What Moves the Dead (Sworn Soldier, 1)

An Instant USA Today & Indie Bestseller
A Barnes & Noble Book of the Year Finalist
A Goodreads Best Horror Choice Award Nominee

A gripping and atmospheric reimagining of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” from Hugo, Locus, & Nebula award-winning author T. Kingfisher

When Alex Easton, a retired soldier, receives word that their childhood friend Madeline Usher is dying, they race to the ancestral home of the Ushers in the remote countryside of Ruritania.

What they find there is a nightmare of fungal growths and possessed wildlife, surrounding a dark, pulsing lake. Madeline sleepwalks and speaks in strange voices at night, and her brother Roderick is consumed with a mysterious malady of the nerves.

Aided by a redoubtable British mycologist and a baffled American doctor, Alex must unravel the secret of the House of Usher before it consumes them all.

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Published Dec 26, 2023

176 pages

Average rating: 7.42

224 RATINGS

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Anonymous

May 19, 2024

8/10 stars

I picked this up for bookclub. This story started off slowly, but became an enjoyable book by the end. I rated it a little lower than I normally would because of the slow start.

Merged review:

I picked this up for bookclub. This story started off slowly, but became an enjoyable book by the end. I rated it a little lower than I normally would because of the slow start.

Gabriel Crisp

Jun 23, 2025

6/10 stars

A shorter novel that follows the a twist on the Edgar Allen Poe classic "The Fall of House Usher", it hold a modern adaptation on styles of the horror genre. While the book holds many interesting plot points throughout, I struggled to maintain interest throughout. Although I didn't necessarily find it to be my favorite, I still do believe that it was a decent book.

horrified_hanman

Jun 10, 2025

10/10 stars

HOLY SHIT!!! This book was AMAZING! I don’t know why i’m shocked though, T. Kingfisher never misses. There is a lot that I could touch on in this book, but what I really want to discuss is Easton. They truly were so fun to read as. I honestly don’t know how they were able to keep it together. I mean their friend from childhood was essentially a shroom zombie. What moves the dead? Hallucinogenics apparently. I can’t wait to read as Easton again when the paperback of What Feasts at Night drops.

scienceVSmagic

May 11, 2025

7/10 stars

While some of us caught the heebie-jeebies from this book and others proved to be suspiciously immune to that ailment, our objective opinion is that it's a creepy, well-written reimagination which does Poe proud. The consensus (among group members who have read her other work) is that this author is amazingly versatile, always amusing, and tells great stories with relatively few pages. Even if you don't like the horror elements here, Kingfisher's other work is well worth a try!

allmimsyweretheborogoves

Mar 18, 2025

10/10 stars

T. Kingfisher's retelling of The Fall of the House of Usher was wonderfully dark and whimsical. I appreciate that the author took on a tone and prose similar to Poe's while also expanding on the story and making it their own. Not only is this a great retelling of Poe's classic tale, but the author also weaves in elements of Victorian/Edwardian adventure stories with the creation of Alex Easton and kan homeland Gallacia. I find the glimpses into the Gallacian culture that the author shows us intriguing and hope the author writes more about it in other books. I'm very interested in a culture that lets people choose their own pronouns not only based on their gender identity, but also on their age or profession.