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reedandright's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, War, and Body horror
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Animal death, Death, and Grief
Minor: Rape, Alcohol, Gun violence, and Blood
ilaxaria's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Gore
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Death, Death of parent, Vomit, Blood, and Rape
tarynimwalle's review
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
A slow-burn atmospheric horror exploring survivor's guilt and class dynamics. A perfect read for a long winter night.
T. Kingfisher's What Feasts at Night is a solid follow-up to What Moves the Dead, though it is quite different in terms of content. The events of the previous title are mentioned and alluded to in the sequel, but the plot does not revolve around the events of What Moves the Dead. This time, Alex Easton finds themself back in their homeland, Gallacia - a laughably dreary place as Alex describes it - a few weeks removed from the Usher House horror. Alex's employed maintenance man working at their inherited lodge has not responded to any of their letters in quite some time, so Alex stops in to find out what happened to the fellow. From here, a mystery unfolds revolving around an Eastern European folkloric monster. Or maybe just pneumonia, for the practical skeptics among us. Silence and moths and iron blades abound.
This is a slow burn horror that explores class dynamics (between Alex and their paid employees) as well as Alex's trauma as a retired soldier who spent many years on the front lines. I am not sure the story succeeded in exploring the former topic, as it didn't feel that Kingfisher dug deep enough to examine the power structures at play. I did like the story's angle on grief, trauma, survivor's guilt, and PTSD.
I would recommend the Sworn Soldier series to horse girls and anyone who enjoyed The Witcher. What Feasts at Night reminded me very much of the short story involving the striga.
T. Kingfisher's What Feasts at Night is a solid follow-up to What Moves the Dead, though it is quite different in terms of content. The events of the previous title are mentioned and alluded to in the sequel, but the plot does not revolve around the events of What Moves the Dead. This time, Alex Easton finds themself back in their homeland, Gallacia - a laughably dreary place as Alex describes it - a few weeks removed from the Usher House horror. Alex's employed maintenance man working at their inherited lodge has not responded to any of their letters in quite some time, so Alex stops in to find out what happened to the fellow. From here, a mystery unfolds revolving around an Eastern European folkloric monster. Or maybe just pneumonia, for the practical skeptics among us. Silence and moths and iron blades abound.
This is a slow burn horror that explores class dynamics (between Alex and their paid employees) as well as Alex's trauma as a retired soldier who spent many years on the front lines. I am not sure the story succeeded in exploring the former topic, as it didn't feel that Kingfisher dug deep enough to examine the power structures at play. I did like the story's angle on grief, trauma, survivor's guilt, and PTSD.
I would recommend the Sworn Soldier series to horse girls and anyone who enjoyed The Witcher. What Feasts at Night reminded me very much of the short story involving the striga.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: War
Minor: Rape
sarrie's review
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
What Feasts at Night is the follow-up to What Moves the Dead, a favorite of mine from last year. This one follows Alex as they travel to their home country to meet Miss Potter so she can explore the fungi of the land. Upon arrival they find their grounds keeper has passed away in possibly suspect circumstances and soon things get… spooky.
I really enjoyed the exploration of Alex’s homeland and the exploration of PTSD and what it feels like to be thrown back into memories. This happens to Alex a lot here, and it’s talked about how hard it is to escape something like that. It was familiar and comforting to see it rendered so well and simply. Sadly the story and creepy factor didn’t quite hit for me. I think this could have been the format in which I read the novella as objectively it was creepy. However the hit of the creepy factor didn’t land due to issues in the format.
As a follow-up I don’t think it’s quite as strong as it could be, though I reserve my complete judgement on that till I can reread this in physical. Outside of that I enjoyed T. Kingfisher’s world and the care she takes with her characters and topics. I will still definitely be picking this up for my collection and rereading it in the future.
4 out of 5 dissolving horses
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Death of parent, Rape, and Sexual violence
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