A review by fluka
Miserere: An Autumn Tale by Teresa Frohock

4.0

A dark and moody story which begins a little shakily but ended up impressing me with its genuine and mature emotional elements. "Mature" here in the sense of dealing with the inner lives of adults who have gone through loss, disappointment, and betrayal, as opposed to edgy violence and sex - that said, there is a bit of that, and I will give this book a content warning for (offscreen, past) rape, graphic violence, and lots of other nastiness. Things begin somewhat in media res, with the primary adult relationships already established, and the early chapters of the book can feel a little overwhelming and breathless. This is true of the world-building, as well, with its somewhat high concept and occasionally clunky concept of the Woerld as a pan-religious alternate dimension (complete with weird shit happening with cell phones). And of course there is a plucky young modern heroine who gets pulled into the action. As others have said, though, this is neither a young adult book nor a straightforward religious fantasy book, and it's worth sticking with it despite early doubts. The fantasy and horror elements remain somewhat enigmatic and are not too over-explained past the first few chapters. The characters and their relationships end up becoming the central movers of drama, rather than the over arching battle between good and evil - Lindsay's confusion and grief, Lucian and his internal battle between shame and hope for redemption, and Rachael's journey out of darkness and extreme trauma. Thankfully, there are no easy answers here. All this said, the demonic horror elements ARE quite excellent here as well - Frohock writes a convincing portrayal of evil, including some particularly gnarly monsters. Again, warnings for sensitive content, but ultimately a very moving story of hope and forgiveness.