Agonist

by Udith Dematagoda

A feverish confrontation with the internet as digital palimpsest, a fragmented discourse upon its banal diabolical passions; hatred, humour, cruelty, obscenity, lust, and poetry - often absurd, sometimes sublime. 'Agonist' speaks to the maddening anomie of the technological present, teetering on the spectral boundary between tedium and inspiration, image and text, contingent and absolute... framed by our tenuous presence against the all-encompassing void.

Genres: Contemporary

200 pages, Paperback

Published May 31, 2024

Reviews

[Paul Fulcher · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have endured this torture wheel, drank of its poison, consumed all of its sins, and vomited them upon the page.

Agonist by Udith Dematagoda is the December 2025 book from the brilliant Republic of Consciousness Book of the Month club, which raises funds that support the UKs most exciting annual book prize, the Queen Mary Small Press Fiction Prize, as well as showcasing a collection of books from the vibrant small independent press scene.

The novel is published by Hyperidean Press, who are 'interested in writing that is thematically and formally innovative, speculative, unpredictably transgressive', a press co-founded by the author.

"Hyperidean Press is dedicated to publishing experimental literary fiction.

We aim to discover and promote writing that recaptures something of the febrile vitality of the early twentieth century avant-gardes. We believe original work which reflects that impulse to explore the variegated experiences of modern life, from the abject to the sublime, still exists and is waiting to be discovered.

A literary culture which relies too heavily on recycling, regurgitation and pandering is worthless. This comes close to describing the contemporary moment, where the majority of the publishing eco-system is orientated towards producing deterministic narratives which readers can easily consume - and with which they can readily identify. There is an unmistakable infantilism inculcated by contemporary culture, evident in every facet of cultural life, and this is no doubt exacerbated by pervasive social atomisation and technological alienation.

Our project may, in the context of this generalized and perhaps insurmountable decline, be a small gesture - but it is nonetheless a sincere one. We propose that the bewildering and perturbing culture that we are living (and enduring) provides the perfect raw materials for new forms of literary production and imagination. We’re interested in writing that is thematically and formally innovative, speculative, unpredictably transgressive, and attempts to explore the world as it is, or as it may become. Above all, we want writing that is provocative and interesting.

Our publishing model is non-profit and is solely driven by a desire to disseminate challenging new work to the most receptive readers."

The novel's blurb reads: “A feverish confrontation with the internet as digital palimpsest, a fragmented discourse upon its banal diabolical passions; hatred, humour, cruelty, obscenity, lust and poetry - often absurd, sometimes sublime. AGONIST speaks to the maddening anomie of the technological present, teetering on the spectral boundary between tedium and inspiration, image and text, contingent and absolute…framed by our tenuous presence against the all-encompassing void.”

And this is a very odd read - a far more transgressive (at times, rather crudely so) version of Patricia Lockwood's No One is Talking About This - and not one I really appreciated.

wait what...

omg I can't believe you're questioning my journalistic integrity by accusing me of using brainyquote that's so sexist I absolutely will not issue a clarification because that is so not where I found that line by this obscure virtually unknown but definitely feminist soviet female cosmonaut which you claim is actually her quoting a famous line from a poem by Vladimir (mad shagger) Mayakovsky

The author's Substack on 'contemporary tragic archetypes' - a key theme of the first part of the work - here's the E-girl: https://udith.substack.com/p/the-e-girl

Reviews of the work (the first closest to my experience, the others more appreciative)

https://metropolitanreview.com/stalki...

https://www.full-stop.net/2025/07/14/...

https://open.substack.com/pub/grandho...

https://www.decentralizedfiction.com/...

[Adrian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a strong suspicion this book was trying to annoy me as much as possible, but can’t be sure

[Daniel Quinn · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Out of the nothingness, which preceded any form of Reason or End (Telos?) Nothing is the origin of the world, and the ultimate sum of all of all these accumulations will amount to nothing… streams falling parallel to each other within a void… but this is no reason to despair… because out of this nothingness something will take hold… as it has always taken hold… the swerve will come eventually, the collision is inevitable, and we know not what it will bring.”

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Idk... Another internet novel... I haven't found one yet which impressed me. Maybe because it's too challenging or maybe because it's impossible, everything in print feels dated when trying to root itself in the internet the second it's put to paper. I liked this text's experimental structure but I struggled to understand its thesis. Its concern seems partly to be about aesthetics in the digital age and partly our relations with one another and ourselves in this context, but even those I'm not certain on the meaning exposed or explored in the book. Interesting and mildly provocative but not moving.

[John Pistelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Please read my review here: https://grandhotelabyss.substack.com/...

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Agonist is an internet novel: The book comprises of a series of posts that we experience : these range from rants by keyboard warriors, woke posts and a chat. There’s a couple of essays as well.

It’s an experimental work but playful.