A retelling of The House of Usher, without the baroque language with a cast of characters rather than place holders and a mycologal motivator for the deceased sister. It gives a different set of worries to the original's horror, less of a family curse and more of a genus loci. And the sworn soldier with the Gallian proliferation of pronouns is picante. ( )

4.75/5

The dead don’t move… well, here they do. WOW this book was incredible. What an amazing reimagining of Poe’s vision. Kingfisher is hysterical and vivid in her descriptions and has gained a fan in me. ( )

What Moves The Dead is an engaging, atmospheric re-telling of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Fall Of The House Of Usher." I re-read "Usher" immediately before starting What Moves The Dead, which certainly enriched the reading experience.

The characters are compelling: Lieutenant Easton, our narrator, is wry and amusing; Miss Potter, an English mycologist, is erudite and knowledgeable; the Ushers are overwrought, fraught, ill, Gothic. The atmosphere is damp, mouldering, foreboding. What Moves The Dead is very tactile and rich and immersive.

The answer to the mystery of the story is sort of broadcast by certain elements of the book, aided by a certain 1960s Japanese horror movie I watched recently. But although for me the big idea became quickly clear, it's the details and the science-fictiony science, well written, well thought out, that really sell the premise. There's even an element or two of the tale that gave me a bit of a Lovecraft vibe.

I have two quibbles, and quibbles only, about the story. The ending felt a bit rushed, not terribly so, but noticeably. There's a water-source revelation that's dropped in rather abruptly. And there's a section where a door, a very important door, is described as being locked and barred. Later, that same very important door is barred only. The door-lock continuity was a bit unclear.

But, as I say, quibbles. Overall, What Moves The Dead is a very good book by a newly-discovered favorite author. ( )

Oh....my.....goodness. This was such a fun novella!!! The wit and charm Kingfisher dishes out is just delightful. I will be reading the next in this series!!! ( )

A fabulous re-telling and re-examination of Edgar Allan Poe's The Fall of the House of Usher. This time the author is defined as Alex Easton, a sworn soldier to Gallacia, a remote country somewhere. Alex is called to the house by Madeline, the sister of Roderick Usher, as she believes she is dying. Alex, Denton, an American doctor, and Angus, the man servant of Alex take up residency. Along the way they meet Mrs. Potter, the aunt of Beatrice, and an avid studier of mycology. Clearly something is wrong in the house of Usher. The hares by the tarn do not act like hares are supposed to. They sit and they watch. Madeline does not act the way Madeline ought to - being unpredictable and strange. Alex understands that something is amiss, but they do not really understand what. High creep factor, excellent prose that captures the feel of Poe's original story. ( )