A Sorceress Comes to Call is a gothic horror or fairytale complete with ghosts and headless horses. It takes place in a country manor, but the country and time are a bit vague. It mostly resembles early Victorian England, except everyone is Catholic, and it constantly refers to old world across the sea, so maybe New England with aristocrats, country squires and general Englishness. Or maybe it’s an imaginary place of fairytales.

Cordelia is fourteen and deathly afraid of her mother. Evangeline is a sorceress with the power of taking over Cordelia’s body, making her a puppet her mother operates, a horror she has to often endure. Her mother uses it mostly as a punishment, but Cordelia can never be sure what triggers the punishment. She’s timid, barely daring to breathe wrong, has no friends, and little understanding of how the world works. And she’s not allowed to have any secrets from her mother, and no closed doors between them. She can only confide in her mother’s horse, Falada.

Cordelia’s world is turned upside down, when her mother announces she’s going to marry a rich squire who has no idea what’s awaiting him, and whisks them off to his country manor. Cordelia must marry well too, so she has to pretend she’s seventeen. She can barely handle being fourteen and outside her village, let alone living in a large manor with servants who are nice to her. But the most difficult thing for her to handle is the freedom of knowing there are locked doors between her and her mother. It triggers fear episodes in her.

Hester is 51 and a spinster, because a decade ago she rejected the man she loves for his own good. But she’s organised her life the way she likes with her brother, the squire, even if her bad knee troubles her. And then everything is ruined by the arrival of Evangeline. Hester knows even before she shows up that doom is on its way, and is determined to stop it at any cost.

Evangeline sets out to seduce the squire. She can’t use magic, because the wedding rites will dissolve it. Hester is equally determined to stop it, so she fills the house with friends, one of whom is the squire’s former mistress. A bad move. Because Evangeline is not above murder. But the one thing Evangeline can’t imagine is that Cordelia would work against her too.

This was a great book. The atmosphere is perfect for a gothic novel, but not too scary for me. Cordelia with her paralysing fear of her mother was a great character to root for, and it was wonderful to see her open up a little with Hester and her nice friends. Hester had her own story, the romance with Richard and the regrets of her past. And Evangeline was perfectly villainous with no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

It’s a fairly long book for the story, but the pace was good and there was never a moment that I would be bored with it. Evangeline with her superior magic was a difficult foe for ordinary people to defeat, but they have the numbers and some unexpected help. The ending is satisfying. All in all, a good read for fans of gothic fairytales with some gory bits.

The Brothers Grimm’s original tales are already pretty gnarly, so I’m always sceptical when publishers hype their retellings as “dark.” Cinderella’s stepsisters have their eyes pecked out by birds, Snow White’s evil stepmother is sentenced to dance in red-hot iron shoes and then she drops dead. Let’s also not forget the charming lesser-known Juniper Tree, featuring infanticide, gaslighting someone into thinking they committed said infant-killing, followed by a hearty meal of the child’s bones. Not exactly Disney material.

So naturally, I wondered if this “dark retelling” of The Goose Girl could out-dark the original tale, which already features horse decapitation and macabre justice. Turns out, yes. Not scary dark, but more creepy dark, punctuated with macabre, murdery and straight-out unhinged moments. Plus extreme trigger and content warnings for coercive control and abusive family dynamics, violence, death, and a good sprinkle of subtle, dry, Regency-era black humour and satire. So yeah, that type of dark.

In hindsight, it's quite a lax retelling. There is still a horse, named Falada. There are plenty of fancy geese, and they’re pretty nifty. If we wanna read into it, there's a bunch of symbolism. And you can bet that T. Kingfisher has taken some of the grim elements of the original and cranked it up to a “What on earth did I just read?” level. You’ll have to read it to find out what I mean, and it’s completely cooked, but in a good way.

Moreover, we're aware of the villain right from the start, an interesting artistic choice. She's pretty atrocious and a little extra backstory for our evil sorceress might have nudged this review into 5-star territory. To be fair, we do get some glimpses into her motivations, but with a wicked witch this formidable, a few more layers would have made her feel more nuanced.

Minor quibble aside, amidst a sea of tired fairytale retellings, this one stands out as pretty unconventional and inventive. With refreshingly real characters—like Hester, a no-nonsense 51-year-old reluctant heroine with a bad knee—it masterfully balances eerie and unsettling elements with satire and comic relief, hallmarks of T. Kingfisher’s distinctive style. If you're open to experimenting with something a bit unusual, give this book a try. I thoroughly enjoyed it and now need to read more T. Kingfisher, stat. Highly recommended!

