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A review by willrefuge
The Lights Go Out in Lychford by Paul Cornell
4.0
8.0 / 10 ✪
https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/2023/06/07/the-lights-go-out-in-lychford-by-paul-cornell-review/
The ancient wards of Lychford are crumbling, and all kinds of entities are collecting, looking for a way in. Autumn is desperate to undo her mistake, trying to rewrite the wards that protect their realm, but without much luck. Lizzie is happy to help—but not without problems of her own to distract her. From her congregation to her faith to her lost love, everything seems to haunt the reverend these days.
Of Judith, there is little to be seen. The local wise-woman is losing her touch on reality—instead of wandering through the various realms that border our own—she wanders her own mind, her own past, her memories haunting her. While there is little help to be had from Judith, Lychford still faces a crisis.
There is one that would lend a helping hand: a Capy, one that claims to grant minor wishes. This wish would seem to be far from her talents, but hope spring eternal, even in Lychford. But as everyone knows, wishes granted from magic always come with a price…
—
Book 4 in the Lychford sequence is arguably its best yet. The stakes are higher, the beings more mysterious, the consequences more impactful. More importantly, however, I just found it more interesting than the stories that came before it. It’s my highest rating of the series, almost twice that of the previous book, something that this one sorely earned.
From the Lost Child, and particularly A Long Day, the story of the Lights Go Out is the best since the beginning. But more importantly, the premise of Lights Go Out is better. “The wards are deteriorating, and things are starting to come through”—much preferable to “we got drunk and argued about Brexit” or even “a child disappeared, right around the time of a mysterious wedding”. It’s a premise that carries with it a tangible sense of foreboding—and ends in a cliffhanger. And a story that I was invested and immersed in, right up to the very end.
The story of Judith is actually a little heartbreaking. A witch—THE witch, the ONLY witch for many years and countless miles, the only one protecting the wards—is fading, and unsure if her coven is ready to carry on without her. Not that it matters, as the end for her is looming, whether she’s ready or not. And whether her friends are ready or not—which, they aren’t. But someone has to step up.
So, in addition to the wards falling, the hounds barking at the gates, the old protector fading, there’s added tension about what will happen next. Added tension that the series desperately needed. For not only will Lights Go Out further the overarching plot, but it’s actually a good, contained story in and of itself, and one that sets us up for a thrilling finale in Last Stand in Lychford.
Audio Note: Emma Newman returns to the narration duties with aplomb, delivering a great performance. I enjoyed the other narrators that’ve done work on this series, but Emma Newman is an excellent choice—posh, precise, lovely, immersive.
https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/2023/06/07/the-lights-go-out-in-lychford-by-paul-cornell-review/
The ancient wards of Lychford are crumbling, and all kinds of entities are collecting, looking for a way in. Autumn is desperate to undo her mistake, trying to rewrite the wards that protect their realm, but without much luck. Lizzie is happy to help—but not without problems of her own to distract her. From her congregation to her faith to her lost love, everything seems to haunt the reverend these days.
Of Judith, there is little to be seen. The local wise-woman is losing her touch on reality—instead of wandering through the various realms that border our own—she wanders her own mind, her own past, her memories haunting her. While there is little help to be had from Judith, Lychford still faces a crisis.
There is one that would lend a helping hand: a Capy, one that claims to grant minor wishes. This wish would seem to be far from her talents, but hope spring eternal, even in Lychford. But as everyone knows, wishes granted from magic always come with a price…
—
Book 4 in the Lychford sequence is arguably its best yet. The stakes are higher, the beings more mysterious, the consequences more impactful. More importantly, however, I just found it more interesting than the stories that came before it. It’s my highest rating of the series, almost twice that of the previous book, something that this one sorely earned.
From the Lost Child, and particularly A Long Day, the story of the Lights Go Out is the best since the beginning. But more importantly, the premise of Lights Go Out is better. “The wards are deteriorating, and things are starting to come through”—much preferable to “we got drunk and argued about Brexit” or even “a child disappeared, right around the time of a mysterious wedding”. It’s a premise that carries with it a tangible sense of foreboding—and ends in a cliffhanger. And a story that I was invested and immersed in, right up to the very end.
The story of Judith is actually a little heartbreaking. A witch—THE witch, the ONLY witch for many years and countless miles, the only one protecting the wards—is fading, and unsure if her coven is ready to carry on without her. Not that it matters, as the end for her is looming, whether she’s ready or not. And whether her friends are ready or not—which, they aren’t. But someone has to step up.
So, in addition to the wards falling, the hounds barking at the gates, the old protector fading, there’s added tension about what will happen next. Added tension that the series desperately needed. For not only will Lights Go Out further the overarching plot, but it’s actually a good, contained story in and of itself, and one that sets us up for a thrilling finale in Last Stand in Lychford.
Audio Note: Emma Newman returns to the narration duties with aplomb, delivering a great performance. I enjoyed the other narrators that’ve done work on this series, but Emma Newman is an excellent choice—posh, precise, lovely, immersive.