A very good book. With some slight pacing issues, but still worth attention. It provides a fascinating mash-up of a biography and werewolf lore. It has it all: a supernatural drama, great family dynamics, and strong writing.

If you are a fan of the Bronte sisters then this is a must read for you! I enjoyed Power's inclusion of magic and fantasy elements and thought this was a really unique story.

This is a tricky review for me. I loved the author’s style and the descriptive passages really had me out on the moors with the characters. This is a fantasy/gothic/horror story which on its own, without involving the Bronte or ‘Brunty’ family would have been excellent. However, I found my knowledge of the Brontes jarred too much with the story and spoiled my enjoyment of the novel.. It is certainly very different to what I was expecting from the synopsis given - ghosts reminiscent of Heathcliff maybe but not werewolves! All in all I felt rather disappointed. My thanks to the author, Head of Zeus and Netgalley for allowing me early access to a digital copy of this book.

To any Brontë fans, the characters in this book feel familiar and like a warm hug. By exploring the supernatural aspects of the moors Powers has built on the Brontë lore successfully in a very satisfying way. The titular character worked tremendously as the main vehicle for the story, but I would have loved for Branwell, Charlotte and Anne’s journeys to be explored in more depth. Ultimately, the prose and imagery is very reminiscent of the Brontës which makes for a deeply wonderful read.

If you are a fan of the Bronte sisters then this is a must-read. The historical accuracy mixed with gothic fantasy and the literary quality of the writing will simply transport you. The strangeness of the lives of the sisters, highlighted by the heavy dose of folklore that surrounded their upbringing, makes you want to believe this could be the real story :) That is if you like creepy speculative stuff.

Just a small warning, if you are not used to reading classics, the long run-in sentences might be a little hard to get into. The author obviously wanted to do honour to those amazing women and borrowed his style from their time. Also, this isn't the type of book where you immediately adore the protagonists... the Brontes were a very interesting bunch, but not one you'd quickly warm to. A very impressive book.

I love Tim Powers, and was looking forward to this! Given the synopsis, I was half-expecting this to be part of the Romantic Poets and Nephilim sequence, but it seemed more of a stand-alone even though it shares the time-period and subject matter of the previous titles. When I started reading it, my initial reaction was that this would work as a Liminal (table-top roleplaying game) campaign!

It did suffer from a number of fairly obvious typos which I trust will be fixed prior to publication, but they were few enough not to distract from the story (apart from one which made a sentence look like gobbledegook). Unfortunately, this knocks a star off my rating, along with the PDF format (which doesn't always work well on an ereader).

Powers evokes the terrain and weather of the Yorkshire Moors very well, and I saw no obvious errors in the geography and geology (as a child, I used to holiday in what is now the Yorkshire Dales National Park and have a vague memory of my mother taking me to Haworth).

The story is a historical fantasy, retelling the lives of the Brontë siblings with supernatural explanations for their various illnesses and eccentricities. It is very well done, and is set in Haworth between Elizabeth Branwell's death and Emily Brontë's death (the book ends with the latter), although the main action is roughly 1843-1847. The main focus of the action is Emily Brontë, with the other siblings and their father as less in focus.

Recommended.

Ancient curses! Dogs! The Brontë sisters! What's not to enjoy?

I had a really good time with this book. It wasn't what I expected and kept me thoroughly entertained on several long train journeys. I thought the way of incorporating the supernatural elements of the story were very fresh..

There were a few typos I noticed throughout the text, which ocasionally took me out of the story ,but it never took me very long to get back into it.

I like historical fiction, and I was drawn to the striking cover design,

This was elegant and tasteful historical fiction. One of the most interesting things about it was the fact that the characters are based on the Brontë family. When the characters in a book are based on real people, it's interesting to see the author's interpretation, and I felt the author brought the story and the characters to life very well. This actually reminded me of a Bella Ellis book that I read recently and also enjoyed, which also featured the Brontë family as the main characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy to review.

