On Earth As It Is Beneath

Charlotte says about On Earth as is Beneath:
"A brutal and haunting novella, On Earth as It Is Beneath follows the final moments of a select few inmates as the penal colony they’re held within faces its end, and cruelty begins to outbalance justice. Maia’s writing is precise and unflinching in the face of the men's savagery, but still manages to reveal the fragile traces of tenderness and humanity left within it. Perfect for lovers of Cormac McCarthy and Elmore Leonard, with the insight and metaphor worthy of an International Booker shortlisted title."

 INTERNATIONAL BOOKER PRIZE SHORTLISTED 2026

On land where enslaved people were once tortured and murdered, the state built a penal colony in the wilderness, where inmates could be rehabilitated, but never escape. Now, decades later, and having only succeeded in trapping men, not changing them for the better, its operations are winding down. But in the prison’s waning days, a new horror is unleashed: every full-moon night, the inmates are released, the warden is armed with rifles, and the hunt begins. Every man plans his escape, not knowing if his end will come at the hands of a familiar face, or from the unknown dangers beyond the prison walls. Ana Paula Maia has once again delivered a bracing vision of our potential for violence, and our collective failure to account for the consequences of our social and political action, or inaction. No crime is committed out of view for this novelist, and her raw, brutal power enlists us all as witness.

Author: Maia, Ana Paula
Horror & ghost stories
Published on 12 August 2025 by Charco Press in the United Kingdom.
Paperback / softback | 112 pages, Not illustrated
198 x 132 x 11 | 134g