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Female, Nude
Not yet published
Expected 12 Feb 26Sophie, a painter, is holidaying with friends in a stunning villa in Greece - her best friend Helena is shortly to be married, and this is the last time she and her friends will be together as single women. But life has treated them so differently since their university days, that Sophie is questioning everything about their friendship. Meanwhile her partner, Greg, is desperate for them to try for a baby, but she wants to devote herself to her art - and there are other, deeper forces, pulling the two of them in opposite directions.
In the course of the holiday, Sophie paints a nude portrait of her friend Alessia, and becomes involved in an intense affair with Ky, who lives and works on the island. Both the painting, and the affair, will challenge everything Sophie thinks she knows, about art, about motherhood, about sex - and about how and with whom she wants to spend the rest of her life.
In the course of the holiday, Sophie paints a nude portrait of her friend Alessia, and becomes involved in an intense affair with Ky, who lives and works on the island. Both the painting, and the affair, will challenge everything Sophie thinks she knows, about art, about motherhood, about sex - and about how and with whom she wants to spend the rest of her life.
- GenresSummer
303 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication February 12, 2026
1 person is currently reading
773 people want to read
About the author
Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett
6 books30 followersRhiannon Lucy Cosslett is a columnist, feature writer and editor for The Guardian newspaper. She is the author of two novels, one memoir, and a collection of her parenthood writing.
She was born in Islington, grew up in Wales, spent time living in France and Italy, and has now returned to her birthplace, where she lives with her husband, son, and Mackerel, her cat.
She was born in Islington, grew up in Wales, spent time living in France and Italy, and has now returned to her birthplace, where she lives with her husband, son, and Mackerel, her cat.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
September 1, 2025
*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.*
Female, Nude follows Sophie who is a painter on holiday with her friends in Greece. Her best friend, Helena is getting married soon so the girls are on holiday for a few days on their own until their partners arrive. However, friendships change as people get older and the dynamic between the women isn’t the same and Sophie is constantly questioning their friendship. Sophie’s partner Greg desperately wants a baby but Sophie wants to focus on her art. Before Greg arrives Sophie ends up having an affair with Ky who lives on the island and is close friends with Alessia who Sophie paints a nude portrait of. But the intense affair will make Sophie think about what she wants from life and her views on motherhood.
This whole book has a sensual and erotic feel to it and the atmosphere is electric. It really felt like I was in Greece experiencing the same events as Sophie. I found it easy to relate to Sophie and her views on motherhood and I think this has some very valid discussions on motherhood and autonomy. The writing was great and I flew through this book. This is incredibly readable and I loved the affair between Sophie and Ky. There was so much tension and chemistry as soon as they saw each other. This book also had Sophie’s opinions on different female painters and they are written as if Sophie is speaking to the artist. They were interesting and insightful. Those parts kind of reminded me of an essay by Zadie Smith on Celia Paul that is in her new essay collection, Dead and Alive. I really enjoyed this and I will be recommending this. This should be on everyone’s anticipated books for 2026.
Female, Nude follows Sophie who is a painter on holiday with her friends in Greece. Her best friend, Helena is getting married soon so the girls are on holiday for a few days on their own until their partners arrive. However, friendships change as people get older and the dynamic between the women isn’t the same and Sophie is constantly questioning their friendship. Sophie’s partner Greg desperately wants a baby but Sophie wants to focus on her art. Before Greg arrives Sophie ends up having an affair with Ky who lives on the island and is close friends with Alessia who Sophie paints a nude portrait of. But the intense affair will make Sophie think about what she wants from life and her views on motherhood.
This whole book has a sensual and erotic feel to it and the atmosphere is electric. It really felt like I was in Greece experiencing the same events as Sophie. I found it easy to relate to Sophie and her views on motherhood and I think this has some very valid discussions on motherhood and autonomy. The writing was great and I flew through this book. This is incredibly readable and I loved the affair between Sophie and Ky. There was so much tension and chemistry as soon as they saw each other. This book also had Sophie’s opinions on different female painters and they are written as if Sophie is speaking to the artist. They were interesting and insightful. Those parts kind of reminded me of an essay by Zadie Smith on Celia Paul that is in her new essay collection, Dead and Alive. I really enjoyed this and I will be recommending this. This should be on everyone’s anticipated books for 2026.
