Book Review: ‘Heap Earth Upon It’ By Chloe Michelle Howarth
Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Howarth was my introduction to sapphic novels, and it completely changed what I look for in that space. It wasn’t soft or idealized. It was sharp, uncomfortable, and honest about desire in a way that stuck with me. So when Heap Earth Upon It came out, I picked it up immediately. I knew I wanted more of how she writes women, longing, and the messiness that comes with both.
[Note: While I am reviewing this novel independently and honestly, it should be noted that it has been provided to me by Melville House for the purpose of this review. Warning: My review of Heap Earth Upon It contains some spoilers!]
A strong gothic narration in Chole Michelle Howarth’s novel
Set in rural Ireland in 1965, Heap Earth Upon It leans fully into the gothic, with a closed-in, slightly suffocating feeling running throughout the book. It follows four narrators: three of the oldest O’Leary siblings and Betty, the neighbor who becomes entangled in their lives. The siblings arrive in a new village after some unnamed scandal, trying to start over, but they bring everything with them anyway. The past is always right there under the surface, and the longer they stay, the more it starts to show.
There’s also this strong sapphic thread, mostly through Anna, that adds another layer of tension. It’s not soft or romantic. It’s obsessive, confusing, and shaped by a world where she doesn’t even have the language to understand what she’s feeling. That repression isn’t subtle either. It’s baked into the setting, into the expectations, into the way everyone watches each other.
What Chloe Michelle Howarth really nails is the narration. Every single perspective feels convincing while you’re in it. You read a chapter and think, okay, this is what’s actually happening, and then the next one shifts things just enough to make you doubt it. It’s not twisty in a plot-driven way. It’s more like you’re constantly recalibrating who you trust, and you never fully land anywhere.
Tom immediately reads as someone trying to carry everything. He wants to build a better life, keep the family together, and control the narrative of who they are now. And for a while, you almost want to believe him. That maybe the way he talks, the way he treats Peggy, the way he makes decisions for everyone, is coming from a good place. But the longer you sit with him, the harder it is to buy. There’s something off in the way he centers himself, the way he justifies things. I felt the ick every time his chapters came up, even when I could see what he thought he was doing.
Jack feels completely different. He’s grieving his girlfriend and their unborn child, and that grief is everywhere. It’s not loud, but it’s constant. He clings to Peggy, to whatever version of family he can still hold onto, while also starting to see the cracks in everything. He’s stuck between love, loyalty, and the realization that something isn’t right. You can feel how tired he is of carrying all of that.
Anna is the one who stayed with me the most. She’s written with this really raw tenderness that makes it hard to look away, even when she crosses into something uncomfortable. Her longing is intense, and yes, unhealthy at times, but it’s also coming from a place of having nowhere for it to go. In that setting, in that time, she doesn’t have the language or the permission to understand herself. So it turns inward and sideways and fixates. I kept rooting for her even when I knew she was losing herself in it.
Betty’s chapters shift things in a way I didn’t expect. Where Anna’s perspective feels romanticized, almost distorted by her own desire, Betty brings in something sharper, more grounded, sometimes even fearful. That contrast makes you question Anna all over again and heightens the sense that no one is fully reliable.
Heap Earth Upon It is the definition of messy in the best way possible
The atmosphere is heavy the entire time. Everything feels a little too quiet, a little too controlled. The village, the house, the family dynamic. It’s that kind of gothic where nothing huge has to happen for it to feel tense. It’s just people, secrets, and the pressure of everyone watching and not saying things out loud.
And the ending. I’m still mad about it. Not because it didn’t work, but because it hit something that feels way too familiar. The kind of outcome that isn’t shocking when you step back and look at history, at how often these dynamics play out the same way, especially when power, repression, and silence are involved. It’s frustrating because it feels inevitable, yet it still happens. I finished it and just sat there like… of course. Of course, that’s how this ends.
This is not a clean or easy book. The characters are messy, sometimes unlikable, and constantly making choices that will test you. If you don’t like unreliable narrators or morally complicated stories, this probably won’t be your thing. But if you’re into books that sit in that uncomfortable space and don’t try to fix it for you, this one absolutely delivers.
I’m doubling down on this, staying near the top of my list for 2026. It reminded me exactly why I picked up Sunburn in the first place, just with a little more bite this time.
Heap Earth Upon It by Chloe Michelle Howarth is available now from Melville House! Have you read this novel yet? What did you think? Share your thoughts on social media and tag @bsb.insider to continue the conversation!
Book Review: Never Mind the Happy by Marc Shaiman
