Had no clue what was going on until the end, and even then I had to read other reviews to be sure. ( )

I will not leave a star review as I did not finish.

There was a lot to love. I picked this book up on the basis on the title, which immediately rang bells of recognition in my head (GEORGE MACDONALD REFERENCE!) It was indeed a George MacDonald reference, a meandering exploration of the dark side of fairytales, among other things.

I don't feel the book quite pulled together at crucial points, however, and I ended up abandoning it, with great reluctance. I lost sense of the threads and where it was going, what the characters were doing, and their motivations.

I love the voice and the beautiful narration style, and the eerie setting and atmosphere. I would even read another book by this author in future, on the strength of that writing. But structurally, this book doesn't work for me - it needs, imho, another HEAVY edit pass to make head or tail of what is going on. It needs to start in a different place and possibly from the MC's point of view (instead of the character it does start with).

I do not think that is just me being finicky. I've read Etched City, which has erratic/loose structure and is 95% imagery, 5% plot, and I LOVE that book. I've read a lot of Wolfe, which requires much patience, and I've read Ada Palmer, which is convoluted in the best way. In general I'm okay with overwhelming, unusual stories. This, to me, felt not quite finished.

That said, someone who is less of a structure whore might be able to read it and enjoy it.