T. Kingfisher is my author of the year. I’ve been making my way through her backlog and have been dazzled by the absolute quality of her storytelling. Let's just say I dove on top of the opportunity to read her upcoming novel, A Sorceress Comes to Call. My review is only coming in later than expected because of some technical difficulties, and time constraints on my end. This is a very bingeable book that keeps you wondering at every turn. It's hard to put down.

I would place this book right underneath A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking in terms of favorite books written by Kingfisher. I’ve noticed that she has a habit of writing from the perspective of younger girls who put up with an abundance of BS from adults, with the ability to persevere through rather traumatic experiences. It's a genre of stories I didn't know I needed.

In the case of this book Cordelia is a fourteen year old with an absolute bit– I mean witch of a mother. Cordelia is naive, anxious, and keeps to herself, with her only comfort being her mother's stunning horse, Falada. When her mother up and moves them in the middle of the night, Cordelia is forced to face her mother's peculiar behavior head on, or suffer the consequences.

I ADORED the characters that surrounded Cordelia (minus Mother Dearest). Kingfisher writes incredibly relatable characters who are memorable (*cough*Penelope*cough*). And a majority of them are older. The representation of ages (young and old) is such a relief.

The reader can expect an abundance of humor to help cope with the extremely messed up circumstances and trauma endured within the pages of this book.

I’m positive you'll enjoy this if you're already a fan of T. Kingfisher and her loose retellings of fairy tales. It's one of my favorite stories I’ve read this year.

Available August 6, 2024.

This was my first Kingfisher book, and I loved it! The author is a fantastic storyteller. Cordelia’s character arc and growth, and trauma bonded friendship with Hester, are amazing. Every character was super fleshed out, the story was interesting, and it was the perfect amount of dark and spooky. I haven’t read the original Grimm’s tale, but I could imagine the ending while thoroughly enjoying the plot to get there. I’ll definitely be picking up more novels from Kingfisher!

A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher is a dark retelling of the Brothers Grimm's Goose Girl, rife with secrets, murder, and forbidden magic.
Woah! Kingfisher does it again and again….. each time delivering something that absolutely gripping and so damn enchanting.
She delivers another absolute stunner!

Thank You NetGalley and Tor Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I adored A Sorceress Comes to Call. T. Kingfisher has become a recent favorite of mine for her vivid atmospheres that don’t get bogged down with over-description, her well-formed characters, and cleverly wound plots, and this book is no exception. Cordelia is fourteen, and daughter to a sorceress utterly disinterested in raising her child. She’s dragged off in the middle of the night to the estate of her mother’s marital target, the Squire, where also resides his unwed sister, Hester. Hester notices that Cordelia behaves oddly for a girl of fourteen, scared stiff of the adults around her, and takes her under her wing. Hester and her friends, including a wealthy former lover, ultimately conspire to save Cordelia and the Squire from Cordelia’s mother’s grasp.

Speaking as someone who’s notoriously picky about Regency and Victorian settings, I thought A Sorceress Comes to Call had it just right. The country estates, the social customs, even the language evoked the setting without turning the story into a period piece. I found the characters flawed and lovable: both Cordelia and Hester growing into their independence and learning to wield it, Hester’s friends with comically disparate conflict management styles, and even Evangeline’s nasty parenting had me charmed by the distinctiveness of their character builds and the sympathy with which they were wrought. Oh, and there’s a ghost!

Overall, I found A Sorceress Comes to Call charming and evocative, with strong characters, driving plot, and vivid atmosphere. I’d recommend it to readers of fairytale retellings, fans of historical fantasy, and those seeking a new-adult level standalone not prioritizing a romance plot.

Thank you, Tor Books, for providing a review copy of this title via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

T. Kingfisher is an auto buy author of mine for a REASON. Time after time they knock it out of the park. This was such a beautiful story. Theres secrets and murder and forbidden magic!!! Complicated family relationships!!!! All around amazing characters!!!! Parts of this book ripped trauma right from my skull and other parts felt like a warm hug. All I know is, I never wanted it to end.
Thank you so much to Tor Books for providing me with this ARC.

