The Tinder Box

by M.R. Carey

Prepare to be entranced by this utterly unique and completely spellbinding dark fairy tale from the million-copy bestselling M. R. Carey, author of The Girl With All the Gifts.

In a kingdom forgotten by history, a legend unfolds ...

Wounded in his county's endless wars, former soldier Mag Tresti finds work in the home of a reclusive widow, Jannae Mirchella. But Jannae is more than she seems. A witch of great skill and might, she hides her powers and her deep-laid plans behind a mask of harmless respectability. 

When a dead demon falls out of the sky, the fates of the soldier and the witch are irrevocably intertwined. On the demon's body Mag finds a tinderbox—an artefact of terrifying magical power that can not only grant his every wish, but also change the fate of nations. 

This is a tale of spellcraft and devilry, of witchcraft and trickery—of the wickedness that resides within a few, the goodness that lies deep within us all, and the choices on which our lives turn.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Adult, Audiobook, Witches, Historical, Historical Fiction

398 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 23, 2026

About the author

Mike Carey is the acclaimed writer of Lucifer and Hellblazer (now filmed as Constantine). He has recently completed a comics adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere, and is the current writer on Marvel's X-Men and Ultimate Fantastic Four. He has also written the screenplay for a movie, Frost Flowers, which is soon to be produced by Hadaly Films and Bluestar Pictures.

Also writes as Mike Carey

Reviews

[Marquise]

I own 3 picture books of the Andersen fairy tale that inspired this book, even though it's not anywhere near my favourites. It is by mistake.

“But, Marquise,” you’ll ask, “How do YOU of all people end up with a collection of fairy tales by mistake?

Well, because:
a. Nobody’s perfect,
b. Precisely because it’s me,
c. Fairy Tale Senility.

I've always tended to confuse Hans Christian Andersen’s The Tinderbox with the Grimms’ Bearskin because they have the exact same beginning: a raggedy soldier coming home from war has a crossroads encounter with a shady character that turns out to be either a witch or the Devil, who strikes a bargain with him to do a seemingly simple task for them in exchange for a boon. That’s not the end of the similarities, but the task the soldier in each tale must perform for the evil creature, the motives of the bargainer, the way the soldier meets his mission, and the happy ending complete with a lady love of higher status do vary in each tale.

And, of course, only one of them—the one by the Brothers Grimm—is a story that has Beauty and the Beast elements. Yeah, you can guess what the catnip for me is and how these mistakes happened. I got 3 picture books of the former thinking it was the latter, and I got 2 of the latter thinking it was the former. When you read as many fairy tales as I do, they tend to morph together into a single big blob of motifs sometimes, which I jokingly call Fairy Tale Senility: the propensity to mix fairy tales with others with similar themes. There’s a reason professional folklorists have the Aarne-Thompson-Uther tale category index for a guide, ya know!

Anyway, I got Carey’s retelling due to this mishap during my Summer break, intending to read it alongside Tinder by Sally Gardner (which I also got for mistaking it for a Bearskin retelling, to follow tradition). It didn’t take me long to realise it wasn’t the book for me. Even independently of the tale confusion, because up to where I dropped it there were a host of details that weren’t working for me:

- The abysmally slow pacing. Knowing the source tale, it’s not like I was waiting with bated breath to see what would happen, but it took forever to get to things.
- If I knew what was coming—the tale’s theme is the overthrow of unjust governments that let their military down—then it wasn’t like there was going to be a big surprise for me. It was how the author made Mag arrive there what mattered, and it wasn’t going there at a good pace.
- The suspicious person with supernatural powers, Jennae, was written like a “misunderstood woman everyone calls a witch” trope, and wasn’t well fleshed-out.
- The setting is fantastical and not real Europe so there’s some liberty to allow here compared to if this was pure Historical Fiction, but both Andersen and the Grimms wrote their tales in the context of the Napoleonic Wars, so the soldier in the tale is meant to be a veteran of such wars. Problem is, some British authors tend to play fast and loose with other European countries’ role in the Napoleonic Wars era, a “we saved the continent from Bonny” complex that leads them to lionise Britain and mis-portray or villainise the others, especially the French and German rivals. It’s noticeable here, Carey is a Brit. You can tell it in things like cartoon villain King Frederick, which you can claim is just a generic monarch but it’s so very obvious he’s the Prussian king (you seriously expect me to think he’s just generic when his kingdom is called Königsbrücke, similar to Prussia’s then capital Königsberg?) who arbitrarily decrees decimation as punishment for Mag’s mates refusing a suicidal charge. No army during the Napoleonic Wars on either side practiced decimation, not even Napoleon, and goodness knows he wasn’t into sparing his soldiers’ lives out of moral qualms. And there’s more things that ring untrue that history buff me can’t simply wave away with “it’s fantasy.”
- And don’t even let me started on the absolute lack of care about language and culture that’s not English. Mag is no shortening nor nickname for Magnus. I get the author is monolingual, but still… He could've made this world faux-British, no?
- Above all, though, it was the Paradise Lost-wannabe plot with the pacifist demons what did me in. I guess it’s a great twist and all, but for me it doesn’t work philosophically as the plot is laid out. And I can tell that, for all that this book is said to be dark (and indeed it is), it is going to whitewash the soldier a wee bit. Andersen, the poor dear, was weird and he made the fairy tale more problematic in certain aspects that the more straightforward Grimms (who also have a version of this tale called “The Blue Light”), especially when it comes to women. And by making Magnus gay, Carey is avoiding that, amongst other moral dilemmas this sidesteps.

