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A review by ioannap_author
Starling House by Alix E. Harrow
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I devoured "Starling House" by Alix E. Harrow! The book is an intimate horror story about a house with a mysterious past and its secretive line of residents. It has small town aesthetics, corporate evil, eco horror undertones, and no dull moment. It honestly was so great to read a book filled with so many messages,such a strong voice, and a mystery that made you catch your breath at every turn of the page.
Writing this review is hard because I finished this book this morning, and I am still incredibly excited by it. Like with many characters in the book, Starling House entered my dreams. But, I willed myself awake so I could read what happens next.
On the more serious, less fangirling note, "Starling House" plays with many themes, but the main ones, for me, were the illusion of true history and familial obligations. Both of these themes are not only explored through the characters but are driving forces for the plot. The harsh search for the truth is also a pivotal aspect of the book's structure.
The theme of the illusion of true history is explored through fables and folk tales, urban myths, and google searches. It all begins with a children's story, which, like all good fiction, hides the truth behind it. But because reading is not a pastime for the faint of heart, it demands that you synchronise emotion and logic to dig beyond the surface and get to the truth. Harrow reminds us in this novel that, even when you search for the truth behind a children's story, there are many layers of truth, and all of them are 100% real. Like Opal, I was searching for the unequivocal facts of the origin of Eleanor Starling. When the truth was revealed (Shhhh.... spoilers), I understood that Harrow had been preparing me to hear it all alone, and yet, it still shocked me, and I cried for it. It is for this reading that I loved the ending and how Harrow resisted giving an unchallenging finale. It reminded me that even after Opal dug so deep to find the truth, the story was not quite over. If she kept searching, more narratives of what happened would unfold. It was, after all, not just Eleanor's story but the collective memory of a town.
Which was a tribute to the real-life inspiration of the story. Stripped from the magic, the gothic aesthetics and the softer edges, the real life case of a town (Not Eden) consumed by greed, built on human suffering and endured until its bitter end thanks to short term profiting and long term indifference is visible. "Starling House" is just another narrative searching for the truth behind that story.
(Read Harrow's blog for more information on the town Eden alludes to)
The search for honest information is framing the book as it reads partly like a fictionalised version of a non-fiction book, treating its characters like real historical figures. Its ending is a homage to these kinds of books as well. It asks us, I felt, as fellow humans to never stop searching for what lies behind the smirks of our friends, our parents' idiosyncrasies, and the misfortunes that surround us. And, at the same time, it tells us that dreams and stories exist to save us from the harsh reality, so long as we don't let the fantastical worlds take over completely.
The second theme was family identity. I am sure anyone who has read one review by me would immediately know that I always find myself attracted to anything family and identity related. Like a moth to the flame, I long to be burned exploring these issues. This book was about the absence of family and how much characters longed for equal human contact. Opal loved her brother, clutched onto him to save herself from facing inwards but she understood, slowly and painfully, that she longed for a partnership of equal footing, and let her brother go free to find it. Arthur couldn't abandon the house his parents lived in because he couldn't forgive himself for not appreciating them while he had them. Opal is surrounded by her mother's ghosts and women who became parent, aunt, cousin, and friend in her life, but she never looked enough to see them. Arthur keeps having to deal with Opal, who becomes his first honest human connection in adulthood. And Eleanor stands alone, with only Underland as her companion.
I cried reading this book. I trembled with excitement reading it. "Starling House" is a story of befriending the mosters instead of taking up the sword because the real monsters of this world we live in are not made of mist and magic. They are flesh and bone. They live in shiny castles and lord over land. They can only be taken down if we all, together, desire hard enough to break their shield walls, accepting the bitter truth that some of us must also be hit by the falling rumble.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Writing this review is hard because I finished this book this morning, and I am still incredibly excited by it. Like with many characters in the book, Starling House entered my dreams. But, I willed myself awake so I could read what happens next.
On the more serious, less fangirling note, "Starling House" plays with many themes, but the main ones, for me, were the illusion of true history and familial obligations. Both of these themes are not only explored through the characters but are driving forces for the plot. The harsh search for the truth is also a pivotal aspect of the book's structure.
The theme of the illusion of true history is explored through fables and folk tales, urban myths, and google searches. It all begins with a children's story, which, like all good fiction, hides the truth behind it. But because reading is not a pastime for the faint of heart, it demands that you synchronise emotion and logic to dig beyond the surface and get to the truth. Harrow reminds us in this novel that, even when you search for the truth behind a children's story, there are many layers of truth, and all of them are 100% real. Like Opal, I was searching for the unequivocal facts of the origin of Eleanor Starling. When the truth was revealed (Shhhh.... spoilers), I understood that Harrow had been preparing me to hear it all alone, and yet, it still shocked me, and I cried for it. It is for this reading that I loved the ending and how Harrow resisted giving an unchallenging finale. It reminded me that even after Opal dug so deep to find the truth, the story was not quite over. If she kept searching, more narratives of what happened would unfold. It was, after all, not just Eleanor's story but the collective memory of a town.
Which was a tribute to the real-life inspiration of the story. Stripped from the magic, the gothic aesthetics and the softer edges, the real life case of a town (Not Eden) consumed by greed, built on human suffering and endured until its bitter end thanks to short term profiting and long term indifference is visible. "Starling House" is just another narrative searching for the truth behind that story.
(Read Harrow's blog for more information on the town Eden alludes to)
The search for honest information is framing the book as it reads partly like a fictionalised version of a non-fiction book, treating its characters like real historical figures. Its ending is a homage to these kinds of books as well. It asks us, I felt, as fellow humans to never stop searching for what lies behind the smirks of our friends, our parents' idiosyncrasies, and the misfortunes that surround us. And, at the same time, it tells us that dreams and stories exist to save us from the harsh reality, so long as we don't let the fantastical worlds take over completely.
The second theme was family identity. I am sure anyone who has read one review by me would immediately know that I always find myself attracted to anything family and identity related. Like a moth to the flame, I long to be burned exploring these issues. This book was about the absence of family and how much characters longed for equal human contact. Opal loved her brother, clutched onto him to save herself from facing inwards but she understood, slowly and painfully, that she longed for a partnership of equal footing, and let her brother go free to find it. Arthur couldn't abandon the house his parents lived in because he couldn't forgive himself for not appreciating them while he had them. Opal is surrounded by her mother's ghosts and women who became parent, aunt, cousin, and friend in her life, but she never looked enough to see them. Arthur keeps having to deal with Opal, who becomes his first honest human connection in adulthood. And Eleanor stands alone, with only Underland as her companion.
I cried reading this book. I trembled with excitement reading it. "Starling House" is a story of befriending the mosters instead of taking up the sword because the real monsters of this world we live in are not made of mist and magic. They are flesh and bone. They live in shiny castles and lord over land. They can only be taken down if we all, together, desire hard enough to break their shield walls, accepting the bitter truth that some of us must also be hit by the falling rumble.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.