No matter how many times you tell me, I cannot believe that T. Kingfisher is Ursula Vernon (and Vernon is Kingfisher). They must be two different people! After all Vernon has one voice and Kingfisher has another. Okay, maybe four people actually, as Vernon has three main tones that I have found. The first is fun, quirky, and young. The second has a middle ground voice but can be edgy. And the third is mature and not to Kingfisher’s level, but is not Vernon’s middle ground voice. And with Kingfisher being adult, humorous, mature, and spooky. Or I guess I should say Kingfisher is that for their adult novels if I can count one book as knowing their novels.
And that book was Snake-Eater. Kingfisher created something with elements of funny, elements of thriller, can be slower in some parts, and even a little sexy time. There is talk of biological family, found family, the idea of daughters, mothers and fathers and lovers. There are good relationships, bad relationships and some that are both especially when they are with yourself. There is a lot of being “dual” of spirit, of self and even physically. Selena, our main character, is both a city girl and now a country girl. She is mentally torn in two. She is torn between what her mother and lover say about her and what her friends say and do. We have a priest who mixes Folk Catholicism with Jesuit Catholicism and local lore (that’s from the book, though I add Jesuit as he isn’t really “That Denomination” but has that background). He has a surprise twist that really fits the theme of “being double.” Then Grandma Billy. I’ll say two things about Grandma Billy: One, even though she has a small filter and lets her emotions hang out, she has a few stories she hasn’t told and Two, she knows how to use a shotgun when it counts! (I want to be her when I grow up.)
And I agree with those who recommend this novel to me as a read for the reader who wants to read Kingfisher, but not the horror of their other works. It reads mostly evenly, is not a slow burn but doesn’t reveal anything until it is ready and overall is fairly understandable. Sure, there are some “literary” elements, but it is delightfully accessible. I had moments of “of course that is this” and a few “well even I didn’t see that coming.” Therefore, it was a fun read, but not for every reader.
