The author of the unsettling novel “What Big Teeth” returns with a story of the fantastic, in a world that has lost its hold on magic. Think of Arthur Weasley’s bafflement over how Muggles survive without magic and then imagine him losing his own. How would he handle it?
This novel sets the reader wondering from practically the first page. It describes a world where nothing is quite what it seems, a world where identity, gender and time slip sideways and magic stops working or runs awry. It’s a world where a king is both a tyrant and somehow savior, where a queen lies neglected and smiling in a pool of her own blood and can give birth to both a champion and a Lovecraftian nightmare.
Astrid seems like a superstitious old biddy, a busybody and a meddler. But she’s so much more than that. Various participants are coming into play and she is the witch in the hub of events, winkling out people’s places in the world with the answers to just a few innocent questions and weaving strands of their destinies.
But, above all, Astrid is trying to bring about the return of a Hero. The initial capitalization is not a mistake. I got the sensation that this world functions as a pack of Tarot cards, with the myriad characters stepping out of the deck. Then again, Ms. Szabo has fooled me before now.
Disquieting, fey and strange, “We All Fall Down” promises to be another compelling yarn of gore, sudden horror, giddy triumph, extraordinary romance and surprising developments. If you were as disturbed by “What Big Teeth” as I was and if you LIKE being disturbed, “We All Fall Down” promises to be another uncanny adventure.
This novel sets the reader wondering from practically the first page. It describes a world where nothing is quite what it seems, a world where identity, gender and time slip sideways and magic stops working or runs awry. It’s a world where a king is both a tyrant and somehow savior, where a queen lies neglected and smiling in a pool of her own blood and can give birth to both a champion and a Lovecraftian nightmare.
Astrid seems like a superstitious old biddy, a busybody and a meddler. But she’s so much more than that. Various participants are coming into play and she is the witch in the hub of events, winkling out people’s places in the world with the answers to just a few innocent questions and weaving strands of their destinies.
But, above all, Astrid is trying to bring about the return of a Hero. The initial capitalization is not a mistake. I got the sensation that this world functions as a pack of Tarot cards, with the myriad characters stepping out of the deck. Then again, Ms. Szabo has fooled me before now.
Disquieting, fey and strange, “We All Fall Down” promises to be another compelling yarn of gore, sudden horror, giddy triumph, extraordinary romance and surprising developments. If you were as disturbed by “What Big Teeth” as I was and if you LIKE being disturbed, “We All Fall Down” promises to be another uncanny adventure.