The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke is a beautifully atmospheric and mysterious novel, known for its immersive world-building and eerie, magical quality. Clarke, most famous for her novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, continues her exploration of magic and the supernatural in a way that is both haunting and captivating.

The story weaves together elements of dark fantasy with subtle horror, set against a wintery, remote landscape that feels timeless and full of secrets. It's a tale about a peculiar, enchanting wood where time and reality don’t follow the usual rules. As the plot unfolds, it takes the reader deeper into a web of mythical creatures, ancient rituals, and the blurred lines between human and supernatural realms. Clarke's prose, like in her previous work, is lush and detailed, drawing readers into a world where the atmosphere is as much a character as the people inhabiting it.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. This book is beautifully written and tells the story of Merowdis and her longing to be alone among the woods and everything that lives there. It feels very much like a fairy tale, with talking animals, and even talking trees, and is accompanied by fantastic art.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

I was not the target audience for this. I did not realize this was a fairy tale / novella. It just didn’t do enough for me.

Susanna Clarke knows how to write an eerie and beautifully written tale. Within the 50 or so pages we get she creates a story that evokes such strong and tender emotions that you help but feel empathetic towards them. As always, I look forward to reading what she does next.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

Susanna Clarke is now responsible for one of my favorite pieces of very long fiction (Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell) and very short fiction (this delightful little story).

This is an excellent quick read at 64 pages and packs a remarkable amount of setting and atmosphere into the book despite its brevity. The bones of the story are rooted in traditional fairy tale, but count on Clarke to (as always) put a magnificent and unique spin on things.

I highly recommend this on audiobook if you’re able to read that way. Clarke narrates and the musical accompaniment and sound effects really enhance the reader experience. So too does the afterward, where Clarke talks a bit more about the inspiration for this story, and about how old ideas become new again.

Even for a short story, this feels very short. I was surprised by how Christmasy it was. The lovely illustrations are almost more memorable than the words on the page. Liked the creepy forest and the animal companions, just would've liked a little more substance since we haven't gotten anything from Susanna Clarke in a while! Fingers crossed there's another novel soon.

Two sisters go on a sleigh ride into the woods in the midst of winter. One goes home and one goes on alone. Like most fairytales, it seems like a simple story. Two sisters- the domestically-minded and rule-abiding Ysolde and Merowdies, with her head in the clouds as she flouts conventions- take a fateful journey on which Ysolde chooses the safety of hearth and home while Merowdis takes the perilous road into the woods and is given the perilous chance to find her heart’s desire. But fairytales are rarely as simple as they seem, and in the hands of a master storyteller like Susanna Clarke, The Wood at Midwinter deepens into a tale that is more mythical than Disney.

If this was a fairytale that Hollywood could snatch up and turn into an animated extravaganza, then the practical Ysolde would be the heroine of the story- a young woman who leaves the safety of home to go into the dark woods to rescue her sister from whatever dangers lurk there, since Merowdis (to Hollywood’s eyes, probably) is not capable of making a wise decision.

But Clark is too clever a writer to make things so simple. Ysolde may be the dependable sister who will make sure you have a warm hat on a cold day and who will keep the peace in a fractious household, but Merowdis has her wisdom, too. She sees the world from a different perspective, talks to the animals, and is clever enough to recognize a vision of her future and to act upon what she sees. She knows what she wants and she’ll do anything to get it.

Whether her final choice was wise or not depends, I guess, on what the reader thinks of it all.

Ambiguity runs through Clarke’s stories, whether you’re talking about Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, Piranesi, and now The Wood at Midwinter. Does Merowdis make a good choice? Was Ysolde right to let her sister go into the forest alone? There might not be a ‘correct’ answer to such questions, and the story is better for it. Not every story needs to have a moral or tell you what, exactly, you should think about everything that happens. Ambiguity has its place. It makes you pause and reconsider those things you thought you knew about the world. Perhaps Merowdis and Ysolde made the right decisions. Perhaps they made the wrong ones. Perhaps all their decisions were both right and wrong for different reasons. The world is rarely so straightforward and littered with black or white decisions.

Though it is short, The Wood at Midwinter is a lovely, complex story about wisdom, choice, family, and love. It is as beautifully written as one would expect of Susanna Clarke, and Victoria Sawdon’s black and white illustrations add a lovely, if often melancholy atmosphere. This is the perfect tale for midwinter, when you need an eerie tale to read in the long dark of the year’s long night.

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Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury USA for a free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This was a lovely short story that was illustrated so beautifully. The writing and descriptions of the woods were so evocative.

This was a beautifully illustrated short story, perfect for the lead in to the holiday season. While it takes place in the world of her previous books, it can be read on its own. I enjoyed the hints of magic in the story. Ultimately, however, I was left wanting a little bit more from it. I wish that she had saved this story for a longer collection.

I have only read Piranesi besides this book now, and it was an interesting, folklore-like tale. I always enjoy seeing books center sibling relationships, so while I do not have a sister myself, I thought of my own brother. I could totally see myself adding this to my illustrated winter books. My mom buys me an illustrated book every year, and this book is a very real contender.

