Two lost, lonely souls long for one another amidst the dust and gloom of a haunted house? Swoooooon.

Starling House is the story of Opal, a scrappy, stubborn woman fiercely protecting the only family she has left. Beaten down by life and circumstance, she takes a chance on working at the notoriously decrepit Starling House. Yet as Opal gets to know the peculiar and reclusive Arthur Starling, she sees how greed and hatred have festered into a curse. And that the Starling House is not the only haunted and cursed thing in Eden, Kentucky.

Y’all, if you like your characters gasping, grasping, running ragged, and just slowly coming apart at the seams, you’re going to absolutely love Opal and Arthur. They are the dregs. They are the diamonds in the rough. They are the fools gold shining brightly in the decay and detritus.

In the tradition of Southern Gothic haunted house stories, Starling House is languid puzzle, a labyrinth in every way. It is slow and creeping as you make your way heedlessly toward inevitable tragedy. It is the epitome of a slow burn. The house calls you as it called Opal and Arthur, singing its eerie siren song until you’re trapped in its gaping maw.

Anyway, Alix is a witch and remains my favorite author.

Starling House comes out on Oct 3, which is SO soon and wow, what perfect opportunity for you to preorder it from Barnes and Noble’s preorder sale. Hint hint. Thank you so much TOR for sending me an arc in response to my incredibly unhinged request email.

TL;DR REVIEW:

Starling House is another top-notch novel from Alix E. Harrow. It was perfect for fall, exactly the plunge into plot that I needed, with lovable characters to boot.

For you if: You like gothic/urban fantasy and want a quick, fast-paced book that packs a punch.

FULL REVIEW:

Well, folks, Alix Harrow has done it again. She’s an auto-read author for me, and every new book she publishes reaffirms that decision — including this one. (The Once and Future Witches is still my favorite of hers, but that’s because of that book’s sheet brilliance, not because of any flaws in Starling House.)

The book takes place in the fictional blue-collar town of Eden, Kentucky (which is actually based on a real town whose history Harrow describes on her Substack). Opal is a young woman just trying to keep her and her younger brother, who is in high school, fed. She’s also haunted by dreams of Starling House, the ancient Victorian with a reclusive warden that nobody likes to talk about. And honestly, I don’t know how to keep going with this synopsis because there is just so much: a fairy tale kid’s book, magical beasts, a sentient house, a lonely pining man with tattoos and a sword, a cat named Baast, and a plot that unearths slavery and racism and and its lingering repercussions today. Basically, IT HAS IT ALL.

Truly, I loved my time with this book. It’s perfect for October, with all the gothic vibes without going full-on horror. I also loved Opal as a main character. She’s not quite reliable, but she’s got a ton of spirit and grit. Her choices aren’t always perfect, but her heart’s in the right place, and it’s easy to empathize with her. I also loved Arthur and their slow-burn romance. The audiobook edition of this one was also excellent, with Natalie Naudus incredible as always.

TLDR: If you like gothic/urban fantasy and want a quick, fast-paced book that packs a punch, this is a good choice!



CONTENT AND TRIGGER WARNINGS:
Death of a parent/grief; Fire/Fire Injury; Violence and blood; Sexual content (minor)

Okay, I am convinced that Alix E. Harrow can do no wrong. I have loved all of the books that I have read written by this amazingly talented author so far (I still need to read The Once and Future Witches and I promise to get to it sometime soon.). This story grabbed me from the very start, and I didn’t want to stop listening. I had a fantastic time with this entertaining novel that I found almost impossible to put down.

Opal was a wonderful character, and I wanted to see things work out for her and her brother. She has faced a lot of challenges in her life and does what needs to be done to care for both herself and her brother. She can’t turn down the job at Starling House that she is offered. Arthur was equally amazing. He is doing the best that he can with the situation that he has found himself in. I loved the gothic vibe of the story and thought that it was just creepy enough to really pull me in.

