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dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Alix E. Harrow is a master of weaving together words that fully transport you into the world she is writing. Starling House is a bewitching haunted house tale that fully captivated me. My only critique is that the house was built out to be such a wonderful part of the story and then left away too long in the middle, only to come back at the end without enough time to fully welcome it back.
This is a beautiful exploration of how not dealing with grief and pain and letting it fester can leave you needing to learn how to find home and a sense of normalcy again.
This is a beautiful exploration of how not dealing with grief and pain and letting it fester can leave you needing to learn how to find home and a sense of normalcy again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Slavery, Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual content
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My first reaction upon finishing this book is that it was way longer than it needed to be. I enjoyed the second half, which is where most of the plot occurs, but I was bored during the whole first half of the book, to the point where I was considering not finishing it.
Once the plot picks up around the 50% mark, it gets interesting and I began to get invested in the mystery of the house and the people surrounding it. I was entertained as Opal unraveled it but I must admit it was pretty frustrating that she withheld so much information from her brother with no real explanation. If it came from some sort of desire to have something for herself, it might have been nice for the author to have alluded to that, but without explanation it was almost infuriating that she wasn’t sharing this information she was finding out.
I liked all the secondary characters and I wish we got to spend more time with them, perhaps seeing more interaction with them in the first half to invest the reader a bit more.
Ultimately, the end was more or less rewarding as everything was revealed, but I wasn’t rooting for Opal as much as I was rooting for everyone else around her.
Read if you don’t mind slowly paced dark mysteries with light mythological elements.
Once the plot picks up around the 50% mark, it gets interesting and I began to get invested in the mystery of the house and the people surrounding it. I was entertained as Opal unraveled it but I must admit it was pretty frustrating that she withheld so much information from her brother with no real explanation. If it came from some sort of desire to have something for herself, it might have been nice for the author to have alluded to that, but without explanation it was almost infuriating that she wasn’t sharing this information she was finding out.
I liked all the secondary characters and I wish we got to spend more time with them, perhaps seeing more interaction with them in the first half to invest the reader a bit more.
Ultimately, the end was more or less rewarding as everything was revealed, but I wasn’t rooting for Opal as much as I was rooting for everyone else around her.
Read if you don’t mind slowly paced dark mysteries with light mythological elements.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Racism, Slavery, Suicide, Car accident, Death of parent
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book had fantastic characters and a complex, ever-evolving setting that had me invested at every twist & turn in the journey Opal (the FMC) goes on in an effort to uncover the mystery that is Starling House. Her drive and inquisitiveness pushed the story along in such an enjoyable way.
Being from the south, I could really clearly picture the town of Eden, KY while reading. I feel like Alix did a great job setting the scene and the attitudes of the people there. She didn't shy away from some of the harder topics surrounding such a setting and I really appreciated that.
I will say some of the magic felt a little unexplained at times, but that may have very well been a creative choice the author made in her writing (wanting to leave some things up to the imagination of how their inner-workings operate). I could see that at least being a reason for that decision! This sort of bleeds into my only other negative critique of the book, which is that they ending felt maybe a little rushed. It was such a slow-paced read up until the last 15% or so and then it was very quick and Opal was explaining why things were happening in such a quick way that I did have to read things a few times.
The more sub-plot romance was actually a surprise personal favorite of mine! I love a brooding love interest so Arthur fit that bill very well. And I really appreciated the way Alix wrote the way their relationship bloomed. It felt genuine and comfortable. Would have loved to have had more fo them!
Overall, this was a very unique read unlike anything I've read before! Definitely a fan of books with eerie, sentient houses and this one definitely set itself apart from others maybe somewhat like it in premise. The vibes were 1,000% there and I would especially recommend reading during spooky season 👻 (but you could read whenever! It's literally the week of Valentine's Day as I write this review 😂)
P.S. Had to mention. I loved the queer representation in this book, as well! Bev & Charlotte were very cute 🥰 and we love a bi king Arthur!
Being from the south, I could really clearly picture the town of Eden, KY while reading. I feel like Alix did a great job setting the scene and the attitudes of the people there. She didn't shy away from some of the harder topics surrounding such a setting and I really appreciated that.
