarth.

I very much enjoyed the dark, historic, Irish prose and the suspense of not quite knowing which way the story may turn. The story is told via multiple character POV, following the siblings O’Leary as they leave their home in Kilmarra and start out a fresh in Ballycrea.

But what aren’t the siblings telling their new neighbours and in particular what secrets is Anna O’Leary hiding?

A dark tale of sapphic obsession which fell a little flat for me. Very different to Sunburn - I usually find a similarity in an authors’ writing style but this could have been written by somebody else. That is not a criticism, just an observation. I loved both writing styles and will definitely be reading any future novels from CMH.

The writing was stunning and the prose incredible to read, but that's where my enjoyment with this book ends. It was advertised as a sweeping, emotional saga, but I mostly felt empty when reading it. I didn't connect to any of the characters nor did I find myself attached to their storylines. A very slow paced book.

Had a bit of trouble with accessing the book (wouldn't send to kindle and would open a blank file when downloaded), requiring me to read it through the netgalley app on my phone which would frequently glitch and then eventually wouldn't allow me to open it anymore, butttt from what I did manage to get through and then had a fellow reader fill me in on the remainder, it was no surprise that I was immediately taken aback by Chloe's writing. This was the very thing that I loved about Sunburn as well. She has such a talent for describing places and people in such a lyrical way. The pacing of this one was definitely slower/more fleshed out and the storyline was initially a bit difficult for me to follow due to the amount of characters, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. So excited to continue to follow Chloe's journey as an author! Huge thank you to Verve books and Chloe Michelle Howarth for giving me the opportunity to read this.

I was very excited for this book because I loved Sunburn. As soon as I could get the ARC, I grabbed it. Unfortunately, it didn't meet my expectations. The writing was beautiful, but the story felt too short and almost empty. The obsession storyline, which was the main focus in the marketing, felt rushed. As for Lillian, who seemed to be the foundation of the story, who was she? We never really found out. I wanted to know more, and she felt like a missed opportunity. Maybe it’s just me, but with so many different POVs crammed into such a short book, there wasn’t enough space to develop them properly. I wasn’t engaged, and I found myself getting bored. Sadly, I wouldn’t recommend this one.

Chloe Michelle Howarth’s Heap Earth Upon It is a moody, atmospheric novel set in 1960s rural Ireland. It explores family secrets, sapphic longing, and the lingering weight of the past.

The story follows the orphaned O’Leary siblings; Tom, Jack, Anna, and Peggy, as they seek a fresh start in Ballycrea. Though met with suspicion, they bond with neighbors Bill and Betty Nevan. But one siblings fixation on Betty soon stirs a quiet, dangerous tension.

I was so excited to receive the ARC of this book after falling in love with Sunburn, thank you NetGalley for the opportunity! Chloe’s writing is always so beautiful, and I truly admire the emotion she pours into every page.

Heap Earth Upon It really draws you in with its slow-burning suspense and emotional depth. At times, the pacing felt a little slow and the characters got a bit lost in their own thoughts, but honestly, that didn’t take away from the impact of the story for me. I found it moving and thought-provoking, and I’m already looking forward to experiencing it all over again on audiobook once it’s released! 😍

Devastating Gothic tragedy
—
Four orphaned siblings arrive at their new home in a rural village in Ireland, 1965, when things are not so different from how they have been for a hundred years, but some villagers have cars and phones. The O’Learys are a tight-lipped lot but as the villagers get to know them, more and more pieces fall into place, and before long, the danger that the O’Learys thought that they had escaped is back at the doorstep. Can they prevent a tragedy before it happens all over again?

Told in alternating first person chapters by the adult O’Learys and their new friends, the unfolding present and the unchangeable past collide as the secrets that the O’Learys hide come rushing to the fore and distance is no protection from base and carnal character. The ending is devastating, the atmosphere tragic throughout, and I loved it.

This was completely different to Sunburn, following mysterious siblings as they moved to a new area hiding secrets from their past.

