Many thanks to @macmillan.audio and @tornightfire for this #gifted copy.

“The dead don’t walk.  Except, sometimes, when they do.”  

Bizarre and creepy.  Kingfisher’s reimagining of Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” is a solid horror read. And even when you want to look away (Those mushrooms! Those hares!), you can’t quite manage to! 

Retired nonbinary soldier, Alex Easton, rushes to the family home of their friend, Madeline, upon receiving word of her impending death.  Not only does Easton find Madeline and her brother in varying states of illness, they also find the House of Usher going to ruin, covered in fungi.  Joining forces with a British mycologist and American doctor, Easton is determined to unravel the unsettling mystery.  

Why you should read this one:

🪦Unique reimagining that pays homage to its inspiration while remaining original

☠️ATMOSPHERE- no one does atmosphere better than Kingfisher! Completely eerie and totally ominous 

🪦Well executed nonbinary character with unique pronouns

☠️Dark, dry humor... particularly towards those “silly Americans” created the perfect juxtaposition to the disturbing mystery

That ending!  

This short audiobook is exceptionally performed by Avi Rocque.  While I’d like to have a physical copy of this for my shelves, Rocque’s narration perfectly executed to the tense and disconcerting ambience of this gothic tale.  It was a total winner for me, and I’d definitely recommend the audio.