A Beautifully Intricate Gothic Ghost Story

This book is a must read if you like: Gothic ghost stories, Coraline, The Graveyard Boy, and complex storylines.

About the Book:

Title: Gallant
Genre(s): Dark Fantasy
Author: V.E. Schwab
Published by: HarperAudio
Date Published:
Format Read: AudioBook
Where I Got It: I purchased this book myself.
Stand alone or series Number: It is a stand alone book.

Snapshot: what do you need to know before you pick up the book.

Profanity: None
Intimacy: None
Violence: Death, blood.
Themes: Death, bullying.

My Thoughts

As with all of Schwab’s books, the feel of this book is being shrouded in a world. This world was dark, oppressive at times, but with a spark of hope from the main character that is ever present.

I LOVED this book. I’m a huge Coraline fan and this had such a similar vibe. The resolution was very satisfying. And the journey was magical. While this book has all my favorite pieces of a Schwab novel, the voice was very different. Much more classic English literature. I adored it.

My favorite part was how Schwab can take such intense, dark subject matters and infuse them with such light and hope. The only bad part of this book is there wasn’t more of it. I thought having a brittish male narrator was brilliant.

It definitely gave the feel of an omniscient third party. I loved this book so much. I had it for almost a year before I read it and I both wish I hadn’t waited and miss the anticipation.

Description

Everything casts a shadow. Even the world we live in. And as with every shadow, there is a place where it must touch. A seam, where the shadow meets its source.

#1 New York Times–bestselling author V. E. Schwab weaves a dark and original tale about the place where the world meets its shadow, and the young woman beckoned by both sides. The Secret Garden meets Crimson Peak in this stand-alone novel perfect for readers of Holly Black and Neil Gaiman.

Olivia Prior has grown up in Merilance School for Girls, and all she has of her past is her mother’s journal—which seems to unravel into madness. Then, a letter invites Olivia to come home to Gallant. Yet when Olivia arrives, no one is expecting her. But Olivia is not about to leave the first place that feels like home; it doesn’t matter if her cousin Matthew is hostile, or if she sees half-formed ghouls haunting the hallways.

Olivia knows that Gallant is hiding secrets, and she is determined to uncover them. When she crosses a ruined wall at just the right moment, Olivia finds herself in a place that is Gallant—but not. The manor is crumbling, the ghouls are solid, and a mysterious figure rules over all. Now Olivia sees what has unraveled generations of her family, and where her father may have come from.

Olivia has always wanted to belong somewhere, but will she take her place as a Prior, protecting our world against the Master of the House? Or will she take her place beside him?

New York Times–bestselling author V. E. Schwab crafts a vivid and lush novel that grapples with the demons that are often locked behind closed doors. An eerie, stand-alone saga about life, death, and the young woman beckoned by both. Readers of Neil Gaiman, Holly Black, Melissa Albert, and Garth Nixwill quickly lose themselves in this novel with crossover appeal for all ages.

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