I loved the atmosphere of this one, and was captured by the slow build up of tension and the constant unnerving feeling that something terrible was about to happen. The characters were so intriguing, with each sibling having their own story, alongside compelling side characters which really made this for me. It was a little bit slow at times, but I think the pace worked well with the narrative and I enjoyed being immersed in their world.

If you’re looking for something suspenseful and sapphic, then get this on your tbr. Thank you to Verve Books for the NetGalley arc!

Let me start with the caveat that Sunburn is one of my favourite novels and I guess part of me was kinda just hoping for Sunburn 2, which this is not. I realise that would be obvious to anyone who read the blurb, but I generally avoid them if I already know I’m going to read the book!

Described as a creeping story of sapphic obsession with gothic undertones, Heap Earth Upon It tells the story of orphaned siblings - Tom, Jack, Anna and Peggy - as they attempt to escape their troubled past and start over in the village of Ballycrea.

The comparison to Shirley Jackson is absolutely spot on and Howarth utilises a similar slow and claustrophobic unraveling that kept me on edge throughout.

The story is told through four POVs - the three older siblings and new neighbour Betty - and their conflicting stories and interpretations add to the growing sense of unease. I found Tom and Jack’s POVs harder to differentiate between, and was more engaged with Anna and Peggy’s.

Huge thanks to Verve and NetGalley for the eARC and shout out to Verve for utilising the Send to Kobo feature 🙏🏻

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my free digital ARC of this one!

Set in the 1960s in a tiny Irish town, Heap Earth Upon It follows four siblings running away from a sordid past, determined (obsessively so, for some) to make a new life for themselves and erase the mistakes of the past. But it’s harder than they expect to outrun their past, and apparently they haven’t learned from their mistakes.

Anything that’s described as creeping and sapphic will automatically grab my attention. I absolutely loved the depiction of queer desire in such a rural place in the 60s. Nothing is overt, but Howarth still does an excellent job of getting across that intense obsession. I picked up on a few unreliable bits and pieces from one of the characters, which were cleverly dropped in to highlight how distorted their world view was.

There are book club questions included at the back and one of them asks the reader to consider the different veins of queerness in the novel. The set up is for Anna’s sapphic obsession, but reading that question made me rethink Tom’s relationship with another man in the book. Initially I read it as issues stemming from pride and trying to find a new father figure (they are orphans), but it could also be seen through a queer lens.

I was a tiny bit disappointed that it wasn’t a tad darker - I think I may have set myself up for that, taking ‘creeping obsession’ to mean creepy lol. It’s bleak but I don’t think it’s particularly haunting or anything like that.

I’ll definitely be seeking out Sunburn, as the writing was gorgeous and the overall vibe was spot on.

Claustrophobic, intense, and impossible to put down — a standout from Howarth. Heap Earth Upon It is a gorgeously written sapphic gothic novel set in 1965 rural Ireland, following four siblings entangled in a haunting past. With sharp prose, shifting POVs, and a simmering sense of dread, it explores messy obsession, identity, and buried secrets. I cannot wait for the world to get their hands on this book.

Heap Earth Upon it is a gothic style tale of queer obsession and repression. It covers a lot of themes I really enjoy in literature including toxic family dynamics, shame/repression, mommy/daddy issues, and queer monstrosity.

It follows the O’Leary siblings who move to Ballycrea after leaving their hometown under tragic but mysterious circumstances. As the book progresses it becomes clear not everything is as it seems and snippets of what happened are gradually revealed.

The writing and pacing were both strong and the atmosphere felt very heavy and oppressive. It almost felt like a Shirley Jackson novel but with less overt horror. The siblings' voices did sound very similar and at times I had to go back and check who was talking, though it was clear they were all individuals with their own quirks and secrets.

I really enjoyed the exploration of how shame is a corrosive force, kind of similar to the Bee Sting in that way (but I enjoyed the writing here a lot more). I also liked how it wasn’t afraid to write an unsettling+unlikeable queer protagonist while still managing to challenge the reader’s expectations throughout the book.

