Whoever You Are, Honey

Praise

“The twin themes of women’s loneliness and desire are the timeless beating hearts of Olivia Gatwood’s debut novel, propped up by of-the-moment ruminations on queerness and artificial intelligence.”—Vogue, “The Best Books of 2024 So Far”

“This debut, written with traces of Steinbeck and The Stepford Wives, is a meditative novel about femininity, friendship, and aging. . . . An erotic thriller.”—The New York Times Book Review

“This dark debut novel explores the masks we wear as women.”—Betches, “Books to Read if You Love Sally Rooney and Being a Sad Literary Girlie”

“I am obsessed with Gatwood’s voice. . . . Her brilliant debut novel . . . looks at how the ‘beauty’ and/or functionality of the female body dictates its value, and as women, how do we shift the way we look at our own bodies when looking has been so programmed from birth? In the end, it’s about identity, loneliness, friendship, and how technology—whether it’s television or AI—figures into the equation.”—Elle, “Shelf Life: Jennifer Beals”

“A literary page-turner exploring questions of technology, gender, obedience and intimacies amongst women . . .”—Chicago Review of Books

“Perfect for sweltering summer days that stretch into steamy nights, Olivia Gatwood’s Whoever You Are, Honey feels like a fever dream for the AI age.”—People

“Gatwood made her name as a poet. And reading this novel, we can tell. The effect is a kind of suspended animation, in which we don’t know whether to feel spooked or sad or both.”—Alta Magazine

“Stunning . . . It’s a knockout.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Whoever You Are, Honey is a sensual, detail-rich, utterly immersive novel. So propulsive and atmospheric, and at times creepy, I never wanted to put it down.”—Jenny Mustard, YouTuber and author of Okay Days

“Whoever You Are, Honey reads like a thriller, but it’s also a tender and searching exploration of what it means to inhabit a female body.”—Kelly Link, author of The Book of Love

“Sharp, captivating, and apt—an intimate, pitch-perfect fable of the time, I immediately went back to the start.”—Yrsa Daley-Ward, author of The Terrible

“As lush and hypnotic as a dreampop album, this is an intoxicating debut about two women, each carrying a dark secret, who desire more than they’ve been allowed to want.”—Leigh Stein, author of Self Care

“Whoever You Are, Honey looks directly into the deep, dark depths of what makes us alive—and what sustains that life.”—Gabrielle Korn, author of Yours for the Taking

“Whoever You Are, Honey is a gripping, heartfelt novel—a moving exploration of unconventional friendships and the desire to be accepted and loved, not in spite of but because of our flaws.”—Kate Folk, author of Out There

“Whoever You Are, Honey is a brilliantly written exposé of the ubiquity and entanglement of the male and technological gazes, and the culture of loneliness and despondency they create.”—Ling Ling Huang, author of Natural Beauty

“The Stepford Wives for a new generation is finally here in this gripping, immersive, and uncanny novel.”—Jenny Fran Davis, author of Dykette