I struggled with this, the pacing was difficult for me i wanted to like it but i did not appeal

Thank you Netgalley for a copy for an honest review

It is 1862. When Albie Mirralls discovers that his cousin has died in mysterious circumstances, he journeys to Halfoak, a village in the depths of rural Yorkshire that is steeped in superstition. Lizzie Higgs has been burned to death on her own hearth; her husband James is accused of killing her. He appears to have been suffering under the delusion that Lizzie had been stolen by the fairies, and that she was a changeling. The locals are a closed, untrusting group, and belief in the folk traditions are rife. Albie must investigate his cousin's death and piece together the truth in the face of the Hidden People.

I started reading Alison Littlewood's The Hidden People believing that the novel sat clearly in the horror genre. Littlewood's previous novels featured supernatural happenings and gothic fantasy and - whilst it's true it does indeed belong in the horror genre - I'd also say it fits equally as well in historical crime and dark fantasy. I like stories that blur genres. This particular tale is unsettling and uncanny, made more so by the Victorian style of writing. Subsequently it's not a fast read, as the prose demands more attention than that of a contemporary style. But the locations are richly atmospheric and, at times, it is genuinely frightening. The whole thing grows as the book progresses and there's a nice twist that feels like a bonus rather than a peg on which the whole story hangs. This is recommended to readers who enjoy historical mysteries, gothic fantasy or dark, subtle fiction.

So, the good stuff first. Alison Littlewood's prose is so beautiful, and the world and atmosphere of the book were great. I felt immersed, and could really see the house and characters as I read. The slow build of dread worked well too – we know the protagonist will ultimately begin to see his wife as a changeling, and watching it unfold was a pleasure. Also I'm a sucker for anything to do with creepy, dangerous fairies – anything that's the opposite of cute little Tinkerbells. So I appreciated the use of folklore.

However, overall I can't really get behind this book. It really dragged, particularly in the middle, and I found myself skim-reading. Also the phonetic dialogue by the 'local' people was painful to read, and borderline offensive. I've read most of Alison Littlewood's books and find her quite hit and miss, but when she gets it right she's very good, so I'll read more from her. This one wasn't all it could have been.

I know other people will give a book a bad/low mark for being a DNF, but as an author myself I know how bad that feels. So I hope my no score is less painful. I’m not going to score this book as I don’t want to give it a bad score - as I don’t feel it deserves one. Nor do I want to give it a high score for the same reason.

Basically, this book was not for me. There is nothing wrong with the writing; I just couldn’t get into it. Even after reading 35% of the book I was still waiting for it to get interesting and actually start… My fault as I just could not connect. From other reviews I have read, people have loved this book. To me that proves it’s good… for the right audience.

This does not make it a bad book, and I really want to emphasise this. Despite not liking it and not being able to get into it, I did see potential. I, the reader, and this book just weren’t matched and I refuse to mark it down because of my own faults. :-)

I have been meaning to read this e-book for months but I've finally got round to it and while I did have some problems with it, I did enjoy it overall. It follows the lives of Albie and his wife as he tries to work out the reasons behind his cousins death. The blurb sounded like something I'd love as it seemed to me to be a historical mystery with folktale or magical realism elements and that's a perfect description although I wasn't fully prepared for how atmospheric and creepy it would be! In terms of the mystery element, the city gentleman going up north concerning a death, the house at the top of the hill that everyone thinks is haunted and the rural setting all remind me of The Woman In Black which I really liked but this one is longer, more supernatural and involves more characters/community.

I like the writing style however as the rural setting is based in Yorkshire, the way the rural people speak is written as if they have a rural/localised accent which makes it a slower read than if it wasn't written in that style. I did like the short chapters, the mystery, the sometimes incredibly atmospheric writing and the overall story which I would recommend but the two main characters were really unlikeable, in my opinion. I would rate it higher as the story will stay with me for a while and I loved how creepy it was at times but I think it was longer than it should be and Albie and his wife were so annoying!

