The Bearcat

An intimate psychological portrait inspired by the true story of a notorious cult leader.

Bearcat: a large, tree-dwelling mammal; 1920s slang for a fiery girl or woman.

1987. Family is everything to Anne. Our Messiah. And Anne demands everything from The Family; their loyalty, their money, even their children. In return, she promises existential comfort to lost and weary women. Because Anne knows how hard it is to build a family—and how easy it is to lose one.

1921. A child is born on a sticky summer evening. Our Anne. Her mother, Florence, is trapped at home with an indifferent husband and a relentlessly demanding newborn, struggling to reconcile motherhood and her shifting sense of self.

For both women, the past is for escaping, and love is impossible to trust. All they can hope is that their family will save them.

The Bearcat is a dark and nuanced exploration of longing, power and the inviolable grip of history.

Praise for The Bearcat

'A deft and lyrical exploration of the dark currents that run through family life. The Bearcat is a remarkable debut.' Stephanie Bishop

'As carefully controlled as it is mesmerising, Georgia Rose Phillips' debut upends expectations to give us a poignant double portrait of two women—one forgotten by history, the other destined for infamy—and the love and lack that made them.' Laura Elizabeth Woollett

'Georgia Rose Phillips is a talent' Amanda Lohrey