Excellent, creepy Lovecraftian horror tale. Read my full review in the January 2024 PBS Blog.
It seems I'm still not having much luck in finding a decent modern horror novel these days... this one was less - I don't know what - offensive, than the last few I've read, which were just an assault on the senses and good sense, but it still just didn't do it for me.
Its entire premise - a down-on-her-luck girl and her gay sidekick discover a gateway to another dimension concealed within the walls of an oddities museum - was questionably cheesy to begin with, but, I thought, what the hell. I'm waiting for some library arrivals, and this was just sitting, gathering dust in the bedroom book pile, so, why not give it a try to pass the time. It wasn't a complete waste of time, seeing as how I rather liked one of this author's previous offerings, but I still don't think I could recommend it.
First (which even the characters acknowledge), it's not a very original idea, and it never really hits its stride. It's part Narnia meets House of Leaves (a book I thoroughly hated) meets The Wizard of Oz, but it ended up being neither fish nor fowl. The general plot is as follows: Kara (AKA Carrot) gets amicably divorced (there's the first unreality) and decides to move in with her eccentric uncle Earl who runs an Oddities museum, which may have been somewhat modeled on the equally eclectic Museum of Jurassic Technology in Los Angeles (which has nothing to do with dinosaurs). I've been there a couple of times, and that's the mental image I kept getting when reading about Uncle Earl and his Glory to God Museum of Natural Wonders, Curiosities and Taxidermy (at least the name is creative).
After Uncle Earl has to have knee surgery, Carrot takes over running the museum while he recuperates. Being inexperienced at things which involve adulting, she teams up with coffee shop owner Simon, who, of course, with this being a modern novel, has to be a rainbow person, and the two of them unwittingly discover a hole in the wall, which ultimately leads to an alternate dimension, one that is host to a universe of nasty things. That's where Narnia takes a dark turn, because the creatures that inhabit this world concealed in an old building in North Carolina (!?) are anything but friendly.
I'll spare you the spoilers, but, in sum, this book was just generally boring, if I'm being fully honest. Absolutely nothing happens for the first 70 pages or so, other than setting the scene, which it doesn't really do in an engaging way. Some back story about the location, or giving it a creepy or interesting history would have helped, but no such luck. As such, it's kind of a chore getting through it.
After that, things do get more interesting, but, for me, in a predictable way, as the whole concept just isn't very original and the author didn't include enough original content to make it worthwhile. There are numerous references to Narnia, in fact, which I think appear just so that the audience doesn't view it as a blatant rip-off, except that it still is. It's as if the author took the idea and tried to write a horror novel around it, but just couldn't quite make it work.
There may be some potential in that premise, but this just didn't pull it off. Not scary, not even really creepy, some gore, but it seemed like it was included mostly for the sake of the horror trope. Nor was there enough explanation or resolution for me - it just kind of left things hanging.
Maybe to make this review worthwhile, I'll also include some information on the MJT. If you're in LA, and you're into the weird and wonderful, THAT I can recommend. Dark and atmospheric, it's far more high-brow than the salacious Ripley's Believe it or Not Museums. The Museum of Jurassic Technology is a crazy quilt of bits and pieces of eclectic collections from all over the world, reminiscent of the curio cabinets of 16th-century Europe which predate modern natural history museums.
As with Uncle Earl's Glory to God Museum, it's a hodgepodge of odd collections that don't seem to have a home anywhere else. The ACTUAL MJT is the subject of a book entitled "Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder: Pronged Ants, Horned Humans, Mice on Toast and Other Marvels of Jurassic Technology" (1995) by Lawrence Weschler, which I wonder if Kingfisher has read. Its founder was also the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship (AKA "Genius Grant") in 2001, so the museum has received serious critical acclaim. Some of the pieces there could definitely serve as inspiration for a horror novel! Enjoy!
Its entire premise - a down-on-her-luck girl and her gay sidekick discover a gateway to another dimension concealed within the walls of an oddities museum - was questionably cheesy to begin with, but, I thought, what the hell. I'm waiting for some library arrivals, and this was just sitting, gathering dust in the bedroom book pile, so, why not give it a try to pass the time. It wasn't a complete waste of time, seeing as how I rather liked one of this author's previous offerings, but I still don't think I could recommend it.