So I’m out. I know all this is a me thing, though, so if you’re interested in this retelling, by all means do read it. When I elaborate on my reasons for DNFing a book, which I don’t do often, I list the things in it that don’t work for ME, and if other readers share my objections maybe it'll be of help to them too, but I’ve already had comprehension-challenged pedants coming at me with "it's your problem" to ignore this caveat.

[Books_the_Magical_Fruit]

M.R. Carey has been elevated to T. Kingfisher status in my author hierarchy of “How Excited I Get When I Receive An ARC From This Author”, and that, my friends, is a HUGE deal. I believe this makes my third eARC written by Carey, and he never disappoints.

I initially was a little hesitant when I briefly glanced at how the book was being received by other reviewers, because the subject matter seems to be somewhat polarizing. And that’s fair, because this touches on much more than your typical medieval-yet-somehow-maybe-15th-century-vaguely-alternate-european-tale-with-spellcraft. I cannot say much more about the plot without revealing massive spoilers.

While I enjoyed the story very much, the pacing was plodding at times, and it takes a fair amount of time to get to the real meat of the happenings. Given this, I would suggest that those new to Carey’s work read “Once Was Willem” first, instead.

I do wish that the backstory of Jannae had been fleshed out more. On the other hand, this is still one of the best female characters written by a man that I’ve seen. Carey is able to get inside the widow’s head and reason out WHY she feels the way she does. It’s extremely well-done, especially in an important scene towards the end.

The last third/quarter of the book is fantastic. However, due to the length of the slow burn, I find myself giving this an overall 4.25, rounded down, instead of the 4.5 that the last part earned. It’s still a *very* good story, though!

I’ll note here, again, that Carey has more than earned a spot among my other favorite authors, and I anxiously await his next novel, which I will pounce upon with glee as soon as I see it on NetGalley.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Orbit (I adore Orbit!!) for the eARC. I am writing this review entirely voluntarily.

[Faith]

Mag is a former soldier who finds employment with a witch named Jannae. When a demon falls dead before them, Jannae orders Mag to strip him of all his belongings and give them to her - but Mag makes off with a magical tinder box. Jannae takes off in pursuit.

I did like the plot of this book, but I thought the beginning of the book was very slow, and the book as a whole was longer than it needed to be. However, I stuck with it and finished reading the book and was glad when the pacing picked up towards the end. I wasn’t terribly interested in Jannae’s backstory, probably because I am not a huge fan of witches. Fortunately, the demons were entertaining. 3.5 stars

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

[Jamedi]

Review originally on JamReads

The Tinder Box is a standalone dark fantasy novel written by M. R. Carey, published by Orbit Books. A story that vaguely draws from the eponymous fairytale to deliver a much more nuanced story about power, temptation, and trauma, set in an obscure medieval-world where the barriers between the human and the upper powers are much thinner, delighting the reader with an excellent character work that makes an effort to destroy the weight of appearances.

Former soldier Mag Tresti finds work in the home of a reclusive widow, Jannae Mirchella; a woman of many talents, who hides them under her respectability as a widow. After a demon falls from the sky, the fates of the soldier and the widow become intertwined, all due to an artifact that Mag finds and keeps for himself in the demon's body: a tinderbox that allows to summon three powerful demons. An incident that marks Mag's departure and the start of a big story where their paths will be crossed many times against the background of the kingdom.

One of the elements that makes this book remarkable is the excellent character work made by Carey on his two main characters and some of the secondaries. Mag is not a hero and has lived too much in the war, something that shapes how he sees the world; a broken soldier, aware of how much damage can be done by the people in power just to satiate their desires, a view of the world that will shape his attitude towards certain entities. Jannae is also a twist on the classical witch archetype, a much more human idea that is struggling with guilt, trying to hide her powers, but with an inner fire that will move her towards doing good actions in the end.
Even in the case of the demonic entities, I think Carey's decision of portraying them as mere soldiers of an unwanted war helps the reader to empathize with them; for a former soldier like Mag, we will see how he will find easy to fill the same shoes, trying to help them when possible. My only negative note is regarding the main antagonist, as it lands as a bit plain, especially since we get his own POV, but only during a few chapters, not enough to paint a complete portrait.

Carey's writing tries to mimic the cadence of a fairytale while trying to keep a gritty world as the scenario of the story; at the end, this is a story that revolves around power, how it is exerted and the consequences it might bring to others. The cost of desires plays an important role in the whole plot, opening an interesting debate that is explored through the different characters.
The pacing is relatively slow at the start, but it acts as a way to set all the pieces on the board; once all kicks into action, it doesn't stop until the end.

The Tinder Box is an excellent novel, a memorable story that makes its most of its character work and how well used is the dark medieval atmosphere (similarly to Once Was Willem); another book that goes to the favourite list!

[Lukasz]

4.5/5

M.R. Carey has done sci-fi western, horror, zombies, epic fantasy, and more. Whatever the setting, though, Carey writes people first and plots second. That's exactly why The Tinder Box works so well.

Loosely inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale, it follows Mag Tresti, a war-weary former soldier who stumbles across a magical tinder box capable of summoning three powerful demons. At the same time, his path repeatedly crosses that of Jannae Mirchella, a witch hiding her abilities.

Mag won me over. He's a man shaped by years of pointless war, trying to do the decent thing in situations where there rarely is a decent choice. His compassion, especially toward the demons bound by the tinder box, says far more about him than any grand speech ever could.