My heartfelt thanks to NetGalley & Titan Books for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

5 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2024/08/05/review-a-sorceress-comes-to-call-by-t-kingfisher/
My Five Word TL:DR Review : Characters, Setting, Story, All Perfect

In a nutshell I loved this. I’ve taken to barely browsing the descriptions of books these days (mainly because I prefer to have as little knowledge as possible of the content before picking it up) so I had little notion of what to expect from this. I did however have high expectations, this being an author I really enjoy and I actually think on this occasion this book exceeded my expectations. I had a great time with this one.

The story begins as we meet Cordelia. Cordelia is only a young girl (14 years young I think). Her mother is a sorceress who wields her magic in a terrible way, often controlling her daughter in a way that renders her little more than a puppet. Cordelia lives her life in constant fear, trying to predict her mother’s mood and what to say in order to avoid any repercussions. One day, her mother decides that she needs to marry a wealthy man and with that in mind they leave their cottage and hamlet behind.

I don’t really want to say too much about the plot. I understand this is inspired by the Brothers Grimm Goose Girl, a fairytale that I’m not familiar with although I have since familiarised myself with the story and can see how the original was used to guide the narrative.

What I really loved about this.

After starting the story with an almost traditional fairytale fashion, with mother and daughter living in a small cottage in a tiny hamlet the setting morphs into an almost Regency style story. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a comedy of manners with bustling, bonnets and ribbons, but at the same time it draws on the etiquette and expectations of that period, relying very much on manners and genteel behaviour and the willingness to accept things at face value.

Cordelia and her mother find themselves, through deceit, ensconced in a fine country manor where the Squire quickly becomes besotted with Cordelia’s mother (Evangeline). And Cordelia, terrified of the repercussions is afraid to say anything.

I really loved the setting and period and felt it worked perfectly for this dark tale lending it a gothic feel, especially when we move to the estate of Lord Evermore.

The writing is really well executed, I was totally immersed in the story and the plight of the characters, to such an extent I was trying to conjure up ways for them to escape their predicament, not very successfully I confess. The pacing is also really well handled. The tension is cranked up with a deft hand and before you know it you’re on the edge of your seat.

The characters really make this story. Cordelia is the narrator but Hester, the Squire’s sister really steals the show, abetted by her two close friends Imogene and Penelope. Plus I have to applaud our dastardly villain, Evangeline. She is so perfectly horrible. She’s almost like a small child with her petty tantrums, except of course here there are more deadly consequences.

A dark story with some unsettling themes that are handled with finesse. I was totally enchanted.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

My rating 5 of 5 ensorcelled stars.

I know that this author is really popular. Quite a few of their books are on my wishlist and to be read list. However, I never got to any of them. Until I stumbled upon this book. It sounded insanely intriguing and made me really curious. I pre-ordered a copy and was patiently waiting for its release. And then I discovered the book was also on Netgalley. I requested a copy and I was really happy when Titan Books granted me a copy. I was really excited to dive in.

This book is from start to finish a quick and entertaining read. There are two main characters and both have a really interesting journey despite being in completely different phases of their lives. Cordelia is only fourteen and struggling with her relationship with her mother. Hesters is in her fifties and struggling with growing older and figuring out what she wants with her future. Both discover that they can help each other.

Although this book is inspired by the Goose Girl, the author doesn't really retell the tale. They do use its basic ingredients. There are geese in the tale, there is a horse, there is someone impersonating someone else and there is a lot of magic. However, the plot is completely different, the characters are also very clearly fighting a different battle and this is also in a lot of ways not really a fairytale to begin with.

The story is however very endearing. Especially because the author does a great job introducing us to the characters and allowing us to understand how they feel. We understand why they are who they are. We understand why they do what they do. We understand the choices they make. And in no time we start caring about them, rooting for them and wishing them a happily ever after. And that makes the story even more exciting, because the stakes are clearly very high.

4,5/5

Thank you NetGalley and Titan Books for this ARC in exchange for a honest review.

This year I promised myself I would catch up on all Kingfisher's books and I'm glad that the second novel I read from this author was "A Sorceress Comes to Call". It turned out to be such an unexpected and surprising reading and I can't help but feel even more motived to keep discovering Kingfisher's works.

