Description

‘A glittering exploration of love’s many faces – Wild Ground aches with hard-won hope and bruised tenderness’ Colin Walsh, author of Kala

‘An intoxicating debut from a compelling new voice’ Adelle Stripe, author of Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile

When Neef was twelve, her mother moved them out of Leeds and into her boyfriend’s flat miles away. Resentful and unwelcome in their small Yorkshire town, Neef found solace in Danny, only a year older and an outsider himself. As they grew into young adults, they clung to an imagined future together, far away from the substance abuse, poverty and racism that held them and their families hostage.

Fifteen years later, Danny’s father tracks her down in London in search of his missing son. Forced to confront the decisions she made and the person she became, Neef is faced with the question that’s troubled her all these years: can she ever move on from her first love?

‘A heart-breaking tale of love and loss, and a thought-provoking examination of how our histories haunt us’ Jenna Clake, author of Disturbance

Publisher Review

A glittering exploration of love’s many faces – Wild Ground aches with hard-won hope and bruised tenderness — Colin Walsh, author of Kala Written in a fresh northern vernacular tinged with romanticism and regret, Wild Ground is an intoxicating debut from a compelling new voice — Adelle Stripe, author of Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile Wild Ground is a heart-breaking tale of love and loss, and as addictive as Normal People. But, more than that: a thought-provoking examination of how Whiteness pervades and causes harm, how our histories haunt us, and how dreams grow and wither. A propulsive, gut-wrenching read — Jenna Clake, author of Disturbance It’s incredible and I couldn’t put it down … Emily Usher’s writing is extraordinary — Carmen Marcus, author of How Saints Die Emily Usher is a wonderfully restrained and unfailingly compassionate storyteller, and she has written a deep and all-around beautiful debut novel. Wild Ground is a love story that captures the realities of being young and oppressed – yet hopeful and searching. It is honest and so touching as to be heartbreaking — Beth Raymer, author of Fireworks Every Night Wild Ground is a novel for anyone who remembers the intensity and vagaries of first love or has ever fought for survival against stacked odds. Emily Usher has written an aching coming-of-age story that is heartbreaking and profound, gorgeous and unforgettable about two teenagers’ struggle to thrive in a small English town. This book shimmers with longing. It beautifully encapsulates the powerlessness of adolescence against forces of poverty, discrimination, and addiction and the ways a lost first love can haunt someone forever — Mary Lowry, author of The Roxy Letters Reading this book is like holding a heartbeat in your hands. It’s bare, melodic, and thrums with a bold and aching pulse. I couldn’t look away from Neef and Danny, the untamed and sacrificial love they share in a violent world. This is a hypnotic story of both beauty and betrayal, one that will settle beneath your skin and set fire to your soul — Amy Jo Burns, author of Mercury Usher’s prose is electric – each character, place, and location surges with a gripping urgency and vitality. Her narrative world, however chilling, feels totally honest, alive, and exacting. Usher’s pacing, too, is remarkable; each turn is unexpected and yet wholly fitting, each transition between present and past seamless and ensnaring. Both harrowing and hopeful, a generative bildungsroman from an exciting debut novelist. * Kirkus reviews *