Paid Post--Book Review: "Once Was Willem"
M.R. Carey's newest novel--a compelling and timely generic mix of fantasy, horror, and historical fiction--shows that weirdos and outcasts really can change the world for the better.
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Warning: Full spoilers for the book follow.
When I saw M.R. Carey’s Once Was Willem sitting on the new release shelf at the local library, I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. Its title is a strange one, and its plot synopsis even more so. What was this strange little book that seemed to be a mix of horror, historical fiction, and fantasy? I decided to pick it up and give it a read and, dear reader, to say that I was hooked is to drastically understate how much I loved this book. From the first page to the last it had hold of me and would not let go.
Told from the point of view of the title character–the raised corpse of a boy named Willem who died of a fever but was brought back from the dead by a sinister magician named Cain Caradoc–it follows him as he joins with a group of other mystical and quasi-mystical characters as they attempt to defeat Caradoc and keep him from claiming the power of a fallen angel. It skillfully blends multiple genres, moving deftly between various emotional registers. All of it is told through Once-Was-Willem’s undeniably compelling and often very clever voice. It is, above all, a tale of heroism and of the power and vital importance of standing up against those who would use their power to destroy the innocent and the powerless.