Scan barcode
scoobygirl93's review against another edition
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Kidnapping, Death, and Self harm
old_tim's review
5.0
Another fun story, sequel to the Witches of Lychford. Needed a bit more Christmas, but otherwise great.
http://fedpeaches.blogspot.com/2016/11/what-child-is-this.html
http://fedpeaches.blogspot.com/2016/11/what-child-is-this.html
bookish_satty's review
4.0
I really liked this book a lot than the first book in this Duology. The sequel wasn't rushed like the first book and I really connected to all the characters. The development in the relationship between Lizzie, Autumn and Judith was expressed really well through the prose and the suspense remained intact till the very last page. Overall a great sequel with significant character and plot development. I enjoyed a lot!
quietjenn's review
3.0
Wish I remembered the first book better. I mostly liked this but definitely felt like I was missing something.
chukg's review against another edition
4.0
Good interesting magic in the modern day, and friendships, sometimes scary things happen but I wouldn't call it horror. Short, too. Looking forward to more.
markyon's review against another edition
4.0
Here we return to Paul’s Merrily Watkins-esque world of quaint rural English villages, fabulous Cotswold landscapes and dark things hiding in the shadows. The first in the series, Witches of Lychford, was reviewed HERE.
In the village of Lychford, things are carrying on pretty much as normal as before as we approach Christmas. The relatively new vicar, Lizzie Blackmore, is increasingly angry as the commercial and more secular side of the season seems to dominate. But more worryingly is the appearance around the parish church of Saint Martin’s of what appears to be the ghost of a little boy. Who is he and why is he there is the mystery here.
Local witch Judith Mawson (first seen in the first novella) thinks that the apparition is not as innocent as he appears to be.
As with the first, The Lost Child of Lychford is small in scale and scope, reflecting the more leisurely and simpler lifestyle of rural England. Even the range of characters is small, mainly focusing on viewpoints of the witches, local shopkeeper Autumn, vicar Lizzie and local gossip Judith.
The rural charm of the tale allows the reader and writer to indulge in some creepiness that may not be there had the tale taken place with the more cynical lifestyle and under the harsher neon lights of the big city. We are on the edges of folk horror here, where something may well be hiding behind the gravestones as the ladies defend Lychford against things beyond our normal understanding.
Paul’s characterisation is as sharp as ever, using relatively few words (it is a novella, after all!) to create characters that, despite their limited details, we know and understand. This time around it is less about small-town politics and more about the relationships between our lead characters and their roles and responsibilities as guardians of the world. We find out more of their past and also how the powers given to them in the first novella are manifesting themselves.
The world environment of Lychford may appear uneventful and rather bucolic, but Paul does well to suggest that there is much more to it.
In short, The Lost Child of Lychford continues much in the same vein as the previous novella. It’s a pleasantly brief sojourn into a world of rurality, which uses its setting to good effect. Echoing the gently creepy tone of M R James, but in a more contemporary time, it may just give the reader a slight chill, or at least make them occasionally glance into the shadows of their room before returning to reality.
The Lost Child of Lychford was a Locus Award nominee in 2017 for Best Novella.
In the village of Lychford, things are carrying on pretty much as normal as before as we approach Christmas. The relatively new vicar, Lizzie Blackmore, is increasingly angry as the commercial and more secular side of the season seems to dominate. But more worryingly is the appearance around the parish church of Saint Martin’s of what appears to be the ghost of a little boy. Who is he and why is he there is the mystery here.
Local witch Judith Mawson (first seen in the first novella) thinks that the apparition is not as innocent as he appears to be.
As with the first, The Lost Child of Lychford is small in scale and scope, reflecting the more leisurely and simpler lifestyle of rural England. Even the range of characters is small, mainly focusing on viewpoints of the witches, local shopkeeper Autumn, vicar Lizzie and local gossip Judith.
The rural charm of the tale allows the reader and writer to indulge in some creepiness that may not be there had the tale taken place with the more cynical lifestyle and under the harsher neon lights of the big city. We are on the edges of folk horror here, where something may well be hiding behind the gravestones as the ladies defend Lychford against things beyond our normal understanding.
Paul’s characterisation is as sharp as ever, using relatively few words (it is a novella, after all!) to create characters that, despite their limited details, we know and understand. This time around it is less about small-town politics and more about the relationships between our lead characters and their roles and responsibilities as guardians of the world. We find out more of their past and also how the powers given to them in the first novella are manifesting themselves.
The world environment of Lychford may appear uneventful and rather bucolic, but Paul does well to suggest that there is much more to it.
In short, The Lost Child of Lychford continues much in the same vein as the previous novella. It’s a pleasantly brief sojourn into a world of rurality, which uses its setting to good effect. Echoing the gently creepy tone of M R James, but in a more contemporary time, it may just give the reader a slight chill, or at least make them occasionally glance into the shadows of their room before returning to reality.
The Lost Child of Lychford was a Locus Award nominee in 2017 for Best Novella.
eol's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5