What Feasts at Night (Sworn Soldier, 2)

K. Bird Lincoln

Alex and Angus head home to Gallacia and terrifying night time hauntings

"Disclosure: I am a rabid T. Kingfisher fan. I read all her stuff. I love all her stuff. Our favorite Sworn Soldier returns go var home country of Gallacia with trust Angus by var side in this second installment– still shell shocked from war and from the mycelium doings of the first book. Yes, “var” is not a typo. If you have trouble with matter-of-fact treatment of non-binary characters, don’t read this. If you like dry humor, big-hearted heroes, gray-haired no nonsense amateur mushroom scientists from Britain, slow-thinking but wicked chess rural peasants and Finnish doctors as likely to recommend a sauna as foul smelling medicine for a likely-supernaturally induced cough, read on. Alex comes home to a hunting lodge in Gallacia to find the caretaker dead, and rumors of a supernatural haunting flying about the village. Ms. Potter arrives for some mushroom-hunting, and all of a sudden Alex is having terrifying dreams. Per usual, Kingfisher excels at showing cranky, true-hearted characters just getting on with the business of life after various traumas. Alex’s self-deprecating humor is a veneer over courage and competency and a history of killing in a war. There is a lovely mix of gothic terror, folktales, and mushroom trivia in this series, and here its more of a Balkan flavor. My only quibble is it ended too soon. I love being in Alex’s world, and wished that not only Angus and Ms. Potter could find companionship, but also Alex. Fingers crossed for more of Alex/Angus’s terrifying adventures. ["

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February 25, 2024 Verified Purchase

Montzalee Wittmann

Good story!

"What Feast sat Night By T. Kingfisher This is book 2 in the Sworn Soldier series. In this book , Alex, Angus, and Miss Potter arrive at Alex's lodge. She finds that her hired caretaker has died. They have to hire someone new to cook and clean. No one wanted the job due to superstition. Belief that the caretaker died from an evil spirit. Soon, they find themselves facing the same spirit. Good story! ["

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January 29, 2026 Verified Purchase

Elysian Fields

Supernatural Feasts

"I enjoyed this story of supernatural feasts but it didn't live up the What Moves the Dead in my mind; not that it had to but I expected too and maybe that was a bit unfair. I really enjoyed the characters Easton is by far a favorite and Bors was an unexpected delight. The setting was nice as well but I think for me the myth and the supernaturall aspect of the story fell a bit flat for me. I don't why. Maybe it was because it didn't feel as detailed or as "fleshed" out. I did feel as deeply pulled into this story as I wanted or expected. It was and is a wonderful read though and I am happy to have it in my library collection. I look forward to more from this author and I would be more the delighted to read more about Easton, Angus and even Miss Potters adventures. ["

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May 4, 2024 Verified Purchase

Ariel H

I didn't know how Easton's story could continue

"When I read What Moves the Dead, I loved the retelling of Usher so much (more than the original Poe story), but seeing there was a sequel to it made me cautious. I wasn't sure what kind of a story could be told after the retelling is done. Turns out, Easton carrying on with the trauma of Usher's fall in their already-traumatized history made such a compelling beginning to a series. So in this series, we get to see Easton in an Usher-esque story BUT they're able to write a new story on their own. I love seeing the narrator of Usher try to move on and still get sucked up in another Gothic drama. Seeing the retelling move on is so cool! ALSO, this book is incredibly well written. I love Easton's development, I love the subtle humor about gender and norms, I love all the characters and the environment and the MOTHS! This book is just so good!! I wish I could tell Kingfisher how much I hate her because she's such a great writer. And I know this book has just been published, but I'm dying for another in the series. I need twelve Sworn Soldier books at least. ["

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March 6, 2024 Verified Purchase

sjwthompson | Buttercup's Book Blog

Easton's story continues in another wonderfully strange and gothic novella

"Easton has returned home to Gallacia for some rest and relaxation after their time as a soldier and the terrifying ordeal with the Ushers. Upon arrival at their lodge, they find it in disrepair and the caretaker missing. Easton and his attendant Angus quickly come to find that the caretaker has passed and a superstition surrounds the lodge. Easton isn't much for superstitions, but when they being experiencing strange dreams and symptoms there might be some validity to the lore. I loved this. The gothic creepy vibe where excellent! If you loved What Moves the Dead you will loved this! Kingfisher does a great job with the worldbuilding and atmosphere. I loved the folklore aspect to the book and the heed the townsfolk give to all of their superstitions. It really enhanced the creep factor especially when Easton started having super vivid dreams. The dream sequences were exceptionally spooky and the descriptions make it really easy to visualize what was going on. You feel as disoriented as Alex does, and you aren't really sure what is happening. While this is the second book in series, I think you can read it as a standalone. There are references to things that occurred in What Moves the Dead, and I highly recommend reading that first, but the main plot of this doesn't rely on you knowing the outcome of that book for you to follow this one. This reads more as a companion novel than a direct sequel. I do feel as if you will get a richer reading experience if you read them in publication order though. This is a wonderfully strange novella and perfect for fans of gothic horror. ["

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June 4, 2024 Verified Purchase