The Blight

Emma Cline

Original publication

2026

Average rating

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Total reads logged

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Opening Excerpt

From the story

You weighed the future anger of others against the present trouble, and then you pretty much said, O.K. Kick the can down the road.

Story Vibe & Style Profile

Literary Dimensions
Emotional Weight 3.5 / 5

Bittersweet

Narrative Pacing 1.8 / 5

Contemplative

Literary Style 1.6 / 5

Direct & Minimalist

Speculative / Reality 2.6 / 5

Realistic / Mimetic

Appearances

About the Author

Emma Cline is an American writer and novelist from California. She published her first novel, The Girls, in 2016, to positive reviews. The book was shortlisted for the John Leonard Prize from the National Book Critics Circle and the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. Her story collection, Daddy, was published in 2020, and her second novel, The Guest, was published in 2023. Her stories have been published in The New Yorker, Tin House, Granta, and The Paris Review. In 2017, Cline was named one of Granta's Best of Young American Novelists, and Forbes named her one of their "30 Under 30 in Media". She is a recipient of the Plimpton Prize and was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship.

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