I think this would be a great atmospheric read for the autumn.

a gorgeous sapphic gothic novel set in 1965 rural Ireland, which follows four siblings who are haunted by their past. I really enjoyed reading their stories unfold, with multiple POVs where you never really knew who to trust. chloe michelle howarth is an incredible writer - if you haven't read sunburn yet definitely do! - and it shines through in this slow & creeping story.

thanks to netgalley & verve books for an arc - out october 2025!<3

The novel opens with the O’Leary siblings – Tom, Jack, Anna, and Peggy – arriving in the village of Ballycrea on a pony cart. In 1965, rural Ireland is hardly a haven of wealth. However, even by these modest standards, the O’Learys are poor and desperately in need of settling down and earning a living—especially since Peggy is still a little girl. Thankfully, the Nevans – Bill and Betty – prosperous owners of a nearby farmstead, take the O’Learys under their wing. Bill offers Tom, the eldest, a job on the farm. Betty, who, now in her forties, has given up on having children, takes a liking to Peggy and assumes the role of surrogate mother to her, and a knowing companion to Anna. But Anna wants more than friendship from Betty and, as her obsession with the older woman deepens, dark secrets the O’Learys had hoped to bury begin to emerge.

Heap Earth Upon It is, in certain respects, a realist novel depicting the challenges of life in small-town Ireland in the 1960s through the psychology of its characters. However, Howarth harnesses Gothic tropes to great effect. The narrative is split between four characters – Tom, who casts himself as the responsible breadwinner, Jack, Anna, and Betty. All of the narrators, however, are unreliable. At best, they misunderstand themselves and others; at worst, they hide from or misrepresent the truth. The dark and claustrophobic atmosphere is charged with themes of Sapphic obsession and bursts of violence—real, remembered, or imagined. The ending, deliberately oblique, leaves it to the reader to decide what has truly happened.

This is an often painful novel. Painful, I hasten to clarify, not because it is poorly written, but, on the contrary, because it so powerfully evokes its characters’ yearning for love and acceptance—a thirst so intense it ultimately leads to tragedy.

https://endsoftheword.blogspot.com/2025/06/heap-earth-upon-it-chloe-michelle-howarth.html

I enjoyed sunburn, but her second novel is even better.

This follows four siblings who move to a rural Irish town after some mysterious event and the story is told by them (well three of them) as well as Betty from the town. The changing perspectives worked better than most books as they all felt real and distinctive, but seeing how they each perceive the others motivations really rounded them out. For small moments you saw how different characters had completely different perspectives which made them few like real people and not just a literary device.

The rural setting was well invoked. At the start when they roll into town on the back of cart with a pony and a chicken I wasn’t sure when we were but it was a nice way to introduce the unbalanced atmosphere that lies underneath everything.

I really felt for Jack and Peggy and while I didn’t like Tom or Anna, they were captivating.

Heap Earth Upon It is a dark, brooding novel which follows the O’Learys who have left their home village hoping to put a distance between themselves and the most recent of the tragedies that have struck their family. The siblings arrive on a horse drawn cart which feels anachronistic in 1965, even for rural Ireland, but the O’Learys have no money, reduced to sleeping on the floor of the rundown cottage they’ve rented in Ballycrea. There’s a good deal of curtain twitching but Tom, the eldest, sets about ingratiating himself, desperate for work and eager for acceptance, dragging Jack, Anna and even nine-year-old Peggy to a gathering they’ve been invited to. Tom gladhands his way around the party, introducing himself to Bill Nevan whose wife has already caught Anna’s eye. A prosperous, childless couple, Betty and Bill take the O’Learys into their lives, Betty longing to mother Peggy while Tom finds a father in Bill. Things look set for a new start, but the uneasiness provoked by Anna’s intense need for Betty’s attention is worsened by her increasingly sinister behaviour. Eventually, the secrets the family hoped were buried begin to surface.
We're kept guessing, as Howarth slowly reveals the events that overshadow the O’Learys through hints and implications in the siblings’ narratives as the lies Tom has spread around the village begin to unravel. The true denouement is left for readers to deduce, given that it’s delivered by the unreliable Tom. An atmospheric novel whose distinctly gothic overtones suits its publication date well.