Prepare yourself to dive into a dark and gloomy fairytale whose main character differs from the usual and well-known protagonists of fantasy books. Cordelia is a fourteen-year-old girl, daughter of a ruthless and selfish sorceress that would do anything to achieve her goals. Cordelia has been made obedient her entire life, but not all is lost: a cast of lovable and peculiar characters come to her aid.
When her previous benefactor leaves the sorceress, she must find another clueless man to bewitch and to do so, they will join the household of a wealthy Squire. But the poor man’s sister isn’t naive and she’ll do anything in her power to save the little Cordelia.

A horror fantasy standalone with a fairytale vibes that will catch your attention as soon as you set your eyes on the first words. Cordelia is a young girl and Hester is a middle-aged-woman who’s still in love with her childhood sweetheart.

The first part of the novel let us understand Cordelia and Hester, the reader can easily grasp the girl’s trauma and the woman’s cleverness. I loved their stories, how their friendship shaped throughout the book, turning into an unexpected mother and daughter relationship.
Even the secondary characters were well-described and necessary for the purposes of the story. I enjoyed reading about their attempts at learning more about Evangeline’s magic and how to defeat her. How they reacted to Cordelia’s revelation felt real and understandable.

Don’t worry about the horrorific part. It isn’t scary, it’s just full of suspence and I held my breath during the final part, especially when Evangeline talked to her daughter. I was always scared for Cordelia during the entirety of the novel.

"A Sorceress Comes to Call" is a spellbinding retelling of a popular tale, "Goose Girl", by the Brothers Grimm. A dreary fantasy thriller that will keep you glued to the pages in rage and sorrow, helplessness and expectation.
I highly recommend it to fans of Juliet Marillier, especially if you loved "Daughter of the Forest", and if you enjoyed Kingfigher's evocative and mesmerizing writing style, then you should give it a try.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is my first read from this author and I absolutely loved it! Really enjoyed the writing style, the characters and the very interesting magical system of the world. At times it read sort of like a locked-room Agatha Christie novel, helped by the cast of aging would-be sleuths trying to work out how to free Cordelia from her sorceress mother's grip - as well as stop a disastrous marriage. An easy read, perfect for curling up with on a grey day. You'll be charmed by the writing and turning the pages to find out what becomes of everyone.

I like T. Kingfisher’s style and subject choices for her books. This is a gentle horror story with a Regency feel. A Cinderella type story for adults. Here we have a wicked sorceress out to ensnare a wealthy benefactor. She has a daughter who she vigorously controls, that is when she remembers her. A daughter to do the house work, and to definitely be otherwise quiet. And we have a very amusing spinster sister , Godmotheresk (she’d be appalled to be so described) who is trying to save her brother from a marriage that will probably kill him. Thank you to Titan Books and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

This retelling of Grimms Goose Girl has hooked me, line and sinker. Kingfisher has rapidly become an auto buy, favourite author because her way of weaving intricate, well fleshed out, gruesome and yet often whimsical stories endears me, completely and utterly.

I LOVED this book!! I loved the old(er) ladies and how fierce they are! All of the characters, both protagonists and supporting, were beautifully fleshed out and wonderful in their own rights. I love a good, solid plot or characters who are fully realised and hold a space in your heart and I love it even more when an author is capable of providing you with both. Kingfisher is one of those authors.

I am obsessed with this book. As usual with my T. Kingfisher reviews, I give the disclaimer that she’d one of my favourite authors and I have so much fun that I end up much less ‘objective’ about my craft technique than I am with most other writers. All that to say that I binged it in too days and definitely stayed up too late reading it and UGH IT WAS SO GOOD. I really loved how it dealt with Cordelia’s abusive mother and how she gradually realises that how she’s treated isn’t okay, eventually building up the courage to ask for help. Despite the dark subject matter, there is humour and a cast of lovable characters to lighten the tone. I think it’s one of my favourites from this author.

Wow wow wow. Now, this is my first book by this author, but I have just spotted that I do have a book by her on my “want to read” list! I am definitely going to be picking that one up soon. I loved this so so much.

I was drawn in from the very start, I loved all of the characters- except the bad ones obviously- but they were wickedly bad and I loved that about them.

The story had me on edge a lot and by the end I was really quite stressed but in a great way! I devoured it and I’ll pick up more by this author.

