Reviewed by Twilight Sage Moon
Released: October 9, 2025
Content Warnings: Sexual assault, suicidal ideation, self-harm, physical and emotional abuse, homicide.
The use of bugs in horror has been used as a gross-out factor for so long, but more authors are twisting the use of them. Gemma Amor is one who did something truly spectacular with the use of ants in Itch! It had some atrocious moments, but the bugs were strategic and an essential aspect of the trauma portrayed in the book.
Grounded in folk-horror, Itch! follows Josie, a woman who has suffered emotional abuse at the hands of her father and both emotional and physical abuse by her ex-girlfriend. The novel travels back and forth in time to reveal Josie’s relationship with her father and her ex, as well as addresses her experience encountering the dead body of a woman: a moment that changes her life, and everything she thought she knew, forever.
Becoming infested by ants, Josie begins to unravel the truth behind this woman’s death, including the multiple deaths of other women. As she experiences continued trauma responses to what she endured with her father and her ex, the more the ants take over her body. There were scenes with bugs that were extreme, which the reader should be aware of, but they were essential to the story. They were used in such a way for Josie to come to grips with the trauma that lives within her, and the truth that finally comes out near the end of the book about the missing women.
Comparing trauma to being infested was a brilliant portrayal, and one that I relate to well. While traumatic scenes and mentions were incorporated throughout the book, they were not discussed in detail. Ultimately, this book was a feminist rage tale with a satisfying ending that does survivors justice.
Itch! by Gemma Amor is a novel that so many women, and any survivors of abuse, will find cathartic.
Twilight Sage Moon (They/Fae/Use My Name) is a horror critic and scholar, author, and mental health professional. Fae are the Founder and CEO of Releasing the Phoenix, a holistic LGBTQ+ mental health and wellness organization. As part of their work, they incorporate bibliotherapy to specialize in using horror to address trauma, grief and phobias, as well as erotica to help folx safely navigate their sexuality.
Sage has been involved in publishing since 2013 when their first novel was published. Throughout their time in the publishing world, fae have worked with traditional, independent, and self-published authors and publishers. Sage has extensive experience in publishing, editing, interior design, and marketing. This has given them a rare, multi-faceted viewpoint of the industry, and horror continues to be a solace through their chronic mental and physical health concerns.
Gemma Amor is a Bram Stoker, Shirley Jackson and British Fantasy Award Nominated horror author, illustrator, voice actor and podcaster, based in Bristol, in the UK. She was named one of the ‘Writers Shaping Horror’s Next Golden Age‘ by Esquire Magazine, and recently featured in Ellen Datlow’s prestigious ‘Best Horror of the Year’ anthology, Vol. 15 and 17.
She works with indie presses, self-publishes on Amazon and is published via traditional means (she considers herself a hybrid author for those reasons). She writes genre-fluid, emotional and character-driven horror, speculative and other genre fiction.