Women are at the epicentre of the HIV epidemic in Malawi. Drawing upon original data from forty-four key-informant interviews, this article examines how the gendered construction of women's bodies places them at particular risk. Although the gender dimensions of HIV are recognized, the gendered structures of power that underscore the particular risk to women of infection are not fully understood, and the response fails to engage effectively with the gender context. This research contributes to the literature because the body is typically located within the private sphere, beyond the realms of intervention and analysis. Taboos surrounding the body, particularly the female body, act as a barrier to understanding and addressing women's embodied experiences that place them at risk. The body is the site of risk of HIV infection, and it is the site of where power is exercised and becomes real. Where HIV spreads along the gender fault lines of society, the analysis sheds light on how women's embodied experiences of power heighten their risk and provide the space to challenge them. Rather than imposing responses from the top down based on ‘best practice’, policy must be responsive to specific gender contexts.