I listened to the audiobook and thought that Natalie Naudus did a wonderful job with the story. I loved the voices that she used that helped bring the characters and story to life. I found her voice to be very pleasant and am certain that her performance added to my overall enjoyment of the story. I will definitely be recommending this one to others. I found this story to be a wonderful tale filled with characters that were easy to fall for. I cannot wait to read more of Alix E. Harrow’s writing.

I received a review copy of this book from Macmillan Audio and Tor Books.

I read and listened to this one thanks to NetGalley and it BLEW ME AWAY. I can’t wait to read more from this author.

I loved this book. Alix E. Harrow creates a haunted house story that transcends the genre. Starling House is what I had hoped The Death of Jane Lawrence would have been.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for providing the ARC.

Alix E. Harlow is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. As someone who loves to read spooky fantasies and mysteries right as Halloween comes around, this book felt right up my alley. Harlow did not disappoint.

Opal was an excellent heroine and with the novel predominantly in her POV, thank goodness. I really felt like I was able to get in her head, especially since her chapters were in first person. It really drove the creepy thriller aspect that Harlow was trying to achieve and it was in nice contrast to the third person POV of Arthur.

I loved thus book because it was scary without being too scary, it was fanciful without being over the top, and there was just a perfect amount of mystery and thriller to keep it interesting. Definitely a great Halloween read!

This was a book I was always going to read. The cover is right up my alley, of course. But the description of the story with its references to gothic houses and brooding men was also ticking all of the right boxes. On top of all of that, this is the same author who wrote “The Ten Thousand Doors of January,” a book I absolutely adored. Now, all of that said, I was a bit concerned going in due to the fact that this is a contemporary fantasy novel set in our modern world. For whatever reason, I’m very picky about this subgenre of fantasy. But it’s also just a tall task to write a compelling story that introduces magical elements into a world that in every other way is the same as our own. One or the other often is lacking in believability, either the magic or the description of our current society, leading to a disjointed weave where neither element really works with the other. But, frankly, this book served as a relief and reassurance: there ARE contemporary fantasy novels out there that work for me!

There was so much to love about this book, but I think I have to start with the voice of the main character. Yes, the book is broken up between two POVs, but it is not an even split, with Opal narrating the majority of the book. I won’t go off again on my main rants about the success of failure of multi-POV books, but I will note that Harrow takes advantage of an approach that I think vastly helps in this endeavor, and one that is often overlooked by authors. Opal, the primary narrator, tells her story in first person, while Arthur’s chapters are told from third person. Such a simple solution, but one that makes them easily distinguishable from one another without falling into the common trap of writing two voices that sound nearly identical. Third person storytelling is also the dominant form of storytelling across genres for a reason in that it allows a greater lens of commentary and description of events and scenes. So using this method, we are centered in Opal’s very distinctive voice, but through Arthur’s chapters, we are given a wider view of the greater circumstances.

But let’s get back to Opal. First person is a hard writing style to tackle, and one that I feel few authors truly master, often feeling that many books would be elevated form the mundane to the more exceptional had a simple change of tense been employed. But Harrow proves here how successful first person storytelling can be when done right. Opal’s voice is fierce, unique, and so clearly her own from the very start that the reader will immediately feel as if they know the exact type of person narrating the story before many details are even revealed. What’s more, Opal’s narration is clearly that of a somewhat unreliable narrator, which I think is the only honest way to truly do first person narration. When a character can only evaluate people and events from the perspective of their own world-view, their understanding colored by their own insecurities and past experiences, OF COURSE their narration is unreliable! Such is Opal’s story, an honest, and at time heart breaking, look at the harsh realities of poverty and small town life, but one that is also told from the perspective a young woman who has fought every day to make a life for herself and her brother. Opal isn’t a perfect person, but her story is one of self-acceptance, and learning the true nature of trust and family. It’s bracing at times, but ultimately beautiful.

