Review: Slewfoot
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5 stars. My first Brom and definitely not my last. The Witch meets Pan's Labyrinth with a splash of Clive Barker, maybe. This book is an absolutely delicious horrific fairy tale that showcases brilliant, vivid writing and a fierce female protagonist I loved. It's not exactly subtle with its teachings or its lessons, but once I embraced the flying brick approach I truly enjoyed myself.
Life for young Abitha in the New World is hard - the land is tough to manage, debts are mounting, winter is coming and the pressures of Puritan society are impossibly stifling. She and her husband are just getting by when her brother-in-law decides he needs their land to pay of his own debts. But there's something about the land that nobody knows: something ancient, underground... something that's waking up.
As the summary says, enter Slewfoot. Powerful and broken, this horned creature stumbles back into the world with nothing but confused memories and an awareness of his own great power. Drawn to Abitha and the abilities inherited from her mother, together they delight in the bounty their power creates and discover its terrible cost.
Editor's note: at this point in writing this review the author became deathly ill with a mystery non-Covid illness that will now be known as knife throat. 6 excruciating days of fever dreams and not swallowing later, she returned to her drafts to find the below bullet points which she intended to turn into paragraphs but decided to leave as is.
Power is a big theme in this story and it is terrifically explored.
Brutal twists and turns.
Fantastically satisfying ending.
Down with the patriarchy.
I think that pretty much sums it up.
Post-knife throat note: I bought a book of Brom's art and can't look away. Highly recommend for interesting background, including his experience painting for games.
Slewfoot on: Amazon | Bookshop.org | Goodreads