T. KingfisherFantasy · Fiction·b. 1977
A House With Good Bones
Synopsis
Samantha Montgomery returns home to her ancestral North Carolina house — the one that belonged to her grandmother Gran Mae — only to find it filled with unsettling changes. As she digs into old photographs, letters, and local lore about "the underground children," a decades-old family secret begins to surface: someone in the family has been hiding something terrible for generations.
How it reads
Prose complexity 4/10
Content warnings (2)
AbuseRacism
- This is my first book by T. Kingfisher(definitely not the last tho I really liked her storytelling), so I have nothing to compare it with, but I don’t think paranormal horror is her go-to genre (not sure) It is creepy and entertaining, especially if you hate bugs like me. Ladybugs are cute on their own, but I imagine they might be terrifying when they’re an infestation. But, to be honest, I feel like this is a pretty forgettable book and story.
- The initial few chapters were slow, a lot of setup towards the juicy bits of the book. However, when it did finally get interesting with the plot, it felt a little sudden and unexpected. The idea was there, but the execution wasn't as well done as it possibly could be, which was unfortunate because I really learnt a lot about insects and vultures. I also wasn't too big a fan of the bracketed thoughts/inserts of Sam. They kind of broke the flow of the book a bit, like it was her recounting something that happened rather than it happening presently for her. Nevertheless, it was an overall enjoyable story, but it did take some time to get into.
- This is such a weird book, but I enjoyed reading it! It's not quite bizarre, but it's definitely strange. The tone of it reminded me of that book where the kids burst into flames when they get angry.