Bad Nature

De: Ariel Courage

Narrado por: Cia Court

Brought to you by Penguin.

What would killing him accomplish? Nothing, mostly.
Then again, neither would letting him live.

When Hester is diagnosed with cancer on her fortieth birthday, she knows immediately what she must do: abandon her possessions and drive to California to kill her estranged father. With no friends or family tying her to the life she’s built in New York City, she quits her wildly lucrative job in corporate law and sets off. She hasn’t made it far when she runs into John, an eco-activist in need of a ride to superfund sites where he documents environmental crimes. From five-star Midwestern hotels to cultish Southwestern compounds, the two slowly make their way across the country. But will the experiences they have along the way dissuade Hester from her final goal?

Ragingly singular and surprisingly moving, combining tragic intensity and pitch-black humour, Bad Nature is an incendiary debut novel. Part road trip, part revenge tale, part eco-thriller, it’s ultimately a deft examination of the futility of violence and the eternal possibility of redemption.

© Ariel Courage 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Reseñas de la Crítica

'Disarmingly dark and hilarious ... I found Hester an addictively readable narrator: shrewd, catty and vengeful.'

'Dark, funny, and completely unhinged, with moments of brutal tenderness.'

'Dark, aloof, disciplined – this novel is reminiscent of the best of Ottessa Moshfegh or Emma Cline.'

'Raw, intense, and absolutely mesmerising.'

'A rare gift; audacious, insane'

'So self-assured, so piercing. Unflinching and darkly funny, Bad Nature is a staggering debut'

'Savage and savvy... Bad Nature is one hell of a trip'

'If you like your humour with a hefty dose of nihilism, this one's for you'

'Ariel Courage's debut is a fork jabbed in the electric socket of America... akin to Bret Easton Ellis' "American Psycho"... It's deeply impressive, at times uncomfortable.'

Funny and moving, Bad Nature is a road-trip novel for the here and now, intent on mapping a way moving forward even when the end might seem to be nigh