Arthur’s story also covers some deep themes, such as duty, responsibility, choice, and, similar to Opal, family and grief. Of course, tied between them is a lovely slow-burn romance of the exact variety that I prefer. Firstly, their relationship is secondary to the overall story. And secondly, it develops in a natural manner full of small, every day moments and delayed realizations. Beyond these two, the house itself played a very unexpected role. I definitely went into the book expecting a certain type of haunted house story, and while some of this held true, I was also surprised and very pleased with the nuance brought to the house itself. In many ways, it served as an important third character all on its own.

I also loved the setting and overall story. The pacing was steady and gripping from the very start, never once lulling or letting the reader free from its captivating grip. Pieces to the larger mystery are slowly unspooled, all while greater and greater tension brews in the looming conflict between the house, its caretakers, and those who exist beyond it. Every time I felt like I had a good grasp on exactly where this story was going, it would abruptly swerve into an entirely different lane. The end, especially, took a turn I wasn’t expecting at all, but ended up really enjoying.

Honestly, I can’t say enough good things about this book. It’s stayed with me every since I finished it, and it’s definitely been one of those “ruiner” reads where I’ve struggled picking up my next few books because my mind keeps drifting back to this one. This is the sort of book that I think will appeal to a wide range of readers. It is fantasy, of course, but it also has elements of horror and historical fiction. Beyond this, it delves deeply into themes of power, privilege, and rage, topics that I think will interest many readers. And, of course, any fans of Harrow’s work previously should definitely check this one out.

Rating 10: Haunting in the true sense of the word, this book will stick with you long after you’ve finished the last page.

(Link will go live October 20)

Perfect read for spooky season. It’s got magic and mystery like lightening in a bottle. It’s so nice to be able to read a fantasy novel for a change. I’m extremely excited to see what’s next.

Alix Harrow is an auto-buy for me because I absolutely love her writing and characters. This book was unlike other things she wrote in a few ways. Some of those ways I liked and other I didn’t.

The concept of the living house with its secrets and mysteries was fun and spooky and fit right in the gothic vein I love. However these books tend to be a tad on the slower side which means the characters usually have to do the heavy hitting in the beginning. I didn’t love the characters. They didn’t feel as unique as Harrow has been able to capture in her other books. There were a lot more of the stereotypical gender dynamics that show up in a lot of other mainstream books. In the past, Harrow’s books have stood out to me because those dynamics are NOT present. It made the book a little less compelling because I was as invested or in love with the characters as much.

Overall still a good read. I did the audiobook which was fine, but the narrator now narrates so many books that it also made it less of an individual experience. Probably 7 of the books I’ve listened to in the last year have been narrated by her so it becomes difficult to see this as a separate story. She does a fine job. But I think reading instead of listening would have made this experience more enjoyable.

Thank you to Tor Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

This was so so so good. The right amount of eerie and poetic, it is very low level thriller/spooky, but still meets exactly what you need from it. It was a mix of genres and toed the line easily between fantasy, thriller, and gothic horror.

This is going to be the PERFECT book for this Halloween season! I can’t wait to read it again!

I went into this book totally blind, only knowing I adored The Once and Future Witches a few years back. Looks like I need to read all of Harrow’s backlist now because Starling House was delightful. A perfect book for autumn! It is also the October pick for @reesesbookclub.

Harrow has written a gothic tale about small town secrets, greed, love, real life monsters, and a haunted house, of course. Opal and her younger brother are living in a motel room, trying to make ends meet after the death of their mother and do whatever it takes to get out of Eden, Kentucky. A too good to be true opportunity arises for Opal to clean Starling House, the mysterious estate with an even more mysterious caretaker, Arthur. The more time she spends at Starling House, the more secrets are revealed and against her better judgement, it begins to feel like home. Despite this feeling of home, Opal and Arthur are tasked with keeping the outside world safe from the house…or is it the other way around?

This reads like a dark fairytale and is perfect for those who don’t want anything too scary, but still crave a creepy atmosphere with some monsters thrown in. Harrow’s prose reeled me in right away and I truly loved all the characters, especially Bev and the moody Starling House itself.