This was a cozy little tale perfect for the upcoming holiday season. While the story itself isn't anything remarkable, the artwork is absolutely stunning and worth picking up for that alone.

Such a cute simple set of prose about a young girl wandering through the woods with her animal companions.

in these few shorts pages and these limited words, these woods come to life as Merowdis encounters a fox and a blackbird, the wind in the trees whispers, and even the trees themselves seem to speak to the girl herself.

Soon a dark figure appears on Merowdis's path and her future seems more or less set based on this encounter. It's so very dreamlike and a bit prophetic in nature.

This short story echoes of a night time fairytale told as a child is falling to sleep or the snippet of a dream barely remembered.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury USA for the advanced copy of this book. I really enjoyed the illustrations and essay at the end of the story. It was super quick and the language was beautiful. I wish it were longer, I did feel as if there was the potential to make this much longer. However, when I read the essay at the end and learned this was originally written for radio, the length made sense.

Revisit the world of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell in this whimsical short story following nineteen-year-old Merowdis and her journey into the midwinter wood. Surrounded by animal companions and guided by the whispers of snow-capped trees, Merowdis sees a vision of her future, of a strange kind of motherhood, and of her role as a bridge between the human and the natural world.

As Clarke’s trees say, “all is one moment… and in that moment, we see a woman walking.” This perfectly describes The Wood at Midwinter, which feels less like a short story in the traditional sense, and more like a single moment, a snowflake, a held breath, a portrait of a girl frozen in time. Clarke’s writing is subtle and soft, creating a pervasive sense of the otherworldly that is beautifully complimented by Victoria Sawdon’s illustrative work. The result is a striking picture book for adults that I found myself thinking about long after the time it took to finish.

In essence, the Wood at Midwinter is an exercise in duality—lines like “a church is a sort of wood” and “a wood is a sort of church” highlight the juxtaposition and interplay between the Christian and natural world, and other opposites (domesticated vs. wild animals, the “othered” Merowdis vs. the family that cannot understand her) create a layer of tension that pulses beneath the surface. Clarke’s take on the constraints and freedoms of sainthood are particularly brilliant, and elements of Christian and pagan folklore are woven throughout the narrative to elegant effect.

Despite interior depth, this story remains feather-light, and I say this as both a compliment and a word of caution—The Wood is nowhere near as expansive or plotted as Clarke’s other work, and readers hoping for a substantial follow-up to Jonathan Strange won’t find it here. Instead, The Wood at Midwinter will be best enjoyed by those looking for a few minutes of quiet during the holiday season—perhaps accompanied by a steaming mug of hot chocolate and the occasional glance out of a window, through the snow, and into the forest.

This is a lovely book, an atmospheric novella that will be perfect for the winter season. I have not read other books by Susanna Clarke, but I understand the world in this book is related to her other work, so readers might particularly connect with that. I also think that this is a book that will come to life in its physical form more than in ebook form, so I'm looking forward to having it on the shelf and letting customers truly appreciate its beauty.

In this story set in midwinter, Merowdis Scot sets forth into the woods with her animals to walk and think for she is dissatisfied with her life. She does not wish to marry George who has offered and had been told that becoming a nun is not for her. What is her life to be? Surrounded by her dogs, her pig and the trees she loves, a fox and blackbird approach and all talk with her. Ultimately she has a vision of what might…will…happen in her life!

The Wood at Midwinter is a gentle, quiet tale that grows out of the world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, that “other” England beside the one we may see on a map. The magical other where creatures chat with humans and the course of life may run differently. This is a midwinter tale combining fable, religion and all that comes with the solstice. The illustrations complement the peaceful and gentle nature of the story. Clarke’s end notes also outline the influences on this story from her novels Piranesi and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell as well as the music of Kate Bush. I believe I must have a listening session very soon! I recommend this as a midwinter gift to yourself.

Thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an eARC of this book

A short story with beautiful illustrations evoking the Christmas story and love. This is the perfect book to add to a Christmas collection. Part fairy tale, part picture book, The Wood at Midwinter is an unsettling story about a young woman, Merowdis, who goes on a wintry walk and sees her future. The language is beautiful and the illustrations are perfectly strange and beautiful. This is a very short story that's more about giving the reader a sense of eerie atmosphere: and it succeeds.

I enjoyed the story and the world, but I guess overall it wasn't what I was expecting. I thought it would be a short story (which it was) but more of a picture book short story.

The Wood at Midwinter is a gentle read about a young lady who is at one with nature, almost to her detriment. Her personality is so peculiar to her family that they call her a saint. She speaks in parables, and she also speaks to (and hears) the animals, trees, and the woods. While this book is short, it is a comfortable read, set against the backdrop of a snowy winter, it is a nice break from the realities of this modern world. While reading the authors afterword, I learned that this short story was also performed on the BBC in 2022. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001g9m4
As a last note, I did find it interesting that the dog Pretty called the fox a "bad person", as if they possibly all see themselves as person(s).

Delighted to include this title in the October edition of Novel Encounters, my column highlighting the month’s most anticipated fiction for the Books section of Zoomer, Canada’s national lifestyle and culture magazine. (see column and mini-review at link)