What Moves the Dead cover art

What Moves the Dead

Sworn Soldier, Book 1

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What Moves the Dead

By: T. Kingfisher
Narrated by: Andy Ingalls
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About this listen

From the Nebula and Hugo award-winning author of The Twisted Ones, comes What Moves the Dead, 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.

©2022 T. Kingfisher (P)2022 W. F. Howes Ltd
Gothic Occult Scary
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What listeners say about What Moves the Dead

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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wonderful storytelling

I want to know so much more about the characters. I enjoyed the narrator, apart from one character that I assume was meant to be Scottish.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Chilling and creepy

Exactly what I wanted. Creepy and unsettling and well paced and described to make your skin crawl

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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Bad Accents

The narrator does so many accents so badly it spoils the whole book. The story is interesting enough, I wouldn’t say it wowed me.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Fantastic

Fantastic, horrifying and beautiful. Wonderful writing. If you're a fan of Poe you will probably love it and even if not you should read it. h
Highly recommended

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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The dry humour placed subtly throughout

The narrative was very interesting, the plot was slightly predictable but not in an experience-ruining way, if anything it makes you more curious.
A very short listen and I think there could have been a quicker pace and slightly more exciting for more of the book given its short length but at the same time, I found it a very thought-provoking and relaxing listen.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Funny, creepy tale

Loved the story and the humour the writer managed to inject into such an unsettling story.
My only criticism is that the narrator changed the accent of a character midway through, though the initial accent seemed Irish and it’s mentioned at least twice that she has a British accent (that’s what he swaps to later)!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Fun with Flaws

Whilst short (it is a novella, after all), What Moves the Dead manages to cram in quite a lot of characters and intrigue. The atmosphere is a particular highlight which I enjoyed greatly. There are some shortcomings, the ending does feel rushed after such a slow building of tension, one or two periphery characters do feel a touch underdeveloped, and the underlying mystery seems fairly obvious. This being said, I did still have a good, if not exceptional, time with this.
Additionally, whilst the narrator does a good turn as the main character, Alex, I must say that I thought a couple of the accents were somewhat lacking, particularly their rendition of Scottish, which was certainly awkward. Thankfully, said accents aren't called on too often and therefore do not ruin the experience.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent Eery Fungi

This is a captivating story. Eery fungi smelling of foul rotting flesh, hares behaving and moving oddly. Hilarious conversations about a cow, mysterious illness within the Usher's house. The author has done a wonderful job in writing and storytelling with this book. I devoured it in one night.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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What a fantastic book!

Cleverly written fungal horror with instantly likeable characters. Even the horse is a gem. My only complaint is it’s not enough. I want more!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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A Short Story I'd recommend!

It's quite short and packed full of entertainment from the great characters and story. The performance is really good too! Thank you for the voices Andy Ingalls :)

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1 person found this helpful