Thank you very much for the opportunity to read this book early! I really enjoyed it. I thought the writing was very well done, and the story kept me interested. I believe my students/patrons would also love this book and will be acquiring it for the library!

The nitty-gritty: An atmospheric, eerie tale with a fairy tale vibe, Starling House will delight readers with its fantastical mysteries, subtle romance and heartfelt friendships.

Starling House is a beautifully written dark fantasy that feels almost like a fairy tale at times. In fact, it completely took me by surprise, with several elements that I wasn’t expecting, like a very sweet, low-key romance and an unusual house that is almost a character itself. It’s also fairly ambitious and felt a bit overcrowded at times, as the author didn’t always develop or explain certain plot elements to my satisfaction. Still, I ended up loving it with only a small reservation, so it was a win for me.

This is a hard story to sum up, so I’m just giving you the bare bones of the plot. The story takes place in a small, coal-mining town in Kentucky called Eden. Starling House, a mysterious and secluded house that was built by the late children’s author Eleanor Starling, is feared and avoided by many in town. Said to be haunted or cursed, it now sits empty, although now and then a light can be seen burning in an upstairs window.

Opal has lived in Eden her entire life and has weird dreams about Starling House, which is odd because she’s never been inside. One day she is drawn to its gates, and there she meets the current owner of the house, Arthur Starling. When Arthur asks Opal to come and work for him as a housekeeper—offering her a large sum of money—she immediately agrees. But getting to know Arthur is almost impossible. He’s grumpy and doesn’t seem to like Opal very much, and he’s obviously hiding something. Why is there a sword in Arthur’s bedroom? Where does the trap door in the floor lead to, and where is the key? And why does the house seem to be alive? The hallways change randomly, and Opal seems to be able to “communicate” with it.

When an outsider asks Opal to spy on Arthur and threatens her younger brother Jasper if she doesn’t, Opal knows she must protect Jasper at all costs. But the mystery of Starling House is calling to her, and the fate of Eden might depend on Opal and Arthur working together to save it.

Starling House is full of eerie ambiance, mostly due to Harrow’s skillful and descriptive writing. She has taken the fictional town of Eden, a sad, dying town that used to be famous for having the biggest power shovel in the world, and incorporated its history into the drama surrounding Arthur and Starling House. Part of that drama hinges on the owners of the coal mine, the Gravely brothers, and how their lives intertwined with Eleanor Starling and those that came after her. I loved the gothic tone of the book, especially the scenes that take place inside the house, and near the end of the story when things get a little weird, that gothic feel comes into play in a big way.

Harrow adds an interesting dynamic by making Opal and Jasper homeless, which gives the story an almost Dickensian feel. Opal is twenty-seven and Jasper is seventeen, and their mother died under suspicious circumstances eleven years ago. Opal’s minimum wage job at Tractor Supply barely pays for food, so the two live rent free in the Garden of Eden Motel, Room 12, courtesy of the owner, a brash but kind woman named Bev. Opal is determined to get Jasper out of Eden, so she’s been squirreling away money to pay for a private school, although surprise, surprise, that idea blows up in her face later on. When she meets Arthur, his reluctant kindness surprises her, and Harrow adds some sweet touches to the story that melted my heart (the wool coat!)

As for Opal, she’s sort of a tough cookie and not very loveable, although she’s tough because homelessness has made her tough. She shoplifts and even steals candlesticks and silverware from Starling House when she starts working there (to hawk on eBay), and despite her prickly personality, I felt for her and Jasper. Her two closest friends, Charlotte and Bev, are important to her, and even when they’re all sniping at each other, you can tell deep down they love each other. I really liked Opal despite the negatives, and I especially liked her when she interacted with Arthur.