This is the funnest, most horrific, scandalously proper book I’ve read recently (this description makes sense right? lol).
Kingfisher, once again, brings together her wit and sarcasm, adds it to a horror of all horrors, puts some charming characters in the horrors way, and thus gives us a wonderful book that is perhaps my favourite of hers (that I’ve read) to date!

If you’ve ever had a day, or perhaps many of them in which you want an overbearing adult to back-off then you will sympathize with our leading teen Cordelia. Her mother is, quite literally, evil. Capable of unfounded horrors with her magic; and, what’s worse, she has inflicted many of those horrors on her own daughter.
Thankfully her mother makes a miscalculation in choosing new ‘prey’ to finance her desires, and Cordelia finds some adults she can trust. The beginning of this story is definitely the Goose Girl tale. By the end I was completely engrossed and had forgotten entirely about it being inspired by an old story. Kingfisher makes this one entirely her own.

Between vivid descriptions, clever and snarky characters to magic, ghosts, and demons(?), oh my! A Sorceress Comes to Call held me rapt in suspense and thrills, right up to the last page. If you have enjoyed any of Kingfisher in the past you will love this one. If you are new to Kingfisher but enjoy thrilling stories, magical rules, clever evil, horrific situations (a bit of gore) and bumbling heroes trying to repel said evil then feel secure in picking up A Sorceress Comes to Call. It really is a witty, horror story (with a couple magical twists) that won’t disappoint.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

First, thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for an ebook ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This one just.. did not land for me. I don’t know how else to put it. It had all of the elements I like in the genre - an intriguing storyline, magic & magical creatures, etc. I just feel like the characters fell a little flat, especially in their relationships with each other. I also just found the FMC to be so boring it was hard for me to want to reach for this book while reading.

It’s in no way a badly written book - just a little flat & dull. I enjoy T. Kingfishers other books much better.

Cordelia’s mother Evangeline is a scheming sorceress with her eye on a wealthy country squire as a new husband. But she can’t ensorcell the squire himself – the wedding ceremony itself would break the spell. So instead she contrives to become a houseguest and charm him the old-fashioned way. But the squire’s sister Hester isn’t fooled by Evangeline’s shallow charms – and she notices quite quickly that poor Cordelia is terrified of her mother.

T Kingfisher is excellent as always, blending Regency manners seamlessly with magic and horror. I loved poor Cordelia’s journey from abused, frightened child to a burgeoning woman with a backbone. Hester was also a great character as a strong, opinionated woman with a disability and a strong independent streak. All of the supporting characters were fantastic as well. The book is quick-paced and the plot was captivating. Whether you’re new to Kingfisher’s work or well familiar, I recommend this as a highly entertaining read.

Representation: disabled character, POC character, gay character

A big thanks to NetGalley and MacMillian for providing both an eARC and an advance audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

*Le Gasp!* Is T. Kingfisher slowly becoming a favorite author? I think it's more plausible than you think.

A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher is a dark fantasy retelling of the Brothers Grimm's Goose Girl. Cordelia knows her mother is . . . unusual. Their house doesn’t have any doors between rooms—there are no secrets in this house—and her mother doesn't allow Cordelia to have a single friend. Unless you count Falada, her mother's beautiful white horse. The only time Cordelia feels truly free is on her daily rides with him. But more than simple eccentricity sets her mother apart. Other mothers don’t force their daughters to be silent and motionless for hours, sometimes days, on end. Other mothers aren’t evil sorcerers. When her mother unexpectedly moves them into the manor home of a wealthy older Squire and his kind but keen-eyed sister, Hester, Cordelia knows this welcoming pair are to be her mother's next victims. But Cordelia feels at home for the very first time among these people, and as her mother's plans darken, she must decide how to face the woman who raised her to save the people who have become like family.

