This genre, horror, has me all sorts of confused.

I've seen this novel referred to as both horror and also magical realism. I've also seen references to it as showcasing postpartum depression. I have to respectfully disagree with all these assessments. I felt the trauma experienced by the mother in this story had nothing whatever to do with postpartum depression, even if the characters around her initially perceived it to be so.

You, however, might read and disagree with me.

I don't want to say too much about the plot because it unfolds so nicely without spoilers, or even without super mini spoilers. Try not to read much beyond the synopsis and even that would be best avoided, honestly.

In any case, I've found an author I quite like in LaValle. He's done an excellent job here of taking fairy tale lore and transforming it to modern day New York City; as to whether the suggestions of fairy tale associations pan out are left to the reader to discover. But LaValle does an amazing job of setting up even contemporary NYC as almost surreal and fable-like even before the hints of other-worldiness creep in.

Most of all, I was entranced by the portrayal and developments of the relationships. By the time Apollo's son, Brian, was born, I was hooked on their love for one another and and their son. Because of the basic synopsis, I knew trauma was looming and the affection I already felt for the characters at that point just fostered my trepidation.

Random House provided an advanced copy for my review and this novel was released last week on June 13th.

I've been interested in The Ballad of Black Tom but mixed reviews kept it off my more immediate radar. I will likely reconsider reading that one and I will definitely be looking forward to LaValle's next novel.

When I received a request to review "The Changeling," I was intrigued. The only description of the book was this quote: "If the literary gods mixed together Haruki Murakami and Ralph Ellison, the result would be Victor LaValle."—Anthony Doerr and this one sentence summary: "The wildly imaginative story of one man’s thrilling odyssey through an enchanted world to find his wife, who has disappeared after having seemingly committed an unforgivable act of violence"

I do happen to know from my childhood love of folklore and fairy tales that a changeling is a creature left behind when fairies steal someone's baby. Typically, the changeling is magically disguised as the baby and is raised by the family in place of their actual child. So I went into this book expecting that to crop up at some point, but not knowing what to expect other than that.

Having read it, I would class this book as an urban fantasy. Internet trolls coexist and even collaborate with fairy tale trolls. Wives become witches and then go back to being wives. Fathers sometimes sacrifice children to monsters in the woods and sometimes to the monsters living in their own minds. And yes, children are stolen and replaced by things that are not human babies.

LaValle plays on modern fears while at the same time invoking ancient ones. The internet and social media play an equally large role in the story as monsters, witches and dark woods. And at it's heart, this is very much a story of parenthood and the overwhelming love and fear inspired by becoming a parent. This was one of the few books I have read recently where I really never predicted what was coming next, other than the fact that once a baby appeared on the scene, the titular changeling was probably coming soon.

There pros and cons to the writing -- LaValle really knows how to set a scene, giving modern New York locations a dark fairy tale vibe, so you always feel like everything is a bit off-kilter, even when presented with a totally ordinary scene. On the other hand, he has a tendency to overexplain sometimes, or put explanations in strange places. Information is sometimes repeated unnecessarily, interrupting the flow of the story. The pacing also is a bit off in the middle of the book. The beginning flows well, establishing Apollo, our main character and his wife Emma and their backstories, which play an important part in who they are and how they react to the events of the story. But after Apollo is left on his own and before he discovers what really happened with his wife and son - the pacing seems to slow to a crawl and the story loses momentum.

I think this could have been remedied had LaValle been able to give us some of Emma's perspective as well as Apollo's. It would have changed the story quite a bit, but it also would have allowed us to spend more time with the "fantasy" part of this urban fantasy and give us more insight into fascinating aspects of the story that are only touched on (like Emma's "mommy group" and what she was doing during the time she was missing). Instead we have to stop halfway through the story, right when we should be starting to solve the mystery, because the main character doesn't yet know there's still a mystery to be solved. And we've got to tag along with him for a while until he finally figures it out. If you can stick with it through that lull in the middle, however, the end is a thrill ride, when all the monsters and witches come out and Apollo also becomes a hero, the sun god striding into the darkness to confront the big bad and save his family.

Book two, this week, of the books I judged by their covers. Book two, this week, of the books I judged by their covers whose covers turned out to be right. Well, this one was also pitched to me as a dark fairy tale and I've been feeling like it was time to get back into fairy tales.