Which brings me to the romance. Harrow’s story is almost a Beauty and the Beast retelling, because Arthur is described (multiple times) as “ugly.” But when they meet, you can almost hear the connection between the two crackle, it’s so well written. Arthur is a grumpy man with a lot on his plate (I won’t tell you everything because it’s fun to uncover the mystery yourself), but he meets his match in Opal, who refuses to do anything she’s told. Little by little, his defenses against her break down, and the resulting slow-burn romance is as sweet as anything I’ve read.

Then there is the mystery of what Arthur is doing at Starling House and the burden he’s put on himself to protect the town of Eden from what lies beneath the house. This is the part that felt like a fairy tale to me, the knight tasked with protecting his people, and it was very cool. Arthur’s “wardenship” is also tied to Eleanor Starling and her famous children’s book, The Underworld, and I loved the way the book and the house, fantasy and reality, are tangled together.

There are a couple of negatives, but first I want to say how gorgeous the finished hardcover is. There are illustrations throughout that remind me of the illustrations in the Wayward Children books, and that cover is simply stunning. Strangely enough, Harrow uses footnotes in her story, although there aren’t very many, thankfully. I’m still not sure why she included them, or if they were necessary at all.

I believe the author was trying to address racism, since she mentions slaves in the early days of the mine. Opal is described as a fiery red headed beauty, but Jasper is bullied because of the color of his skin, although I never caught specifics about his ethnicity. Did Jasper have a different father from Opal? If so I missed it, and I felt overall the remarks about race weren’t fleshed out enough to make a real impact. 

But those issues aside, Starling House was an immersive read that captured my imagination. It might not be my favorite of Alix E. Harrow’s books, but I’m so glad I had the chance to read it.

Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.

I was so excited for the vibes in this book, and when it came to the house they didn't disappoint. I didn't love the romance or the character-work, which was a bit shocking for me. I know I'm in the vast minority here, and I'm glad so many others are finding the Autumnal/wintery haunted house book of their dreams in this.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January is one of my top 10 favorite books of all time, which for a bookseller is a big deal. I ultimately didn't connect with Harrow's followup book, so I was cautiously optimistic about this one.
I loved it.
I ended up listening and reading via an ARC and ALC and I throughly enjoyed both formats. The story is rich and complicated and sad and sweet and a dozen other things that will leave you feeling achy and entranced. Once again Harrow does a good job of acknowledging issues like racism and classicism, going as far as to include them as a crucial part of the mythology of the story.
It feels a tiny bit like The Hazel Wood (book) meets The Resort (tv show).

What I liked: THIS STORY, oh my goodness. This is just going to be incoherent rambling, and I can confidently say Alix E. Harrow has gained a fan for life. I absolutely loved the sentient house at the heart of this story. I loved Opal and her stubbornness, her perseverance, and her desire to find a place that felt like home. I loved Arthur and his commitment to do right by the people around him, even when it felt impossible. Harrow’s construction of the town of Eden was complex and oftentimes terrible, the kind of horror that roots itself in reality and is truly terrifying. From start to finish, the atmosphere of this book was flawless: eerie and suspenseful and mysterious. And I am DYING to see what The Underland’s illustrations would look like. I am simply in awe.

What I didn’t like: ??? N/A

Overall: All of the stars, I highly recommend this for the love story, the important commentary, lovable main characters, and of course, Starling House itself.

Content warnings: racism (challenged), mentions of slavery, homophobia (challenged), classism (challenged), murder, death by car accident, death of parents

This gothic tale from Alix E. Harrow is now probably my favorite book written by her. Truly atmospheric, truly gothic, and such a human story of connection and compassion and love. I couldn't put it down.

The story follows Opal, a young person who hasn't had the easiest life. She lives with her young brother in a motel room her mother secured for them before she died. Opal tries her hardest to make ends meet by taking odd jobs and working at the Tractor Supply, eating gas station pizza and packets of instant ramen, lying and cheating and stealing as much as she can without getting caught, and saving each and every penny she made to give her brother a better life. For Opal, there was no room for dreams, for laughter, for ease. It was work hard or starve.

