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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Community Reviews
What Bookclubbers are saying about this book
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Readers say *What Moves the Dead* delivers atmospheric gothic horror with vivid visuals and compelling characters, often praising its witty non-binary...
I liked the eerie atmosphere in this book. My main criticism is that I wish the story had explored the origins of the fungi a little more. Considering the tarn sits beside the Usher family home, which has been in their family for generations, I thought there was an interesting opportunity to explore how long the fungi had been there and whether it had any connection to the family’s history. I also wanted to understand more about its motivations. What was its ultimate goal in possessing animals and humans? I was left with a few questions and would have loved a little more background on the creature and its history.
Overall, this was a decent, quick horror read. I just wish the mystery surrounding the fungi had been explored further.
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.
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.
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