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The Hidden People
Pretty Lizzie Higgs is gone, burned to death on her own hearth - but was she really a changeling, as her husband insists? Albie Mirralls met his cousin only once, in 1851, within the grand glass arches of the Crystal Palace, but unable to countenance the rumours that surround her murder, he leaves his young wife in London and travels to Halfoak, a village steeped in superstition.
Albie begins to look into Lizzie's death, but in this place where the old tales hold sway and the 'Hidden People' supposedly roam, answers are slippery and further tragedy is just a step away . . .
374 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 1, 2016
257 people are currently reading
3781 people want to read
About the author
Alison Littlewood
122 books170 followersAlison Littlewood was raised in Penistone, South Yorkshire, and went on to attend the University of Northumbria at Newcastle (now Northumbria University). Originally she planned to study graphic design, but “missed the words too much” and switched to a joint English and History degree. She followed a career in marketing before developing her love of writing fiction.
Her first book, A Cold Season (2011), was selected for the Richard and Judy Book Club and described as ‘perfect reading for a dark winter’s night.’
Alison's latest novel is The Crow Garden (2017), is a tale of obsession set amidst Victorian asylums and séance rooms.
You can find her living with her partner Fergus in deepest Yorkshire, England, in a house of creaking doors and crooked walls. She loves exploring the hills and dales with her two hugely enthusiastic Dalmatians and has a penchant for books on folklore and weird history, Earl Grey tea and semicolons.
She is on Twitter as @Ali__L
Her first book, A Cold Season (2011), was selected for the Richard and Judy Book Club and described as ‘perfect reading for a dark winter’s night.’
Alison's latest novel is The Crow Garden (2017), is a tale of obsession set amidst Victorian asylums and séance rooms.
You can find her living with her partner Fergus in deepest Yorkshire, England, in a house of creaking doors and crooked walls. She loves exploring the hills and dales with her two hugely enthusiastic Dalmatians and has a penchant for books on folklore and weird history, Earl Grey tea and semicolons.
She is on Twitter as @Ali__L
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 201 reviews
April 21, 2018
I don’t remember buying this, but it found its way into the house somehow, given the subject matter perhaps there’s a more mysterious explanation! This isn’t horror, gothic may be a good description (nonsense may be another!). It deals with superstition and myth and is set in the mid nineteenth century. Albie Mirralls (the narrator, a rather irritating and pompous young man) meets his cousin Lizzie only once in 1851 at the Great Exhibition. Ten years later Lizzie is burnt to death by her husband who believes she has become a changeling. Albie travels to the Yorkshire village of Halfoak to arrange her funeral and try to find out what happened to her.
A brief note to say the premise is that Lizzie may have been taken by the fairies (faeries or some other variation) who live under the hill near the village and a replacement put in her place. They live under the hill where it is always summer with lots of music and dancing. Now it is true to say that stories of fairies and changelings are part of English mythological tradition. Even when I was a child I was told such stories and the traditions go back a long way.
The scene is now set so cue superstitious and surly locals, a wise woman living in the woods, Albie staying in the cottage where Lizzie was murdered (isolated and close to the fairy hill), midnight music, Albie’s wife turning up as a surprise, a secret journal, Wuthering Heights (remember the changeling themes in that and there are parallels), lots of mysterious doings with herbs, disappearing babies, marital strife, mysterious flutterings seen from the corner of the eye, a squire’s son who is a rake, jealousy, a hot and seemingly never ending summer in Halfoak and lots more written in a Victorian gothic style.
There are some issues, the plot seems to lose its way during the second part of the book. The ending is not difficult to guess despite a couple of neat twists. The plot kept misdirecting in a particular direction which led this reader to look in the opposite direction. The dialogue and writing at times can be ponderous. Albie is annoying, but I am sure he was meant to be and it is clear that most of the time he has little clue what is going on. The atmosphere of a superstitious village is well captured as is the sense of unending summer heat. There are nods towards a number of genres, but no real satisfaction in any one of them. I think following the Wuthering Heights theme might have been more satisfying. I wanted to like this more than I did and I would read more by Littlewood as there were plenty of ideas here and the clash between rationalism and superstition is one aspect of the novel that does work well.
