I’m not 100% sure how to describe this as it’s not really like anything I’ve read before. It’s sort of gothic horror without being scary or supernatural, sort of steampunk fantasy but totally based in realism, and sort of historical fiction with something just outside the realm of straight up history.

Either way, I enjoyed the heck out of it. In the end, I suppose it’s really a view of what women tolerated and experienced at the turn of the century and how much they’d ignore to be even remotely safe. I’m not sure we’ve made the kind of progress we should have but we’ve made some. Still a feminist utopia seems as much of a fever dream now as it did 100 years ago, which is probably why I feel like it’s got fantasy elements.

King Nyx is a haunting, Gothic, historical fiction tale that takes place on an island owned by a wealthy recluse in the 1920s. Employees of the island are dying left and right while women suffer silently at the evil hands of powerful men. The story starts a bit slow but Bakis adequately crafts suspense as the reader explores the unknown with the main character. King Nix delves in to mental illness, abuse, trauma, and love in unusual that captivates the reader.



Thanks to NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company, Liveright for the eARCQ

KING NYX by Kirsten Bakis

Other Books I Enjoyed by This Author: Introduction to this author’s work

Affiliate Link: https://bookshop.org/a/7576/9781324093534

Release Date: February 27th, 2024

General Genre: Horror, Science-Fiction, Gothic, Mystery, Thriller

Sub-Genre/Themes: historical fiction (1919) Amateur sleuths, isolated island estate, eccentric millionaire, repressed memory, hypnosis, delusions/hysteria, sanatorium, experimental studies, domestic abuse, unexplained phenomena, gaslighting, misogyny, sexism, missing girls, female friendships


Writing Style: Complex, detailed, flashbacks, intricately plotted, leisurely paced

What You Need to Know: NetGalley ARC on my Kindle Scribe. I almost tapped out at 30% because I was a little bored, but things eventually picked up, and then I became extremely invested.

My Reading Experience: “More lives are derailed by men who did whatever they wanted. The same story over and over again.”
An eccentric millionaire summons Anna Fort’s husband to his private estate on a remote island. Things are mysterious the moment they arrive. The driver that picks them up is odd. They must quarantine for a few weeks in a little cabin next door to another couple in the same situation.
As time passes, things get more and more alarming. Anna befriends the wife of the couple next door, Stella, and they begin exploring the island.
So many unsettling things happen, I don’t want to spoil any reading discoveries! I loved that every, single character seemed unreliable to me and that the early 1900s vibe was very pervasive throughout the novel.
Even thought I would never really want to be trapped on a remote island with suspicious strangers, I did very much enjoy reading about it.
A few creepy jump scares too! Some unexpected developments that made for some eerie scenes.
Loved the classic Gothic tropes at play too with the madness and hysteria, and all the ways men are so dismissive and possessive of women. Anna has an interesting past that involves a toy…very interesting. Maybe my favorite thread throughout this whole thing.

Final Recommendation: Perfect for horror fans looking for those experimental science research vibes, historical fiction setting, and a cast of strange characters. Mysterious, unique, and eerie. Perfect rainy day + cup of tea reading vibes.

Comps: Edgar Allan Poe, Jane Eyre, Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane, The Whistling by Rebecca Netley

Written with a hazy dreamlike quality, on the surface, King Nyx is a gothic myself set on a Canadian Island owned by a rich recluse in the 1920s. In a deeper sense, it is a story about memory, trauma, and the roles men and women are expected to play. I loved the author’s first book, Lives of the Monster Dogs. This one did not disappoint. Though the story is a slow burn, the author set such a moody and lush tone with her descriptions of the surroundings and the glaring flaws of her characters that it was impossible to put this book down. Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book!

In this creepy historical fiction, the widow of a conspiracy theorist recounts her life and in particular a harrowing week on the island of a reclusive tyrant.