That reading rut I've been in for months? This might just be the book that pulls me out. It's not my usual read, very deep into the fantasy realm, but it's also the first book that I've literally been unable to put down in months. Maybe because I needed something that completely took me away from reality. Maybe because sometimes going outside of your comfort zone is exactly what it takes to remind you how great reading can be.

The Changeling is gruesome, and scary, and twisty. It builds slowly, feeling like a perfect ordinary, if somewhat sad story. Then suddenly, the book takes off and LaValle takes readers on a macabre adventure that sucked me in and made me forget where I was and how long I'd been reading.

LaValle included copious references to fairy tales and literature that, of course, appealed to me, including making his lead characters a librarian and a buyer/seller of books. The man clearly knows his way around the book world and the history of stories.

Paul Beatty (author of The Sellout) compared The Changeling to the work of the Coen brothers. The Fargo kind of Coen brothers movie seems more than an apt comparison with an ordinary setting, a lot of unexpected twists and tension, and a whole lot of blood. That gory factor generally turns me off in a book or a movie. But the Coen brothers have a way to do it that I can handle. Victor LaValle seems to have that same touch. Maybe because it feels appropriate where it's used, but also because the stories have so much more to recommend them.

I've never heard of LaValle before. A review on Vulture.com called LaValle a "prolific horror master." Now, I'm not a big fan of horror, not in my movies and not in my books. I don't want to read a book that makes me even more afraid of the bad things that really could happen to me. But if his particular brand of horror combines characters I care about in great story lines and I can don't feel like I won't be able to walk into my own house alone after dark, I might just have to give his work another try.

Apollo Kagwa has had nightmares most of his life about his father coming back for him…but leaving him behind. It’s left him with questions, but it’s also left him with a determination to be a better father than his own was.

He’s a book man; he buys and sells any book that could be worth a fair bit of money. One day in a musty basement he makes the find of his life, in more ways than one. The book plays a part in a journey. That journey starts with heartbreak.

Apollo has a six month old son who he dotes on endlessly. Everything seems to be going great–except when his wife Emma starts acting a little strangely. Depression after birth happens, but Emma tells him things that are distressingly strange–pictures taken of the baby from a distance that shows it’s not her or Apollo taking them show up on her phone along with strange messages. The messages always quickly disappear. Apollo is worried.

Then the unthinkable happens, and Emma flees after committing a horrible act. Apollo is determined to find her, but the journey he ends up on isn’t the one he thinks he’s started.

The Changeling is a beautifully constructed modern fairytale that surprises and delights. It’s at times both frightening and beautiful, and combines both old and new traditions of storytelling and fiction into a story I couldn’t put down. It’s easily one of the best books I’ve read this year. I fully expect to see it on more than a few nomination lists next year.

A must buy.

While I liked the character Apollo and found the story to be well written and emotional this book just wasn't for me.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in return for my honest review. This book is a contemporary fairytale or Odyssey-type story. It took a little while for it to really feel like a fairytale because the fantastical elements don't really appear until later in the book. Like a true fairytale it is very dark in places. Excellent character development and many twists and turns. This book is not a quick read-if you do that, you will miss so many little quirks. I'm a little speechless about some of the things that happen but it's better that I don't spoil it for anyone else.

This story begins with a feeling very much like a fairy tale or fable. But as the story gets closer to the present time, that fairy tale feeling gradually drops away. Then the book becomes very contemporary and time stamped. The present is set in 2015. Apollo, a black main raised without a father, finds an autographed copy of To Kill a Mockingbird. He debates saving it until Harper Lee passed away to be able to sell for more money. (She does in February 2016.) But when his wife Emma kills their son, claiming he is not actually their son, the story takes an odd turn combining both old world fables and technology. The story shows technology can be used for good or evil. I am starting to feel like this is an overall trend for many books right now. Another secondary plotline seemed to be race. While it didn’t play a big part of the story, it was brought up several times. This quote stood out to me as being a sad but accurate reflection of how things are: “I did not survive Iraq to get shot to death by some Suffolk County cop who ‘feared for his life.’” I feel this book is hard to classify, combining elements of fantasy, modern fiction, mystery, and love. I think pretty much everyone can find something to interest them.

Continually surprising and unpredictable, great character development, evocative prose that sets the proper mood no matter the setting. Recommended.