Jannae is every bit as interesting. She initially appears to be little more than the archetypal witch living on the edge of society, but Carey gradually peels back the layers until she becomes one of the novel's strongest POVs. Her past, regrets, and determination are written remarkably well, and I found myself just as invested in her story as in Mag's.

Both have wonderfully distinctive voices, and perhaps more importantly, they always feel believable. Even when they make questionable decisions, I understood why they made them.

Then there are the demons. They're easily one of the book's highlights. Not terrifying, although they certainly can be. They're not a comic relief, either, even if they're often funny. They're fully realised characters with their own personalities, grievances, loyalties and, not happy with being magically summoned by humans.

The writing, unsurprisingly, is superb. Carey writes dark fantasy without drowning it in misery, philosophical fantasy without becoming preachy, and character-driven fantasy without sacrificing momentum. The whole novel carries the feel of an old folk tale that's been rewritten by a writer with a deep understanding of trauma, power and human weakness.

If I have one criticism, it's that the novel could probably have been shorter. The novel could probably have lost fifty pages without losing much of its impact.

That said, I listened The Tinder Box as an audiobook, and the narration was superb.

I wouldn't call The Tinder Box Carey's best novel, but it's another reminder that he's one of the most consistently interesting writers working in fantasy today. Smart, funny, and with a knack for writing characters I'd happily follow into another story.

It's comfortably one of my favourite reads of 2026.

[Steve Kimmins]

The spiel introducing my edition calls Mike Carey ‘a master storyteller’. That sums up my experience with his books, and this one adds to the truth of it.
It starts with us finding out about Mag, a discharged, partly disabled, soldier from a continuing conflict involving an alternative version of a medieval Holy Roman Empire. It has a fairy tale vibe, in the original dark European tradition, as he and we meet witches and even demons. It is a magic rich tale though one to my taste where it doesn’t swamp the fine characters that the author includes.

I especially liked his portrayal of Jannae, a bitter character but with every reason to be so from her experiences in life. Yet another example of a character who isn’t likeable (at least initially) but you find sympathy for - I’ve bumped into a couple of these in recent reads.

Stirred into the magical side is a strong dose of the sentiments expressed by the demons in Milton’s “Paradise Lost”. Except the author uses the frustration felt by the demons as an opportunity to put the boot into a postulated view of Heaven and Hell, and their relationships, at least as presented in medieval Christianity!

So an easy reading magical tale that covers a lot of ground, with interesting characters. Maybe a little predictable plot wise, as I could sort of see how various tensions and conflicts were likely to be resolved, but fun all the same. 4*.

[Aldi]

Another new MR Carey book, another new piece of evidence the man has some kind of Faustian deal going because every damn book is just. so. damn. GOOD.

[Valarie - WoodsyBookworm]

The Tinder Box was a highly anticipated read for me, having loved M.R Carey’s The Girl With All The Gifts my expectations were fairly high for something new from this author, especially a dark fantasy.

That being said, the pacing of this book was a little too slow. I frequently considered setting the book down and walking away. Nothing was really happening, even after the tinder box was discovered the plot seemed to move at a glacial pace. 

Try as I might, I just could not for the life of me feel any sort of investment in the characters. Their affect was so bland which was such a surprise to me considering I've loved the character development in M. R Carey's previous novels.

Slow pacing, beautiful writing, characters and plot I wish had been fleshed out earlier, I don't mind if a book is slow if it keeps me engaged, but The Tinder Box ended up not being the book for me.

[Freya]

This book f$cked me up.

Thank you to the author, Orbit Books and NetGalley for this gifted eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read some dark books but this book really messed me up. It just hit differently. It is definitely metaphorical which you will understand once reading the book.It touches on war, religion, good vs evil and other very sensitive topics. The last 20% of the book, I did not expect. Major character development. Multiple POVs. The blurb does not set up the reader for what they are about to encounter. It is very misleading.

[Kat]

One of my anticipated new releases for this year, since I've always had a soft spot for fairytale retellings. In The Tinder Box, soldier Mag Tresti is middle aged, washed up, and cashiered from a pointless war due to an injury to his leg. Desperate and starving, he accepts work doing odd jobs for a witch—but when Mag impulsively steals a tinderbox, he gets into far more trouble than he bargained for.

This is actually the second retelling of Andersen's The Tinder Box I've read in the last few months (the other being Hellisen's Thief Mage Beggar Mage), so perhaps the story is having a bit of a vogue. Carey's take is a relatively straightforward retelling, or as as straightforward as you can get when the story it's based on is about a page long. Of course, Carey chooses to soften the edges of the original text, removing the bits about murdering witches and kidnapping princesses. His Mag is still a bit hapless—with the immense power of a tinderbox that summons three demons, he leaves a trail of chaos that's probably visible from space and quickly draws the attention of powerful and dangerous magicians. SURELY you can think up something better to do with the infinite wish-box than acquire a bunch of conspicuous gold coinage and suspiciously sign yourself into a hotel for aristocrats...

For a relatively straightforward story, the plot runs longish. Part of the length is due to giving the witch, Jannae Mirchella, her own extended point of view sections, including flashbacks to her past. Her bitterness and slow mastery of the magical arts is more interesting than Mag, even if she uses them as an excuse for deliberate cruelty. Still, I think the book ran a bit longer than necessary for the simplicity of the plot. The length certainly isn't used for lavishing attention on the worldbuilding—the plot is set in a thinly veiled Alternate Germanic State, and what we see of the politics is notably shallow. On the other hand, the world of the three demons trapped in the tinderbox is intriguing, but almost entirely offpage.