I will say some of the magic felt a little unexplained at times, but that may have very well been a creative choice the author made in her writing (wanting to leave some things up to the imagination of how their inner-workings operate). I could see that at least being a reason for that decision! This sort of bleeds into my only other negative critique of the book, which is that they ending felt maybe a little rushed. It was such a slow-paced read up until the last 15% or so and then it was very quick and Opal was explaining why things were happening in such a quick way that I did have to read things a few times.
The more sub-plot romance
Overall, this was a very unique read unlike anything I've read before! Definitely a fan of books with eerie, sentient houses and this one definitely set itself apart from others maybe somewhat like it in premise. The vibes were 1,000% there and I would especially recommend reading during spooky season 👻 (but you could read whenever! It's literally the week of Valentine's Day as I write this review 😂)
P.S. Had to mention. I loved the queer representation in this book, as well!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Racism, Self harm, Sexual assault, Slavery, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
From me, Starling House gets 3.75 stars! ☺️
This is a standalone adult fantasy with a healthy dose of gothic and paranormal mixed in with some mystery aspects! 🙃 In this book we follow Opal as she gets an unexpected job as a house keeper at the dreaded Starling House 👀🫣, with the sole purpose of getting her brother out of Eden, Kentucky - just another dying, bad-luck town known only for the legend of E Starling, author of Underland - a creepy children's book.
CW: bigotry, exploitation of people of color, mentions of slavery, white supremacy, homophobia, colorism, sexual abuse, etc..😅
I want to begin by mentioning that I always had a great time while reading this! Both our MCs, Opal and Arthur, were interesting people, flawed and even unlikable in some aspects...something that I enjoy.
The problem for me was the whole thriller? Mystery?🤔🤷♀️ with Miss Elizabeth Baine...frankly...her role wasn't defined enough for me to accept it... Otherwise, this gothic house story of found family and societal issues disguised as fantasy was amazing! 😺
Sooo..I guess the main problem you could have here is with the conflict, as what I deem as writing craft and context - Eden and the careful stitching of the narrative with its history - was without reproach! 😤👍
Let's say some more about #story and characters : I found myself rooting for our MCs relationship! I sympathized with Arthur as well as with Opal..although she is definitely more difficult to like as a person. Saying that, her care and dedication for Jasper is to be admired and despite coming from a flawed POV, she cares deeply and tries her best to protect and support him. Jasper is also compelling and clever! He knows how to push with his sister and when to take things into his own hands...I really liked that he chose for himself and helped Opal do the same!
As for Bev and Charlotte, wasn't vibing with them in the beginning, to end up admiring them! 😂
Now...E. Sterling....👀🫠...I don't know what to think of her...I felt her pain but punishing Starlings like that...yeah... I'm glad things got resolved as they did.
Overall, I recommend this.
This is a standalone adult fantasy with a healthy dose of gothic and paranormal mixed in with some mystery aspects! 🙃 In this book we follow Opal as she gets an unexpected job as a house keeper at the dreaded Starling House 👀🫣, with the sole purpose of getting her brother out of Eden, Kentucky - just another dying, bad-luck town known only for the legend of E Starling, author of Underland - a creepy children's book.
CW: bigotry, exploitation of people of color, mentions of slavery, white supremacy, homophobia, colorism, sexual abuse, etc..😅
I want to begin by mentioning that I always had a great time while reading this! Both our MCs, Opal and Arthur, were interesting people, flawed and even unlikable in some aspects...something that I enjoy.
The problem for me was the whole thriller? Mystery?🤔🤷♀️ with Miss Elizabeth Baine...frankly...her role wasn't defined enough for me to accept it... Otherwise, this gothic house story of found family and societal issues disguised as fantasy was amazing! 😺
Sooo..I guess the main problem you could have here is with the conflict, as what I deem as writing craft and context - Eden and the careful stitching of the narrative with its history - was without reproach! 😤👍
Let's say some more about #story and characters : I found myself rooting for our MCs relationship! I sympathized with Arthur as well as with Opal..although she is definitely more difficult to like as a person. Saying that, her care and dedication for Jasper is to be admired and despite coming from a flawed POV, she cares deeply and tries her best to protect and support him. Jasper is also compelling and clever! He knows how to push with his sister and when to take things into his own hands...I really liked that he chose for himself and helped Opal do the same!
