"I had the unpleasant feeling that I was riding straight down a giant throat."

"…the woods of Gallacia are as deep and dark as God’s sorrow."

T. Kingfisher, nom de plume of Ursula Vernon, introduced Alex Easton, the Sworn Soldier of the series title, in her 2022 novella, What Moves the Dead. Easton is a native of the fictional nation of Gallacia, a place with its own language, nasty weather, and plenty of reasons to stay away. Alex travels with Angus, erstwhile batman from military days, and overall assistant these days. It is the late 19th century. The pair managed to survive the creepy challenges offered in the first book in the series, a particularly original and alarming take on Poes’s, The Fall of the House of Usher. They are looking forward to a holiday at Easton’s hunting lodge. But they do have a penchant for finding the unusual and unpleasant.

Easton invited Eugenia Potter to be a guest at the lodge. Potter is Beatrix’s aunt, a personage from the prior book, and a love interest for Angus. Easton is hoping that the lodge has been well maintained, as a local had been hired to see to that, but had proven unreachable. Is the place ready? Is it even standing? Who knows?

The focal point on the spectral scale in this volume is an obscure regional spook. According to wiki, a moroi is a phantom of a dead person which leaves the grave to draw energy from the living, so, not a paying guest. Vacation plans are foiled, in fact, replaced with mortal perils

The initial volume in the series introduced Alex Easton as a person with female physical attributes who is established in a traditionally male role. The author even takes on pronoun-ing in the created culture that incorporates such a person into the extant culture. It was an interesting element in the first volume, but is only lightly addressed here.

Kingfisher has fun setting the creepy stage with grim descriptions of Gallacia, and the particularly dreary part of it in which Alex and company find themselves. For examples, see the two quotes at the top of this review. But she also peppers the tale with humor.

"…I recognized the smell of livrit, our beloved national paint thinner, made from lichen, cloudberries, and spite. No Gallacian soldier would be without a bottle, in case we ever need to remember what we’re fighting for. (Mostly the opportunity to be somewhere that has better liquor.)"

"The greatest city in Gallacia is fine, I suppose, but I didn’t feel the need to linger. Imagine if an architect wanted to re-create Budapest, but on a shoestring budget and without any of the convenient flat bits. While fighting wolves."

And Potter butchering the local patois is quite fun.

Alex and company try to figure out what is going on, then how to address the problem. The local woman, whom they hire to take care of the household, should come with a surgeon general’s warning.

The most interesting element in the story is the fuzzing of the lines between reality and the dreamworld. Are battles fought in an unconscious state still deadly? The struggle for self-control, for self-awareness is as significant as the physical (or is it spectral) harm that is risked, and even suffered.

But frankly, this one was a bit of a dud for me. Only occasionally scary at all. I always enjoy a bit of humor and Kingfisher offers up a fair bit here. But there seems far less richness to this book that there was to its predecessor. An enjoyable read but far from a compelling one. It has the benefit of being a short one, a novella, not a full novel, so you can inhale it in a sitting.

Kingfisher/Vernon has a third Sworn Soldier volume in the works, set in the USA, and featuring Dr. James Denton from What Moves the Dead. Hopefully the digging she has been doing for that project will yield a motherlode of fun and horror.

"The silence didn’t feel peaceful. It felt thick. Like a layer of fuzz on your tongue after a hard night of drinking, which you can’t see or touch but you can damn well taste. There weren’t even any birds singing."

Review posted – 04/19/23

Publication date – 02/13/23

I received an ARE of What Feasts at Night from Tor/Nightfire in return for a fair review. Thanks, folks, and thanks to NetGalley for facilitating.

What Feasts at Night is the sequel to T Kingfisher's Poe retelling that I was OBSESSED WITH. Our favorite ex-soldier returns for what was supposed to be a relaxing trip to their family's hunting lodge, but unfortunately finds the caretaker dead, property a mess, and locals whispering about a breath-stealing monster.

Fortunately (or unfortunately), Alex is a bit more open to believing in monsters these days after having survived the nightmare at Usher manor. Along with their delightful gang of misfits, Alex now faces down whatever is lurking in the night at their ancestral lodge.

T. Kingfisher serves up another perfectly spiced horror-comedy that feels like your clever friend recounting their most terrifying vacation story over a very stiff drink, solidifying Kingfisher's works as a must read for me.

"Retired soldier Alex Easton returns in a horrifying new adventure. After their terrifying ordeal at the Usher manor, Alex Easton feels as if they just survived another war. All they crave is rest, routine, and sunshine, but instead, as a favor to Angus and Miss Potter, they find themself heading to their family hunting lodge, deep in the cold, damp forests of their home country, Gallacia."

T. Kingfisher is an auto read/auto buy author at this point, and I am so glad I got to read and review this book. I love the creepy, uneasy feeling this book gave me. I enjoyed the characters, and I was on the edge of my seat pretty much the whole time. If you like horror books you should definitely pick this one up.

Absolutely loved this book, as expected. I think I heard this is only going to be a duology, but I sincerely hope not. I want to explore more in this universe!