January 21, 2026
This book nearly made me hop on a flight to Greece to find a Greek man ... luckily I married one 😂
Female, Nude by Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett, is a sissling literacy fiction. Sophie, a painter, is on her best friend Helena’s hen do, on a Greek Island. The four woman are brought together for the last time as ‘singles’ with the men joining in five days’ time.
We follow her point of view as we count down the days and this was an intense spiral as she blows her whole life up.
There was so much packed in here, covering issues that many women in their 20s and 30s face.
She’s debating whether she wants to become a mother. She knows the responsibility of caring for another, through taking care of her disabled sister. She feels separate to the group, as they grew up in more privilege and I think issues around money and class are protrayed so well.
The book also explores different nude self portraits from artists, as our main character takes us back in time to different parts in her life when she saw them for the first time.
And of course I can’t not mention the affair!! Completely full of messy characters, I was hooked!! 👀
It was a whirlwind of emotions reading this. You might not agree with some of the things she does, but you understand her reasoning. I think it captures so well the battle between being a feminist, while falling into the trap of societies expectations around marriage and starting a family.
It’s messy, complicated, and thought provoking. I couldn’t stop thinking about it and think it’s a contender to be in my top books of this year!
It’s not perfect, but I was completely transported to another place while reading it and I was discussing it endlessly with my husband.
If you liked Hot Milk, you’ll love this!
Thanks to @tinder_press for a proof copy! It’s out in February 💕
“That painting of mine, I made it years ago, during a time when I was brimming with desire”
Female, Nude by Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett, is a sissling literacy fiction. Sophie, a painter, is on her best friend Helena’s hen do, on a Greek Island. The four woman are brought together for the last time as ‘singles’ with the men joining in five days’ time.
We follow her point of view as we count down the days and this was an intense spiral as she blows her whole life up.
There was so much packed in here, covering issues that many women in their 20s and 30s face.
She’s debating whether she wants to become a mother. She knows the responsibility of caring for another, through taking care of her disabled sister. She feels separate to the group, as they grew up in more privilege and I think issues around money and class are protrayed so well.
The book also explores different nude self portraits from artists, as our main character takes us back in time to different parts in her life when she saw them for the first time.
And of course I can’t not mention the affair!! Completely full of messy characters, I was hooked!! 👀
It was a whirlwind of emotions reading this. You might not agree with some of the things she does, but you understand her reasoning. I think it captures so well the battle between being a feminist, while falling into the trap of societies expectations around marriage and starting a family.
It’s messy, complicated, and thought provoking. I couldn’t stop thinking about it and think it’s a contender to be in my top books of this year!
It’s not perfect, but I was completely transported to another place while reading it and I was discussing it endlessly with my husband.
If you liked Hot Milk, you’ll love this!
Thanks to @tinder_press for a proof copy! It’s out in February 💕
“That painting of mine, I made it years ago, during a time when I was brimming with desire”
January 20, 2026
Female, Nude addresses so many issues on the minds of many women in their 20s and 30s: motherhood, body confidence, money. I love reading about imperfect women and this book was full of them, as well as interesting conversations and plot points around art and sex. One of my favourite things was learning about so many artists and artworks through main character Sophie’s reflections on the holiday that changed everything.
Full review here: https://cassidyiswriting.substack.com...
Thank you NetGalley and Tinder Press for the gifted ARC for review.
Full review here: https://cassidyiswriting.substack.com...
Thank you NetGalley and Tinder Press for the gifted ARC for review.
December 4, 2025
3.5 stars
Thanks to NetGalley and Tinder Press for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
This was not my usual kind of book and so I was somewhat apprehensive going into it.
It is a very poetic style of writing and storytelling which took some getting used to. It's like Rhiannon has tried to make sure every sentence was as beautiful as it can be before moving to the next, which isn't an outright negative, but it is a fine line between beautiful language and something distracting to the story.
I can't deny her ability to create a sense of space, place, and time, from the physical landscape and weather, to this idea of a group of friends inhabiting a space at the same time.
It's mainly set over a short space of time, which I thought was impressive because she's manged to make 300+ pages not feel too stretched out, like she's trying to fill the page rather than write organically.