A brief note to say the premise is that Lizzie may have been taken by the fairies (faeries or some other variation) who live under the hill near the village and a replacement put in her place. They live under the hill where it is always summer with lots of music and dancing. Now it is true to say that stories of fairies and changelings are part of English mythological tradition. Even when I was a child I was told such stories and the traditions go back a long way.
The scene is now set so cue superstitious and surly locals, a wise woman living in the woods, Albie staying in the cottage where Lizzie was murdered (isolated and close to the fairy hill), midnight music, Albie’s wife turning up as a surprise, a secret journal, Wuthering Heights (remember the changeling themes in that and there are parallels), lots of mysterious doings with herbs, disappearing babies, marital strife, mysterious flutterings seen from the corner of the eye, a squire’s son who is a rake, jealousy, a hot and seemingly never ending summer in Halfoak and lots more written in a Victorian gothic style.
There are some issues, the plot seems to lose its way during the second part of the book. The ending is not difficult to guess despite a couple of neat twists. The plot kept misdirecting in a particular direction which led this reader to look in the opposite direction. The dialogue and writing at times can be ponderous. Albie is annoying, but I am sure he was meant to be and it is clear that most of the time he has little clue what is going on. The atmosphere of a superstitious village is well captured as is the sense of unending summer heat. There are nods towards a number of genres, but no real satisfaction in any one of them. I think following the Wuthering Heights theme might have been more satisfying. I wanted to like this more than I did and I would read more by Littlewood as there were plenty of ideas here and the clash between rationalism and superstition is one aspect of the novel that does work well.
November 23, 2016
3 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2016/11/22/...
I’m always up for a good changeling story, and Alison Littlewood is an author I’ve been meaning to read for a long time. Thus when I found out about The Hidden People, I saw this book as the perfect place to start. There’s no doubt that the story is utterly atmospheric, full of the kind of beautiful, exquisite detail that slowly creeps up on you. Littlewood also writes wonderfully and has a flair for bringing a historical setting to life. And yet…I don’t know if I felt as fully engaged as I could be. This book had all the elements of a dark historical mystery or good horror tale, but lacked the pacing of one, and I think that’s where it might have missed its mark.
It is 1851 when a young Albie meets his cousin Lizzie for the first time at the Great Exhibition. It was a grand day of celebration for industry, modern technology, invention and design, but Albie only had Lizzie on his mind, and there she stayed for many, many years even though the two of them never saw each other again.
Fast forward to 1862, Albie is just sitting down to dinner with his wife Helena when his father breaks the horrible news: Lizzie, Albie’s pretty cousin that he met more than ten years ago, is dead. She was burned to death by her husband, who claimed his wife had been replaced by a changeling. Enraged and grieving, Albie takes it upon himself to visit the village where Lizzie had lived in order to pay his respects and seek justice. But upon his arrival, he is shocked and even more furious to see how deeply superstitious the people are. His cousin hasn’t even been buried yet, left in her twisted and charred state. And during the funeral, no one showed up. It appears that all the talk of magic and fairies is more than just that; the villagers actually believe that Lizzie has been fae-touched and is now anathema.
But Albie’s obsession with Lizzie means he is unable to let this injustice stand. He refuses to leave the village, even when his wife Helena comes to join him for the funeral and then tries to convince him to let it all go and return to his own life and family. After all, she reminds him, he’s only met his cousin once and that was more than a decade ago.