As for Bev and Charlotte, wasn't vibing with them in the beginning, to end up admiring them! 😂
Now...E. Sterling....👀🫠...I don't know what to think of her...I felt her pain but punishing Starlings like that...yeah... I'm glad things got resolved as they did.
Overall, I recommend this.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Minor: Pedophilia
This is a haunted house story that toes the line of horror. Honestly, if not for the fact that it came in my Illumicrate box, it's far enough outside of my normal reading preferences that I would not have picked it up.
There is a plot, however this does feel like the characters are the main focus. It's hard, because most of the characters are very unlikeable however that's clearly the point. It's also in first person, which always knocks down my enjoyment a little.
At the beginning we had these fun footnotes that kinda just stop, as if the author forgot that was a thing she was doing. I wish they had continued, especially based on how the ending of the book was framed.
There are a lot of topics that fall into content warnings that feel more in line when you view this as a horror novel rather than a fantasy novel. None of them are super graphic, but they are clearly on page.
The prose was good, and I might give Harrow another go with a book that has a more appealing premise.
There is a plot, however this does feel like the characters are the main focus. It's hard, because most of the characters are very unlikeable however that's clearly the point. It's also in first person, which always knocks down my enjoyment a little.
At the beginning we had these fun footnotes that kinda just stop, as if the author forgot that was a thing she was doing. I wish they had continued, especially based on how the ending of the book was framed.
There are a lot of topics that fall into content warnings that feel more in line when you view this as a horror novel rather than a fantasy novel. None of them are super graphic, but they are clearly on page.
The prose was good, and I might give Harrow another go with a book that has a more appealing premise.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Incest, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, Slavery, Death of parent
Moderate: Gore
Minor: Suicide attempt
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Gore, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Incest, Classism
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
𝘍𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘺 • 𝘎𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘤 • 𝘍𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺
𝘜𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘰𝘨 • 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳 • 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘭
𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 3 𝘖𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳 2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (3.75)
"𝑪𝒐𝒛𝒚 𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓" may sound like an oxymoron but is a perfectly fitting description for this book. 𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 ℍ𝕠𝕦𝕤𝕖 had me from the jump: the atmopshere, the scenes and the setting of rural Appalachia - poor "backwater" Kentucky - the underdog narrator (Opal), the sentient house, the depth of the writing, the nuance, the civil war battle references, the witty banter between Arthur and Opal, the sarcasm and the strife, the mystery and the misery.... loved it all. Until the last 20% which was a lackluster fever dream of a final act. No spoilers here, but it fell flat for me relative to the rest of the book. I had to dock a star for that.
I still think this was worth the read and would recommend, because the rest of the book was well done and the atmosphere perfectly gothic. How many times can you say you read a cozy horror novel? I also loved how Arthur and Opal are not your traditional "beautiful" and "handsome" heroes. They are hardened, cunning, ruthless, flawed, shunned, and maybe even a bit ugly. They don't always make the right choices, and yet even these outcasts may make a house a home.
𝘜𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘰𝘨 • 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳 • 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘭
𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 3 𝘖𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳 2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (3.75)
"𝑪𝒐𝒛𝒚 𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓" may sound like an oxymoron but is a perfectly fitting description for this book. 𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 ℍ𝕠𝕦𝕤𝕖 had me from the jump: the atmopshere, the scenes and the setting of rural Appalachia - poor "backwater" Kentucky - the underdog narrator (Opal), the sentient house, the depth of the writing, the nuance, the civil war battle references, the witty banter between Arthur and Opal, the sarcasm and the strife, the mystery and the misery.... loved it all. Until the last 20% which was a lackluster fever dream of a final act. No spoilers here, but it fell flat for me relative to the rest of the book. I had to dock a star for that.
I still think this was worth the read and would recommend, because the rest of the book was well done and the atmosphere perfectly gothic. How many times can you say you read a cozy horror novel? I also loved how Arthur and Opal are not your traditional "beautiful" and "handsome" heroes. They are hardened, cunning, ruthless, flawed, shunned, and maybe even a bit ugly. They don't always make the right choices, and yet even these outcasts may make a house a home.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse, Gore, Incest, Physical abuse
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Incest, Racism, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Classism
Minor: Sexual assault, Vomit
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Misogyny, Violence, Vomit, Car accident, Death of parent, Alcohol