A review by nmcannon
What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher

mysterious medium-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

4.0

What Moves the Dead is my first book by T. Kingfisher, despite having followed her on social media for awhile. Fungi make me ridiculously happy with their absurd ways, I like Poe, and horror is nice, so color me unsurprised that I liked this book.

When Madeline Usher writes to her childhood friend Easton, she knows ka will come. Ka is a loyal solider (occupation: solider; gender: solider) and friend. And quite polite about the multitude of horrors that have wiggled out of the lake and infected the house and the wildlife. Ka compliments the smelly, fleshy mushrooms. Ka (along with a feminist mycologist and doctor) will fix everything, and we can get back to what really matters: growth.

Kingfisher’s narrative borrows from Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” and plays in the tradition of Ruritanian romances. I’m familiar with Poe, but the Ruritania was new to me, and I appreciated Kingfisher’s explanation of the trope in the back matter. Basically, it’s a literary trope of a fictional Central or Eastern European country with different traditions and cultural norms than Western Europe. Think Genovia from The Princess Diaries, Marvel Comics’ Latveria, or Cohdopia from the Ace Attorney video games. I don’t know if these Ruritania elements were needed in the narrative, but they were quite good fun. At its best, What Moves the Dead weaves together Poe, fake country world-building, and the badass characters to create quality horror comedy.

I continue to love fungal horror. If you want queer mushroom shenanigans, pick up What Moves the Dead.