Every so often, dotted about, we get small passages by various female artists, which seemed a bit clunky, but I enjoyed them nonetheless.
Not a lot actually happens, which is fine, I prefer books with well-written characters over plot anyway, and I think her characters are wonderful. Not always nice people, but they're layered, morally grey, and feel so real, and so I don't really mind that the plot is light.
It's still not a book I would have voluntarily picked off the shelf, but I did enjoy it on the whole, and so I will be broadening my mind when it comes to picking books out of my comfort zone.
I really enjoyed the exploration of friendship groups changing. You can have the same friend your whole life, but your friendship at school, university, work, as adults, when married, with children - they're completely different people at each stage, s are you, and I loved how Rhiannon has been honest here. That not all friendships are suitable for every stage of life.
I think the whole thing is a bit borderline uncomfortable. I found it okay, but it definitely has this erotic, sensual undercurrent that some readers may not enjoy, but that's really down to your own preference.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tinder Press for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
This was not my usual kind of book and so I was somewhat apprehensive going into it.
It is a very poetic style of writing and storytelling which took some getting used to. It's like Rhiannon has tried to make sure every sentence was as beautiful as it can be before moving to the next, which isn't an outright negative, but it is a fine line between beautiful language and something distracting to the story.
I can't deny her ability to create a sense of space, place, and time, from the physical landscape and weather, to this idea of a group of friends inhabiting a space at the same time.
It's mainly set over a short space of time, which I thought was impressive because she's manged to make 300+ pages not feel too stretched out, like she's trying to fill the page rather than write organically.
Every so often, dotted about, we get small passages by various female artists, which seemed a bit clunky, but I enjoyed them nonetheless.
Not a lot actually happens, which is fine, I prefer books with well-written characters over plot anyway, and I think her characters are wonderful. Not always nice people, but they're layered, morally grey, and feel so real, and so I don't really mind that the plot is light.
It's still not a book I would have voluntarily picked off the shelf, but I did enjoy it on the whole, and so I will be broadening my mind when it comes to picking books out of my comfort zone.
I really enjoyed the exploration of friendship groups changing. You can have the same friend your whole life, but your friendship at school, university, work, as adults, when married, with children - they're completely different people at each stage, s are you, and I loved how Rhiannon has been honest here. That not all friendships are suitable for every stage of life.
I think the whole thing is a bit borderline uncomfortable. I found it okay, but it definitely has this erotic, sensual undercurrent that some readers may not enjoy, but that's really down to your own preference.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Female, Nude is a sensual and affecting tale of lust, friendship, class, and the richness of women’s bodies in life and art.
Sophie, Helena, Iris, and Alessia are staying on a Greek island as a prelude to Helena’s wedding. After this first week their male partners will arrive. Sophie is ambivalent about this; her partner Greg wants a child, and she doesn’t.
She has known the women since university – earning a place with her art skills - but considers only Helena a true friend. Working-class among wealthier, middle-class high achievers, Sophie is sensitive to every glance and tone.
The free-spirited, beautiful Alessia asks Sophie to paint a nude portrait of her in the cool of one of the villa’s outbuildings, but she finds the experience unsettling: Alessia steers conversation into uncomfortable areas, and the spare grace of her body makes Sophie reflect negatively on her own fuller figure. Alessia further unnerves her by pushing her towards Ky, a handsome, older ex-lover.
I never know, when reading fine books like this, so firmly informed by women’s life experience, how objective a view I bring. They can generate revelatory empathy and awareness in me, but I sometimes suspect women readers may think, “yes, that checks out – so what?”
Though set in broadly contemporary times, Cosslett expands on the easy elegance of her writing by framing the novel as Sophie’s recollections years later, middle-aged, seriously ill, and with knowledge of how her life turns out. Her closeness to Ky becomes key to her future, surfacing tensions within the friendship group and the paucity and imbalance in her relationship with Greg.
Throughout, the older Sophie drops in brief biographies of female artists who created nude self-portraits, using their work and lives as a lens through which she can understand her own life and her time on the island.
I liked Sophie a lot. She’s a convincingly flawed character, inconsistent and unsure, discerning the shape of her life only as it nears its end, and found the novel beguiling, sexy, and poignant.
