The Axeman’s Carnival

“The Axeman’s Carnival is remarkable, brilliant, a classic in the making.”’ - Rachael King“The Axeman’s Carnival is a compulsive read and flat-out brilliant.”’ - Elizabeth Knox’“One of our very best novelists knocks it out of the park.”’ - New Zealand Herald (Book of the Year)“Chidgey’s writing is masterful, and the underlying sense of dread as the story unfolds is shot through with humour and humanity. The Axeman’s Carnival is unique: poetic, profound and a powerfully compelling read from start to finish.”’ - Judges’ comments, Ockham NZ Book Awards 2023

Catherine Chidgey is an award-winning and bestselling New Zealand novelist and short-story writer. Her first novel, In a Fishbone Church, won the Betty Trask Award. Golden Deeds was Time Out’s book of the year, a Best Book in the LA Times Book Review and a Notable Book in the New York Times Book Review. Her novel Remote Sympathy was shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award and longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, and her most recent novel, The Axeman’s Carnival, was the winner of the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction at the 2023 Ockham NZ Book Awards.