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A review by cordelia0704
House of the Beast by Michelle Wong
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
House of the Beast is written by Michelle Wong, acclaimed graphic artist of the Legends of Korra graphic novels (which I know well, because my daughter is obsessed and made me buy them all for her). Michelle’s art is breathtaking but so is her debut novel and as excited as I was to receive this ALC, I was equally nervous that it would be a train wreck, and I have never been so happy to be completely wrong! This book is a work of art all its own. (Full Disclosure: After I finished listening to this I subscribed to Goldstone’s GSFF book sub just to get the gorgeous special edition because this book is a keeper!)
The audiobook is published by HarperAudio and will be available on August 5, 2025. It is narrated by Jeanne Syquia, and while I am not familiar with her other work, I love what she did with this and will happily listen to more. She brought these characters to life and did their unique voices justice in a way I don’t think many others could have because these characters are so varied in their mannerisms, many are men, some are gods…and it’s absolutely perfect. She is not just narrating the story, it’s almost like she’s living the characters like an excellent actor would. You hear the compassion, the anger, the rage, the sorrow; every emotional sentence of this book is dripping with the authentic emotion you read on the page and its breathtaking.
You all know by now that I am picky about narration and distinct voices, and now there is a new bar for narrators to meet – can they make the emotions and characters as authentic as real people the way Jeanne Syquia did? Can I feel what they feel while I’m listening? As much as I love other books and certain narrators, even that full cast narration stuff, this was so much better.
In our story we follow Alma who lives in poverty with her mother. Because her parents are not married, Alma and her mother are generally shunned by society. This is typical mistreatment of people who are different and whose families are non-traditional. You see this going all the way back to ancient plays and historical writings right through today, because sadly it’s still an issue. It is done well here, because it portrays the harshness of it when Alma’s mother becomes deathly ill and no one can cure her. They suggest she goes to the some elite healers, but that doesn’t pan out. Then magically, her father shows up. She begs him, literally begs him, to save her mother. She’ll do whatever he wants if he will promise to do this. He wants her to come with him and become a part of his house, who worships “The Beast,” make a sacrifice and become part of his world. She agrees only because he promises to save her mother. This is a tragic dark fantasy, so how do you think that went?
Alma’s father takes her to their temple and severs her arm as an offering to their god, the beast. He takes her into his home and sends her to classes, but again she is “the bastard daughter of Xander.” She is treated badly by family, staff, guards, and every time she seems to do well, she is cut off from whomever was helping her get there. Eventually she is basically left to her own devices for education and training. Her father “trains” her, but she feigns ineptitude to a certain degree so that he does not realize how powerful she has become. This is due to the fact that her imaginary friend, Astor, who she thought she made up for herself when she was a child, as appeared. No one else can see him or hear him but her, but now she can feel him. She can interact with him in ways that break all the invisible friend rules. Astor reveals that he is the beast and has been with her all her life. That he chooses her and is here to help her become the hand to the beast which is what her father is after, though, her father wants to be a god.
I feel like I have already given away too much and I didn’t even get tot the cousin or his “girlfriend” or the stepmother yet. Eventually, Alma is betrayed in pretty much every way you possibly can be and she endures. This story is fast paced. Beautiful, tragic and the makings of a classic book I think people will be recommending for a very long time. This is not a romantacy, though there is romance here, the fantasy, the journey of the tragic hero, the fight against evil, these are all things that are far more important. The romance is a nice diversion now and then. It adds confusion, tension, longing, fear and so much more, but it is not the focus of our story. Really, its about a corrupt father and his daughter who is capable of so much more than he ever imagined. This is Alma’s story and I beg you to read it (after you check trigger warnings of course).
This is a standalone, so there’s no need to worry about a cliffhanger and having to wait forever for the next book. I am anxiously waiting for Michelle Wong’s next book though because writers usually get better as time goes on, and starting at this level means we should be in for some amazing story telling in the future.
I would like to thank HarperAudio for trusting me with another one of their audiobooks though NetGalley. I truly appreciate the opportunity to review amazing books like this. All opinions are my own, and as usual, if I don’t like a book you will definitely know it.
Overall Rating 6 Stars (a first for me).
The audiobook is published by HarperAudio and will be available on August 5, 2025. It is narrated by Jeanne Syquia, and while I am not familiar with her other work, I love what she did with this and will happily listen to more. She brought these characters to life and did their unique voices justice in a way I don’t think many others could have because these characters are so varied in their mannerisms, many are men, some are gods…and it’s absolutely perfect. She is not just narrating the story, it’s almost like she’s living the characters like an excellent actor would. You hear the compassion, the anger, the rage, the sorrow; every emotional sentence of this book is dripping with the authentic emotion you read on the page and its breathtaking.
You all know by now that I am picky about narration and distinct voices, and now there is a new bar for narrators to meet – can they make the emotions and characters as authentic as real people the way Jeanne Syquia did? Can I feel what they feel while I’m listening? As much as I love other books and certain narrators, even that full cast narration stuff, this was so much better.
In our story we follow Alma who lives in poverty with her mother. Because her parents are not married, Alma and her mother are generally shunned by society. This is typical mistreatment of people who are different and whose families are non-traditional. You see this going all the way back to ancient plays and historical writings right through today, because sadly it’s still an issue. It is done well here, because it portrays the harshness of it when Alma’s mother becomes deathly ill and no one can cure her. They suggest she goes to the some elite healers, but that doesn’t pan out. Then magically, her father shows up. She begs him, literally begs him, to save her mother. She’ll do whatever he wants if he will promise to do this. He wants her to come with him and become a part of his house, who worships “The Beast,” make a sacrifice and become part of his world. She agrees only because he promises to save her mother. This is a tragic dark fantasy, so how do you think that went?
Alma’s father takes her to their temple and severs her arm as an offering to their god, the beast. He takes her into his home and sends her to classes, but again she is “the bastard daughter of Xander.” She is treated badly by family, staff, guards, and every time she seems to do well, she is cut off from whomever was helping her get there. Eventually she is basically left to her own devices for education and training. Her father “trains” her, but she feigns ineptitude to a certain degree so that he does not realize how powerful she has become. This is due to the fact that her imaginary friend, Astor, who she thought she made up for herself when she was a child, as appeared. No one else can see him or hear him but her, but now she can feel him. She can interact with him in ways that break all the invisible friend rules. Astor reveals that he is the beast and has been with her all her life. That he chooses her and is here to help her become the hand to the beast which is what her father is after, though, her father wants to be a god.
I feel like I have already given away too much and I didn’t even get tot the cousin or his “girlfriend” or the stepmother yet. Eventually, Alma is betrayed in pretty much every way you possibly can be and she endures. This story is fast paced. Beautiful, tragic and the makings of a classic book I think people will be recommending for a very long time. This is not a romantacy, though there is romance here, the fantasy, the journey of the tragic hero, the fight against evil, these are all things that are far more important. The romance is a nice diversion now and then. It adds confusion, tension, longing, fear and so much more, but it is not the focus of our story. Really, its about a corrupt father and his daughter who is capable of so much more than he ever imagined. This is Alma’s story and I beg you to read it (after you check trigger warnings of course).
This is a standalone, so there’s no need to worry about a cliffhanger and having to wait forever for the next book. I am anxiously waiting for Michelle Wong’s next book though because writers usually get better as time goes on, and starting at this level means we should be in for some amazing story telling in the future.
I would like to thank HarperAudio for trusting me with another one of their audiobooks though NetGalley. I truly appreciate the opportunity to review amazing books like this. All opinions are my own, and as usual, if I don’t like a book you will definitely know it.
Overall Rating 6 Stars (a first for me).