Reviews with content warning for Transphobia - What Moves the Dead

Ouch

Unfortunately, this did not hold up to my expectations.

First of all, I don't see the need for this fictional world that Kingfisher has created. She spends valuable pages explaining a world that isn't relevant to her story. That's not to say that I don't like it, but I wish she would've chosen one or the other—fantasy novel or a short horror story.
Because the mystery doesn't really start until the book is nearly done. I never really got the feeling of something ominous or even anticipation for what happened next. Well, that isn't entirely true. The part about the rabbits really intrigued me! But Kingfisher's writing style here seems too—rushed. She's moved on to the next point before she ever lets the last impression set in. I want more detail—insight into the characters.
Still, I like that she writes a non-binary character without writing an LGBT novel. I'm gay myself—I have nothing against them, but representation in genres that aren't LGBT is important, I think. Normalises it.

Spoiler

Another thing I'd like to mention, is that I personally didn't like at all the part where the fungus learns to talk and speaks through Madeleine and stuff. It was boring, really. Felt cliché and wasn't actually eerie in the least.

Well, as a whole, I just think the mystery and horror never struck me. I very rarely read horror at all, but I do love Poe's work, so this disappointed me deeply.

However! Not a bad book. As I said, there were parts that intrigued me, but I'd really expected more of this book.

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atuin's review

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A disturbing house of usher retelling. An excellent Erie mood and some body horror. The narrator did a great job.

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affabletoaster's review against another edition

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dark funny informative mysterious tense medium-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

4.5

Well, this was a delightful and quick read! It expands on Poe’s work in the most satisfying ways, and with the wry humour and practicality that I love and look for in T. Kingfisher’s work. Easton is just the right kind of first-person narrator for this story — out of the way enough that you are immersed, but with enough of a personality that you get to sort of try it on. And in the author’s note she recommends two more books that I have now added to my TBR list (which I am clearly making no progress at shortening!)

Took me about 2.5 hrs to read, which is shameful when you realize that I checked it out of the library twice because of my poor sitting-down-and-reading habits. Many thanks to my in-laws who watched my children while I devoured this at last!

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to_m's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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gardens_and_dragons's review

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dark tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I found this a very fascinating book overall about the horrors of fungi and death. Well, it wasn’t exactly fast paced, there was a good sense of dread everything page that kept me going.

Also, I really enjoyed the use of you, pronouns in the book because it ties into the plot in a very unexpected way.

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