Thank you Netgalley and Verve Books for this E-Arc!

Heap Earth Upon It is a dark and twisting tale of desire, loss and power. Howarth's writing is beautiful and the alternative perspectives throughout the novel really let her style shine. The narrative peaks and twists, leading up to a grand reveal. Which when when it eventually happened, I did find was rather anticlimactic. The narrative is driven by the unknown and Howarth does succesfully keep the interest alive after the reveal and this did make up for the anti-climax of it all. Ultimately, I found that Heap Earth Upon It was written incredibly well and had a level of intrigue that kept me reading, but I found that the story was lacking and could have been darker.

This book was absolutely incredible. Set in 1965 Ireland, Heap Earth Upon follows 4 siblings trying to escape a mysterious past that haunts each of them in different ways. It is character driven, intense in a slow, claustrophobic kind of way, and you don't know who or what to trust. I absolutely agree with the comparison to Rebecca - the mystery element almost works as a dual timeline story as we slowly learn about the past while we follow our characters struggle with their identities.

I have been looking for a book with genuinely messy lesbian obsession that does not shy away from the physicality of desire and acknowledgment of the body. No cutesy sapphic love here. This is all about raw, claustrophobic repression.

The chapters are short and even though I wanted to race to the end to find out what happened, I wanted to savour it. The prose was sharp and beautiful and had me hooked on every single word.

And then the ending! Fantastic. Immediately pre-ordering.

Very grateful for the opportunity to receive this arc and have the opportunity to provide honest feedback in exchange.

This was an absolute masterclass in obsession and family dynamics. It explores grief, obsession, and identity and how each character deals with it.

The story follows four siblings arriving to a new town for a fresh start following some sort of trauma that is alluded to through out the book. Through the use of multiple povs we see up close the impact of rivalries and secrets can have on a family.

The writing is rich and atmospheric and the setting has almost been used as a secondary character and is a crucial influence to the story. From the constant sky motif to religious reverence surrounding small gestures, this is Howarth at their best. Tension is tightly wound from the first line and slowly unravels throughout the story. Each word is deliberate. The ending is quite ambiguous and felt somewhat abrupt given that it felt we spent of all of time leading up to it, but that might appeal to others.

However, my favourite part of the story was the theme of obsession and how it related to each character. I don't want to go into to much detail and spoil things but for one character it was very obvious what their obsession was but with the others it is slightly more subtle but I really enjoyed how we saw this appear and how the other characters interacted with it.

Often with multiple povs the characters aren't fleshed out enough and I find myself only wanting to read one of them but with this all the voices were distinct and they felt different. I was however, lacking an emotional connection to them, they were interesting to read about but that was it for me.

I will say don't go into this expecting another book like Sunburn, this was more taut and showed a darker side to love and I really appreciate that author stepped away from that and chose to do something different.

Everyone should read this when it comes out October. I'm still thinking about it and I think upon a re-read I will pick up on even more of the subtleties.

eeeeesh. this novel has done it again. Chloe has done it again. this is a stunning portrayal of human. of relationship. of the humans she focus on we feel like we can hear their heart beating and what their thoughts are thinking.
i was immersed in this book, i was immersed in these characters and i need to read and continue to do so until i new what was going to happen to them all. i need to know that they were OK or at least if they werent i needed to know just this.
i havent read many authors, not any i can bring to mind right now at all infact, that can write her stories quite like Chloe has. i havent felt the depth for the story of characters within quite like it before. im not sure what it is. might it be magic? but its something i cant even describe in a way that would do it justice. because im not an author(my review clearly show this and why!) and so i dont have the prose to do so. but you know someone who would...Chloe thats who. she could write my review fantastically.
anyway. this book was brilliant but did we ever need to doubt that. i cannot wait to know what she has next. and i hope she goes to be smiling at her beautiful talented self.