A serviceable and straightforward retelling that fails to sparkle. Solid, but not a standout.

[Stacey Markle]

My rating is 4.25
This was a very fun read!
Trickery is right...everyone is lying! To themselves, to each other, at all times.
Mag's is a great character. He tried to do right but doesn't start out well. Once the story gets going, he starts to have thoughts of a better nature and then we're off to the races. That's when he really starts to shine as a human.
Jannae is one of my favourite characters of the book. She's a witch, she's clever, and she puts just about everyone in their place. She is also tenacious and full of feminine rage. The way she manipulates those she encounters is a masterclass in action. Jannae never let's them see her sweat.
The tinder box is so central to the story, yet what' it can do is the real treasure. Demon's you say...yes please!
While nothing is perfect, this story does a good job of covering it's faults in wit and heart. I'm all for that!

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for the opportunity to read and review. My thoughts are my own!

[Craig Bookwyrm]

3.75 rounded up

[Mela]

In this story we follow different povs, in particular one of a witch and one of an ex-soldier. When Mag comes back home from war, he finds shelter at Jannae’s house a window who’s hiding the fact she’s a witch. One day a body falls from the sky and Mag retrieves a tinder box from it. The tinder box however is not as innocuous as it looks and soon Mag and Jannae find themselves one opposite sides from one another.

I really enjoyed the atmosphere and the overall concept. I didn’t really like the switches between povs, but I still appreciated the insight in the characters’ backstory. The ending was good and I enjoyed the demons. My biggest issue with this was the pacing as it was extremely slow in my opinion.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Mark Redman]

Demons, Desire, and the Price of Power
The Tinder Box by M. R. Carey

M. R. Carey’s The Tinder Box offers a captivating and richly imagined retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s beloved fairy tale. It beautifully transforms a familiar story into a deeper, more nuanced exploration of themes like power, temptation, and the choices that shape who we are.

The story follows Mag (Magnus) Tresti, a former soldier coming home after many years of war and injury. As he works to rebuild his life, Mag takes on a task: repairing the ageing house of Jannae Mirchella, a mysterious widow who seems like an ordinary woman but is hiding a more dangerous secret: she is a powerful witch.

Everything shifts when a dead demon falls from the sky onto Jannae’s land. Mag soon learns that the demon was carrying a magical tinderbox, an item capable of summoning three demons and granting its owner extraordinary power. Tempted by its potential, Mag decides to take the tinderbox, setting off a perilous conflict between him and Jannae.

As Mag uncovers more about the tinderbox and its powers, he becomes embroiled in an even larger struggle involving magic, demons, war, and the battle for forces beyond his understanding. The story thoughtfully explores whether unlimited power can truly bring happiness, and whether past mistakes need to define who we become.

One of the book’s strongest aspects is its memorable characters. Mag Tresti is a multi-faceted but empathetic hero, a man scarred by war who yearns for a better life but must resist the allure of power. Jannae Mirchella is a compelling character: smart, secretive, and far more complex than the typical fairy-tale witch. She isn’t just an antagonist but a person with her own motives and regrets. Even the demons inside the tinderbox feel real, each with their own personality, histories, and perspectives, making them more than just monsters.

What makes The Tinder Box stand out is Carey’s skill in taking a classic fairy tale and giving it a darker, more mature tone. It’s a story about resilience, ambition, morality, and the tricky consequences of getting exactly what you wish for.

A wonderful choice if you enjoy dark fantasy, inventive retellings, and morally layered characters.

[Lucy Goodfellow]

⭐️ 4 Stars ⭐️

Having enjoyed all of M. R. Carey's previous novels that I've read thus far, I stuck with The Tinder Box despite its slow start. As I wasn't familiar with the original folk tale it was based on, I trusted that the lengthy set-up would be important, and I was glad to see it pay off in the latter half of the novel.

Former soldier Mag Tresti survives his country's endless war only to find himself working for the mysterious widow Jannae Mirchella. When a dead demon falls from the sky carrying a magical tinderbox capable of granting wishes and changing the fate of nations, the pair are drawn into a conflict that reaches far beyond the battlefield.

My favourite aspect of the book was its exploration of the consequences of war for ordinary soldiers. The desire for camaraderie between those who have fought together, and the difficulty of reintegrating into society after being discharged, is handled particularly well, especially given that the wider conflict is still ongoing.

I also liked the novel's exploration of consent and the use of language by those in positions of power. The demons are compelled to obey the commands of anyone who owns the Tinder Box. The different characters who control them each take their own approach to issuing those commands. Carey uses those differences in language to reveal each character's understanding of power, authority, and responsibility.

You should read this book if you like:
- Stories about belonging 🏕️
- Character-driven adventures with thoughtful magic 📖
- Folklore retellings with a fresh twist 🔥

I received an advance review copy for free via NetGalley. I am leaving this review voluntarily 📚

(Also, I'm the hundredth rating! How nice!)

[Jennifer]

This is a retelling of the classic fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen with some interesting changes. I love retellings/reimaginings but this was very long and quite slow. The writing was excellent per the usual with this author but I will not be rereading this one.

[Sarah ⟡ Tea & Tomes]

Thank you Orbit for the gifted copy.

I really liked the central idea of the tinderbox and the way Carey handled its magic. It felt both practical and unsettling, especially with the three demons, which I thought were a really interesting aspect of the story.

