Sophie Mackintosh

Calla knows how the lottery works. Everyone does. On the day of your first bleed, you report to the station to learn what kind of woman you will be. A white ticket grants you children. A blue ticket grants you freedom. You are relieved of the terrible burden of choice. And, once you've taken your ticket, there is no going back. But what if the life you're given is the wrong one?

Elodie is the baker's wife - a plain unremarkable person largely ignored by her husband and everyone else.

One day a charismatic new couple appear in town - the ambassador and his sharp-toothed wife Violet - and Elodie quickly falls under their spell. All summer long she stalks them through the shining streets.

Meanwhile beneath the tranquil surface of daily life strange things are happening. Six horses are found dead in a sun-drenched field laid out neatly on the ground like an offering. Widows see their lost husbands walking up the river in the night coming back to claim them. A teenage boy throws himself into the bonfire at the midsummer feast. A dark intoxication is spreading through the town and when Elodie finally understands her role in it, it will be too late to stop.