3.75 stars rounded up. This novel started out small but ended mighty. I don't know if the 1930's count as the era of gothic novels, but Bakis did a fantastic job of setting a gothic scene on this isolated island shrouded in mystery.
I found incredible depth in this, balancing between characters who were so different. I loved Anna as a character, and really sympathized with her simultaneously being embarrassed of her husbands work while also feeling the societal pressure of caring for her husband. While it was written for the time period, it handled some taboo subjects in a fascinating manner

Thank you to NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A woman and her husband arrive on an island to find a strangely dark atmosphere, made stranger by a tale of missing girls and the mystery surrounding it all.

While the books starts slow, it picks up the pace as the characters reveal themselves and the mystery begins to slowly unwind by the halfway point. Still, the tone was interesting and set the atmosphere well for the bigger twists.

"Anna Fort wants to be a supportive wife, even if that means accompanying her husband for the winter of 1918 to a remote, frozen island estate so he can finish his book as the guest of an eccentric millionaire. When she learns three girls are missing from a school run by their host, Anna realizes finding them is up to her - even if that means risking her husband's career, and possibly her life.

Her husband's masterpiece-in-progress features strange meteorological anomalies along with wild speculations about "facts" he believes scientists hide from the public. Most people think Charles Fort is a crackpot. That's about to change now that wealthy Claude Arkel is his patron.

Yet Anna is sure something's not right on Prosper Island, though the alarming return of her "troubles" makes her question her own sanity. Is the figure in the woods really the ghost of her long-lost friend Mary, or a product of her disturbed imagination? Accompanied reluctantly by a fellow guest, the elegant and troubled Stella Bixby, Anna embarks on a dangerous quest to find the missing girls before Arkel finds her - or her own mind unravels.

A contemporary feminist tale with a dreamlike, Gothic setting, King Nyx reintroduces readers, twenty-five years after her acclaimed debut, to one of our most astonishingly imaginative storytellers."

Gothic dreamlin setting with "troubles!?!" Yes!

I devoured King Nyx in 2 sittings - once I got going on this story, I didn't want to put it down!

King Nyx is set in the early 1900s on a mysterious, isolated island owned by a reclusive millionaire. Three young girls go missing on the island, but no one is interested in searching for them because (a) this is the early 1900s and they are three young, female "criminals" and (b) you can't piss off the richest man in town - especially a man who has a reputation for payback. Also, because a woman's purpose is to support and cater to their husband's dreams and aspirations; they're empty-headed and can't be believed especially when disagreeing with a man. The toxic masculinity throughout the book was very frustrating, but I'm sure the level experienced by the characters was not out of scope for the time period.

The story had several twist and turns - some of which I expected, but a few that surprised me! The storytelling was immersive and I was able to lose myself in the pages. You become so engrossed in the story that you simply forget you are reading it. King Nyx is on my reread list for sure!

Thank you to Net Galley and Liveright for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

“King Nyx” by Kirsten Bakis - (3 Stars) (Pub Date:02/20/2024) – is a creepy, steam-punk and story about women, and the contortions that they have to maneuver through in the men-controlled power structure of 1918 America.

Good Things: The tone is great, with a healthy dose of gothic and steampunk aesthetic. The unreliable narrator was well-executed, and the references to early-psychiatric beliefs and “care” models was sufficiently disturbing. The dialogue was also interesting and propulsive. King Nyx was uniquely fresh as a concept in the story and I wanted more about ‘them’.

Opportunities: Although the story was dialogue driven, it could have benefitted from more expository writing to aid in plot point transitions. There were some jumps from scene to scene that might have felt smoother with more descriptions and transitional sections. I also would have liked more fleshed out conflict, particularly with the “plague-response” references (spanish flu) and the story of Stella and her experiences at well-known and notorious institution.

Final Thoughts: King Nyx was a good book, with an interesting story, a great, dark, aesthetic and lots of opportunity to hammer home some impactful reflections about women in early 20th century society, as well as the always-interesting mental-healthcare debacle that was the ugly pre-work to more modern medical techniques. I just felt a bit disjointed and I wanted more details so that I could be more invested. What was there, was great and if you love early-20th century mental healthcare / horror, steampunk, or gothic quick reads, then pick this up.

