By J. E. Weiner
My favourite genre lately has been Victorian Gothic. However, I have also enjoyed a good Southern Gothic novel on occasion, and The Wretched and Undone is another I can add to my list.
Polish Immigrants Marcin and Agnieska Anderwald make their way to Texas to build a new life. The frontier obviously is not for the weak, and sure enough, the Anderwald family suffers hardship of war, poverty and death. Marcin eventually has to leave Agnieska and the children on the homestead and travel to Camp Verde to make money using his carpentry skills, abandoning his emotionally fragile wife in the meantime. At Camp Verde, Marcin is indirectly responsible for the death of a soldier who causes a vengeful ghost who promises to haunt the Alderson family over generations.
This novel isn’t just filled with spirits and vengefulness; it also features an array of fascinating characters, including two camel handlers from Egypt and a muster of peacocks and peahens whose cacophonous cries serve as wards against threat.
I enjoyed the plot and characters presented in this novel, and Weiner’s writing craft is engaging and masterful.
Trigger warnings of drowning of a child, hangings, and torture.
Thank you to HTF Publishing and Netgalley for the copy.
Ink And Spine 