That is, until one day she walked by the Starling House; an old 19th century mansion in the middle of town with tall brick walls and an iron-barred gate. It's a very famous house where the famous author, Eleanor Starling, lived and wrote her children's book, The Underland. It also happens to be a house Opal has dreamed about since she was a kid.

From there starts the story of Opal, Arthur, and this house. The characters of this story are probably the main component that pulls you in. Yeah, the house is atmospheric with its gothic details and a resident that reminds you more of Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights. There's the mystery of what could be crawling out from the house, the mist, the way people end up dead or missing from the town, and the questions of how everything connects to each other.

You definitely get the answers for those questions and along the way you get this creative backstory told through the stories of the people who grew up in the town, who's families were affected by the house. The book has a few footnotes spread throughout, which just gives you an idea of the dedication Alix E. Harrow has to her story; to blur the lines between real and fantasy and make you wonder if perhaps there really was a children's book author named Eleanor Starling and that perhaps the things she wrote were real.

But Opal and Arthur are the main components here and they share that deep connection of growing up way too soon and throughout the novel learn to heal those old childhood wounds. Which is what I loved about this book. I've read Alix E. Harrow's stories in the past and they've all been fine. But something about this book felt different. It was mature with a true grasp on the human condition and resonated so deeply in my bones that I nearly cried by the end. It's about the resentment we harbor for the things that caused us harm in the past and the strength to let them go in face of something worth fighting for. It's about finding the ability to dream again after years of living in reality and how some dreams never truly leave us. It's about finding home when you're physically homeless, but also emotionally and mentally homeless and it's about finding your people in the most unlikely of places.

I truly and absolutely loved this story. It had so much depth and so much to think about. It made you wonder if this is real or a fantasy. It brought that element of spooky and it made you care so deeply for these characters. It truly was such a delight to read. Can you say that about a gothic story?

A haunted house with secrets. A cursed town full of corruption. Monsters hiding the in mist. And a no nonsense dreamer searching for a home.

Harrow once again effortlessly creates characters and a world that pull you in from the first few pages. I found this take on the southern gothic horror story just the right amount of fantasy, romance, and spookiness. I did find one major plot line seemed unresolved at the end of the book, but I enjoyed my time spent in the pages of Starling House enough to forgive it… mostly.

Reading Starling House was truly a magical experience and if this doesn't end up staying my favorite book of 2023 I will be very surprised. I finished this a few days ago and I can't stop thinking about it - seriously, I'm already itching to reread! Part haunted house story, part fairy tale with a bit of romance, Starling House is the perfect book to read this autumn, especially if you're looking for something that isn't too spooky.

Opal finds herself stuck in Eden, Kentucky, an old mining town with few opportunities and plenty of bad luck. She has little hope for herself, but has big dreams of helping her brother escape the town that looks down upon them. One night on her way home from work she passes by Starling House, the former home of E. Starling, a reclusive writer whose dark children's novel is still talked about to this day. Only tonight Opal glimpses a pale, ugly boy - Arthur, the current warden of Starling House.

I've read from Alix E. Harrow before and while I've loved her other works, nothing hooked me like Starling House did. She really brought this world and these characters to life with her writing. Opal wasn't a particularly lovable character and she made plenty of questionable choices, but I couldn't help but root for her. I thought the actual monsters of Underland were well done and the ending tied things up nicely.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for a review copy.

In a gothic novel centered around home, dreams, and revenge schemes, Starling House is more than just the crumbling mansion hidden in the woods of Eden, Kentucky. It also haunts the dreams of people without a home; in this case, those of an orphaned young woman doing her best to keep her brother safe, no matter how many illegal acts it takes. With the House haunting her dreams, she ends up in a housekeeper role for Arthur Starling, the strange lonely heir of the home.

I was drawn into the story immediately. Harrow's prose is evocative and Opal's voice is immediately clear to the reader. This book is a perfect spooky season read that kept me on edge waiting to see how the story would shake out.

Thank you to Tor Publishing and NetGalley for the eARC.