Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Madam | 2021 | Phoebe Wynne | Buy |
| 2 | The Ruins | 2022 | Phoebe Wynne | Buy |
Phoebe Wynne has published two standalone novels that pair Gothic atmosphere with classical scholarship. Madam (2021) takes place at a remote Scottish girls’ school called Caldonbrae Hall, where a new teacher discovers that the institution’s centuries-old traditions come with a sinister cost. The isolated coastal setting and the school’s secretive culture give the book a claustrophobic intensity that builds steadily.
The Ruins (2022) moves to a sun-bleached Mediterranean setting, but the mood is no less unsettling. A woman visits a crumbling villa tied to her family history, and the mythology of the ancient world begins to press into her present-day reality. Both novels feature women who find themselves caught between modern expectations and much older forces. They are independent stories that can be read in any order, though readers who start with Madam will recognize the thematic threads that carry into The Ruins.