Lena, a photographer, takes up an offer to escape to a friends retreat on a remote Scottish island, where she meets like-minded new friends. But as birds start washing up on the beaches, and the spiritual teachings of the group become ever more consuming, Lena starts to doubt her desire to surrender her old self entirely.
Reminiscent of authors such as Shirley Jackson, Emma Cline and Sophie MacIntosh, as well as films like Midsommar and The Wickerman, this is a satirical exploration of the wellness industry, the human desire for escapism, and the ways in which we are all contagious, in the end.
The Colony offers a chilling, thought-provoking reflection on how easily utopias can become dystopias.
Christiana Spens is the author of several books including Shooting Hipsters: Rethinking Dissent in the Age of PR (Repeater Books, 2016), The Portrayal and Punishment of Terrorists in Western Media: Playing the Villain (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019) and The Fear (Repeater Books, 2023). She also writes regularly for publications such as The New Statesman, The Irish Times, Glamour, Stylist, Literary Hub, The London Magazine, Prospect and Studio International on culture, psychology and politics, and sometimes works as an illustrator for books by Granta, NYRB, and other publishers.
