- The Good: A Regency tale of one girl’s journey to overthrow her abusive sorceress mother
- The Bad: A little too sweet for a dark horror fantasy
- The Literary: Modern retelling of the “The Goose Girl”
Cordelia is afraid of her mother. Cordelia’s mother doesn’t allow Cordelia to have any friends (unless you count Falada, her mother’s horse) or to have any doors in their house. Worst of all, her mother forces Cordelia to be silent and motionless for hours, even days on end. Can all mothers control their daughters so, by mentally reaching inside of them?
I really enjoy the Regency-era sorcery and creepy cute atmosphere of this novel. The Goose Girl, the fairy tale upon which this novel is based, features a decapitated horse’s head speaking in rhyme and a girl being dragged through town naked in a barrel with internal spikes. Although A Sorceress Comes to Call is billed as a dark retelling, I wouldn’t say it’s any darker than the original. And it’s quite loose, with similar thematic elements, a horse named Falada, and a flock of geese.
Cordelia and her mother soon leave their small town in the middle of the night, arriving at the country manor of her mother’s new conquest, a wealthy older man called the Squire, who also lives with his unwed sister Hester. Luckily for both of them, Cordelia and Hester forge a secret friendship, and together they discover the power of Cordelia’s mother.
The abusive family relationship between Cordelia and her mother explores consent and coercive control, and you believe and sympathize with Cordelia as a victim. She’s constantly anxious, hyper-alert to any possibility of a down-turn in her mother’s emotions, and honestly, it’s exhausting. Thankfully, she’s paired alongside Hester, a no-nonsense and practical 51-year-old heroine with a bad knee, who adds in a dose of Regency wry humor.
Eventually, the villain receives her well-deserved comeuppance, so the resolution is quite satisfying. However, the final act feels rushed and all the loose ends are tied up too neatly. Or maybe it’s just a little too sweet, with loveable protagonists and humor and kindness that both lower the stakes and undermine the darkness the book jacket promises.
Recommended as a cozy feel-good magical fantasy for those who enjoy the vanquishing of an evil wizard!