A Sorceress Comes to Call

by T. Kingfisher

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

The author of Nettle & Bone and What Moves the Dead returns with a creepy take on a classic tale in this story of a mother and daughter whose relationship is more complicated than most...

Named a Best Fantasy Book of the Year by NPR, Elle, and Paste

A Goodreads Best Fantasy Choice Award Nominee

From New York Times bestselling and Hugo Award-winning author T. Kingfisher comes A Sorceress Comes to Call—a dark reimagining of the Brothers Grimm's "The Goose Girl," rife with secrets, murder, and forbidden magic.

Cordelia knows her mother is . . . unusual. Their house doesn’t have any doors between rooms—there are no secrets in this house—and her mother doesn't allow Cordelia to have a single friend. Unless you count Falada, her mother's beautiful white horse. The only time Cordelia feels truly free is on her daily rides with him.

But more than simple eccentricity sets her mother apart. Other mothers don’t force their daughters to be silent and motionless for hours, sometimes days, on end. Other mothers aren’t evil sorcerers.

When her mother unexpectedly moves them into the manor home of a wealthy older Squire and his kind but keen-eyed sister, Hester, Cordelia knows this welcoming pair are to be her mother's next victims. But Cordelia feels at home for the very first time among these people, and as her mother's plans darken, she must decide how to face the woman who raised her to save the people who have become like family.

"Kingfisher never fails to dazzle."—Peter S. Beagle, Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Award-winning author of The Last Unicorn

"Kingfisher is an inventive fantasy powerhouse."—BookPage

Also by T. Kingfisher

Nettle & Bone

Thornhedge

What Moves the Dead

What Feasts at Night

A House with Good Bones

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250244062
Publisher:	Tor Publishing Group
Publication date:	07/15/2025
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

T. KINGFISHER writes fantasy, horror, and occasional oddities, including Nettle & Bone, What Moves the Dead, and A House with Good Bones. Under a pen name, she also writes bestselling children's books. She lives in North Carolina with her husband, cats, and absolutely no horses.

Editorial Reviews

"If you like your fantasy dark and your protagonists clever and vulnerable (and older! and witty!), look no further. . . be prepared for a deeply satisfying read.”—NPR

"Simultaneously bittersweet and beautiful, blending humor, heart, and no small amount of horror to create a tale that somehow feels both refreshingly new and like something that has always existed."—Paste

"Eerie, enchanting, and suffused with tension. . . A Sorceress Comes to Call is utterly absorbing.”—Elle

"Witty and darkly humorous. . . I thoroughly recommend picking up this one.”—Grimdark Magazine

"A Sorceress Comes to Call is the Regency-fantasy-horror hybrid only T. Kingfisher could write."—BookPage, STARRED review

"Expertly blending humor with folkloric horror, this incredibly satisfying fantasy will delight Kingfisher’s fans and newcomers alike.”—Publishers Weekly, STARRED review

"This is another one of Kingfisher’s marvelous works (like the Hugo-winning Nettle & Bone) that takes elements of fairy tales, myths, and legends and blends them into a story that feels both familiar and new at the same time while subtly weaving a novel where women play the parts that men traditionally filled. . . . Highly recommended for readers who enjoy reimagined legends.”—Library Journal, STARRED review

"Dark fantasy fans will be enraptured.”—Booklist, STARRED review

Praise for the works of T. Kingfisher:

"Full of melancholy charm. . . . such a pleasure to read."—The New York Times

"T. Kingfisher’s delicate, bittersweet style of fantasy is like nothing else on shelves at the moment. . . . a perfect blend of sharp-edged humor and horror-tinged heart."—Paste

"Kingfisher never fails to dazzle."—Peter S. Beagle, Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Award-winning author of The Last Unicorn

"Kingfisher’s fairyland is full of teeth, wonder and horror; what’s dark is very dark, but what’s good will give you warmth. By the last page, my heart was mended.”—NPR

"A wonderful entwining of darkness & whimsy."—Travis Baldree, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Legends & Lattes

"Refreshing. . . . a true comfort read, in which gentleness endures despite outrageous cruelty.”—The Washington Post

"Absolutely delightful and full of charm and truth."—Naomi Novik, New York Times bestselling author of A Deadly Education and Uprooted

From the Publisher