Winner of the RUSA Award for Best Horror When a young woman clears out her deceased grandmother’s home in rural North Carolina, she finds long-hidden secrets about a strange colony of beings in the woods in this chilling novel that reads like The Blair Witch Project meets The Andy Griffith Show. When Mouse’s dad asks her to clean out her dead grandmother’s house, she says yes. After all, how … grandmother’s house, she says yes. After all, how bad could it be?
Answer: pretty bad. Grandma was a hoarder, and her house is stuffed with useless rubbish. That would be horrific enough, but there’s more–Mouse stumbles across her step-grandfather’s journal, which at first seems to be filled with nonsensical rants…until Mouse encounters some of the terrifying things he described for herself.
Alone in the woods with her dog, Mouse finds herself face to face with a series of impossible terrors–because sometimes the things that go bump in the night are real, and they’re looking for you. And if she doesn’t face them head on, she might not survive to tell the tale.
From Hugo Award-winning author Ursula Vernon, writing as T. Kingfisher, The Twisted Ones is a gripping, terrifying tale bound to keep you up all night–from both fear and anticipation of what happens next.
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Let me begin by saying knocking against a house in the middle of the night is NEVER a woodpecker, no matter how much a character may hope it to be.
That said, The Twisted Ones is told in a humorous first person by “Mouse” as, with the help of her faithful hound Bongo, she cleans out her horrible hoarder grandmother’s house. (How’s that for alliteration?) As she does so, she discovers her step-grandfather’s journal, looks for a lost manuscript, and discovers some creepy secrets. Luckily for her, she also befriends some aging hippies, including the irrepressible and resourceful Foxy.
The Twisted Ones is T. Kingfisher’s (pseudonym for Ursilla Vernon) take on Arthur Machen’s 1904 short story “The White People.” If you’re familiar with Machen’s story, the influence becomes apparent early on in The Twisted Ones. It has a healthy dose of folklore, charming interaction between the heroine and her pooch, a truly great friend, and just enough of the Gothic influences and nods to H.P. Lovecraft to keep horror fans interested. There was an instance of stereotyping that made me a bit cringy (Mouse expresses a supposition that the police officer is uneducated or lacking intelligence simply because he’s from a small town), and the narrator twists her words around to provide a lot of repetition (which was distracting and a bit annoying, though it might have been used to give insight into the stresses Mouse experiences.) However, there were also some wonderful quotes, including: “Monsters are stressful…” and “…maybe it was just perfectly innocent devil worship….” and “Families run on optimistic lies sometimes…” and overall, it was an enjoyable story.
Reads so fast and so effortless that you don’t realize how in thrall you are to it. It’s the sensation of being a little kid who stayed out too long past dinner and sure, you were having fun, but now it’s a moonless night and the forest is dark and you are hopelessly lost. This is righteous, folkloric horror, and the devil is waiting in between these pages.
Innovative, unexpected, and absolutely chilling, T. Kingfisher isn’t just breaking into the horror scene, she’s breaking it down. With a hammer.
Oh, I thoroughly enjoyed this folk horror! There were some pacing issues and not everything was wrapped up, but the strangeness, characters, and creepiness were all fantastic. This may be a spoiler, but I won’t mark it as such – Bongo is OK! And that’s really what matters here.
IMPORTANT: the dog does not die.
Not as gripping, to me, as The Hollow Places, but it’s still a great take on a found-manuscript horror story with characteristic Kingfisher-Vernon genre-savviness by the narrator (highly relatable copy editor). Good for late nights when you want to freak yourself out.
I’ve never read a spooky book written in first person, but T. Kingfisher does it really well. Believable characters, a haunting mystery, and mysterious creatures make this one of the most enjoyable and unforgettable books you’ll read. Deliciously creepy.
Mouse’s dad never asks her for anything–so when he asks her to drive down to North Carolina to clean out her grandmother’s house, she has to go. Even though her grandmother was mean as a snake and no one liked her. When Mouse get’s there, the house is worse than she thought. And something weird is going on in the woods…
So…I read this all in one sitting. I stayed up until 4 AM and have no regrets. Twisted Ones has a dash of humor, which I loved, and Mouse was an enjoyable narrator. Mostly Twisted Ones is a folk horror novel with a slowly building atmospheric creepiness.
I’ve been on a T Kingfisher kick and this book did not disappoint! Mouse was a great heroine and I absolutely loved her dog, too. This book is really a master class in building tension, and I about threw my back out from startling during several of the scary bits. Totally recommend this if you want something creepy and unputdownable!
What can I say except, if you love twisted plots infused with horror then this book is awesome. I am a fan of horror and the bizarre in novels and this story did not disappoint. I couldn’t put it down and loved how it made me jump at sounds in the dark of night after reading it. This is the first book I’ve read by this author but it definitely won’t be my last.
If you are fans of “classic” horror of the cosmic horrors type, you are probably familiar with Arthur Machen’s superb “The White People.” If so, this contemporary spinoff is a delight. Words like eerie, disturbing, creepy come to mind.
This was superbly interesting. The base plot was derived from “The White People” by Arthur Machen and contains Poe like elements as well. It was a very creative take however and the way the author expounds on this story was quite entertaining. I think the first thing I’d like to commend Kingfisher’s writing for is her narration type. This was written in first person and felt very real because of it. Mouse, the main character, is retelling her insane story and the way she speaks within the writing is unique and done well. I could connect with this character instantly because of her thought processes and her ability to communicate directly with the reader. I think it added a level of immersion and a times, humor that is difficult to obtain within the writing of unrealistic events. The plot itself was also very intriguing, Kingfisher moves at a decent pace and has a good grasp on giving breadcrumbs to her readers to give that little bit of edge to the mystery. While I struggled to maybe give the full 5 stars, I settled because I wasn’t extremely impressed by the ending. Although, it was very fitting and honestly, realistically aligned with the events that occurred, it just didn’t hit as hard as I would maybe have liked. That being said, mostly everything else was interesting and well composed. I think her foreshadowing was exquisite and this is the type of read, you may want to go back to in order to see each point when the narration gives you a hint.
