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Under a Fur Coat
Not yet published
Expected 24 Sep 26I became obsessed with Seurasaari, with the curative properties I assigned to it in my desperation for an action, a ritual - something that could fix everything...
Vivienne, a photographer from Manchester, arrives at a boarding house on a tiny Finnish island hoping to rekindle her creativity and heal her broken heart. Instead, she misses her wife. Her camera hangs at her side unused. And her fellow guests keep inviting her into the forest.
Vivienne quickly grows close with Ilya, the affable caretaker, and Gagarin, a rebellious mycologist. And when Gagarin confesses she's searching for a mythical bracket fungus - the Bigfoot of mushrooms - Vivienne throws herself headfirst into the cause.
The days pass in a blur of snow and birch trees and vodka. Yet the longer Vivienne spends in the forest, the more it consumes her. Haunted by lost time, inexplicable acts of violence, and rising tensions among the guests, Vivienne begins to suspect there's something darker behind Gagarin's determination. Because ambition always requires sacrifice. She's just not sure whose...
SHORTLISTED FOR THE PFD QUEER FICTION PRIZE 2024
Vivienne, a photographer from Manchester, arrives at a boarding house on a tiny Finnish island hoping to rekindle her creativity and heal her broken heart. Instead, she misses her wife. Her camera hangs at her side unused. And her fellow guests keep inviting her into the forest.
Vivienne quickly grows close with Ilya, the affable caretaker, and Gagarin, a rebellious mycologist. And when Gagarin confesses she's searching for a mythical bracket fungus - the Bigfoot of mushrooms - Vivienne throws herself headfirst into the cause.
The days pass in a blur of snow and birch trees and vodka. Yet the longer Vivienne spends in the forest, the more it consumes her. Haunted by lost time, inexplicable acts of violence, and rising tensions among the guests, Vivienne begins to suspect there's something darker behind Gagarin's determination. Because ambition always requires sacrifice. She's just not sure whose...
SHORTLISTED FOR THE PFD QUEER FICTION PRIZE 2024
304 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication September 24, 2026
About the author
Sonya Vatomsky
10 books82 followersSonya Vatomsky is the author of Salt Is For Curing, a poetry collection. Their fiction has appeared in Brave New Weird: The Best New Weird Horror while their nonfiction has appeared in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and Smithsonian Magazine. In 2024, they were shortlisted for the PFD Queer Fiction Prize.
Sonya was born in the Soviet Union and raised in the United States, where they studied Linguistics and Finnish at the University of Washington. They live in Manchester, England.
Author photo by Seanen Middleton.
Sonya was born in the Soviet Union and raised in the United States, where they studied Linguistics and Finnish at the University of Washington. They live in Manchester, England.
Author photo by Seanen Middleton.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 10, 2026
2.5 stars,, I’m not saying I need to be spoon fed the plot but it could’ve been a little clearer
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Vivienne is a photographer, or at least that's how she used to identify. She's taking a break, staying at a boarding house on a Finnish island whilst she tried to recapture her creative inspiration.
The other guests become a found family - a house-full of strangers each with their own reasons for being there. Most notably Gagarin, an eccentric Russian woman on the search for a mythical mushroom. Magnetised, soon Vivienne is out there in the woods, searching with her.
Vatomsky perfectly captures that transitory period one finds themselves in as they try to make sense of their lives, when it feels like everything has quietly gone to shit without you realising. The visceral heartbreak, the slow process of repairing yourself. There's a dreamlike quality to their writing matched by the strange goings on in the forest. It reminded me a bit of Children in Paradise by Camilla Grudova, although the setting is completely different it's got that vibe of everyone being a bit dishevelled and unmoored together.
I'll read anything with some mushrooms in it but I especially I loved reading this. I was so invested in Vivienne's safety and sanity as UAFC reaches its fevered climax, tense and discombobulating and well-worth the journey it took to get there.
Also: Ilya ❤️
The other guests become a found family - a house-full of strangers each with their own reasons for being there. Most notably Gagarin, an eccentric Russian woman on the search for a mythical mushroom. Magnetised, soon Vivienne is out there in the woods, searching with her.
Vatomsky perfectly captures that transitory period one finds themselves in as they try to make sense of their lives, when it feels like everything has quietly gone to shit without you realising. The visceral heartbreak, the slow process of repairing yourself. There's a dreamlike quality to their writing matched by the strange goings on in the forest. It reminded me a bit of Children in Paradise by Camilla Grudova, although the setting is completely different it's got that vibe of everyone being a bit dishevelled and unmoored together.
I'll read anything with some mushrooms in it but I especially I loved reading this. I was so invested in Vivienne's safety and sanity as UAFC reaches its fevered climax, tense and discombobulating and well-worth the journey it took to get there.
Also: Ilya ❤️
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews