Horror

What Moves the Dead

What Moves the Dead

  • Downloads：4699
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-09-11 09:52:59
  • Update Date：2025-09-13
  • Status：finish
  • Author：T. Kingfisher
  • ISBN：1250830753
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

From the award-winning author of The Twisted Ones comes a gripping and atmospheric retelling of Edgar Allan Poe's classic "The Fall of the House of Usher。"

When Alex Easton， a retired soldier， receives word that their childhood friend Madeline Usher is dying， they race to the ancestral home of the Ushers in the remote countryside of Ruritania。

What they find there is a nightmare of fungal growths and possessed wildlife， surrounding a dark， pulsing lake。 Madeline sleepwalks and speaks in strange voices at night， and her brother Roderick is consumed with a mysterious malady of the nerves。

Aided by a redoubtable British mycologist and a baffled American doctor， Alex must unravel the secret of the House of Usher before it consumes them all。

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Reviews

Alisha Carderella ，

I’m a sucker for a retelling， and this one did not disappoint。

에리reads ，

3。5

Kenzie ，

maybe 4。5？ i’m so undecided

Equifinality ，

3。5 stars

Demia ，

3。75 ✨✨✨ stars

Abby ，

for reference， the fall of the house of usher isn't a favorite of mine and I have no sentimental attachment to it， the writing is good and I liked the story well enough but it just didn't stand out to me， idk nothings really been working so maybe it's situational for reference， the fall of the house of usher isn't a favorite of mine and I have no sentimental attachment to it， the writing is good and I liked the story well enough but it just didn't stand out to me， idk nothings really been working so maybe it's situational 。。。more

Madison ，

Wow I was absolutely captivated the writing was so descriptive and I was lost in it。 I have read The Fall of the House of Usher but this did such an amazing job。Not only is this a contender for my favorite cover of a book I read this year but it may be my favorite book/novella I read this year。 I cannot wait to get my hands on anything else T。 KINGFISHER writes。 Wow 👌 👏

Marialyce （absltmom， yaya） ，

BlahThere's a fungus among us！ BlahThere's a fungus among us！ 。。。more

Kristina ，

3，75 / 5

DAISY READS HORROR ，

I hear this is a re-telling of Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher”。 Having never read that， I still found this book to be enjoyable。 It was very macabre， eerie & bizarre。 The hares gave me the creeps。 Look at the cover of the book。 Weird， yet engaging at the same time。 That’s how I felt about the story。 I loved the dark gothic vibes。 I loved the decapitating mansion by a creepy dark lake。 This story gave me the chills while reading at night！ Highly recommend！

Sarah ，

3。75 Stars rounded upThis fun YA Gothic horror Edgar Allen Poe retelling is the perfect way to start off Autumn reading。 Let me stress that this is very much YA， so don't walk into this expecting guts and gore， but the creepy factor is real。 3。75 Stars rounded upThis fun YA Gothic horror Edgar Allen Poe retelling is the perfect way to start off Autumn reading。 Let me stress that this is very much YA， so don't walk into this expecting guts and gore， but the creepy factor is real。 。。。more

Tara Ray ，

Maybe a 3。75？ I’m not really sure what to say about this one really。 It was a quick， easy read that held my interest。 There was some creepy stuff going on here。 Idk about the new pronoun usage here， it was hard to follow at times and seemed out of place？ I was also initially confused about when this was supposed to take place until the narrator came out and said it was 1890。 I did get annoyed with the constant proclamation of “Christ’s blood” lol; it was cool the first couple of times but was re Maybe a 3。75？ I’m not really sure what to say about this one really。 It was a quick， easy read that held my interest。 There was some creepy stuff going on here。 Idk about the new pronoun usage here， it was hard to follow at times and seemed out of place？ I was also initially confused about when this was supposed to take place until the narrator came out and said it was 1890。 I did get annoyed with the constant proclamation of “Christ’s blood” lol; it was cool the first couple of times but was repeated way too much imo。 The ending wrapped up very quickly after a great buildup。 It was an interesting concept。 I haven’t read Fall of the House of Usher or if I have， it was YEARS ago， so idk anything about it or how this story compares to the original。 This is somehow the second gothic horror book that deals with fungi that I’ve read this year lol。 Idk， if you’re looking for something short and interesting， I’d check this out。 。。。more

Selene ，

Literally Dead Book Club

Nina ，

4。5 stars - A imagninative， progressive retelling of Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher。" Obviously Kingfisher leans into that original text but this also reminded me quite a lot of "Mexican Gothic" （which the author admits） as well as "Crimson Peak" and "The Haunting of Bly Manor。" Highlights include the non-binary protagonist， a Gallacian solider with plenty of intelligence and wit; new side characters like Hob the expressive horse and the intrepid botanist Miss Potter; and the eerie flora/ 4。5 stars - A imagninative， progressive retelling of Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher。" Obviously Kingfisher leans into that original text but this also reminded me quite a lot of "Mexican Gothic" （which the author admits） as well as "Crimson Peak" and "The Haunting of Bly Manor。" Highlights include the non-binary protagonist， a Gallacian solider with plenty of intelligence and wit; new side characters like Hob the expressive horse and the intrepid botanist Miss Potter; and the eerie flora/fauna of the area （I love rabbits and mushrooms but this book has officially freaked me out）。 In my opinion， the story suffers a bit from being a novella - I desired much more excavation of the house and its denizens （fungi included） than I got。 One can only hope it gets turned into a mini-series and all my underaddressed curiosity is assuaged！ 。。。more

Stacey B。 ，

4。5/5

Íris Carriço ，

4，5 starsIn case you want to check out my thoughts about this book， I uploaded a vlog on my channel where I read and review it: https://youtu。be/hLvYMRDlpj4 4，5 starsIn case you want to check out my thoughts about this book， I uploaded a vlog on my channel where I read and review it: https://youtu。be/hLvYMRDlpj4 。。。more

Jenny ，

This was so， SO damn good！ Easily T。 Kingfisher's best work I've read so far！ From the endearing characters to the amazingly horrifying descriptive language， this was an absolute joy to read。 I highly recommend this to any horror fan looking for a short， delightfully creepy read！ This was so， SO damn good！ Easily T。 Kingfisher's best work I've read so far！ From the endearing characters to the amazingly horrifying descriptive language， this was an absolute joy to read。 I highly recommend this to any horror fan looking for a short， delightfully creepy read！ 。。。more

Ashley Holloway ，

It took me a few chapters to get into this （the audiobook narrator isn’t my fave）， but Kingfisher’s signature humor and weird charm are definitely here on full display and it wasn’t long before I was completely wrapped up in the story！ This is a weird and wonderful little horror story。 It’s not really very scary， but it definitely has a little bit of a gross factor。 I’d say less so than The Hollow Places though， which I found much more chilling and definitely more “gross” in spots。 A perfectly f It took me a few chapters to get into this （the audiobook narrator isn’t my fave）， but Kingfisher’s signature humor and weird charm are definitely here on full display and it wasn’t long before I was completely wrapped up in the story！ This is a weird and wonderful little horror story。 It’s not really very scary， but it definitely has a little bit of a gross factor。 I’d say less so than The Hollow Places though， which I found much more chilling and definitely more “gross” in spots。 A perfectly fun novella for spooky season！ 。。。more

Me， My Shelf， & I ，

Listening to this spooky instrumental mix on YouTube while playing the audiobook。。。 was honestly so perfect that I literally kept forgetting that it wasn't natively on the audiobook。 Sometimes the dramatic notes even perfectly hit the beats of the book！ chef's kissThis was a very atmospheric read。 Circumstances are uncomfortable and unsettling and mysterious。 Clearly from the outset the characters can tell something is wrong and they set about trying to fix it as best they could， while not truly Listening to this spooky instrumental mix on YouTube while playing the audiobook。。。 was honestly so perfect that I literally kept forgetting that it wasn't natively on the audiobook。 Sometimes the dramatic notes even perfectly hit the beats of the book！ chef's kissThis was a very atmospheric read。 Circumstances are uncomfortable and unsettling and mysterious。 Clearly from the outset the characters can tell something is wrong and they set about trying to fix it as best they could， while not truly understanding what's happening。The finale was fully satisfying for me and far more interesting than the original story。 And I'm even more appreciative of this gorgeously bizarre cover after having read it。 。。。more

Brianna Combs ，

4。5 rounded up。 This book is so perfectly dark & creepy， yet interesting， exciting， & slightly lighthearted。 It has great humor and brilliant writing。 This book has great gothic aesthetics。 It is a fantastic Poe retelling and I highly recommend this for a bit of a cozy halloween-y book that is the perfect amount of horror。

Nicole Giller ，

There are some books you read that you know you’ll reread thousand times over， and， like a soulmate， you’d find it again in another life just to read it for the first time again。 This is one of those books。 But honestly， T。 Kingfisher is one of those authors。 I’d memorize every word she ever wrote。 I like short and sweet， creepy stories。 I also like mushrooms and creepy rabbits， excuse me， hares。 Eugenia Potter stole the show。 And I definitely had scenes from Death Becomes Her pop into my head u There are some books you read that you know you’ll reread thousand times over， and， like a soulmate， you’d find it again in another life just to read it for the first time again。 This is one of those books。 But honestly， T。 Kingfisher is one of those authors。 I’d memorize every word she ever wrote。 I like short and sweet， creepy stories。 I also like mushrooms and creepy rabbits， excuse me， hares。 Eugenia Potter stole the show。 And I definitely had scenes from Death Becomes Her pop into my head uninvited while reading this。 Freakin’ loved it！ 。。。more

Terri ，

A reimagining of Fall of the House of usher 。Alex Easton a retired soldier is summoned to his childhood friends home 。What awaits him is debilitated mansion and his friend Madeline very sick 。 Sleepwalking ，fungus play a part in this truly creepy gothic novel

Union County Library ，

Kingfisher is a North Carolina author currently living in Pittsboro。 I feel this short read is more like one of Kingfisher's oddities rather than horror， genre-wise。 It is an amusing take on The Fall of the House of Usher， with a few more characters and some added fungi。 It really brought me back to pondering Poe's tarn and what it might have inspired for the "upside down" in other works… and worlds。- Reviewed by Christie S。 Kingfisher is a North Carolina author currently living in Pittsboro。 I feel this short read is more like one of Kingfisher's oddities rather than horror， genre-wise。 It is an amusing take on The Fall of the House of Usher， with a few more characters and some added fungi。 It really brought me back to pondering Poe's tarn and what it might have inspired for the "upside down" in other works… and worlds。- Reviewed by Christie S。 。。。more

Abbey Thompson ，

A good， spooky read。 Clearly a retelling/inspired by the House of Usher - very well done！

Annie ，

"The fall of the House of Usher" is a Poe story I didn´t like （very boring in my humble opinion）， but this book took the premise and made something beautiful with it。 "The fall of the House of Usher" is a Poe story I didn´t like （very boring in my humble opinion）， but this book took the premise and made something beautiful with it。 。。。more

HollyLovesBooks ，

I was skeptical when I first picked this story up， but it is a brilliant reimagining of The Fall of the House of Usher by Poe。 It begins with a soldier who receives a letter about his childhood friend， Madeline， who has a mysterious illness and it is unclear if she will survive。 Easton rushes to her home， The House of Usher， and finds her quite ill。 He also realizes that her brother is ill as well and that they seem to be lacking the aristocratic resources that they previously enjoyed。 The home I was skeptical when I first picked this story up， but it is a brilliant reimagining of The Fall of the House of Usher by Poe。 It begins with a soldier who receives a letter about his childhood friend， Madeline， who has a mysterious illness and it is unclear if she will survive。 Easton rushes to her home， The House of Usher， and finds her quite ill。 He also realizes that her brother is ill as well and that they seem to be lacking the aristocratic resources that they previously enjoyed。 The home is falling into disrepair and the number of servants is limited。 Strange events begin to happen and slowly the mystery unfolds。 The author’s note mentions the novel by Sylvia Moreno Garcia， Mexican Gothic and YES！ This was exactly the same feeling that I got from reading this book。 The gothic atmosphere is spot on in What Moves the Dead as it is in Mexican Gothic。 If you are looking for all the atmosphere in a truly creepy story， this one is it！Highly recommend。#WhatMovestheDead #NetGalley #MacmillanTorForge 。。。more

Kelly ，

4。5， man I love her writing！ Excellent supplement to the Usher lore out there。 I have a feeling we will be seeing more with Mike Flannagan's show around the proverbial corner。 4。5， man I love her writing！ Excellent supplement to the Usher lore out there。 I have a feeling we will be seeing more with Mike Flannagan's show around the proverbial corner。 。。。more

Akira ，

- coming soon-

Alyssa ，

I listened to the audio book and really enjoyed this spooky/sci-fi/gothic tale。 It’s a quick listen/read and enjoyable as we enter fall。 In its most simple essence， a truly horrifying tale！

Angie Kewin ，

Short， but engaging。 It was a bit predictable。 I had never read The Fall of the House of Usher so it was a bit surprising。 I'm happy the author expanded the story a bit。 Short， but engaging。 It was a bit predictable。 I had never read The Fall of the House of Usher so it was a bit surprising。 I'm happy the author expanded the story a bit。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=What Moves the Dead

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=What Moves the Dead&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,What Moves the Dead&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0