I appreciate the opportunity afforded me to have an early read of this story by netgalley and W. W. Norton & Company/Liveright. The opinions in this review are expressly those of ButIDigressBookClub and are intended for use by my followers and friends when choosing their next book. #butidigress #butidigressbookclub #kingnyx #kirstenbakis #netgalley #netgalleyreviewer #arc #arcs

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Review Shared on Goodreads - www.goodreads.com/leah_cyphert_butidigressbookclub
Publishing Review 01/13/2024

Wow. King Nyx is my new favorite book! I heard Victor LaValle talk about this one on the Talking Scared (@talkscaredpod) podcast, episode 174. His excitement piqued my interest so I took a chance requesting it on NetGalley and luckily I got to read it before it’s out in the world!

This is a historical fiction, fantasy, horror novel about two couples who are invited to an opulent estate by Claude Arkel, an eccentric man with a strange, and frankly unsettling, reputation. It's set from 1918-1933, and it's a reimagining of the lives of Anna and Charles Fort.

It's like if The Great Gatsby, Jane Eyre and a tale of Edgar Allan Poe melded somehow to create this world. It's a story of friendship, murder and nature. What if your dreams turned into a nightmare? If your totem became something true, and not only to you? King doesn't just mean man, and man, do I fucking love women. Anna and Stella were a delight to read, and their husbands were there too with their cute hysteria banter and rage-inducing rationale.

Ultimately, this is about Anna, and I was in her corner from page one. The woman who feels. The whole story is gripping, and the ending of this one is very surprising. I didn't see it coming, and it's uplifting despite what we find out. I can't recommend it enough.

It's a hard one to review because I can't talk about it without talking about it. I'll say if you enjoy themes of atmospheric gothic horror, fantasy, murder, conversational literature, toxic masculinity, a good old-fashioned mystery, and friendship — this one is 100% for you.

Modern gothic my which I mean gothic novel set in the past but written in modern day. I’d was utterly fantastic. Is it horror? Is it psychological thriller? Find out now! Thanks for the arc

OH MY GOODNESS. I read this entire book in one sitting. It was absolutely buck wild. I thought it was giving off big Shutter Island vibes but it surprised me in it's Jane Eyreness in the end. A perfect gothic novel.

An atmospheric thriller and one woman’s mission to find out the truth. I will admit I haven’t finished this book, but I plan to. I really enjoyed the first part and life got in the way of my finishing the second part. This book is staying on my must read list.

I have finished the book and it was full of twists and turns until the end!

King Nyx tells of the events of one week on an island, owned by a wealthy and hermitic canned vegetable mogul, who has invited Charles Fort and his wife Anna. After a traumatic experience in early adulthood, Anna has been mostly living her life to support Charles' dreams. What they find on the island is another unsuspecting couple, a feral group of young women living in the woods surrounding the mansion, and a mystery that hearkens back to said experience as an early adult, 20 years prior.

The pacing of this book is very slow in the beginning as you gather information about Anna and the things that have shaped her. Part murder mystery, part exploration of trauma and its suppression, King Nyx shows what can happen when a haunting experience buries itself deep inside your head.

I'll be honest, the first half of this book was a bit of a slog. Bakis seems to really love to repeat things people do or say (usually within the same few pages) for emphasis. My patience may just be thin, but I also had very little empathy for Anna in the beginning as well.

About 60% of the way in. the story actually gets pretty good. You start unraveling the mystery and things that Anna has been talking about the whole time begin to make sense. My empathy for her also grew at this point. It may have been that there weren't many characters up until this point, and Anna and Charles' life together was just not that interesting.

What I will say is that Bakis is gifted with setting the scene. I was able to picture in my mind's eye each place we were taken to and everything that took place in the mansion. She was able to create a sinister, slightly surreal setting that heightened the stakes for Anna and Stella. Plenty of murder and tragedy to go around too.

Thank you to NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company, Liveright for the ARC of King Nyx by Kirsten Bakis in exchange for an honest review.

"a haunting mystery about the fate of women and girls in the orbit of self-important men" is both an apt description for King Nyx and a theme that remains present across time. What really set the tone for me was the true historical basis of Theodore Dreiser with Charles and his description of Anna as someone who cannot speak but feel. If any of you have also suffered through An American Tragedy, I knew any sort of appearance with Dreiser must mean some sort of feminine suffering.

