Gallant
by V. E. Schwab
read by Julian Rhind-Tutt
Greenwillow Books, 2022. 7 hours, 41 minutes.
Review written January 4, 2023, from a library eaudiobook.
I’m not a big fan of horror, so this book was just a tad too creepy for me, but you can be sure I listened to every word.
Olivia Prior has grown up in an orphanage, unable to speak. She doesn’t know why she can’t speak when she can hear perfectly well, but she’s not able to make any sounds come out of her mouth. She’s also always been able to see ghouls. She has memories of her mother, but her main tangible connection with her mother is a journal she left with Olivia at the orphanage — a journal in which it sounds like her mother is going mad. There’s a letter to Olivia at the end of the journal, where she tells Olivia that she’ll be fine, as long as she stays away from Gallant.
Then one day a letter comes to the orphanage, claiming to be from Olivia’s uncle. He’s written to every orphanage and is begging her to come home. Olivia is more than happy to leave the orphanage, but when she arrives at the estate, the place is called Gallant. And Olivia’s uncle died a year ago. And his son, her cousin, tells her to stay away.
But the caretakers, Edgar and Hannah, are happy to have Olivia, who reminds them of her mother.
It doesn’t take long, though, to realize that terrible things are happening at Gallant. On the other side of the wall, there’s a shadow house, ruled by Death himself. The Prior family tries to keep Death on the other side, but Olivia’s presence may be throwing things off. Olivia finds another journal of her mother’s, and it casts light on who she is. On which side of the wall does Olivia’s destiny lie?
This book is atmospheric and spooky. The book has a young female protagonist, but they chose as the narrator an older gentleman with a British accent — and the choice is absolutely perfect.
It’s a creepy and haunting tale that will keep you turning pages or listening to another few minutes.
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