A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
**4.5-stars**
A Sorceress Comes to Call is an Adult Fantasy release from T. Kingfisher, one of my favorite authors. It’s a release I’ve personally been anticipating for almost a year.
This is a re-imagining of the Brothers Grimm’s Goose Girl fairy tale, and while I’ve never read the original source material, I am familiar enough with it to appreciate the clever connections Kingfisher made here.
In this story, we meet our girl, Cordelia. She lives with her Mom and her Mom’s equine companion, Falada. Cordelia’s Mom is…let’s say, eccentric. Reading of their relationship is a bit painful at times, be forewarned.
Her Mom rules their house with an iron fist. Cordelia is made to bend to her will, always. One may wonder how Cordelia’s Mother is able to exude such authority and I guess, the answer is fairly simple, she’s a sorceress.
After a suspicious death in their small village, Cordelia is forced to flee town with her Mom and Falada. They end up at a remote country manor, where a wealthy bachelor, known as the Squire, lives with his unwed sister, Hester.
Cordelia’s Mom sets her sights on the Squire, hoping to lure him into a marriage arrangement. Cordelia sees her Mom’s intentions and fears for the well-meaning older gentleman and his kind, intelligent sister.
Hester isn’t fooled though and has no desire to see her bro end up with such a conniving witch. It’s not just her brother she’s worried about though. She’s noticed Cordelia shrinks into herself anytime her mother approaches.
That can’t be a good sign.
What follows is an insanely humorous romp where good battles evil. There’s magic and intrigue, hijinks, betrayals and lies. Humor and love and kindness and wrath, all rolled into one. Witty banter and lovable characters like only Kingfisher can do.
Unsurprisingly, I fell in love with this story. It was so creative and well-crafted. I was transported while reading it. It felt all-consuming.
I’m sure some of you are wondering, if I loved it so much, why didn’t I give it 5-stars? I think upon reread, I probably will bump it up.
There’s a lot happening, bordering on chaotic, and I feel like I maybe missed some of the finer details. Now that I know where it’s all going, I feel like upon reread, I’ll be able to pick up, enjoy and retain more of those smaller details.
Let’s be clear though, a 4.5-star is still a super stellar rating from me, and I do absolutely plan on reading this one again; as I do with most of Kingfisher’s works.
The character development was fantastic. I felt so bad for Cordelia initially. She was such a timid thing, all at her mother’s hand. It def tugged at the heart-strings. The best thing that ever happened to her, IMO, was meeting Hester.
Hester was by far the star of the show for me. I loved her so much. Maybe because we have a lot of common. We’re both old maids, both way more witty than people give us credit for and both ready to kick some ass if necessary.
With Cordelia and her Mom staying at the Squire’s, Cordelia and Hester get the opportunity to spend time together and it was nice to watch their relationship blossom.
There was such a fun element too involving a house party, planned by Hester, and the horrific aftermath of that leads to a bit of a suspicious death investigation. I wasn’t expecting it to go in that direction, so was delighted when it did.
Our good characters band together to try to vanquish the evil which surrounds them. It was hilarious and wacky and wild and fun. Kingfisher’s writing is sure to make you forget everything else going on in your life.
This story becomes your life when you’re reading it. It was just as darkly magical and enchanting as I was anticipating.
This was an absolute delight to read. I can’t wait to get a hard copy for my shelves, although I would recommend the audiobook to anyone who has that available to them. The narration by Eliza Foss and Jennifer Pickens truly brought this story to life.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Tor and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. Kingfisher is such a talent.
This is a perfect blend of humor with darker Fantasy elements! Recommended for all!