On the surface, Lily’s life looks idyllic but it soon becomes clear that it’s far from that, revealed to us through her unique coping techniques, including the safe space she creates in her attic bedroom: 'Here’s where I keep me, in this hole under the floorboards.' This book does deal with the subject of abuse and trauma, and although the subjects are covered with great care and obvious research this may be a trigger for some readers. King delves into toxic family ties and intergenerational trauma in her hypnotic debut …[A] perfect blendof psychological thriller and coming-of-age. This author is off to a great start.”

However, at its peak, I felt that the author came just shy of emotionally manipulating the reader. Any more abuse and it would have felt gratuitous, in my opinion. However, the foundations of their relationship are crumbling and we’re right there with Lily as she finds out exactly why… Beautiful, disturbing, impossible to put down. Bad Fruit heralds a seriously impressive new talent in Ella King’ CHRIS WHITAKER Bad Fruit is a truly memorable debut novel. A cleverly layered story of inherited trauma, a complex and damaged family dynamic, identity, trust, growth and a young woman understanding that the hardest thing she can do might just be the thing that saves her.

Debut author King skillfully brings to light the layered, deeply complex machinations that lurk below the surface in families and confer the fragile impression of normalcy; this family’s crosshairs of obligation, love, and resentment, too, are never oversimplified. May is especially captivating: a veritable tyrant who’s also full of sympathetic, deeply human insecurities. […] Layered, variable, and, like spoiled orange juice, sometimes complicatedly bitter.” At once an addictive thriller with a mystery at its heart and an erudite reflection on the challenges unique to a multiracial family, this is an ambitious debut from a writer to watch.” Just graduated from high school and waiting to start college at Oxford, Lily lives under the scrutiny of her volatile Singaporean mother, May, and is unable to find kinship with her elusive British father, Charlie. When May suspects that Charlie is having an affair, there’s only one thing that calms May down: a glass of perfectly spoiled orange juice served by Lily, who must always taste it first to make sure it’s just right. This story is about one of the most dysfunctional and toxic families it would ever be your misfortune to meet. Let’s meet the family:

The writing was just okay—a lil too try hard in some areas, but damn she nailed that plot and the ending. I'm glad it was a positive ending. I don't think I could've taken any more sadness tbh. And I loved how the author included two characters that actually cared and helped. You need people outside of your situation to get you out the other side. the premise was interesting and the novel started off strong. it hooked me from the very first line and i was so intrigued by the story that i read the first act in one sitting. the writing was good, too, and the story was executed well. Best book I have read in a long long time. Intelligently written, really well paced. I devoured this’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A compelling debut that fizzes with tension from start to finish, blending the subtle erudition of literary fiction with the drama and suspense of the very best thrillers. Masterful in its evocation of the complexity of mother-daughter relationships, this is a darkly fascinating, tightly plotted narrative from a writer to watch.”Bad Fruit occupies that liminal space between psychological thriller and horror,beautifully written and incredibly disturbing. In thislushly poisonous tale, we follow a teenage girl on the cusp of freedom from her tyrannical mother. Things take a turn towards the supernatural when she gains access to intergenerational memories and begins to finally understand her family’s strange behavior. Perfect for those who enjoyed Natsuo Kirino’s underrated mishmash of thriller and body horror, Grotesque.“ Bad Fruit is a beautiful collision of mothers and daughters, human darkness and human kindness, truth and lies, remembering and forgetting, trauma and healing.”

Helena Lee, editor of East Side Voices: Essays Celebrating East & Southeast Asian Identity in BritainOur main character Lily is on the brink of attending her dream college in the fall. She only has two remaining months to survive her mother’s moods and catering to her demands. She wants and needs to get away! In a debut whose drama and suspense are worthy of a thriller, Lily manages her mother’s erratic behavior, often consoling her with a glass of her favorite drink: spoiled juice.” The story also sees Lily develop a friendship with an older man, Lewis, who lives near her. On paper, this is the dangerous relationship but Ella King subverts what is expected when it comes this, heightening the impact of Lily’s relationships with her family. Beautiful, disturbing, impossible to put down. Bad Fruit heralds a seriously impressive new talent in Ella King.”