Description

Book Synopsis
Over a five-year period, Martha Johnson murders her four children, one by one, in order to punish her husband when they argue, but Martha is no ordinary serial killer. She murders her children by using the bulk of her 250-pound body to suffocate them. Unlike other fictionalized true-crime novels, Underneath neither valorizes nor focuses on the specific acts of violence. Instead, it attempts to understand how feelings of powerlessness, the residue of trauma, and the need to find justice in a world that refuses to give a fat body justice finds its only respite through murder.

Trade Review

"In a word, wow! ... Underneath is spell-binding. You almost want to read it in one sitting but you can stop anywhere and come back to it." —Patch


"Beautiful sentences telling a dreadful, tragic tale of love, in its absence and its perverse, incomprehensible to normies, twisted shapes." —Expendable Mudge Muses Aloud


"A memorably chilling, compulsively engaging, deftly crafted and thought-provoking read from an author with a genuine flair for originality and the kind narrative driven storytelling is the foundation literary excellence, Underneath is especially recommended for the personal lists of mature readers and for community library Contemporary Crime Fiction collections." —Midwest Book Review


"Underneath is a haunting novel about the making of a serial killer." —Eileen Gonzalez, Forward Review

Underneath

    Product form

    £12.99

    Includes FREE delivery

    Order before 4pm today for delivery by Thu 25 Jun 2026.

    A Paperback / softback by Lily Hoang

    Out of stock


      View other formats and editions of Underneath by Lily Hoang

      Publisher: Red Hen Press
      Publication Date: 25/11/2021
      ISBN13: 9781636280042, 978-1636280042
      ISBN10: 1636280048

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      Over a five-year period, Martha Johnson murders her four children, one by one, in order to punish her husband when they argue, but Martha is no ordinary serial killer. She murders her children by using the bulk of her 250-pound body to suffocate them. Unlike other fictionalized true-crime novels, Underneath neither valorizes nor focuses on the specific acts of violence. Instead, it attempts to understand how feelings of powerlessness, the residue of trauma, and the need to find justice in a world that refuses to give a fat body justice finds its only respite through murder.

      Trade Review

      "In a word, wow! ... Underneath is spell-binding. You almost want to read it in one sitting but you can stop anywhere and come back to it." —Patch


      "Beautiful sentences telling a dreadful, tragic tale of love, in its absence and its perverse, incomprehensible to normies, twisted shapes." —Expendable Mudge Muses Aloud


      "A memorably chilling, compulsively engaging, deftly crafted and thought-provoking read from an author with a genuine flair for originality and the kind narrative driven storytelling is the foundation literary excellence, Underneath is especially recommended for the personal lists of mature readers and for community library Contemporary Crime Fiction collections." —Midwest Book Review


      "Underneath is a haunting novel about the making of a serial killer." —Eileen Gonzalez, Forward Review

      Recently viewed products

      © 2026 Book Curl

        • American Express
        • Apple Pay
        • Diners Club
        • Discover
        • Google Pay
        • Maestro
        • Mastercard
        • PayPal
        • Shop Pay
        • Union Pay
        • Visa

        Login

        Forgot your password?

        Don't have an account yet?
        Create account