My thanks to Netgalley and Titan Books for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review

3,5 stars

With a title of A Sorceress Comes to Call my expectations were heightened when it comes to the magical bits of this story. Kingfisher can be a bit of a hit or miss for me. I think this one ended up a bit in the middle.

Cordela lives with her mother and her horse. She rarely gets to see anyone else outside of church. Sometimes her mother controls her body so that Cordelia behaves as is expected of her. It makes Cordelia live in constant fear. When her mothers benefactor turns away from her, it is time to leave the small town. Her mother sets her sights on an unwed squre to bedazzle with Cordelia in tow. But she didn't calculate the square's sister into her plans.

I think what I appreciated about this book was the dual perspective. We get the perspective from Cordelia so we know what her mother is really like. Seeing Cordelia slowly getting more confident in standing up to her mother was great to see. On the other end we have Hester. Hester is already well into her fifties and physically not doing too great. But don't count her out on anything. She schemes and can make some barbed jabs for sure. She sees through things. Their growing relationship was also great to see.

The plot was mostly well done but it moved slow. I have to be honest and say that I got bored in places. It was especially drawn out in the second half of the book where they are figuring out about the magic and trying to learn about it in books. Like of course you can feel the woman is wrong, have a sixth sense, but you can't believe the woman is a sorceress? Please. Nor did I understand the need to engage Cordelia to Hester's friend. Hester's other friend used it to a great opportunity but that wasn't the initial idea behind it. Just what the idea behind it was, wasn't all that clear.

This is classed as a horror. But except for the very end it was not very horror to me. I didn't find it overly creepy or scary. I don't know what that says about me.

Overall I tought it was a good read but not a memorable one.

A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher is a loose retelling of the Goose Girl tale, one of my childhood favourites. Having loved everything I have read by this author I was excited to see their take on the story and it certainly did not disappoint.
Cordelia is a young girl living with her domineering and often cruel mother, Evangeline, a woman who uses her powers as a sorceress to ensure Obedience , and that capital O is very intentional. Her only moments of joy are when she is on the back of Falada, their horse, galloping free. Falada is her only friend and confidante. When her mother's plans go awry they are forced to flee in the middle of the night and her mother quickly hatches a plan to snare the Squire of a nearby estate into marriage. Unfortunately for Cordelia's mother, the Squire's wise sister Hester is determined to thwart her efforts though she does not realise the scale of the challenge and the true danger that she is up against. It is only as Cordelia grows to love and trust her that she reveals Evangeline's dark secret to Hester so that they can work together to save not just the Squire but also Cordelia.
This was a really well crafted tale of magic , from the horrifying opening line to the immensely satisfying conclusion. There were enough familiar beats that linked back to the original Goose Girl story but also surprises along the way that I did not see coming which kept the story feeling fresh. The characters were wonderful., Evangeline is the villain that everyone loves to hate without much in the way of redeeming features. Cordelia I enjoyed because of her growth over the course of the book, seeing her coming out of her shell and flourishing when given love and encouragement was just beautiful. That encouragement came from my favourite character, Hester, the squire's sister, an older woman who is smart, strong and occasionally a little too hard on her self. In fact there are a group of "older" characters in this book who really added so much humour and depth to the story. There are some moments where the story veers into horror territory, which I think fits perfectly with the origin of fairy tales as warnings, it never goes too far, just enough to give a little chill on the back of your neck.
Another wonderful book from one of my favourite authors.

I absolutely loved this, yet again this author has taken a classic fairytale and made it even more wonderful.
Everything about this made me happy, the characters, the descriptions, the macabre twists and the wonderful storytelling. It’s magical, it’s terrifying at times, it’s full of dark humour and it was such compelling reading.
Paranormal fantasy that teeters on the edge of horror, let your imagination loose and relish every page.

Absolutely stunningly brilliant. I could not put this book down once started. I found myself utterly transported, and I'll be thinking about this one for ages to come.

Where do I even begin? T. Kingfisher could write a grocery list and I'd probably still enjoy it. This is maybe my favorite in the series of fairy tale retellings she's done so far. Even though it's technically a horror (with an evil sorceress mother) it wasn't exactly scary though it had its tense moments. The main cast of characters were impossible to dislike. Hester was like the sweet aunt that was always looking out for you but also for some reason had a hobby/business of goose breeding. Cordelia had one of my favorite character development tropes. Mrs. Green was the outgoing middle-age woman that was too charming to ever dislike (unless you're an evil, jealous sorceress). What else can I say without spoiling it? It was a great story with some great characters that I wish I could be friends with (Hester, if you're out there, let's hang out, ok?)

