Starling House - Alix E. Harrow - ★★★

AUTHOR: Alix E. Harrow

NARRATOR: Natalie Naudus

GENRE: Gothic Fantasy

RATING: 3 stars.

In a Nutshell: A Gothic Fantasy with minor shades of horror. Contains beautiful prose and interesting characters, but not much plot depth. The pacing was somewhat off.

Story Synopsis:

Eden, Kentucky is a dying town that’s been ravaged by pollution, thanks to the Gravely Power company. The only positive thing springing from Eden has been the legacy of author E. Starling, a reclusive nineteenth century author who left behind a children’s book titled ‘The Underland’ and a sprawling mansion rumoured to be haunted. Today, the only resident of Starling House is the equally mysterious Arthur Starling, whom no one knows anything about but everyone agrees that it is best to stay away from him.

When Opal gets a job offer from Arthur to housekeep Starling House, the salary is good enough for her to fulfil her dreams of sending her intelligent younger brother Jasper away from Eden. But as she cleans up the mysterious mansion, she unearths dangerous secrets from the past and the present. Now it is up to Opal and Arthur to ensure that Starling House doesn’t result in the end of Eden.

The story comes to us in the perspectives of Opal (first person) and Arthur (third person).

I had loved this author’s 'The Ten Thousand Doors of January', and while I do want to read her interim books, I expected a lot from my second Harrow pick. Unfortunately, while this book began well, it spiralled into chaos as it progressed and the ending was a mess. I usually have extensive notes in my review draft so that I can remember the key points while actually reviewing. But this time, I had almost nothing in my draft except for a couple of comments about the characters. Based on what I remember, my feelings are pretty mixed all the way.

✔ The book is supposed to be a Gothic fantasy with shades of romance. The Gothic angle works excellently.

⚠ This is not at all horror, despite the presence of “monsters”. The fantasy elements are explained to a certain extent at the end, but I didn’t like the format of the explanation – it was almost like an infodump coming out of nowhere.

❌ The romance, while not unexpected, was underdeveloped. I couldn’t see the attraction at all, especially from Opal’s side as her feelings seem to go from 0 to 100 within no time and with no reason.

✔ The fictional town of Eden, where the story is set, creates a great atmosphere for the story. The town’s struggles because of pollution and corporate apathy come out well through the atmospheric writing.

❌ The setting could have been utilised much better. The small town vibe has been used only for its negative traits.

✔ Opal as the main character is tough to like but tough to ignore as well. She is gutsy and doesn’t shy from speaking her mind. At the same time, she is loyal and ready to do anything for her brother. It would have been easy to hate Opal, but I admired her determination.

❌ Opal Is twenty-seven; she acts seventeen for more than half of the book.

✔ Arthur is the strong, silent type. He reminded me of ‘Beast’ from Beauty & the Beast. It was nice to see a reserved and introspective male character as the warden of a haunted house.

❌ Why was his physical unattractiveness vital for the plot? I was tired of the stress on his looks, or rather, lack thereof.

✔ Starling House makes for an impressive third character. I love this trend of houses with feelings, though I have seen this handled much better in other fantasy novels.

⚠ The hotel owner and the librarian had much potential. As did the hellcat. Wish they had been used better in the story.

❌ The motivation behind antagonist Elizabeth Baines didn’t make any sense. E. Starling’s character is sorely underutilised. Jasper (Opal’s brother) could have also been used better for his brains. But he hardly get anything to do.

✔ There is an excellent use of metaphors and imagery to enhance the plot. The author’s vocabulary had impressed me in her debut novel, and her prowess with words is visible in this one as well.

❌ The story seems overly elaborate at times. Despite this, many plot points are left dangling. Who was narrating the footnotes? What was with Arthur’s tattoos? What’s with the townspeople keeping so many secrets from Opal?

✔ The start is excellent in establishing the two main characters and the baffling backstory of Starling House.

❌ The pacing drags much in the middle. The end is a weird combo of dragged + rushed – go figure! The action is limited to the climax. The rest of the book is more like a slowburn exposition of fears and feelings.

🎧 The Audiobook Experience:

The audiobook, clocking at 12 hrs 26 min, is narrated by Natalie Naudus. She does an excellent job with the female characters and a decent job with the male characters. She is most impressive with the footnotes. There are many footnotes in the book, explaining or countering a point made in the main story. However, Naudus narrates these footnotes in a distinct voice, making it very clear that the narration has segued into the footnote.

That said, this audiobook was a challenging exercise – listening to extensive footnotes in audiobooks isn’t easy. I wouldn’t recommend the audio version to newbies, though avid listeners might find it a good way of completing this slow-paced book.

All in all, I knew I could expect great prose from this novel, and I got it. But I was looking for a better experience with the fantasy/horror elements. Going for the midway rating as my feedback is pretty balanced between the pros and cons.

My thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ALC of “Starling House”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audiobook.