The Needfire is a gothic horror written by the Scottish duo MK Hardy, published by Solaris. A novel that blends together the traditional gothic motifs with more modern elements such as the sapphic slowburn romance, creating a fantastically written story with a dark atmosphere that plays into the backdrop of the Scottish landscape, topped by a perfect cast.

Norah Mackenzie, fleeing from the debts left by her alcoholic father, travels from Glasgow to the very north of Scotland; all in order to get married with Lord Alexander Barland, one of the men whose father owed money, who was really kind in his correspondence, despite being a bit cryptic. An opportunity to start with a marriage of convenience; however, all this hope is received with indifference by his new husband, almost a different man than the one she exchanged letters. Norah starts to be plagued by nightmares and strange dreams, and with Alexander acting weirdly, the state seems to be run by the enigmatic housekeeper, Gunn; a woman towards whom Norah finds herself pulled. With the villagers also being wary of Corrain House, Norah must discover what more is behind the state and reassure she's not losing her mind.

Characterization is part of what makes this novel so memorable. Norah is a great lead character, not totally innocent, fleeing from Glasgow to marry a man she doesn't know; at the end, coming to Corrain House is just the chance for a new life for her. Gunn is the other character that steals the scenario; a really enigmatic character who acts as the conductor thread for the plot, being necessary at many points. The attraction between these two will be a slowburn that also plays into the imbalance of the positions, slowly moving towards ignoring that in order to finally trust the other.

The setting is another of the highlights, creating a dark but also a bit decadent atmosphere at the center of Corrain House, also using the location to introduce more tension; a bit of a cautionary tale about the spoil of the natural resources can be read between lines, mashed together with Scottish myths.
The pacing is a bit too slow for my taste, especially because you could feel the characters moving too cautiously for what I would have expected; but it is true that is compensated with a superb development of the main duo.

The Needfire is a great sapphic gothic novel, a perfect choice if you want a highly atmospheric proposal with a bit of a modern touch; a debut that puts MK Hardy as a voice to continue following in the next years.