A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher - Book Review

Publication Date: 06th August 2024 

Genre: Fantasy (Historical) 

2.7 Stars (outliner) 

One Liner: Kinda underwhelming 

Cordelia, a fourteen-year-old, knows her mother is different. Why else would she insist Cordelia keep no secret from her and make her obedient for hours? Why else would Cordelia have no friends and live in a house with no doors closed? 

Hester is a fifty-plus spinster living with her brother Samuel, a Squire. However, when deliberate planning brings Cordelia and her mother to Hester’s doorstep, the old woman knows she needs to do something.

But facing someone like Cordelia’s mother is not easy. Can Hester save her brother and Cordelia from a sorceress? 

The story comes in the third-person POV of Cordelia and Hester. 

My Thoughts: 

The book is marketed as the reimagining of The Goose Girl, a dark fairytale by the Grimms brothers. However, due to my lack of familiarity with the original, I read this as a standalone. 

This is my first book by the author. I can see that she writes well. Some scenes are compelling and atmospheric. However, the whole thing needs more work. The book works on the presumption that readers would fill the gaps based on what is provided. While we can do that to an extent, other elements need to be detailed. 

I don’t mind vague settings as I write such stuff myself. But then I write short stories. A full-length novel can do with a little more information. The descriptions could have been a wee bit elaborate. 

The dual POV of Cordelia and Hester (two totally different characters) is a good idea. However, adding 3-4 short bits from the mother’s (Evangeline) POV would have elevated the book. Right now, we get to know her plans because she reveals everything to her daughter. This weakens her characterization. 

The magic elements are interesting but with no detail. The how, what, where, etc., are not answered. Are we supposed to gather this information from those bookish snippets included? No idea! 

The pacing is slow; not because there’s detail but because things don’t seem to happen quickly. I don’t deny that some of it is necessary for the plot. That doesn’t mean all those repeated dinners couldn’t have been helpful in another way too. 

The last quarter is where things happen. I’m in two minds about this. While I like that the haphazard attempts align with the plotline developed until then, I do wish the young girl could have done more. 

There is more talk (monologues and dialogues) and less action, which isn’t a good thing in this genre. It makes the story feel flat and surface-level. 

The ending is nice and works for HEA fans like me. 

To summarize, A Sorceress Comes to Call has a great premise but only seems to skim the surface without delving deep into the dark elements. Can’t help but feel it could have been a lot better. 

I did read Goose Girl after finishing the book. This one is almost nothing like the fairytale. Falada, the horse, and the geese are the only common elements.

Thank you, NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group (Tor Books), for the eARC. 

#NetGalley