I did struggle with the pacing, especially in the first half. This is definitely a slower, more deliberate fantasy, and it took me a while to feel fully invested in where the story was going. I also think the story could have been told with about a third cut out. Once things finally picked up, I enjoyed it more, but it took longer than I would have liked to get there.

[Julie]

M.R. Carey is becoming one of my favorite authors. I think this is probably the fifth book by him this year. This one just came out.

There is a middle-aged soldier named Mag, who was discharged from the army due to injury. He is looking for any sort of work, and ends up being a handyman for a mysterious widow. He finds out that she's a witch, and then the body of a demon falls from the sky. The widow makes him take things from the demon's body, and he discovers an ordinary tinder box that has an extraordinary secret.

Once the tinder box hits the scene, the pace of the novel is page-turning.

[Pie]

4.5 stars. It's always such a pleasure to read books by authors who have done a really good job of honing their craft, and this book is a great example of that. There are a lot of fairy tale retellings in the world, but I was pleased to discover one that's a retelling of a less common story. M.R. Carey uses the basis of the original fairy tale The Tinder Box to build out a larger story that fleshes out characters from the original tale in interesting ways and actually explains why the magic is happening the way it is. I especially loved how the three magical servants in the tinder box are demons in this version, and full characters in their own right with backstories, personalities, and opinions about being stuck as magical slaves. The main narrators are also both very well-explored in their own right, with Mag being a world-weary soldier just trying to make his way in the world, and Jannae a clever witch who's excellent at holding grudges and is deeply haunted by her past. I also appreciated that Mag is a gay disabled man in a way that feels neither extraneous to his character nor shoehorned awkwardly in the narrative for diversity points, but rather just two aspects of him that inform who he is. I think the pacing dragged a little in the middle, but the conclusion was very satisfying, and this book proves you can still get something fresh and interesting from a fairy tale retelling.

[Bob]

Well, that was fun. Something a little different I haven’t read about Demons in a while. Certainly not ones like these then to be combined with witches in warlocks no wizards though. But again, I thought it was funny and I enjoyed it.

[Rebecca]

May circle back to this one at some point. The writing just isn't working for me. It isn't badly written. I just find it easy to forget to pick up. It could just be I'm not in the mood.

[Courtney|the.bookcourt]

Thank you to Orbit Books and M.R. Carey for the earc in exchange for my review! All opinions that follow are honest and my own!

This was absolutely fascinating!
The Tinder Box follows former soldier Mag Tresti who struggles with finding work after being wounded in the war, that is until he meets the widow, Jannae Mirchella. It's here that Mag discovers there is more to his world than he previously thought, especially when a demon falls from the sky and sets Mag on a path he never could've imagined. Tinderbox in hand that can grant his every wish, Mag and Jannae's futures are entwined and when dealing with demons, one can never be sure of the outcome.
I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this novel! Written like a fairytale with some hard hitting quotes about grief and religion and life in general, this truly kept me captivated even when the pacing was lacking.
Each of the characters brought something unique to the story and I found myself drawn to the demons attached to the tinderbox. Mag's bravery and overall scheming was definitely entertaining and seeing how it all came together in the end was so satisfying.
Definitely recommend if you're looking for something a little different!

[Paula]

⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.25)

I loved how this took the bones of a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale and transformed it into something much bigger without losing that dark folkloric atmosphere. What starts as the story of a discarded soldier searching for work becomes a layered tale about war, power, belonging, and the people society pushes to the margins.

What I liked:
The multiple perspectives added so much depth to the story.
Magnus and Janae both felt fully realized, and I loved watching their journeys unfold alongside each other.
The parallels between the soldier, the devils bound to the tinderbox, and the larger cycle of endless war were incredibly effective.
The fairy-tale voice remains present throughout, even as the story expands into something that feels almost epic in scope.
Themes of survival, autonomy, found purpose, and refusing systems that demand endless sacrifice really resonated with me.

What didn't work:
At nearly 500 pages, it occasionally felt longer than it needed to be.
The pacing is measured rather than fast, though I remained engaged throughout.

Overall, this is a thoughtful, dark fairy-tale retelling that uses magic, folklore, and multiple character perspectives to explore war, power, and what it means to find a place in a world that doesn't want you. I'd recommend it to readers who enjoy fairy-tale retellings with strong character work, darker themes, and a touch of epic fantasy.

[BonniePB]

Everyone wants this troublesome little tinderbox and why not? Whoever possesses it basically holds the key to invincibility. Both Mag and Jannae are sympathetic characters and yet are the causes of their own problems, which was intriguing for their arcs. I liked that Jannae's magic has limits; that's always a good thing. The three tinderbox devils—wry soldier Keal, gentle berserker-type Borrigor, and Dorsa, healer and mistress of a hellish menagerie—were uniquely interesting and entertaining.

This book is a multi-POV third person narrative. Normally, I love a multi-POV, but I kind of struggled to care about Mag, Jannae, or Gluck sometimes. The prose and writing style was good on a technical level although I couldn't figure out the tone Carey was going for. The Tinder Box has a sort of a slice-of-life-ish vibe yet it was also kind of serious and doing a lot with its thoughtful themes on religious scrutiny, anti-war, anti-slavery, choice matters, pro-choice, and feminist.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit for the eARC.