But apparently, Lizzie made quite an impression on Albie. The problem was, no one around him was convinced, and to be honest, neither was I. It’s unfortunate that this sets the precedent for the rest of the book, but also not surprising, considering the entire basis for Albie’s obsession rests on this one scene at the start of the book which lasts no more than seven pages. We’re told that Lizzie’s beauty, sweetness and charisma got under our protagonist’s skin and stayed with him for many years, but I never believed it. This huge disconnect made it hard for me to understand a key part of what made the main character tick, and as such it made sympathizing with him throughout the novel an uphill battle—especially when his preoccupation with Lizzie started straining his marriage.
Then there was the pacing. While I loved the dark, haunting, gothic style of The Hidden People, the story itself was very slow to build, taking away from the tensions the author was trying to convey. Littlewood’s prose is gorgeous, and she paints a detailed picture of rural village life in the mid-1800s complete with the different dialects and other cultural nuances, but the meticulous nature of her writing style also makes it difficult to stay engaged. That’s a shame because there’s really an excellent story in here, but I also can’t deny that at times I struggled with the restrained speed at which the plot unfolded.
Still, I’m happy I got to discover Alison Littlewood’s beautiful writing, and despite the book’s flaws I thought The Hidden People was worth my time. There’s a lot of good stuff in here too, a lot to counter the quibbles. If you have an interest in the time period and the subject matter, I strongly encourage you to take a look.
I’m always up for a good changeling story, and Alison Littlewood is an author I’ve been meaning to read for a long time. Thus when I found out about The Hidden People, I saw this book as the perfect place to start. There’s no doubt that the story is utterly atmospheric, full of the kind of beautiful, exquisite detail that slowly creeps up on you. Littlewood also writes wonderfully and has a flair for bringing a historical setting to life. And yet…I don’t know if I felt as fully engaged as I could be. This book had all the elements of a dark historical mystery or good horror tale, but lacked the pacing of one, and I think that’s where it might have missed its mark.
It is 1851 when a young Albie meets his cousin Lizzie for the first time at the Great Exhibition. It was a grand day of celebration for industry, modern technology, invention and design, but Albie only had Lizzie on his mind, and there she stayed for many, many years even though the two of them never saw each other again.
Fast forward to 1862, Albie is just sitting down to dinner with his wife Helena when his father breaks the horrible news: Lizzie, Albie’s pretty cousin that he met more than ten years ago, is dead. She was burned to death by her husband, who claimed his wife had been replaced by a changeling. Enraged and grieving, Albie takes it upon himself to visit the village where Lizzie had lived in order to pay his respects and seek justice. But upon his arrival, he is shocked and even more furious to see how deeply superstitious the people are. His cousin hasn’t even been buried yet, left in her twisted and charred state. And during the funeral, no one showed up. It appears that all the talk of magic and fairies is more than just that; the villagers actually believe that Lizzie has been fae-touched and is now anathema.
But Albie’s obsession with Lizzie means he is unable to let this injustice stand. He refuses to leave the village, even when his wife Helena comes to join him for the funeral and then tries to convince him to let it all go and return to his own life and family. After all, she reminds him, he’s only met his cousin once and that was more than a decade ago.
But apparently, Lizzie made quite an impression on Albie. The problem was, no one around him was convinced, and to be honest, neither was I. It’s unfortunate that this sets the precedent for the rest of the book, but also not surprising, considering the entire basis for Albie’s obsession rests on this one scene at the start of the book which lasts no more than seven pages. We’re told that Lizzie’s beauty, sweetness and charisma got under our protagonist’s skin and stayed with him for many years, but I never believed it. This huge disconnect made it hard for me to understand a key part of what made the main character tick, and as such it made sympathizing with him throughout the novel an uphill battle—especially when his preoccupation with Lizzie started straining his marriage.
Then there was the pacing. While I loved the dark, haunting, gothic style of The Hidden People, the story itself was very slow to build, taking away from the tensions the author was trying to convey. Littlewood’s prose is gorgeous, and she paints a detailed picture of rural village life in the mid-1800s complete with the different dialects and other cultural nuances, but the meticulous nature of her writing style also makes it difficult to stay engaged. That’s a shame because there’s really an excellent story in here, but I also can’t deny that at times I struggled with the restrained speed at which the plot unfolded.