All I have to say is, this book is amazingly creepy in all the right ways. And I need everyone to read it absolutely immediately.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this e-arc! 4.5/5 stars rounded down, t kingfisher you have done it again

listen, if t kingfisher writes it, then you KNOW I'm reading it. (okay maybe not her horror though, only because I can't read horror, but I digress.) I haven't read any of kingfisher's other fairy tale retellings but oh Boy after this, I think I know what I'm reading next. kingfisher's style just fits so well with traditional fairy tales - she has a way of mixing dry humor in with horror, and the result does a really great job of creating the same kind of dark atmosphere that true, traditional fairy tales have. the sense of danger and impending doom keeps you speeding through the book, reading as fast as you can so you can see what happens to these characters, and I could NOT put this down. and as always, kingfisher's characters are so complex and interesting and funny in a way that has you rooting for them every step of the way, and cordelia was no different. overall, I'm ride or die for t kingfisher's fantasy novels - if there's one thing I'm gonna do, it's read the HECK outta her fantasy novels

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillian Audio for the e-arc!
Not gonna lie I was a bit shocked at how much I enjoyed this book! This is a retelling of The Goose Girl following Cordelia, a young girl who is utterly controlled by her mother. Her mother is a sorceress and uses her magic Cherry cabinet on others and benefit herself. When she decides she wants to marry a wealthy squire, she manages their way into his home and life. This book is a great mix of secrets, magic, and growth.
I ended up really liking Cordelia as a character; She suffered greatly due to her mother's magic, and I think the portrayal of fear and abuse was very emotional and moving. I found myself relating to her as a character; constantly trying to find safety while living in such fear of her mother. Not only is she incredibly strong and kind but she is intelligent and brave. Overall I did really enjoy the story!

Cordelia's mother insists that there are no secrets in their house. She can't close any door and her mother controls her every action and calls it obedience. Cordelia has been raised to marry a rich man. But that timeline is moved up, and now she and her mother are in the household of a wealthy older Squire and spinster sister Hester.

Faced with the truth of what her mother is, Cordelia must decide between bravery or safety, found family or blood and she must do it before her mother grows even more powerful.

Why I started this book: Kingfisher is an automatic buy for me and I was so eager to have an ARC.

Why I finished it: Couldn't put it down and I finished it in one gulp. Wonderfully creepy story with great characters.

Ahoy there me mateys!  While I enjoyed this read, I wish I hadn't seen the comparisons of the Goose Girl because it gave me expectations of plot that did not happen.  That said, I also know that Kingfisher can really shake things up with her twisting of fairytales.  This has the horse and some geese like the fairytale but used in ways unlike the Grimm original.

Cordelia is 14 and knows her life isn't like others in their small town.  She has no friends and if she upsets her mother, she is made Obedient, a state where her mother controls her body and she has to remain motionless unless her mother decides otherwise.  The first part of the novel showcases Cordelia's rather miserable existence.  Then her mother forces them to flee the town and go to a Squire's remote country manor.  The mother decides she will coerce the Squire into marrying her.  Hester, the Squire's spinster sister, is determined to stop the mother and try to rescue Cordelia in the process.

The novel has a regency and gothic tone.  The story is told through the viewpoints of both Cordelia and Hester.  There are elements of humor but not as much as in the author's other works.  One of the best aspects is watching Cordelia's mother get thwarted at times by social convention and manners.  The butler, Willard, and the maid, Alice, were particular favorites.  I also absolutely loved Hester.

Cordelia's point-of-view was a bit hard to handle at times.  She spends a lot of the novel learning about who and what her mother really is.  By the end of the novel, she has a little spunk.  But the majority of the plot showcases her terror of her mother in particular and all social obligations in general.  She is battered in mind and spirit.  I found the majority of her thoughts and feelings to be wearying even as I was sympathetic to her situation.