To be honest I did not finish this book. I just was not able to get into it enough to make it further than about halfway through. The premise conveyed in the advertising teaser sounded very interesting, but it felt like I was reading forever and still hadn't gotten to that main premise. The writing is good, but the plot did not grab me because it didn't feel like it was going anywhere. Perhaps if the introductory portion of the book were shorter it would be a more engaging story.

BookFilter review: Here is a modern fairy tale set in New York City. Not a Disney-fied fairy tale with a neat little message of uplift and a happy ending. Uh-uh. This is one of those dark, original fairy tales, the unexpurgated versions you sometimes read in editions for adults that hew closely to the original stories complete with violence and undertones of sex and in which the main message is one of caution: the world is a lot stranger and scarier than you're willing to admit. It's a Grimm fairy tale with the grimness front and center. LaValle burst onto the scene with his excellent short story collection "Slapboxing With Jesus" followed uo by the bleak but mordantly funny novel "The Ecstatic." He might have continued in this literary, New Yorker friendly vein. But LaValle has found his purchase in subverting genres like sci-fi and horror, playing off H.P. Lovecraft. So here he begins in compelling mode, telling of the romance and marriage of a young couple up to the point when the wife Emma gives birth on a stalled subway train in a scene that is charm itself, down to the street performers who gamely hide the intimate moment from camera-phone wielding passengers peering in from other cars. Then things go wrong. The wife becomes more and more depressed (post-partum?) and the husband simply doesn't know what to do other than begging her to keep taking the medicine she's been prescribed. Things go truly off the rails in a way that would terrify any new parent, tapping into your darkest fears about whether you (or your spouse) is up the daunting task of raising a child to that moment when you realize this child has a mind of its own. Part Rosemary's Baby (the movie, not the book), part Stephen King, LaValle's story is emotionally rich long before it treads into dark fantasy territory. Our hero Apollo Kagwa -- a latch-key kid turned avid purveyor of rare and precious books -- is a memorable character, a father who does whatever he must to protect his child but never fails to remember you can't protect your child by destroying who you are. It's creepy and fun and unexpected and if I wasn't wholly on board by the end (horror isn't quite my thing), I have to respect a book that I put aside once or twice because it was freaking me out a little. If you've just welcomed a newborn into the world, you might want to wait a while before reading this.... -- Michael Giltz

We will certainly purchase the book, but I think I may not be the proper reader to appreciate it. I could not buy into the combination of Viking troll legend and iPad apps. I enjoyed the beginning, but once he got out of prison it fell apart for me completely. Too many unbelievable things happened, and it became too much.. I did not enjoy the book, but I did finish it. Sorry and thank you for the opportunity to read it!

It's hard to describe the plot or even the genre of this novel. The introduction says that it is a fairy tale. A very dark, adult one. There are witches, monsters and a hero who may not be perfect but is really trying. Apollo's existence is the result of a series of circumstances (and whose isn't?). His mother Lillian is an immigrant from West Africa who does her best to raise him after his father disappears. From her, Apollo learns to be a fighter. When he is older, he marries Emma - a librarian. They have a son, Brian. Then everything unravels in the most horrific circumstances. As with LaValle's previous novel The Devil in Silver, mental illness is part of the plot. But how do you know if you're losing it? What if the monsters are real? And would you believe the person you love the most even if what they were claiming was impossible? I can't go into more detail because it'd be a shame to spoil the story. I went into it not knowing what it was about and this made the plot more surprising. The characters are so well drawn and, as in real life, my opinion on them kept changing depending on the circumstances. It is not a fast, easy read. Sometimes the prose meanders and it takes a while for the author to get to the point. But, just like with hero stories, it is the journey that's worth reading about.

This book was described as a modern day adult fairy tale with a thriller/suspense aspect. Well think about Fairy Tales - most of the original ones were pretty scary. Kids going into the woods, eating a candy house and being taken by a witch - definitely scary. This book was at the high end of my limit for scary/horror. The realistic happenings and the possibility of how events came about were a little too close to my all of our lives and the way we use technology. The story starts with what seems like a normal dysfunctional family, living a normal dysfunctional life but when the old and the new mix the fear is real. All the fears we may have that technology is inviting in anyone to our lives are realized in their most negative ways in this story. This story is not just scary but possible with some adult Fairy Tale thrown in.

