Elspeth Wilson

@elspethwrites.bsky.social

5343 Followers 374 Following

Writer, poet and guinea pig fosterer. These Mortal Bodies, my debut about sisterhood, girlhood and obsession, is out now with Simon and Schuster 🦇. https://linktr.ee/elspethwrites

A girl in a white dress stands in a pond surrounded by reeds. She is against a backdrop of trees and gothic architecture. The book is These Mortal Bodies by Elspeth Wilson and the font is bright green.
'A compelling journey into the power of female friendship, obsession and rituals that lingers longer after you finish' Celia Silvani, author of Baby Teeth
Writing Friendship, Online, 11th June 7-8.30pm Friendships can define our lives, in ways both light and dark, but often they aren't centred in art or written about as much as other kinds of love. To attend the workshop and explore writing about friendship, just pre-order a copy of These Mortal Bodies in any form and get in touch with your proof or purchase!
A white femme person with long dark blonde hair stands in front of a book case. She is wearing a pink gingham dress and holding up a dark pink book called These Mortal Bodies by Elspeth Wilson. They are smiling.
A pink book cover with gothic architecture and white birds. The book is These Mortal Bodies by Elspeth Wilson. It is coming 17th July 2025.
‘Builds tension and atmosphere with a quiet creepiness as it hurtles towards a shocking conclusion. It’s refreshing to have read about a protagonist with neurodivergence where it’s portrayed without cliché and with bold authenticity’ Chris Bridges, author of Sick to Death ‘A delicious coming of age story with a dark academia twist... Gripping and beautifully told, Elspeth Wilson has breathed life into her characters that will linger long after the final page’ Laura Elliott, author of Awakened ‘This book is peak dark academia’ Reader review ‘Absolutely brilliant’ Reader review ‘An enticing and unsettling look at how much we’re willing to sacrifice for the sake of belonging’ Reader review
A pink book cover with a black gothic building. It is These Mortal Bodies by Elspeth Wilson. There is white text underneath on a pink background saying Coming 17th July 2025.
‘This book is peak dark academia’ Reader review ‘Absolutely brilliant’ Reader review ‘An enticing and unsettling look at how much we’re willing to sacrifice for the sake of belonging’ Reader review ‘Engaging, dark and twisty’ Reader review ‘A mystery of local witch trails and the introduction of women accessing academia and the way this may all be intertwined with the societies we’ve met is truly mindblowingly out of this world’ Reader review ‘Enthralling, engaging and perfect for an autumnal read’ Reader review ‘A dark academia novel that blends detail about Oxbridge with invented history of women accused of witchcraft, and blurs the lines between traditions and rituals, power and mysticism’ Reader review ‘Explores the murky waters of ‘sisterhood’ and questions whether the character’s relationships are virtuous, treacherous, toxic or a mix…. a page turner’ Reader review ‘As an avid dark academia reader, this novel ticked many of my boxes… I was hooked’ Reader review
A white person with dark blond hair and gold rimmed glasses wearing a pink gingham dress. They are holding up a postcard which is bright pink and says 'These Mortal Bodies' in white text.
I’m ready to be part of something bigger, I told myself, whispering the words over and over, visualizing myself at the centre of things, never alone again. Leaving behind her childhood in coastal Scotland, neurodivergent Ivy Graveson arrives at a prestigious university and throws herself into the deep end of life on campus. Though her fellow students all seem to come from money and to have known each other their whole lives, outsider Ivy is determined to belong. She embraces the world of secret societies, and as she discovers the legacy of her college, the parallels between its past and her present become striking. Because however hard she tries to ignore it, Ivy has always felt one with water and her own personal talisman, a heron, is never far away. In just one life-changing year in these hallowed halls, Ivy will have to decide how much sisterhood means to her and how far she’ll go to become the person she was destined to be. A richly atmospheric campus novel perfect for fans of The Secret History and dark academia, These Mortal Bodies is an intoxicating story of obsession, infatuation and toxic friendship in the world of the elites, where rules are made to be broken.
A picture of a poem that reads: 60% OF BISEXUAL PEOPLE ARE IN PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS AT ANY ONE TIME The scalloped edge of the bra means the Roman sun burns my skin into a wave pattern. Once, we were on the beach we had made from the sandbox in your garden. Once, your boobs sat in this bra, not quite filling it, an electric gap between you and the lace. The lawn had been mowed, sweet smell escaping. We tried each other out for size, my pasty flesh spilling out of your bikini top as we sat in the mosaic sun of your patio. Your aunt inside the house, hoping its tidy perfection would rub off on her mind. Your father, trampling across the grass cuttings, leaving upon seeing the sight of us, declaring he didn’t want a heart attack at forty. Free of those oppressive white walls, we laughed and laughed, our torsos shaped around each other like cuttings bent for a trellis. Now, my burn still aches with the touch of you, my skin less hot from the sun than when your fingers left their mark upon it
A white person in a white dress with long dark blonde hair stands in an autumnal wood with their back to the camera.