[Lynn Williams]

4 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2026/07/16/re...
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Demons and Witches, Oh My

The original Tinder Box is a story that I have only a very vague recollection of. I seem to have a dim recall of a retired and exhausted soldier, doing a witch’s bidding, with very firm instructions of what not to do! Strangely I recall the dogs – each one more menacing than the last with eyes as large as saucers – or some such dramatic description. But, other than that my memory is sketchy, maybe it was one of those stories that never quite gained the momentum of some of the others. Anyway, I do like this author and at the moment he seems to be writing in a style that feels very unique. His last book, Once Was Willem (I could be wrong, it might not be the last book) I very much enjoyed, it felt so original and I feel like The Tinder Box also fits that description perfectly.

This story once again is mediaeval in nature. We have a soldier who has been removed from duty due to injury. Far from returning home a hero it seems that the country is bitter about the war, which is still ongoing, and our soldier, Mag, struggles from place to place, barely earning enough food to eat until he finds work at the home of a widow known as Jannae Mirchella. From here things take a very strange turn indeed. Basically, and just bear with me now, but in a nutshell, a dead demon falls from the sky, our soldier retrieves a tinder box from his body following which he finds himself on the run, with the widow Jannae hot on his tail. Jannae is in fact a witch and recognises that the tinder box contains a source of great power. Now, on top of this, there is another who is aware of the tinder box and is also searching for it. Eventually the three shall meet with quite unexpected and dramatic results.

So, I don’t want to go much further into the story. This is a loose retelling but its easy to recognise the bones of the original but instead of dogs we have demons.

What appealed to me about this story.

First and foremost the writing. This may be a bone of contention for some readers but for me this worked well. I wouldn’t say that the writer has gone so far as to write this in true ‘olde worlde’ fashion, but he certainly doesn’t have any modernisms lurking – or at least none that pulled me out of the story. And, frankly, I appreciate that. I don’t want to read a mediaeval story where people are saying ‘whatever’ and rolling their eyes. This was a different era and everything about it comes across in the writing. It let me lean into the story really well. I will also say that this story takes its time setting up, again, this isn’t something I have a problem with at all. I want the backstory and I’m a patient reader. I don’t want a bunch of bunkum that brings nothing to the story and that isn’t what you will find here. You need the context. You need to understand the characters and their motivations and more than that you really can’t appreciate their growth without it. So, the writing. Frankly, if I appreciate the writing that goes a long way for me to really liking the book, even if the pacing is slow or the story isn’t quite as gripping as I’d like.

Secondly, the two main characters share povs buy they’re so completely different, their voices unique and their stories quite fascinating. The pair of them undergo this terrific character arc in terms of, well Mag is almost a bit washed out but he reforms into a character that wants to do the right thing. Jannae is incredibly angry. She has lived her life planning revenge and has been so consumed by this that she hasn’t really lived her life at all. She is intent on this tinder box. All her focus is upon it. And yet, things change. But, of course I’m not going to say why.

On top of this the three demons were very entertaining. Of course there’s a play here on good vs evil. These are demons so presumably they’re going to be absolutely terrible. And yet, maybe not. I like the contradictions and suggestions that leave you to make your own decision. Strangely enough it’s man’s own greed and ambition that plays a part in sending all these men to war and keeping them there with all the resultant deaths.

The story itself. Well, it meanders a little. The start takes its time – but when did we all become so impatient that we just wanted to read a book in five minutes – Tolkien would never have succeeded with this mindset! Lets just take our time to appreciate the actual story. It doesn’t have to be all guns blazing, racing out of the stalls with its tail on fire – although the last quarter of the book does resemble that description a little to be fair. Yes, there is set up. Yes, there is backstory. It’s all relevant and I enjoyed it. The story was quite bewitching. I also enjoyed the play on how both our protagonists, although they could make whatever demands they pleased, eventually found themselves instead making polite requests.

In conclusion, this might not quite pack the punch of some of Carey’s earlier stories but it is a really good read. I thoroughly enjoyed it, I loved the writing and I can’t wait to see what he comes up with next – because frankly, he’s nothing if not unpredictable.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

[Mark]

Review for www.sffworld.com .

In recent years M R (Mike) Carey has steadily built up a reputation for writing a range of story. Science fiction, epic fantasy, horror and superheroes, Mike has done it all. His latest, The Tinder Box, is a fantasy set in an imaginary Eastern Europe that combines folk magic with Brothers Grimm stylings.

The beginning tells us of Magnus Tristi, a soldier, who has returned to the country of Allesheim after being wounded in battle. Wandering around the country looking for work, he eventually takes up a position as a handyman for a reclusive widow, Jannae Mirchella. She is outwardly cruel, bad-tempered and unapproachable, although things are not as they seem. Jennae maintains this demeanour in order to hide the fact that she is a witch, skilled in magic. Mag suspects but does not know for certain that Jennae has magic powers.

The book then changes focus to tell us through backstory of how Jennae became a witch, mentored by Bruna Sozen. We discover that Bruna’s death may have been invertedly caused by Jennae which has partly led to Jennae’s reclusive lifestyle in a world where displaying witchcraft is punishable by being burnt at the stake.

When a body suddenly and mysteriously drops from the sky, Mags manages to retrieve a number of objects from the body before its demise. He gives most of them to Jennae, but most importantly there is a magic artifact – a tinder box – that Mags steals from Jennae.  Frightened by Jennae, Mags sneaks away to the city of Konigsbrucke. Jennae, eventually realising what Mags has done, follows him there.

Like a genie’s lamp, the tinder box allows its owner to summon three demons – Keal, a clever trickster who is perhaps the most 'devilish' of the three; Dorsa is a female assassin with an affinity with animals, and Borrigor, a Hulk-like being with amazing strength. Striking the box in different ways will lead to each of the three demons arriving, each of whom is commanded to do the striker’s bidding.