T. Kingfisher crafts a well-paced and gripping narrative, introducing us to a rich cast of characters whose diverse ages and backgrounds add depth and intrigue to the tale. The magic structure within the story is coherent and seamlessly woven into the plot, enhancing the sense of wonder and danger. Cordelia's development throughout the novel is both satisfying and inspiring, as she evolves from a fearful girl into someone strong and resilient. I was impressed how although she experienced character development, she still seemed like herself.

I loved the platonic love and respect many of the characters displayed. Hester and her friends are wonderful role models and guardians for Cordelia.

A quick yet deeply satisfying read, A Sorceress Comes to Call is a must-read for fans of magical realism and compelling character-driven stories. T. Kingfisher has delivered a beautifully crafted novel that will leave readers eagerly anticipating her next work.

Thank you to Titan Books and NetGalley for providing me an eARC to review!

I would like to preface this review by saying 1) I think I'm in a reading slump and 2) I am a goose girl girlie for life xoxo

I liked how Kingfisher kept this story about Cordelia and her mother, and didn't make it into this world-ending epic. I think it worked really well for the story, but I also think it was just really nice to have a story that was more focused on someone with 'smaller' dreams of just being loved and safe. I liked all the little ways the characters looked out for her and her little moments of joy in a pretty horrible situation.

I was really enjoying it at the beginning, but as the story went on I just didn't feel super connected to it and don't think it is particularly memorable. It's one of those books I feel could easily be like a comfort read (despite some darker content relating to abuse, coercion and violence) and doesn't necessarily need to be more than that? Definitely a unique take on the goose girl story too which I appreciate.

I would like to reread one day when I'm not slumpy to see if I enjoy it more second time around, and I would definitely still recommend it, but just didn't quite fall in love with it as much as I was hoping to.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC.

By reimagining the 'Goose Girl', T.Kingfisher once again created a entraping book. While some elements of the original story remain, we get a brand new, Regency inspired world. I can't even decide what I liked the most about the story: found family, magic, manipulations or entertaining characters, but I devoured this book! A definite recommendation!!

A Sorceress Comes To Call by T. Kingfisher is a perfect example of why I love T. Kingfisher’s books so much. I absolutely loved everything! The first chapter is soooo creepy, and with an epic first line “There was a fly walking on Cordelia’s hand, and she was not allowed to flick it away.” you are sucked right into the story. Yet the humor makes it a more easy read, I chuckled out loud several times and that doesn’t happen often to me. I absolutely loved the setting, it seems some sort of regency world with a little bit of magic, and Cordelia’s mother is after security and power and tries to ensnare a rich man. The rich man in question is oblivious to it all, but his sister is epic and I LOVED we had an older heroine (alongside Cordelia) who has knee problems. I loved every character, from Hesters friends to the servants who know vaguely something’s up. The pacing is fast and there is never a dull moment, not even when they have a researching montage (like reading allll the books).

The villain is truly creepy and becomes more terrifying as the story progresses, as you discover more and more. Cordelia is such a lovely person, severely traumatized by her mom yet resilient and you can’t help but love her and want to give her a big hug. She has a lot of character growth, which is lovely to see. Also yay for embroidery besides feminism, for once this is a story where embroidery isn’t scorned by the strong independent woman.

The level of creepiness I could just handle because of all the humor that is thrown in, so it’s not as much horror as What Moves The Dead by the same author but slightly more thriller like than Nettle and Bone. For me, this one moves straight into my favorites, and I’ll definitely be buying my own copy to reread this story many times.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher Titan Books for giving me an e-arc of this book, this has not influenced my opinion.

I have become a huge fan of T. Kingfisher over the last few years, so I was super excited to read this book. The premise grabbed my attention, and it didn’t disappoint.

I found Cordelia a little annoying at the beginning, but she quickly grew on me. Her character arc progression was so good that it was hard not to like her. I also enjoyed the relationship between Cordelia and Hester. Evangeline was a brilliant villain. Utterly evil, but you can’t help wanting to sympathise with her too.

The writing was impeccable, as is usual with the author. They have such a unique way of describing what is happening that pulls you in and immerses you in the story. The pacing was quick, too. I was thrown right into the story, and it kept me turning the pages long into the night.