That said, I will read anything the author writes and there was a lot to enjoy in this book.  Arrrr!

4.5 rounded up

What a fun light read about magically inhanced child abuse…. But then the original fairy tales were basically all super dark too so it fits. Very well written as anyone who’s read this author would expect. Sympathetic characters, page turner writing. Really, everything I’ve read by this author has been top notch so if this one doesn’t quite catch your interest being darker fantasy read one of her lighter books instead. And if it’s not dark enough for you try her horror instead, Although I’ll admit I haven’t read those.

Why does T. Kingfisher need to completely disrupt my life like she does?!

As with pretty much everything else I've read by her, T. Kingfisher's A Sorceress Comes to Call left me ruined for other books....for a while anyway, lol.

The book follows Cordelia as she suffers abuse from her mother. This retelling of The Goose Girl is one of wanting to be free and finding that the only way to make yourself truly free is through friendship and love...especially when you have never really been loved before. This book hits me differently than Kingfisher's other work because it feels as if she has looked into me and pulled out thoughts and feelings I hadn't previously known were in me.

This book is so achingly wonderful. Read it.

A Sorceress Comes to Call was my first read by T. Kingfisher. The author does a great job establishing the setting, the magic system in place, and the characters and their motivations. In many ways, it’s an unexpected story, because it manages to bring together people you wouldn’t expect would intersect in reality, but does so in a meaningful way and I do love how the author emphasized smart female characters and created conflict without making them simply petty. I was engaged in the story and enjoyed it. I did not realize it was a retelling and am not familiar with the original, so I have no framework for comparison there.

Overall, for me, this was an entertaining story and a satisfying read. I will definitely look for more work by this author for future reads.

An interesting mix of historical fiction, fantasy, and drama. The characters in this novel are well developed and you truly will fall for the heroine of the story as she tries to get free from her mother's sorcery.

Another winner from T. Kingfisher. I have enjoyed all the ones I have read. They are well written and pulls you in right away.
I’m not big on horror, but Kingfishers books are the exception! I love the fantasy/horror combo. I highly recommend this book!

In this fun retelling of The Goose Girl, T Kingisher crafts a story filled with her trademark wit, humor, and okay *some* horror. I am not a fan of horror and the level here was perfect for me. Indeed what I loved the most was the pervasive sense of danger that was present from the beginning to about 3/4 of the book.

However, where the book simply shines is in its characters - which should not really be a surprise. I enjoyed every single character Including the Big Bads :)

Points taken off because I think we missed out on Doom's backstory. It had been so teased that not expanding on it felt like a ball dropped. I also wish it had had a little more horror (Gasp, LOL).

Huge thanks to Tor and NetGalley for the ARC!

A dark reimagining of the Brothers Grimm's "The Goose Girl" filled with magic, murder, family drama, and a dash of romance. Cordelia knows her mother is not like other mothers... especially since her mother has the ability to control Cordelia physically. Cordelia lives her life restrained, in fear, forced to be obedient to her mother... and all she wants to do is escape. Yet when her mother moves them from their home into a manor of a wealthy Squire whom she plans on wedding... things take a turn. Cordelia finally finds herself having more companions and knows she has to save the Squire and his sister from her mother before they become her next victims. Yet what can a girl with no powers do against a sorceress and who will believe her? Cordelia finally feels like she's found a home with these people... but her mother's plans threaten to destroy everything and its up to Cordelia to find the courage to face the woman who raised her to save the people who have become like family to her. This was a delightful fairytale reimagining and it definitely deals with family relationships and abuse. I really enjoyed the character dynamics and the story pacing was so well done. It's definitely a quick read and really lets you step into the world. It's a fun read that I would absolutely recommend for anyone who wants a fairytale retelling or a complicated mother-daughter story with a dash of murder, magic, and found family!

Release Date: August 6,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group | Tor Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*