3.5 stars.
THE TWISTED ONES is the first novel I have read by T. Kingfisher. This story combines atmosphere, legends, beautiful imagery, and some memorable characters. “Mouse” and her dog, Bongo, are tasked with the job of clearing out her deceased Grandmother’s house so that it can be sold.
Two things we learn about Grandma right off the bat; she was a hoarder (with a house that invites images of all kinds of hidden vermin), and she was a nasty, unlikeable and unrepentant she-witch of a woman.
“. . . The only reason anyone would show up was to make sure she was really dead.”
Mouse discovers a journal from her step-grandfather, Frederick Cotgrave, and is plunged into a world he describes with “white people”, and strange stones bearing etchings of what he calls “the twisted ones”.
Oh, and his wife was a mean spirited woman, even to him.
“. . . But families run on optimistic lies sometimes . . . ”
While the comments about Bongo amused me greatly, most of the scenes with Mouse felt very repetitive until towards the very end of the novel. She would “think” or say the same thoughts/excuses so often that I wished she would disappear and leave the story to Bongo’s thoughts, instead.
“. . . Bongo’s barks had gone from “Die UPS scum!” to “Pet me pet me why aren’t you petting me?!” . . . ”
Some comedic neighbors from the commune nearby–especially one feisty woman named Foxy–did make the reading bearable, despite my increasing agitation with Mouse’s inane comments.
Aside from the writing “tone”, the atmosphere was fantastic. During the outdoor/woods scenes, I got a sense of the otherworldliness that was being conveyed. Combined with bits from the step-grandfather’s journal, and the cryptic comments from the nearest neighbors, even the presence of an unusual stone in the yard would make me think twice about staying in this location.
“. . . Sometimes it’s there, and sometimes it ain’t . . . ”
Overall, while I was not a fan of the main character and the writing style where she literally interrupted her own thoughts with other thoughts, the central story and atmosphere were well worth the read. The supporting characters–and dog–were a fun inclusion, and I genuinely looked forward to them. The last quarter or so of the novel changed the tone so well that I couldn’t put it down. For that section alone, the entire novel was worth reading to get to. The implications and fear brought on was heightened, as the tension did not abate.
“. . . and I twisted myself around like the twisted ones . . . ”
If some of the end “suspicions” had been brought to mind sooner in the book, I believe this idea would have kept me captivated much longer. Still, definitely worth the read, and I would read more from this author in the future.
Recommended.
I started this book wanting to be scared, and boy was I ever. During one particular scene, I audibly gasped in fright. That doesn’t usually happen to me while reading. I loved the writing style; the main character, Mouse, was a funny narrator and her quips helped to ease some of the tension. It was a nice counterpoint to the terror, which pervaded every page. The secondary characters also shined: Foxy, the plucky, eccentric neighbor who takes the frightened Mouse under her protective wing, and Bongo, Mouse’s loyal redbone coonhound, who had a distinctive personality all his own. I have a redbone myself, and so his inclusion in the story was a special treat for me. If you don’t normally read horror, this is a good read for you. It’s frightening without being over the top.
Not my favorite. It was slow to develop and the anticipation wasn’t worth the time. It wasn’t scary or engaging.
A dark fairy tale adventure for contemporary readers. Mouse is a great character and the journey is enchanting in the best way — full of terror and humor and friendship.
By turns warm, witty, and frightening, with a charming protagonist, a diverse and vibrant supporting cast, and — best of all — a noble, dimwitted dog. Fair warning: there is a razor in the center of this confection, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I won’t be forgetting grandmother’s house anytime soon.
The Twisted Ones is a weird, shimmering story told with sharpness and grace — somehow both wild fairy tale and quiet, personal horror in equal measure. It’s a strange and lovely balance, expertly crafted for daytime laughter or nighttime trembles.
3.5 Stars
“It’s a bit awkward figuring out how to sleep when there might be monsters outside. Do you sleep? Do you stay up all night and risk seeing them? Do you turn the lights on to scare it away or turn the lights off so that it thinks no one’s home?”
After the passing of her grandmother, Mouse has been set with the task of cleaning out her house. Set in the woods of rural North Carolina, Mouse is shocked to discover her not so well liked grandmother was secretly a hoarder. Boxes of rubbish and all sorts of nonsense is stacked floor to ceiling. Rolling up her sleeves, Mouse begins the process of disbanding years of clutter with no help except for her faithful coonhound, Bongo. But while sorting through the soon to be landfill fodder, Mouse uncovers her late step-grandfather’s journal, and within the pages is the rambling of a terrified man that had to live with a shrew for a wife, as well as hiding from what he referred to as “the twisted ones”. With each new day, Mouse begins to discover that perhaps her grandfather’s journal weren’t thoughts randomly written from a man suffering from dementia, but those of a man who had lived in genuine fear of his life…and when the scratches on the window pane and the knocking and clicking noises from the woods come closer and closer, Mouse begins to fear that she too may start to twist herself about like the twisted ones and lay down flat on the ground like the dead ones…
The Twisted Ones is an entertaining read that rambles about like an old ghost story told around a campfire. Enjoyed and would recommend to readers that appreciate tales of horror/fantasy with a back-story of folklore.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**