Delicate Condition

Psychological horror is a subgenre of the thriller/horror genres that uses a character’s mental state to create dread, unease, and tension. This subgenre most often focuses on characters who are uncertain or have paranoia and are in search of the truth or reality behind inexplicable events. This focus often results in a set structure: The psychological horror builds as the protagonist struggles to make sense of their situation, eventually peaking with a “twist” that reveals the truth. This twist aims to shock both the protagonist and the reader. Delicate Condition makes use of all of these elements. Anna spends the bulk of the narrative fighting to understand why someone wants to tamper with her pregnancy and why her pregnancy seems unnatural. The reveals from Olympia and Cora in the novel’s final chapters answer these questions while also unveiling a surprising and difficult new reality that Anna must decide how to react to.

As a subgenre, psychological horror has been pioneered by many female writers and filmmakers. Shirley Jackson, author of The Haunting of Hill House (1959) and We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1962), uses psychological horror to explore the psyches of women living at the edges—sometimes at the edges of society, sometimes at the edges of their own unexplored trauma.