In Konigsbrucke, King Frederick Korff-Heldenburg von Grun is in political trouble. The country is simmering on the edge of revolution. The consequence of this is that the King’s armies are dealing with any signs of unrest on his behalf, organised by the King’s magical advisor Wilhelm Gluck. Gluck is also aware of the arrival of the magic object to the city and wishes to procure it for his own nefarious needs. The search is on…

I have mentioned before of Mike’s skill in writing engaging and effective stories, and The Tinder Box is no different. With that in mind, the narrative, steeped in the folklore of an imaginary European country, builds from something small and focussed into a story with much bigger issues at stake as the story progresses. It is not just the country of Allesheim that may be affected in the end.

Of course, all these characters, although based around fantasy tropes – soldiers, witches, kings and wizards – have detail and nuance. Whilst there are violent actions mentioned, and some elements are undeniably dark, they are never gratuitous or unremittingly grim.

Backstories fill in details that give the reader a better idea of how the characters have got to this point. As a war-weary army veteran Mags is not your usual hero, but I found most interesting the backstory of Jennae Mirchella, whose origins feel like something from the world of Witchfinder General. Whilst she is never a character to love, her actions become understandable.  I also found that the interplay between Mags and the three demons was a delight.

With such explanations, it should not surprise you that by the end, the book is difficult to put down, especially when things do not always go where you expect, and those seen as ‘evil’ and ‘good’ may not necessarily be what they seem.

All of this leads to an open ending, but one with an undeniably satisfactory conclusion. I am sure that more tales could be told in this environment, but I do feel that the finale is the right place to finish.

In short, The Tinder Box is another piece of literary joy from Mr Carey. Recommended.

(I liked it!)

[Brian Stabler]

M. R. Carey’s The Tinder Box is a dark, imaginative retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s classic fairy tale that expands a simple moral fable into a morally tangled fantasy about power, trauma, and temptation. Set in a grim, medieval-tinged world where the boundaries between the human and infernal are uncomfortably porous, the novel follows Mag Tresti, a war-weary former soldier trying to rebuild his life, and Jannae Mirchella, a reclusive witch whose quiet household hides far more than it first appears.

The inciting incident - a demon falling from the sky carrying a magical tinderbox - sets the tone immediately: this is not a whimsical retelling, but something heavier and more unsettling. The tinderbox itself, capable of summoning powerful demonic entities, becomes both MacGuffin and moral pressure cooker, forcing characters into increasingly difficult choices about control, ambition, and survival.

One of the novel’s strongest elements is its character work. Mag is written with convincing emotional weight; he’s not a typical hero but a man shaped and damaged by war, constantly negotiating between restraint and desire. Jannae is equally compelling, subverting the “witch” archetype into something sharper and more human, defined as much by regret and pragmatism as by power. Even the demonic presences are given a surprising degree of personality and internal logic, which helps the supernatural elements feel less like plot devices and more like active participants in the story’s ethical chaos.

Carey’s prose leans into a fairytale cadence while still grounding the world in grit and consequence. This tonal blend works well, creating a story that feels both mythic and grounded in human suffering. Thematically, the book is at its best when it interrogates the idea of power - who deserves it, what it does to those who wield it, and whether “getting what you wish for” is ever truly a reward.

That said, the novel is not without structural unevenness. The opening section is deliberately slow, and the momentum only fully locks in around the mid-point once the larger conflict becomes clearer. The multi-POV structure also takes adjustment; while Mag and Jannae’s perspectives are richly developed, at least one secondary viewpoint feels comparatively underdeveloped, serving the plot more than the character. These issues don’t derail the book, but they do affect its pacing and focus.

When it does click into gear, however, The Tinder Box becomes a compelling and steadily escalating moral fantasy, moving toward a conclusion that feels both earned and thematically coherent. It’s particularly effective in its refusal to draw simple lines between good and evil - almost every character operates within their own logic of survival, guilt, or ambition.

Overall, this is a strong, atmospheric retelling that elevates its source material into something darker and more psychologically complex. It may require patience at the start, but it rewards that investment with a layered story about power, consequence, and the cost of desire.

Thanks to NetGalley, Orbit and the author for an advance copy.

[Rallie]

Thanks to Orbit for giving me a copy of this book! This review is my own opinion.

"The next day was one that tipped all things out of balance and took both Mag's future and the widow Mirchella's off on a new track entirely.
The next day, a man fell out of the sky."

The Tinder Box is masterfully written; chewy and dense with delightfully lyrical dialogue and a witty narrative. This is definitely a book to take your time with and return to again and again. Introducing the story through Magnus' PoV sets the stage for an unexpected adventure, and as M.R. Carey expands the PoVs we are treated to a chorus of characters who have slight changes in narrative style that serves to really bring them to life.

Mag: take The Grand Budapest Hotel, "Doctor I am Pagliacci", and Roald Dahl's "Collected Stories" and toss them in a cocktail shaker with some Fireball and have at - this is the best way I can describe the vibe of this character. Magnus is a genuinely good guy who is doing his best, but sometimes your best looks like summoning a devil to bust you out of jail. Then again, sometimes your best means fidelity to those in your court (or your tinder box).

Jannae: goals. My idol. My queen. Jannae's arc is beautiful from start to finish, and I would argue Carey's most complex character. We get to see the past that shaped her into an antisocial misandrist (affectionate) and how that butts up against a society that continuously justifies those beliefs while blinding her to the exceptions. From her introduction as the secondary character to Magnus' PoV you can tell there's something lurking there behind her Granny Weatherwaxian slyness, and when she takes the stage as PoV we really get to see what a witch is made of.