Still, I’m happy I got to discover Alison Littlewood’s beautiful writing, and despite the book’s flaws I thought The Hidden People was worth my time. There’s a lot of good stuff in here too, a lot to counter the quibbles. If you have an interest in the time period and the subject matter, I strongly encourage you to take a look.
November 22, 2016
4 stars
I’m very fond of a faery tale. Being Welsh, I’m a little more familiar with the mythologies of the Old Celtic countries than English folklore, but both seem to overlap on a key point: their depiction of faeries as wild, elemental, not-entirely-benevolent beings. This book goes one step further, dealing with old country folklore and looking at the flaws in the human condition, seeming to ask whether it is humans themselves who are the most inhuman of all…
Character: 4/5
Albie is not the most likeable or reliable of narrators and I think that’s one of the most interesting parts of the book. Albie is a young, rich, newly-married man, an insufferable snob and an unconscious misogynist. The story could not happen as it did without the miscommunications that occur because he does not treat his wife as a human being.
I actually found it really interesting to see a book written with the same condescending tone as many classics, but with that tone being used to critique the treatment of women during the period, especially those of a lower socioeconomic status. There were a number of times where Albie thought that his wife, Helena, was acting like some kind of bizarre fae creature, but as a reader you can just tell that she thinks he’s ridiculous and is upset by something that he has said and done. Once or twice I was actually scared that he might do something to hurt her. Such a unreliable point of view was frustrating and sometimes very disconcerting, but very well done.
Worldbuilding: 4/5
The setting of this book is amazing. I loved the descriptions of the backward, rural village with the fairy rings and the terrifying old ‘wise women’. There are some truly gorgeous scenes spent under the night sky, ethereal, charming, wonderfully creepy. You spend the entire book questioning yourself. Are fairies real? Am I maybe the one who is backward and misunderstanding? Littlewood does an incredible job of imbuing the world in such a way that you understand why folklore developed in the way that it did.
It makes you wonder how much of the ‘changeling’ lore was built upon the fundamental misunderstanding that women are somehow different to men? If a woman is wilful, is not subservient, miscarries a child it somehow meant that there was something wrong with them, that they were unworldly and somehow not human women. There were some parts of the story that were painful, seeing just how little control some of these women had over their own lives.
Ending: 3/5
Whilst I enjoyed it, I felt that the ending was maybe a little open. I suppose it would have not made much sense to impose an ending on the reader, especially after a book that had been been based so much upon questions. But I did find myself wishing that there was something more, something that made the ending memorable.
The Nitty Gritty: 4/5
‘The Hidden People’ is a beautifully written book, rich and wild in the ways of some of the classics referenced within. Littlewood mentions ‘Wuthering Heights’ and ‘Goblin Market’ in text and she manages to put some of that magic and bleakness into her own work. Think looming hedgerows and wild oaks, fairy rings and dark moons.
My one qualm is that I sometimes felt that the book felt a little repetitive and maybe lingered overlong on scenes that could quite happily have been condensed into one. Some of the power was maybe diluted a little by too many words.
Conclusion
This was not an easy read but a fulfilling one. Questions are not entirely answered, you end without feeling that you will ever be certain what it was that happened, or that those who truly deserve to be punished ever will be. But I also felt it was a strangely real book and a strangely tender one. By the end the characters are finally true to themselves, even though it might not be the most satisfying or happy conclusion. Definitely a book that I would recommend to a lover of the classics, folklore and the old tales.
For readers who enjoyed: Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell (Susanna Clarke) , The Bloody Chamber (Angela Carter), Smoke (Dan Vyleta), Great Epectations (Charles Dickens)
Thank you very much to Quercus Books for a copy in return for an honest review.