The Changeling
A Novel
by Victor LaValle
Random House Publishing Group - Random House
Courtesy Netgalley

The Changeling is a novel about a man, Apollo Kagwa, who is raised by single very hard working mother. His father, Brian, disappeared when Apollo was 4 years old. Apollo grows up to be a book dealer. He attends yard, estate and library sales looking for that one rare book that will make him a fortune. Apollo meets Emma and it is first comes love, then comes marriage, than the baby carriage. The baby carriage is where the story takes a sharp turn towards the strange land of fairy tales.

I struggled with The Changeling. It was not a book that I read straight through. I had to read a chapter at a time because I could not stay focused on it. The plot is interesting but I never really got drawn in by the characters. Had I connected with Apollo or Emma I might have done better with it. This is by no means a dismissal of the book. I think it will probably work for many readers. It just did not for me.

Apollo Kagwa thought he had the perfect life. He’s got his dream job as a rare book dealer. He’s deeply in love with his wife and they’re expecting their first child. Unfortunately for Apollo, he’s in a Victor LaValle novel, which means that things quickly get strange, dark, and dangerous. In The Changeling, Apollo soon finds himself in a parental nightmare that stretches back centuries.

The Changeling takes several chapters to gain traction as LaValle starts Apollo’s story with his parents. While we learn why Apollo is so determined to have a traditional family and so happy when he thinks he’s found it, I wondered all through those chapters when the action was going to start. When it does start, the plot took me for a terrifying ride alongside Apollo.

A few months after Apollo’s son is born, his wife, Emma, starts to behave strangely. A doctor might diagnose her with post-natal depression. After six months of Emma’s loathing of their child, she attacks Apollo and murders the child. Then she disappears. Apollo goes to jail for holding Emma’s co-workers hostage in an attempt to find out where she went. And then, things get very strange when Apollo realizes that the son he’d cherished was not at all what he thought it was.

The Changeling is, on its surface, a horror story in which the ordinary becomes supernatural and deadly. Underneath that surface, it’s a story that asks serious questions about what it means to be a parent when the day-to-day reality of the job is far from the ideal. Being a parent is about sacrifice, but I doubt that any parent has to face the struggles Apollo and Emma go up against when they find out what happened to their real son.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for review consideration. It will be released 13 June 2017.

This book seems to fall into that magical realism category, right next to The Underground Railroad.

The Changeling by Victor LaValle is an odd and quirky blend of realism and fantasy. The first part of the book was somewhat realistic, describing Apollo's life from the mysterious disappearance of his father, Brian, to the struggles he faced being brought up by a single mother. I was starting to think that the "changeling" was a metaphor. Nope. The latter part of the book was where everything became very strange with witches, trolls, and real changelings.

The problem that I have is that there are such serious issues brought up in the book in realistic scenarios , but when you throw in trolls, it just doesn't work for me. It's as though those fantasy creatures detract attention from the very serious issues. I don't have a problem with monsters and magic in general and I quite enjoy fantasy books. For me, the blending of the real world and the fantasy world just didn't quite work. As a reader, I felt cheated.

That being said, the book is well written and I was very interested in the story. The author did a great job of portraying strong characters while still showing that they had flaws. I enjoyed most of the story. The eye rolling came in with the appearance of the witches and the changeling.

I lean towards liking this book because of the characters and would hesitantly recommend it to people who enjoy books like The Underground Railroad.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary review e-copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This book will be published June 13, 2017.

A horror novel, in a way, with fantastical elements, about the fear of not being able to protect your child. Some really wonderful scenes charged with emotion and a writer's voice that is full of personality. I loved the main character, rare book dealer Apollo, and the use of technology as a kind of supernatural effect -- along with its juxtaposition to fairy tales. I even liked the third act exposition dump. I'm not sure all of the fantasy elements are necessary, or come together quite as cleanly as one would hope, but this is a terrific story by an excellent writer.

Wow this book really surprised me. First of all it grabbed me from the first paragraph. I started reading about Apollo and his father abandonment issues and ended up with a totally different story than I thought i started with. Brilliant , enchanting , scary , thrilling this book slays the dark fairytale genre

Felt like two separate stories...while I enjoyed them both (the realistic and the fantastical), the transition between the two was jarring. The result was the fairy tale felt TOO implausible and cheesy. I enjoyed it enough to want to finish and find out what happens..