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kschupner's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
this is a retelling of edgar allen poe’s “the fall of the house of usher”, which i haven’t read before, but i really liked this version!! i love a good fungal horror, as seen in my love of annihilation—i started this a while back and found it in my car so i finished it in like an hour and a half, it super quick and interesting read!! t. kingfisher’s writing in this (at least from the main character’s perspective) has an underlying comedic undertone to it that i liked a lot!! i have a few other books on my TBR that are by kingfisher so this makes me even more excited for them!!
Content Warnings
Moderate: War and Body horror
kelisabeth's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Suicide, Confinement, Death, Chronic illness, Violence, Body horror, Gun violence, Blood, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Cursing
pejms's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, and Death
Moderate: Dysphoria, Gore, Suicide, Alcohol, Terminal illness, Fire/Fire injury, and Medical content
Minor: Transphobia and War
ireadinbed's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I love T. Kingfisher's writing. I genuinely think they do some of the best plot and character work I have read.
I knew what it was almost immediately but that knowledge didn't do anything to make I less creepy. And I can't wait for my next adventure with Easton.
I knew what it was almost immediately but that knowledge didn't do anything to make I less creepy. And I can't wait for my next adventure with Easton.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Minor: Murder
torturedreadersdept's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Misogyny, Suicide, Animal death, Body horror, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Terminal illness, and Transphobia
dragonflydecay's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
there was a lot of this that i really liked and some that i didn't. mostly im just very picky about my prose and the protagonist's narrative voice really didn't appeal to me personally (the need for some kind of quirky quip or anecdote at least every other page, if not more frequently, started off endearing but rapidly oversaturated the narration, considering its such a small book). i LOVED the concept and the attention to detail that was clearly put into crafting it, and i think the execution was largely very fun, if a little simplistic (though that vibe again i think just comes down to my personal distaste for the protagonist's narrative/thought process). i also really really liked the way the textual language is used to show the characters mindsets and trains of thought, especially towards the end (the way they address each other reverting to their soldiers' ranks. the constant push-pull towards childlikeness. aughhh <3), including the established cultural context for the neopronouns (though i dont think the overall execution of the pronoun/culture lore was as strongly integrated as it could have been. like. why were the pronouns also being used as nouns to refer to the people who used them). there were a smattering of lines that really really hit hard where they needed to, and im always here for the weird and gross and gothic !! i liked the surrounding characters, and they were all fairly well developed, given the short scope of the book. the mushrooms are the highlight here and i think thats just fine
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Animal death, and Body horror
Minor: Suicide
myamo_santiago's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
What moves the dead is a new gothic favorite of mine, a retelling of Edgar Allen Poe’s ‘The fall of the house of Usher’ was nothing left than perfection. A grotesque horror and a shocking ending that leaves all to wonder what we really know about life, death ,and our friends.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Chronic illness, Blood, Death, Animal death, and Misogyny
Moderate: War
Minor: Suicide
aseel_reads's review against another edition
challenging
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
T. Kingfisher comes in clutch yet again. What a creepy and eerie story. I was in fact quiet scared while reading this. Still love mushrooms but now I'm a bit terrified of them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, War, Animal death, Alcohol, Death, Sexism, and Mental illness
Minor: Violence, Gun violence, Transphobia, and Vomit
lefthandlou's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: War
emilywemily6's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
I really enjoyed this book but it wasn't perfect for me.
This book is vibey and atmospheric, feeling like a gothic classic horror for the majority of the novella.
The horror ramped up at the end and was grotesque, but the pacing was a bit slow for me leading up to that. I really like this overall length for a horror story though, but I wanted more horror overall. This novella is based off of the short story, The Fall of the House of Usher, by Edgar Allan Poe and I felt like it elaborated well on the original while adding something new and fresh. I really appreciated the discussion related to a non-binary character and the fictional history associated with that character's backstory, but it didn't have much bearing on the story, if any, so it felt a little irrelevant in such a short novella. I'm hoping that comes into play more in the next book! In general I really enjoyed all the characters and found them interesting and human.
If you're looking for a horror novella that might creep and gross you out at the very end, with phenomenal writing and interesting characters, this one is for you!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Violence, and Transphobia
Minor: War