Keal, Dorsa, and Borrigar: The three devils are some of the liveliest, consequential secondary characters I've seen in a while - especially Borrigar, for Reasons🌷. Keal's sarcastic insolence, Dorsa's infernal nurturing, and Borrigar's strength of presence are at the heart of what makes this book great. The complexity they bring to the story cannot be understated, but stating too much about it here would give away too much of what I found to be really exciting as it unfolded!

Gluck: This mother glucker. What an incredibly written villain, I despise him.

Overall I spent three beautiful days with this book, used up several colors of tabs and half a pad of transparent stickies, and laughed and cried in equal measure (okay a lot more crying towards the end, because Carey pulls no punches in pursuit of a fantastic story and OH MY GOD Borrigar.)! People who enjoy deliciously baroque writing with political commentary (eat the rich and men ain't shit [until they are]), explorations of morality and goodness, and lively characters will definitely love this book!

[Kimberly]

Some books take their sweet time pulling you in. This one wandered over, sat down beside me, and before I knew it I was fully invested in a witch, a washed-up soldier, and a collection of demons I probably shouldn’t have liked as much as I did.

The Tinder Box by M.R. Carey.

Orbit, thank you for the gifted copy.

I’ll be honest, this wasn’t an instant love affair. The beginning is slow and deliberate, and for the first few chapters I kept wondering where exactly we were headed. But I’ve read enough fantasy over the years to know that sometimes patience pays off, so I settled in and let the story do its thing.

I’m glad I did.

Mag Tresti is carrying the kind of exhaustion that goes deeper than physical wounds. The wars are behind him, but they haven’t really left him. He’s trying to build some sort of life from the scraps he has left when he ends up working for Jannae Mirchella, a widow who clearly has more going on than she lets people see.

Then a dead demon falls out of the sky.

Not exactly your average Tuesday.

What follows feels like an old folktale being told beside a fire on a cold night. There’s magic and danger, of course, but what kept me turning pages were the people. Mag is a genuinely decent man trying to make the right choices in situations where there aren’t always right answers. Jannae was probably my favorite character. She’s sharp, secretive, lonely, powerful, and far more vulnerable than she wants anyone to know.

And then there are the demons.

I expected monsters. What I got were personalities. Opinions. Complaints. Grudges. At one point I caught myself looking forward to their scenes more than anyone else’s, which wasn’t something I saw coming.

“The choices on which our lives turn.”

That line feels like the entire book in a nutshell.

What stayed with me after I finished wasn’t the magic system or even the action. It was the way the story kept coming back to questions about power, duty, regret, and whether people can become something more than the roles they’ve been given. Underneath all the fantasy elements is a surprisingly thoughtful story about what happens when ordinary people are handed extraordinary choices.

The pacing won’t be for everyone. There were stretches where I wished things moved a little faster. But by the final third, I was all in. The pieces started falling into place, the stakes grew larger, and suddenly I was reading just one more chapter before bed… and then another.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

If you love fantasy that feels a little old-fashioned in the best possible way, with folklore, witches, morally complicated characters, and a story that slowly unfolds rather than races to the finish line, I think you’ll enjoy this one.

So tell me—what’s the last book that started out quietly and then completely won you over by the end?

[Stephanie Carlson]

**My thanks to Orbit Books for providing me with an advanced review copy via NetGalley**

3.5 stars

The Tinderbox is a novel-length retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s short story of the same name. By the end of the novel Carey has me fully on board with the project, which has grown out of its fairy-tale beginnings into a full fantasy saga, but I have to admit that the beginning was slow. I did not really buy in until about the 45% mark, at which point things began to get good.

I think it’s hard to do a story about a box that grants wishes, largely because it’s easy to get bogged down with the ‘rules’ of the wish-granting and the difficulties in creating any growth opportunities for a character possessed of unimaginable cosmic power. The tinderbox as a physical object helps enormously in this endeavor, as there are many times when Mags, the main character and current owner of the box, is unable to physically use it to summon his wish-granting demons; opening the box and striking the lighter is a two-handed job that takes some skill and coordination, and when he is in a tough spot or physically impaired it’s not always feasible to do so in good time. I also liked that all three of the demons trapped in the box had different skillsets and strengths, so that which striker to choose (and therefore which demon to summon) factored into the equation; in addition all three had different personalities that emerged over the course of the narrative.

There’s also the classic trouble of a wish-granting jinn story, that being how much personhood and personality to ascribe to the jinn (in this case demon), and how much malice it should have against humanity/its captors. I ended up quite liking how Carey handled the three demons. They were decidedly inhuman, not only in their physical appearances and abilities but also in their attitudes and priorities; however they develop a sometimes uncomfortable kinship with Mags due to the fact that they are all soldiers in the armies of Hell, as Mags was a soldier in his country’s army, who feel that the war into which they have been conscripted is unjust, as Mags feels of the war he fought in. These are not party-line demons ready to take down Heaven, but disgruntled soldiers who were imprisoned for mutiny against their Hellish commanders. It is this commonality of position—of ordinary (for their race) people who feel they are being used as pawns by their kings, and object to the devaluing of their lives—that serves as the heart of the story.

I think this book will appeal to fans of T. Kingfisher, provided that they persevere through the first third to half of the book. That said, given the length of the book that’s not an insignificant ask.