Reviews with content warning for Fire/Fire injury - What Moves the Dead

Obsessed. The quick witted gender nonconforming protagonist is an absolute delight. I will happily venture into the unknown with kan again and again. The dark gothic fungi infested mysteries of this book broke a spell of artists block for me that had gone on for over 6 months. Highly recommend if you enjoy fungi, dead things, rotting houses, and gothic mysteries.

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binch's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This was a phenomenal read. Tense and gripping, with just the right amount of horror to turn your stomach while keeping you turning pages. I picked it up and did not put it down until I finished.

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jadeyfish's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

Slow for the first chapter or two, but pushing through was definitely worth it! Creepy and entertaining until the end :)

I read along with the audiobook and I think that helped with the somewhat dense writing! Made it a more enjoyable experience overall !!

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sarahweyand's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

YESSSSSSS! The last time I had a 5-star read this year was mid-August and I just KNEW I could count on T Kingfisher to knock it out of the park. The atmosphere is eerie and Gothic and delightful and oppressive. The prose is just the right amount of descriptive and beautiful.

I felt doom. I felt gloom. There were a couple sequences that had me genuinely squirming and on the edge of my seat. It was just the right length, which is something I don't often say about novellas (T Kingfisher always does wonderful with her pacing and length of books this size though). I thought the worldbuilding was interesting but not overbearing, and I got approved for an ARC for the sequel YUM YUM.

Classic Kingfisher W, can't wait to nosh on more reads by her.

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wickedgrumpy's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

The pseudo fantastical nature was foreboding and creepy in a good way, but I'm not a big horror person so I mostly just wanted to get away from the sentient fungi. I did read the short story it is based on which was predominantly vibes, and I liked this reinterpretation of it more than the original because the characters had much more depth.

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