Xenobe Purvis Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Xenobe Purvis is a published Japanese author.

She was born in 1990 in Tokyo, Japan. While attending the University of Oxford, Xenobe Purvis read her share of English literature. She also attended the Royal Holloway, where she graduated with an MA in the field of creative writing.

Xenobe also was a part of the Emerging Writers Program at the London Library. Today she is not only an author but a literary researcher. She has had her essays featured in such publications as the Times Literary Supplement, the London Magazine, and more.

Her debut novel is titled The Hounding and was released for readers around the world to enjoy in 2025.

The Hounding is the debut novel from Xenobe Purvis. If you are a fan of The Virgin Suicides or The Crucible, you will likely enjoy this story that revolves around five sisters who are living in a small eighteenth century English village with neighbors who are convinced they are turning into dogs.

Even during the time before the rumors about the Mansfield girls started, this village is no stranger to strange events. Little Nettlebed has seen all types of things in the field of the uncanny, whether it is odd creatures that end up washing up on the riverbed or it is ravens who get together on the roofs of people who appear about to die.

Things escalate when the villagers claim that they have started to hear barking. One of them has even said that they have seen the Mansfield sisters turn into dogs before his eyes. These are allegations that cannot be proven, but for some reason they end up feeding a feeling of fear and fascination like nothing that Little Nettlebed has ever seen before.

Things are only complicated by the fact that the people who live in Little Nettlebed have not really liked the Mansfield girls overall. Some of them think that the girls are a little strange or odd, while others might go so far as to describe them as having a high opinion of themselves. Whatever the reason, the inhabitants of this place have always seemed to have a lot to say about the girls.

The various perspectives of the villagers are made clear, and it doesn’t appear that they are in any danger of changing their opinions on the girls. The belief in witchcraft in this area is going down, but they still carry that same avoidance of anything that is different.

All of the narratives may be different from each other, but they are all coming to the same result in terms of thought. The people of Little Nettlebed believe that something there isn’t right. Unfortunately, the sisters may end up being the ones who ultimately pay for this. Even if they have done absolutely nothing to deserve it.

The Hounding is a relevant novel, one that may be as important today as the days before it. Can the sisters avoid paying the price for the way that they are perceived by others? Does this place need a scapegoat, and is it safer to be a dog here than a young girl considered unusual? Read this book to find out!