Thank you T Kingfisher, Tor Publishing Group, and NetGalley for the ARC!

the sworn soldiers series is such a mystical fantasy world in a tiny package. t.kingfisher has this unique ability of building the most well thought out and immersive worlds in so little pages. what feasts at night is the perfect atmospheric gothic folklore inspired fantasy!

t.kingfisher is one of my favorite authors, i have never rated a book of hers under 4 stars so if you’re considering picking up the sworn soldier series or any of her books this is your sign to do it!

T. Kingfisher masterfully returns to gothic horror with What Feasts at Night, a chilling tale set in the eerie world of What Moves the Dead. This standalone story follows Alex Easton, whose longing for peace after the horrors of the Usher manor is thwarted by an invitation to their family hunting lodge in Gallacia—where rest and routine quickly become distant dreams.

The atmosphere Kingfisher conjures is nothing short of haunting. The cold, silent forest and the unsettling quiet of Easton’s once-familiar home create a creeping tension that settles into your bones. As Easton navigates the strange happenings in the lodge and surrounding village, the story deftly blends folklore with psychological unease, leaving readers questioning what is real and imagined.

While the narrative doesn’t break new ground in gothic tropes, its execution is sharp and engrossing. The gradual unraveling of the mystery is punctuated by moments of genuine dread, though some readers may find the pacing slightly uneven, with the climax resolving faster than expected.

What Feasts at Night is a feast for fans of atmospheric horror, blending Kingfisher’s dark wit with a chilling exploration of fear, folklore, and the lingering scars of trauma.

T Kingfisher does it again (and again, and again, this is no surprise). I appreciated how this companion novel built on the suspense and lore of the first book without seeming repetitive or derivative. It delivered on vibes and more, without losing steam on the creepiness or losing the inherent wit of the first installment. I love the world, I love the beasts, I love the people.

As always, an absolutely gorgeous and chilling tale by T. Kingfisher. I cannot wait to see what story comes next!

What Feasts at Night doesn’t evoke the same atmospheric vibe for me as What Moves the Dead. But the story is chilling nonetheless.

I liked this book more than What Moves the Dead, and I'm not exactly sure why but I did. Great pacing and atmosphere contained in a little book, with a welcome return to the characters from the first book. New character Bors is an absolute sweetheart, and I love the way this book ended. Hopefully, Kingfisher will continue Alex's reluctant adventures with the supernatural.

I love T. Kingfisher but was disappointed with What Moves the Dead. While I enjoyed Alex as a character, I never connected with the story. I wanted to try the sequel because I love Kingfisher's writing. I am happy I did. I enjoyed this much more than What Moves. I found the story more compelling and liked the side characters more. I think if you enjoyed What Moves you will also like this. I would say try this even if What Moves disappointed you.


Thank you to NetGalley, MacMillan Audio, and Tor Publishing Group for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not sure if it's because I wasn't as familiar with the lore or because I loved the idea of a Poe retelling, but I liked the previous book better. This was still entertaining, especially for spooky season.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

eerie and ambient, this follow-up to kingfisher’s adaptation of “the fall of the house of usher” is compelling and spooky. i appreciate the development of alex easton as a protagonist and the enrichment of the narrative beyond “what moves the dead,” creating a rich, complex world that stays true to its gothic origins.

If T. Kingfisher writes it, I'm going to read it and I'm going to love it - this book is no exception! I loved diving back into the world of What Moves the Dead and Kingfisher masterfully crafted another haunting, gothic novella worthy of any Halloween TBR this October!

I have been so excited to start this one. I loved the first one. I was not disappointed at all in this one. I loved the monster story. It was so good. All poor Alex wants is some rest but instead they are faced with a mess to clean up and some very strange things happening. I am such a fan of the folklore of the breath stealing monster. With this monster, you are not safe awake or in sleep. I will read anything T. Kingfisher writes. Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Netgalley, author, and the publishers for allowing me the opportunity to read this book early.

I am a huge fan of T.Kingfisher and request her books the second I see them on Netgalley. This woman can write and writes well, and generally her novellas are everything I want in a story. They're short, but the story isn't lacking (generally). This one though suffers from a lot of fillers that I found annoying. The constant use of (), repeating of information, and there was not enough horror. Though when we are given the scary bits, they are terrifying. Sadly, though, the ending was very anticlimactic and not really scary at all. It wasn't tense, and fell flat.

I loved this exploration into folklore. I think that I had heard of moroi before, but really didn't know much about them and wouldn't have minded if there were some real life accounts thrown into the story to act as proof of what was happening.

Alex, Angus and Miss Potter are amazing characters and I hope T.Kingfisher writes more featuring them.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for an ebook of "What Feasts at Night" by T. Kingfisher in exchange for an honest review. I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys a slow burn or gothic horror. It is the perfect concoction of storytelling, mystery solving, and conversations. Kingfisher has a writing style I haven't seen before. I am personally a fan of medium to fast paced books, so it took me a bit longer to get through than usual. It is a great idea, and I love the way the plot includes twists, creatures, and the supernatural.

Great horror novel!! This held me in suspense my entire read and I enjoyed the major themes it focuses on.

"**What Feasts the Night**" by T. Kingfisher is a spellbinding and imaginative novel that masterfully blends dark fantasy with richly layered storytelling. Kingfisher's vivid prose and unique world-building create an immersive experience that pulls readers into a mesmerizing and eerie world. The compelling characters and intricate plot twists keep the narrative engaging and unpredictable. This book is a brilliant and captivating read that stands out in the genre.