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My Body, My Book Club

Bodily Autonomy: Uniting Through Books

The Glass Woman cover

The Glass Woman — Alice McIlroy

Thu, 19 Nov 2026 · 6:30 pm

In collaboration with The Vavengers

The Vavengers

Upcoming Events

The Glass Woman

by Alice McIlroy

When you wake up without your memories, who can you trust, if you can't even trust yourself?

Iris Henderson wakes up in a hospital bed with no memory of how she got there. She is introduced to a husband she doesn't recognise and told she volunteered to have experimental AI technology placed in her brain. As she digs into her past, secrets emerge that could destroy everything she thought she knew about her life.

Shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey First Novel Dagger Award, The Glass Woman has been described as Black Mirror meets Before I Go to Sleep by way of Severance.

Buy This Book →

Alice McIlroy

Alice McIlroy started writing her debut, The Glass Woman, in 2017 out of concern for the impact unrestricted AI could have on privacy, identity and bodily autonomy. Published in 2024, it has been longlisted for the Stylist Prize for Feminist Fiction and the ILP John Creasey First Novel Dagger 2025. She is an activist for creators' rights and can be found @alicemcilroy_author.

Authors' Contingency Fund

In November we are featuring Authors' Contingency Fund, Provides emergency hardship grants to authors, illustrators, and translators facing financial crisis, including those whose livelihoods have been hit by the rise of AI.

Learn More About Authors' Contingency Fund →

Ready to Join Us?

"The Glass Woman"

by Alice McIlroy

Thursday, 19 November 2026

6:30pm to 7:30pm (UK Time)

Online Event — join from anywhere

Register for Free →

This event is free! If you'd like to support the cause, you can donate directly to this month's featured charity, Authors' Contingency Fund.

Donate to Authors' Contingency Fund →

Previous Books

About the Book Club

My Body, My Book Club aims to connect people and create communities. We read fiction books (with the odd memoir here and there too) that deal with different aspects of how we understand bodily autonomy and exemplify how we can get involved and support each other.

Issues such as gender-based violence, racism, homelessness, displacement, abortion, obstetric violence, and the rights of marginalised communities, like the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ groups, are just some of the topics we cover.

All opinions expressed during book club meetings are those of individuals and do not necessarily reflect those of My Body, My Book Club or the charities it supports.

How it Works

We know this is heavy stuff, but the book club hopes to foster empathy as well as raise awareness and question established narratives. Our main goal is to connect communities. So, for each session, we partner with a charity working with the subject we will be reading about in the novel, and we invite an expert on the topic to join our chat. Our events are completely free, and we encourage donations directly to the month's featured charity.

Too Busy to Read the Book?

We understand that people are busy and life happens – so please do join us even if you don't manage to finish the book in time. We will also always provide other ways in which you can get involved and learn more about the subject in the "Next Book" section, whether it's through a video or a blog post.

Our Guidelines

We want the book club to be a safe and welcoming environment for everyone. So, please be mindful of our guidelines:

  1. You (and every part of you!) are welcome and belong here
  2. Be as talkative or as quiet as you wish, no judgement
  3. Do come along even if you haven't finished the book
  4. Be respectful to everyone
  5. Try to be on time, as our sessions are fairly short
  6. Don't assume pronouns and please introduce yourself with your pronouns
  7. If sharing aspects of our discussion, please ask people for their permission
  8. Look after yourself: take breaks whenever you need them
  9. Keep in touch and feel free to share resources with everyone
  10. Take action: whether is googling a charity or telling someone about the book club

About the Host

Julia Martins profile picture

Dr Julia Martins is a historian of the body, an activist, and an unapologetic bookworm. She is an Activism Outreach Supporter with The Vavengers, a member of the Charity Committee of the FGM Education Project, and an editor at the Feminist Perspectives Collective.

She writes about gender history and history of medicine, and how history can inform contemporary feminism.

You can check out her YouTube channel Living History and her website, and follow her on TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram.

My Body, My Book Club was launched as part of her involvement in the Abortion Rights UK Activist Bootcamp.

Stay in Touch

Contact

Any questions or suggestions, feel free to email us at:

[email protected]

or find us on Instagram:

@mybodymybookclub