Mini-Review: What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher

What Feasts at Night (Sworn Soldier #2) by T. Kingfisher

Tor Nightfire

Publication Date: February 13th, 2024

Hardcover. 147 pages.

About What Feasts at Night:

"After their terrifying ordeal at the Usher manor, Alex Easton feels as if they just survived another war. All they crave is rest, routine, and sunshine, but instead, as a favor to Angus and Miss Potter, they find themself heading to their family hunting lodge, deep in the cold, damp forests of their home country, Gallacia.

In theory, one can find relaxation in even the coldest and dampest of Gallacian autumns, but when Easton arrives, they find the caretaker dead, the lodge in disarray, and the grounds troubled by a strange, uncanny silence. The villagers whisper that a breath-stealing monster from folklore has taken up residence in Easton’s home. Easton knows better than to put too much stock in local superstitions, but they can tell that something is not quite right in their home. . . or in their dreams."

You can find my review for the first book in the Sworn Soldier duology, What Moves the Dead, here!

What Feasts at Night allows us to return to the side of Alex Easton as they travel back home to Gallacia in order to check up on their old hunting lodge that has been in the hands of a caretaker known as Codrin. Upon arriving at the loge, however, they find that Codrin is nowhere to be found and the lodge has, for all intents and purposes, been abandoned, with Codrin nowhere to be found. When they ask around, they discover that Codrin had died, and that there are rumors circulating about a creature known as the moroi who steals people's breath...

What I liked: The dry, witty voice of our protagonist and narrator, Alex Easton, remains front and center in this book and made for a highly enjoyable reading experience. I felt Kingfisher did a great job of capturing Alex's struggles with PTSD and how those effects have continued to impact their everyday life, all while incorporating the trademark humor and cleverness of the narrative voice. I also continue to really love Alex and Angus' friendship and how well they are able to understand and be there for one another in all the unique ways they both need it. I really liked the new characters introduced in this book as well, such as the Widow Botezatu and her grandson, Bors, who come to work at the hunting lodge and bring some vibrancy to the story with their distinctive personalities. The horror elements of this book were a bit muted, but still wonderfully creepy and unsettling in all the ways Kingfisher writes them best, and I loved all the inclusions of various Gallacian folktales and superstitions, as I felt they added some more color and intrigue to the story.

What I didn't like: This book was a bit on the slower side, and it honestly felt a bit more like it was just 'going through the motions' rather than bringing a lot of new ideas to the table. If I look back on this book and try to recount what happened, I feel like there's really not all that much to say about it, and while that's not always a bad thing, it just feels like something was missing from this story. Kingfisher's writing is always excellent, but this book lacked a little of the energy What Feasts at Night held. I also missed that we didn't get to spend just a bit more time with the delightful Miss Potter, as I really enjoyed her in the previous book. 

Overall, I've given What Feasts at Night 3.75 stars! Although this isn't what I'd consider one of my favorite T. Kingfisher book, it's still a very solid short horror novella that has plenty of humor, creepiness, and interesting characters to keep things entertaining. 

*I received a copy of What Feasts at Night courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org