I’m very fond of a faery tale. Being Welsh, I’m a little more familiar with the mythologies of the Old Celtic countries than English folklore, but both seem to overlap on a key point: their depiction of faeries as wild, elemental, not-entirely-benevolent beings. This book goes one step further, dealing with old country folklore and looking at the flaws in the human condition, seeming to ask whether it is humans themselves who are the most inhuman of all…
Character: 4/5
Albie is not the most likeable or reliable of narrators and I think that’s one of the most interesting parts of the book. Albie is a young, rich, newly-married man, an insufferable snob and an unconscious misogynist. The story could not happen as it did without the miscommunications that occur because he does not treat his wife as a human being.
I actually found it really interesting to see a book written with the same condescending tone as many classics, but with that tone being used to critique the treatment of women during the period, especially those of a lower socioeconomic status. There were a number of times where Albie thought that his wife, Helena, was acting like some kind of bizarre fae creature, but as a reader you can just tell that she thinks he’s ridiculous and is upset by something that he has said and done. Once or twice I was actually scared that he might do something to hurt her. Such a unreliable point of view was frustrating and sometimes very disconcerting, but very well done.
Worldbuilding: 4/5
The setting of this book is amazing. I loved the descriptions of the backward, rural village with the fairy rings and the terrifying old ‘wise women’. There are some truly gorgeous scenes spent under the night sky, ethereal, charming, wonderfully creepy. You spend the entire book questioning yourself. Are fairies real? Am I maybe the one who is backward and misunderstanding? Littlewood does an incredible job of imbuing the world in such a way that you understand why folklore developed in the way that it did.
It makes you wonder how much of the ‘changeling’ lore was built upon the fundamental misunderstanding that women are somehow different to men? If a woman is wilful, is not subservient, miscarries a child it somehow meant that there was something wrong with them, that they were unworldly and somehow not human women. There were some parts of the story that were painful, seeing just how little control some of these women had over their own lives.
Ending: 3/5
Whilst I enjoyed it, I felt that the ending was maybe a little open. I suppose it would have not made much sense to impose an ending on the reader, especially after a book that had been been based so much upon questions. But I did find myself wishing that there was something more, something that made the ending memorable.
The Nitty Gritty: 4/5
‘The Hidden People’ is a beautifully written book, rich and wild in the ways of some of the classics referenced within. Littlewood mentions ‘Wuthering Heights’ and ‘Goblin Market’ in text and she manages to put some of that magic and bleakness into her own work. Think looming hedgerows and wild oaks, fairy rings and dark moons.
My one qualm is that I sometimes felt that the book felt a little repetitive and maybe lingered overlong on scenes that could quite happily have been condensed into one. Some of the power was maybe diluted a little by too many words.
Conclusion
This was not an easy read but a fulfilling one. Questions are not entirely answered, you end without feeling that you will ever be certain what it was that happened, or that those who truly deserve to be punished ever will be. But I also felt it was a strangely real book and a strangely tender one. By the end the characters are finally true to themselves, even though it might not be the most satisfying or happy conclusion. Definitely a book that I would recommend to a lover of the classics, folklore and the old tales.
For readers who enjoyed: Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell (Susanna Clarke) , The Bloody Chamber (Angela Carter), Smoke (Dan Vyleta), Great Epectations (Charles Dickens)
Thank you very much to Quercus Books for a copy in return for an honest review.
March 22, 2017
I love the cover of this book. I really really do and it was one of the main reasons I chose to request this book on NetGalley (Thanks!)
While I have to admit that it was what felt the longest 384 pages, the novel did deliver a certain charm. The writing is similar to 19th century classical books and that’s well done because the story is set in the 19th century. The descriptions of inns, village life and mannerisms covered the historical fiction aspect to a T.
So, yes, the writing was well thought out and really prim and proper, even when it wasn’t prim and proper in the case of Yorkshire accent. The scene setting was delivered with precision. All well and good, all major plus points to the book and author- a masterpiece in that sense.