From Netgalley in exchange for a review, this is very much in the style of a Gothic Novel, with the potential for the "hidden people" to be influencing events at every turn.

Albert (Albie) Mirralls is working at his father's firm in the city, and he goes to the Great Exhibition of 1851, where he meets his cousin, Lizzie, and her father. Despite them only meeting the once, Albie convinces himself that he is in love with his first cousin, and that they would someday meet again and marry. However, a decade passes, Albie has married Helena, and is stunned when he hears of Lizzie's violent death at a still relatively young age.

Helena can't understand her husband's distress over the death of a distant relation he met only once. When he hears that Lizzie was killed by her husband, who had come to believe that she's a changeling, Albie sets off for the Yorkshire village of Halfoak, to investigate...

Lizzie is found to be still unburied, her burnt and putrid corpse not even laid out properly. Albie arranges for the funeral to take place, but the locals that do attend do it pitifully, and the rest of the locals simply don't turn up either at the church or the graveside. As a rationalist from the Big City, Albie makes a point of not believing in or not understanding local superstitions, such as that Lizzie shouldnt be buried in green (it's their colour) or on a Friday (because it's unlucky) etc.

Helena arrives from London, seemingly still upset that she is still being ignored in favour of this distant relative. She often comes upon her husband, only for him not to recognise her - is she bewitched somehow, or is she even a changling herself? Despite her objections, rather than leaving after the funeral, they move into the house left behind by Lizzie and her now imprisioned husband as Albie begins to investigate what has lead to this horrible situation.

To be honest, this is as far as I got. I've read other reviews that say that pacing was patchy and/or slow, only to pick up in the second half and I hope that this is true. Littlewood has produced what was a very good Gothic-esque story that I was just not able to complete. Even the secondary characters (such as the Innkeeper) were well drawn, even in his apparent shiftiness.

So I seem to have been one of those people that didn't push through to the end, but I hope others get to persevere!

Stunning! In love with this book's fresh and original take on the gothic and can't wait to gift it to lots of people in 2017! This novel contains so many gothic tropes that I was entranced. It carries so many ingredients that I love from other gothic works and mixes them together in a wholly fresh and original way. Albert is a fantastic character whose compass swings wildly around with ours as we never reeally know where we are or who exactly we can trust. I love novels where you're not entirely sure you're heading and I entrusted to Alison Littlewood and held on for the ride. Although I can see that this might not be to everyone's taste with its mysterious unanswered questions about 'faeries' and its deft blending of Victorian realism with something a little more fantastical, it definitely worked for me. Beg, borrow or steal this book for a compelling period mystery with added mysterious touches. I'm going to be gifting this a lot this year :)

ISBN: 9781848669901. 6 October 2016. Quercus Books. I received an ecopy through Netgalley in return for an honest review.

Pretty Lizzie Higgs is gone, burned to death on her own hearth - but was she really a changeling, as her husband insists? Albie Mirralls met his cousin only once, in 1851, within the grand glass arches of the Crystal Palace, but unable to countenance the rumours that surround her murder, he leaves his young wife in London and travels to Halfoak, a village steeped in superstition.

Albie begins to look into Lizzie's death, but in this place where the old tales hold sway and the 'Hidden People' supposedly roam, answers are slippery and further tragedy is just a step aay .

I don't have massive amounts to say about this book. It was weird and in places a little whimsical, but I struggled to get through it. The era it was set in isn't usually a problem for me, and the characters whilst interesting could be frustrating at times.

Having said that, it was very well written. Had the feel off an old fashion style of writing which is pretty hard in a modern era. So props to Alison for that.

I will be trying to read this book again in the future, because I'd like to see if it was just my mood that made me struggle with it.

I liked the simpleness of the cover, that it was dark and the writing stood out.

I give this book a 3 our of 5 stars.