The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher [book review]

 The Twisted Ones book summary:

Twisted Ones follows Mouse in this folklore horror story. Her real name is Melissa but everyone calls her Mouse. Her grandma just passed away and her father doesn’t really have the energy to clean and pack up her house. So it’s Mouse’s job to go and clean a family member’s house that she hasn’t talked to in years. But she loves her dad and he never really asks for much. When she gets there she realizes that her grandmother was a major hoarder.

She has her work cut out for her and will be there a lot longer than just a couple of days. But the longer that she stays she starts to realize that there is something wrong with the area, but she isn’t really sure what it is. Will she be able to escape before the place overcomes her? Or will the land ultimately consume her?

What I thought about The Twisted Ones:

I ended up picking up The Twisted Ones because it sounds really good. I wanted a horror book that was creepy but also a little bit different from what I have been reading. And I love the idea of reading something with a little lore to it. It makes the book more appealing to me and gives the story some sort of creepy background. The cover isn’t super appealing to me but it does kind of have that creepy feeling that I was really looking forward to.

So I actually ended up really enjoying this book when I first read it but the longer that I’ve let it sit for me to review I realize I didn’t really like it as much as I thought. There are parts of the book that are pretty creepy! I also kind of found myself more worried about the dog than Mouse. I know I know crazy but I’m a huge dog lover and I absolutely hate the idea of a dog getting hurt.

The Characters

To be honest I actually really did like Mouse. It’s nice to have a character that I can kind of relate to. I feel like I could be really good friends with someone like her. Plus, I love the idea of a character absolutely loving her dog to the point where she doesn’t want to leave without him by her side. Yes, it’s kind of a dumb thing to put your life on the line for a dog but I absolutely love my dogs. I don’t think I would be able to leave without my dogs by my side too. And I absolutely love Mouse for that.

The Plot

The more that I think about the book the more I realize I didn’t like it as much as I thought I did. The book does have some creepy aspects to the story but once you find out what exactly is causing all of this mischief you’re just like wait….what? Once you find out exactly what’s happening the book really loses its appeal to me. It lacks that creepy feeling I was hoping for and has more of a fantasy/sci-fi feel to it. Maybe it’s just me who feels that way but that’s pretty much the reason I just couldn’t get into the book and why I couldn’t overall like it.

Don’t get me wrong though the story is pretty interesting and keeps you stuck in the book for most of it. The characters are pretty awesome and likable. The ending is just a major letdown.

Have you guys read this book yet? If so what did you think?

If you like this review you might also like Wicked Little Deeds.