What I didn’t like, was the fact that I found the first half of the book, up to 56%, dragging like snot behind a snail. I mean, we’re ‘dancing’ around organising a funeral for 20%… I was bewildered and just wanted to get to the point. Just move on. Let’s just move on! The introduction to the whole superstitious village life was, while necessary, totally overdone in my opinion. However…. However, looking at it from another angle, it does add that charm I mentioned earlier.
When I mentioned the superb writing, absurdly, I think this book is a gloomy stop and smell the roses kind of read. It’s totally like being stuck in the darkest pits of depression while trying to appreciate everything that is beautiful- the beautiful day, the beautiful lady/perhaps fairy… The time stops completely, as a reader you’re forced to take in all the sounds and sights…You’ll constantly question who’s bonkers and whether you’ll actually meet a real fairy in the story. I did consider not finishing the book about 3 times but I persisted… Yet, even when the action picked up half way through, there was still so much filler stuff in between. I guess that was the impatient side of me. I can see how this book could possibly gain wide recognition because if it wasn’t published in October 2016 but rather in early 1900s, it would easily be one of the classics now.
Overall: I stand by my word- the writing is absolutely worthy of a medal. It is… The piece of history that helped sow the seed for this story is fascinating and well executed, however… my rating for this book is 3 ***… I liked it. I wanted to give it 2** at first- It was OK- simply because reading it tired me out and I could not wait to be done with it. I was chasing the entertainment element. The bonus star will be awarded for the wonderful writing.
Full review can be found on Cover to Cover...
While I have to admit that it was what felt the longest 384 pages, the novel did deliver a certain charm. The writing is similar to 19th century classical books and that’s well done because the story is set in the 19th century. The descriptions of inns, village life and mannerisms covered the historical fiction aspect to a T.
So, yes, the writing was well thought out and really prim and proper, even when it wasn’t prim and proper in the case of Yorkshire accent. The scene setting was delivered with precision. All well and good, all major plus points to the book and author- a masterpiece in that sense.
What I didn’t like, was the fact that I found the first half of the book, up to 56%, dragging like snot behind a snail. I mean, we’re ‘dancing’ around organising a funeral for 20%… I was bewildered and just wanted to get to the point. Just move on. Let’s just move on! The introduction to the whole superstitious village life was, while necessary, totally overdone in my opinion. However…. However, looking at it from another angle, it does add that charm I mentioned earlier.
When I mentioned the superb writing, absurdly, I think this book is a gloomy stop and smell the roses kind of read. It’s totally like being stuck in the darkest pits of depression while trying to appreciate everything that is beautiful- the beautiful day, the beautiful lady/perhaps fairy… The time stops completely, as a reader you’re forced to take in all the sounds and sights…You’ll constantly question who’s bonkers and whether you’ll actually meet a real fairy in the story. I did consider not finishing the book about 3 times but I persisted… Yet, even when the action picked up half way through, there was still so much filler stuff in between. I guess that was the impatient side of me. I can see how this book could possibly gain wide recognition because if it wasn’t published in October 2016 but rather in early 1900s, it would easily be one of the classics now.
Overall: I stand by my word- the writing is absolutely worthy of a medal. It is… The piece of history that helped sow the seed for this story is fascinating and well executed, however… my rating for this book is 3 ***… I liked it. I wanted to give it 2** at first- It was OK- simply because reading it tired me out and I could not wait to be done with it. I was chasing the entertainment element. The bonus star will be awarded for the wonderful writing.
Full review can be found on Cover to Cover...
