quippe | Entries tagged with t. kingfisher

The Blurb On The Back:

When Mouse’s dad asks her to clean out her dead grandmother’s house, she says yes. After all, how bad could it be?

Answer: pretty bad. Grandma was a hoarder, and her house is stuffed with useless rubbish. That would be horrific enough, but there’s more - Mouse stumbles across her step-grandfather’s journal, which at first seems to be filled with nonsensical rants … until Mouse encounters some of the terrifying things he described for herself.

Alone in the woods with her dog, Mouse finds herself face to face with a series of impossible terrors - because sometimes the things that go bump in the night are real, and they’re looking for you. And if she doesn’t face them head on, she might not survive to tell the tale.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

This standalone horror novel from T Kingfisher (aka Ursula Vernon) is a slow burn that steadily racks up tension and mystery over what is out in the woods. Mouse’s great conversational narration, which editorialises what’s happening and her attempts to rationalise it, enhances the creepiness but the final quarter is quite rushed and anti-climactical and I wanted more Foxy who is a great sidekick with a smart mouth and a pragmatic attitude.

Thanks to Titan Books for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Young Rhea is a miller’s daughter of low birth, so she is understandably surprised when a mysterious nobleman, Lord Crevan, shows up on her doorstep and proposes marriage. Since commoners don’t turn down lords – no matter how sinister they may seem – Rhea is forced to agree to the engagement.

Lord Crevan demands that Rhea visit his remote manor before their wedding. Upon arrival, she discovers that not only was her betrothed married six times before, but his previous wives are all imprisoned in his enchanted castle. Determined not to share their same fate, Rhea asserts her desire for freedom. In answer, Lord Crevan gives Rhea a series of magical tasks to complete, with the threat “Come back before dawn, or else I’ll marry you.”

With time running out and each task more dangerous and bizarre than the last, Rhea must use her resourcefulness, compassion, and bravery to rally the other wives and defeat the sorcerer before he binds her to him forever.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

T Kingfisher (a pseudonym for Ursula Vernon) has written a clever fantasy coming-of-age tale with strong female characters and a whimsical sense of humour that offsets the dark imagery. Rhea is an intriguing main character – resourceful and self aware, she’s resilient without being unbelievable and I liked the different relationships she has with Maria (who lost her magic to Crevan), Sylvie (who lost her sight) and the cruel Ingeth (who lost her voice). The fantasy elements work well – I particularly enjoyed the sadness and cruelty underlying Rhea’s scenes with the golem wife while the scenes with the Clock Wife are weird, wonderful and frightening and involve some great concepts with time and space. The book is marketed as being for grown ups but to be honest, the coming of age and self-discovery themes here are perfectly suitable for a YA audience and while the imagery is dark, there’s a great Diana Wynne Jones vibe to the whole thing. All in all this is an enjoyable book with potential for a sequel (I would definitely read anything involving Rhea and her hedgehog) and I will definitely be checking out Vernon’s other work.