A Sense of Occasion

by Brodie Crellin

A death in the (dysfunctional) family – can they hold it together long enough to organise the funeral?

'Crellin is an astonishing writer' DAISY JOHNSON

'At once shrewd and ethereal' CHRIS KRAUS

Mary’s death is bad news – for her daughter Patch, ex-partner Robin, and niece Jude.

It will mean a funeral. But Patch can barely keep track of her mother’s journey from the hospital to the mortuary, let alone host a wake in her childhood home.

Robin wants to support her, but instead of assuming the role of responsible father, he heads to his former the lay-by where he used to meet farmers for sex.

Jude’s on her way from Naples, worrying less about Patch, her estranged cousin, and more about whether there’s a medicinal bag of cocaine in the boot. She hasn’t told the family she’s en route. This way, any lingering acrimony will be forgotten, and Jude’s past behaviour will be forgiven.

Thrown together in Mary’s tiny house, each of them is trying to feel to grieve, atone, join in, be better. But they rarely have one another’s best interests at heart, and as the connections between them twist and contort, they lose sight of the rules and grasp towards anything that might make it all less painful.

Darkly funny, deeply entertaining, and intensely moving, A Sense of Occasion subverts and perverts your expectations to reveal the fractious desires that simmer beneath the surface of our lives.

'Sexy and intelligent' MERVE EMRE

'Explores love, desire, family, and dynamics of power, care and dependence with total honesty' HARRIET ARMSTRONG

'Immensely fun' LIZZY STEWART

Genres: Adult

Kindle Edition

Expected publication June 4, 2026

Reviews

[Polly Jenefer · Rating 4 out of 5]

To say this is a dysfunctional family is putting it mildly and despite all the characters being rather unlikeable with highly questionable take's on reality I really enjoyed the ride.
There's little plot as it's set over the days before and day of Mary's funeral but we follow Robin, Jude, Patch and have a few POV flashbacks from Mary as they prepare and ruminate on their current life's circumstances and relationships to one another.
The writing was unsettling and kinda gross at times but that all added to atmosphere of this unhinged little family. The dialogue was my favourite, it was chaotic and blunt and very amusing.
Strong themes of sexuality, gender identity, dysfunctional family dynamics, mental health and grief.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House UK Vintage for allowing me to read the ARC for an honest review.

[James B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley and Riverhead Books for the ebook. Did you ever see codependent young family members and wonder what their lives are like behind closed doors? If they’re like the characters in this novel, it might be better not to find out. But it is so entertaining to read a book about them. Jude, pretty, and from a much richer family, rules over her cousin Patch. It’s so unhealthy that Jude has run away to Naples, ostensibly to work on a new play, but really to get out of the apartment she shares with Patch in London. But when Patch’s mother dies, they both have to descend to a small, rural town in England and finally see if they can settle their differences or tear each other apart, both emotionally and physically. A fascinating and dangerous read.