What I appreciated about King Nyx was the way Bakis took Anna's story back and gave her a narrative and control in a world in which there was very little for women. The Prosper Island setting is immediately haunting, with the quarantines to prevent the 1918 flu pandemic creating parallels to to world of 2020. The girls who have gone missing, and Anna and her quarantine neighbor, Stella, have all faced tribulations at the hands of men who had power - in the era of Me Too we again see parallels to today.

Surpassing the expectations of men and society, the women of this novel are not wilting flowers, as much as men might wish them to be. At one point I was almost ashamed to wonder if we were dealing with unreliable narration - as if I too wanted to doubt the characters because they didn't fit the societal expectations placed upon them. The mystery itself is paced well within the narrative, and it grows to a solid crescendo, leaving readers to wonder about the types of sacrifices women must choose to survive.

King Nyx is a wonderfully haunting novel. You are transported to a world of truths, secrets and revelations. Anna’s memories will entrance you and haunt you. The path you are taken down will haunt you in the best possible way!

I will not soon forget this book and you won't either when you read it. The main character, Anna, grew up in a chaotic, poverty stricken home with no structure and only a father in name only to head it. She finds salvation as she grows older as a maid in house run by a tyrant who loved nothing so much as he loved rules. Anna, after some years, has a mental breakdown after which she is taken under the wing of one of the owner's sons, Charlie. He comes to marry Anna, causing Charlie to be disinherited by his father. The two must live in poverty while Charlie works on. a book about things like dead fish which improbably fall from the sky. As much as the two must cope with living in dire circumstances financially, they must also cope with Anna being perpetually balanced on a knife's edge between sanity and insanity. Salvation arrives in the form of an invitation to a remote island located between Canada and the US on which a millionaire lives as a recluse. He has invited Charlie and Anna to come so that Charlie can at last finish his book. It is on this island that the bulk of the story takes place.

The story takes place in the early years of the twentieth century but Bakis creates an atmosphere that seems classically gothic. Even before the couple get to the island they are approached and asked to sign a petition about girls who have gone missing there. This creates a low hum of anxiety and suspense that keeps getting ratcheted up to an almost unbearable level as the story progresses. . If this had been a movie, I would have had my hands over my eyes. The ending has many twists that are surprising but fit well in the structure of the plot. I highly recommend this book.

This is a lovely gothic mystery that gives off major Jane Eyre vibes.

Reasons to read this book:
1. The setting: This story primarily takes place in the early 1900s on the private island of a wealthy business tycoon. There's no chance of escape from this closed setting once creepy and mysterious events begin to occur.
2. The slow build-up: Most of the lower rated reviews I've read on this book cite the story as being slow, and this style of writing is not for everyone. But if you are a fan of slow-build tension, descriptive settings, and gothic classics this is for you.
3. The complexity and relatability of the female characters: Even though this took place a century ago, the subtle sexism these characters face is still very much present today. I loved the way these characters navigated through the world.

Big thank you to NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 40%. I was pleasantly surprised when I came across this book because I had tried Bakis's other book, The Lives of the Monster Dogs, and I knew she hadn't written anything else in decades. I also DNFed Lives of the Monster Dogs, but I found the ideas so imaginative, I wanted to give the author another shot.

The beginning was strong - there's a creepy atmosphere, missing girls, weird couple next door, eccentric rich dude, and a husband into wacky theories. A highlight for me was the first dinner the two couples had with each other because it was so believably awkward and strained but polite - I love that kind of scene. People are just *talking* but it's agonizing.

But then the story hit a lull. I found myself quite bored and uninterested in the various threads. Some focus might've helped - there are a lot of threads to follow that don't feel connected. I'm currently reading The Illness Lesson by Clare Beams which feels atmospherically similar to this book, also quite a slow burn, but it has more effective focus and slow escalation that keeps me invested.

There are many glowing reviews of this book, so I think it's still worth a try if you enjoy a gothic, slow, sort of creepy read. And I would still try another book from the author because I like her writing on a sentence level. It's the plotting/pacing I have struggled with in both of her books.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.