First (which even the characters acknowledge), it's not a very original idea, and it never really hits its stride. It's part Narnia meets House of Leaves (a book I thoroughly hated) meets The Wizard of Oz, but it ended up being neither fish nor fowl. The general plot is as follows: Kara (AKA Carrot) gets amicably divorced (there's the first unreality) and decides to move in with her eccentric uncle Earl who runs an Oddities museum, which may have been somewhat modeled on the equally eclectic Museum of Jurassic Technology in Los Angeles (which has nothing to do with dinosaurs). I've been there a couple of times, and that's the mental image I kept getting when reading about Uncle Earl and his Glory to God Museum of Natural Wonders, Curiosities and Taxidermy (at least the name is creative).
After Uncle Earl has to have knee surgery, Carrot takes over running the museum while he recuperates. Being inexperienced at things which involve adulting, she teams up with coffee shop owner Simon, who, of course, with this being a modern novel, has to be a rainbow person, and the two of them unwittingly discover a hole in the wall, which ultimately leads to an alternate dimension, one that is host to a universe of nasty things. That's where Narnia takes a dark turn, because the creatures that inhabit this world concealed in an old building in North Carolina (!?) are anything but friendly.
I'll spare you the spoilers, but, in sum, this book was just generally boring, if I'm being fully honest. Absolutely nothing happens for the first 70 pages or so, other than setting the scene, which it doesn't really do in an engaging way. Some back story about the location, or giving it a creepy or interesting history would have helped, but no such luck. As such, it's kind of a chore getting through it.
After that, things do get more interesting, but, for me, in a predictable way, as the whole concept just isn't very original and the author didn't include enough original content to make it worthwhile. There are numerous references to Narnia, in fact, which I think appear just so that the audience doesn't view it as a blatant rip-off, except that it still is. It's as if the author took the idea and tried to write a horror novel around it, but just couldn't quite make it work.
There may be some potential in that premise, but this just didn't pull it off. Not scary, not even really creepy, some gore, but it seemed like it was included mostly for the sake of the horror trope. Nor was there enough explanation or resolution for me - it just kind of left things hanging.
Maybe to make this review worthwhile, I'll also include some information on the MJT. If you're in LA, and you're into the weird and wonderful, THAT I can recommend. Dark and atmospheric, it's far more high-brow than the salacious Ripley's Believe it or Not Museums. The Museum of Jurassic Technology is a crazy quilt of bits and pieces of eclectic collections from all over the world, reminiscent of the curio cabinets of 16th-century Europe which predate modern natural history museums.
As with Uncle Earl's Glory to God Museum, it's a hodgepodge of odd collections that don't seem to have a home anywhere else. The ACTUAL MJT is the subject of a book entitled "Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder: Pronged Ants, Horned Humans, Mice on Toast and Other Marvels of Jurassic Technology" (1995) by Lawrence Weschler, which I wonder if Kingfisher has read. Its founder was also the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship (AKA "Genius Grant") in 2001, so the museum has received serious critical acclaim. Some of the pieces there could definitely serve as inspiration for a horror novel! Enjoy!
I was totally wowed by this story. When it first started out, I was enjoying it but couldn't understand how it was supposed to be scary. It was just fun. Then it hit and what a crazy ride it was from there.
We each have different things that scare us. I really can't find a haunted house story out there that scares me but still read them trying to find "that one". This book though, terrified me (in a good way though). I devoured this book and couldn't wait to see what was going to happen next. It gave me Lovecraftian and VanderMeer (Area X) vibes. The characters are awesome. Was fully endeared to Uncle Earl.
Kingfisher is becoming a top fave of mine. Will be grabbing all of her books that I can find to read.
We each have different things that scare us. I really can't find a haunted house story out there that scares me but still read them trying to find "that one". This book though, terrified me (in a good way though). I devoured this book and couldn't wait to see what was going to happen next. It gave me Lovecraftian and VanderMeer (Area X) vibes. The characters are awesome. Was fully endeared to Uncle Earl.
Kingfisher is becoming a top fave of mine. Will be grabbing all of her books that I can find to read.