My Brother's Keeper creates an alternate narrative for the early deaths of the Bronte sisters, and their brother - chalk it up to a generations-old curse on the family which involves werewolves and ghosts, rather than the conditions they lived in and lack of medical care. For me, this story might have been better if it weren't attached to such famous real-life characters - it felt odd to me reading such a fantastic retelling of a true story. The magical adventure would feel more believable if it were not trying to anchor in true events, in my opinion. The draft itself was full of typos and this detracted from the reading experience as well. Overall I suppose this just was not quite the book for me.

If you like werewolves and ghosts this might just be for you ! It’s an interesting read the story is about the Brontë family and the events that made the sisters famous mostly written about Emily and her adventures along side her dog keeper. It’s full of magic and fantasy full of lots of detail that really does make you want to keep reading on even if your aware of the Brontë family story. It’s pace is pretty quick and as a fantasy lover I really enjoyed it

I really wish I loved this one! The premise and plot were interesting, and the characters and their actions were entertaining to read about, I just struggled with the writing itself. The plot didn't flow perfectly and I found myself forgetting what had happened at certain parts, but I'm still glad to have read it.

My Brother's Keeper is a beautiful story of the Brontë family. I thought this was an incredibl engaging story with well written characters and an intriguing mystery. I've always loved the Brontë sisters and I loved learning more about them and following their lives seeing how they eventually became published. I highly recommend this and especially if you like the Brontë sisters books.

Very brave of the author to dabble in the world of classic authors. Excellent description of the Yorkshire moors around Haworth, the parsonage, and the Bronte's lives.

Werewolves and ghosts do not normally entice me to read this sort of book, but there was something bout it that made me stick with it to the end. Yes, tissues need to be close at hand.

Thank you Netgalley for letting me preread this novel.

I just reviewed My Brother's Keeper by Tim Powers. #MyBrothersKeeper #NetGalley

If you hadn’t already sussed it, this is a story of the Brontë family and their life events that made the Brontë sisters famous even today.

It starts in Howarth in 1846 and tells us about the events leading up to the literary talents of the sisters becoming bestsellers, even after their deaths.

You will need some Kleenex for this one, be warned.

I love the Brönte's - this book was such a nice surprise. The plot and characters are written beautifully - I wish the book was longer so that we could get more.

It was fast paced and get my attention. Loved it!

With his characteristic style Tim Powers evokes the moors of the Brönte sisters in this novel in which the protagonist is Emily, although the rest of the family also plays an active role.
The novel is an alternate history in which as usual in the author, mixes reality and fantasy, in this case we find werewolves, magic and a touch of mythology.
The story is well narrated, describes the places and situations in such a way that you seem to be present. The characters are attractive especially the mysterious Alcuin Curzon, and special mention for Keeper, the dog that accompanies Emily throughout the adventure.
In short, an entertaining novel for fantasy lovers and of course for fans of Tim Powers.

I would read more books by this author. I liked his depiction of the Bronte’s and the story was very readable. I would have liked the story a bit longer to help build the world in which it takes place more fully. I wanted to know more about the characters’ thoughts and their lives.

Book Review 📚
My brother's Keeper by Tim Powers - 4/5 ⭐

Well this was definitely a different take on the Bronte family. And I say that in a good way. It's either your thing or it's not, but for me it's a win.

The plot was very fast paced with situations happening that make you feel the NEED of continuing to read rather then going to bed. The fact it's a fantasy mixed in with some characters from my childhood is just awesome. It's definitely the better take on the Bronte family!

Powers has Fantastic attention to detail and goes above and beyond with description within the book, it's mind blowing how easy it was to imagine the characters and the scene he was setting. It was a wonderful read and I'd definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for allowing me to read this ARC - this is an HONEST review from my own personal opinion.

Rounding up to three stars.


I think the problem here is me.
I can't get my head around the Brontes in this situation. I just can't.

An interesting idea, and it's always clever how a story can be woven around things that we currently know.
I just wasn't the right reader for it.

Slow to read but highly descriptive, the story immerses you in well set scenes. History buffs will love it.