Sophie, Helena, Iris, and Alessia are staying on a Greek island as a prelude to Helena’s wedding. After this first week their male partners will arrive. Sophie is ambivalent about this; her partner Greg wants a child, and she doesn’t.
She has known the women since university – earning a place with her art skills - but considers only Helena a true friend. Working-class among wealthier, middle-class high achievers, Sophie is sensitive to every glance and tone.
The free-spirited, beautiful Alessia asks Sophie to paint a nude portrait of her in the cool of one of the villa’s outbuildings, but she finds the experience unsettling: Alessia steers conversation into uncomfortable areas, and the spare grace of her body makes Sophie reflect negatively on her own fuller figure. Alessia further unnerves her by pushing her towards Ky, a handsome, older ex-lover.
I never know, when reading fine books like this, so firmly informed by women’s life experience, how objective a view I bring. They can generate revelatory empathy and awareness in me, but I sometimes suspect women readers may think, “yes, that checks out – so what?”
Though set in broadly contemporary times, Cosslett expands on the easy elegance of her writing by framing the novel as Sophie’s recollections years later, middle-aged, seriously ill, and with knowledge of how her life turns out. Her closeness to Ky becomes key to her future, surfacing tensions within the friendship group and the paucity and imbalance in her relationship with Greg.
Throughout, the older Sophie drops in brief biographies of female artists who created nude self-portraits, using their work and lives as a lens through which she can understand her own life and her time on the island.
I liked Sophie a lot. She’s a convincingly flawed character, inconsistent and unsure, discerning the shape of her life only as it nears its end, and found the novel beguiling, sexy, and poignant.
January 9, 2026
“I lamented female objectification, and would never view a life model this way, yet outside of the studio, I looked at women more ruthlessly than most men ever would.”
Let me tell you about this book - it’s incredible literary fiction! Initially I was a bit apprehensive and not sure about it. The writing felt a little dry and there were letter style paragraphs that I found a tad confusing. After a while they made more sense and actually were really interesting.
And I was completely hooked and absorbed in the story. I couldn’t get back to reading it quick enough! Absolutely devoured it. It’s one of those books that proved me wrong and got better the more I read.
It’s unapologetic, raw, thought provoking, and provocative. The characters are messy, it’s atmospheric almost like a thriller, there’s a real honesty here that I appreciated.
It’s a book about so many things; Feminism, betrayal, friendship, social construct, class, sex, lust, motherhood, choice, art, love and one hot Greek summer holiday with consequences.
I don’t know much about art but it was really interesting reading about female artists and their paintings as well as personal histories. The letter/diary passages didn’t always fully work for me but some of them were really very interesting. I wish I could have read this as a physical copy as I wanted to go back to reread parts as I was getting further into the story.
It’s not a perfect book but it’s a book that I think will stay with me for a long time and even end up on my top reads of the year list. I can see this being a really good beach read, it really transports you to that hot summer with delicious Greek food! But don’t be fooled, it packs a punch and will have you thinking.
I highly recommend!
4.5 stars
Let me tell you about this book - it’s incredible literary fiction! Initially I was a bit apprehensive and not sure about it. The writing felt a little dry and there were letter style paragraphs that I found a tad confusing. After a while they made more sense and actually were really interesting.
And I was completely hooked and absorbed in the story. I couldn’t get back to reading it quick enough! Absolutely devoured it. It’s one of those books that proved me wrong and got better the more I read.
It’s unapologetic, raw, thought provoking, and provocative. The characters are messy, it’s atmospheric almost like a thriller, there’s a real honesty here that I appreciated.
It’s a book about so many things; Feminism, betrayal, friendship, social construct, class, sex, lust, motherhood, choice, art, love and one hot Greek summer holiday with consequences.
I don’t know much about art but it was really interesting reading about female artists and their paintings as well as personal histories. The letter/diary passages didn’t always fully work for me but some of them were really very interesting. I wish I could have read this as a physical copy as I wanted to go back to reread parts as I was getting further into the story.
It’s not a perfect book but it’s a book that I think will stay with me for a long time and even end up on my top reads of the year list. I can see this being a really good beach read, it really transports you to that hot summer with delicious Greek food! But don’t be fooled, it packs a punch and will have you thinking.
I highly recommend!
4.5 stars
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
review to come following speaking with author
Review of advance copy
Found this to be cringe alert
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews