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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176 pages

Average rating: 7.41

204 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

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.
ediehas
Feb 28, 2025
8/10 stars
what a enthralling reimagining of the fall of the house of usher. great gothic horror, love the body horror elements and it was pretty funny.
yoyo999
Jan 20, 2025
2/10 stars
bad
theycallmenana
Jan 13, 2025
8/10 stars
3.75/5

I think the author's style fleshed out this classic well-known story. It didn't repeat the original, it genuinely added to it. In addition, the characters were fantastic and compelling.
The creepy and raw elements were greatly executed, accompanied by a narrator that was charismatic but did not downplay the events happening.
If there's anything to criticize about this, is that the introduction went a bit longer than I expected, but definitely paid off in the end.
BellaElena
Jan 04, 2025
6/10 stars
A cool story but very special writing. A bit slow at the start, but it’s a cool concept and reminds me of “The Last of Us”

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