A Sorceress Comes to Call

Written by T. Kingfisher

Narrated by Eliza Foss and Jennifer Pickens

From New York Times bestselling and Hugo Award-winning author T. Kingfisher comes A Sorceress Comes to Call—a dark reimagining of the Brothers Grimm's "The Goose Girl," rife with secrets, murder, and forbidden magic.

Cordelia knows her mother is . . . unusual. Their house doesn’t have any doors between rooms—there are no secrets in this house—and her mother doesn't allow Cordelia to have a single friend. Unless you count Falada, her mother's beautiful white horse. The only time Cordelia feels truly free is on her daily rides with him.

But more than simple eccentricity sets her mother apart. Other mothers don’t force their daughters to be silent and motionless for hours, sometimes days, on end. Other mothers aren’t evil sorcerers.

When her mother unexpectedly moves them into the manor home of a wealthy older Squire and his kind but keen-eyed sister, Hester, Cordelia knows this welcoming pair are to be her mother's next victims. But Cordelia feels at home for the very first time among these people, and as her mother's plans darken, she must decide how to face the woman who raised her to save the people who have become like family.

"Kingfisher never fails to dazzle."—Peter S. Beagle, Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Award-winning author of The Last Unicorn

"Kingfisher is an inventive fantasy powerhouse."—BookPage

Also by T. Kingfisher
Nettle & Bone
Thornhedge
What Moves the Dead
What Feasts at Night
A House with Good Bones

A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Books.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio
• Release date: Aug 6, 2024
• ISBN: 9781250351302

T. Kingfisher

T. KINGFISHER (she/her) writes fantasy, horror, and occasional oddities, including Nettle & Bone, What Moves the Dead, Thornhedge, A House with Good Bones, and A Sorceress Comes to Call. Under a pen name, she also writes bestselling children's books. She lives in New Mexico with her husband.

Reviews for A Sorceress Comes to Call

[miriam · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Amazing. Really good from start to finish. I really enjoyed this book and the narration. Thank you for a great experience.

[iam · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoy T. Kingfisher's fantasies, they always feel cozy and warm, even when their themes are quite distressing. A Sorceress Comes to Call was no exception.

Apparently this is a retelling of the Goose Girl fairy tale, bit as I don't have any recollection of that fairy tale, I will not judge it based on that. That said, some of the aspects of worldbuilding and vibes definitely felt vaguely fairy tale-ish, with how it felt magical and kind of light and airy.

The plot follows 14 year old Cordelia and middle-aged Hester, who has chronic pain. Cordelia's mother, a sorceress who emotionally and mentally abuses her daughter, is on the hunt for a new husband, and Hester's bachelor brother is her newest victim.
As Cordelia dreads what her mother is going to do to these nice people, Hester can feel the impending doom, but does not quite understand what is going on - the only thing she is sure of, is that poor Cordelia is suffering under her mother.

The themes of child abuse and manipulation were like a shadow of dread constantly looming over the story, and every time there was a beam of hope breaking through the cover, it got squashed quite quickly.
Despite that feeling, it was not an entirely dark book, which I appreciated. I think part of that was because, while vily and manipulative, the sorceress is also made clear to be very arrogant and egocentric, to the point of not being subtle. Not that that causes her to be any less awfuly or horrible, but it opens avenues for the protagonists to fight her, and it aided it the feeling of no matter how awful it is in the moment, there is hope and there will be a happy ending.

I will admit that I read this in part because I heard this is a horse book (TM). There is a very prominent horse, which is particulary important in the beginning and in the end, so in that way I got my fill. However, I did absolutley NOT expect the horse to play the role it did in the story, so that was a surprise!

I did enjoy the story, especially the combination of a child and adult protagonist. Their interactions were quite adorable at times, and I think this mix of both child-like charm and adult themes and stories is something Kingfisher excells at.
That said, I felt like not all plotlines came to their full fruition. There were several things I felt were hinted at that ended up going nowhere, though maybe I misinterpreted the hints?
Some way the plots ended were a bit surprising to me, but also made me feel quite tender in how they respected the characters and their wishes.

My only real complaint is that I wanted more of the geese!

[Monica Cruz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great story! I love T. Kingfisher and this was another excellent audiobook. Narrators were both fantastic

[Ka'iulani Kauahi · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Kingfisher never misses.

Every book I’ve read by her I’ve thoroughly enjoyed. This is no different.

The book is set from the perspective of two different characters, one young and one mature. They are both compelling and the non-pov characters are interesting and varied as well.

What I really like about this book is that if you read a lot, you may think you know what’s going to happen before it does, but in my case that wasn’t so. I did have a general idea, but the paths taken and details of the story are unexpected and interesting.

Definitely recommend.

Note: also good for fantasy fans who don’t care too much for romance. There is a romantic relationship present, but it is very much not the main story.

[Catherine Shema · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It was totally different than what I’ve read before. Very interesting.

[Andrea Stith · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. As always, T. Kingfisher doesn't disappoint. The macabre storytelling is balanced with comedic moments. Some pretty unhinged things occur, and trigger warnings will be important for some people before diving into this one. It was one that kept my attention and that I anticipate talking to my book friends in depth about.

The cast of characters were interesting, and it is easy to tell the ones who have been friends for a long time. Their banter and easy conversation helps the story flow well. It was amusing to see how some characters believed the mystical bits easily, but others seemed to need to see it to be completely convinced. In the end, it seems that it is not best to try to control others completely.

Thanks to NetGalley for my eARC of this book.