August 2, 2017
I saw this book recommended in a "best horror novels of 2016" list, which is how I first learned about it. But it lacked the suspense and dread required for horror, and even the few truly macabre elements were more sad than scary. Frankly, this book is as bit of a mess: it’s a hodgepodge of various folklore, depictions of Victorian life in the country and the city, class commentary, interior dialogues, dream sequences, stock characters, and amateur detective work. I think Littlewood was trying to do too much and couldn’t settle on a focal point. She does excel in atmospherics – there is a lyrical, eerie quality to her descriptions of nature, the sleepy town of Halfoak, and the cottage where the protagonists reside. Narrative tension is generated by the mystery surrounding the murder of a young woman and seemingly supernatural events around Halfoak. Are they the results of fairies and changelings as the locals assert, or do they have natural explanations? Littlewood keeps you guessing until the very end – and I literally mean the last page, because even then it is unclear what is happening. Ambiguous endings can be effective and satisfying, but in this case it felt lazy and underwhelming.
October 1, 2018
A beautifully well-written story about fairies and changelings and other superstitions deeply rooted in the English folklore that takes its sweet Gothic time to move along but eventually gets there. Recommended on a cold winter night beside a crackling fire with hot tea aplenty!
July 4, 2018
Albie Mirralls is an insufferable snob, a sexist pig and believes himself to be entirely rational. On learning of his northern cousin, Lizzie's untoward death by fire, he leaves his London home (soon followed by his wife, Helena) to visit the village of Halfoak to pay his respects and attempt to solve the mystery of her death. He is not, I suspect, the world's most reliable narrator, and he gets swept up in the susperstitions and folklore of the villagers in such a way that he does not see the truth of the matter for quite some while and with tragic consequences.
Alison Littlewood's writing is utterly sublime and perfectly mirrors the 19th century novels she is attempting to evoke. I found myself completely engrossed in and enthralled by "The Hidden People" and look forward to reading more by this author. Recommended.
Alison Littlewood's writing is utterly sublime and perfectly mirrors the 19th century novels she is attempting to evoke. I found myself completely engrossed in and enthralled by "The Hidden People" and look forward to reading more by this author. Recommended.
August 22, 2020
When the news of his cousin’s death reaches him, Albie Mirralls sets out to Halfoak of Yorkshire, determined to not only settle the matters of her funeral, but to unravel the unknowns of her death. Now an outsider of a foreign land far from the bustling streets of London, he can’t help but question the rumours that surround Lizzie Higgs – surely nothing more than superstitious nonsense – yet stories of faeries and changelings begin to creep into his mind as things take an unusual turn.
(WARNING: This review contains MAJOR spoilers.)
I’m always in the mood for a historical setting with what’s described as a dark and gothic atmosphere, so when I initially sat down with The Hidden People, I was thoroughly looking forward to what lay ahead. The bulk of the story took place in 1862, from the perspective of the protagonist, Albie Mirralls – a high class Londoner. As you can imagine, Albie played the part of a pompous Englishman well, Littlewood’s writing excelling in not only portraying the differences of the times in all its nuance, but in painting an immersive setting. The season that took the forefront was summer, and I couldn’t help but appreciate the prose of the sun’s relentless assault; truly lovely writing, yet it dragged at times and I really think the book could've been slimmed down. There was a lot of repetition in the first-person, but I suppose the risk of rambling comes with the territory. That’s where my enjoyment of the book, as well as my understanding, unfortunately came to an end.
The story aspects didn’t engage me, most notably the motivation of the plot. Obsession played a prominent theme, of one man’s infatuation with a cousin he met only once in his youth for a short length of time. He believed he knew her despite it being years later, often called her his, and this struck me as far-fetched and almost predatory. Due to such an impression I was unable to connect with Albie; I was unsympathetic to his struggles, and mostly indifferent to the troubles he brought upon himself. I understand it wasn’t so taboo in the 1800’s to keep it in the family, but even if the cousin part of the equation was removed, it would've been just as impossible to relate with him. When it comes to dislikeable characters, it can be enjoyable to hate them, but it felt as if I was meant to have some sort of personal investment – the only inkling of compassion I had was for Lizzie herself. The rest lacked any redeeming qualities and suffered from terrible human being syndrome. Perhaps this was the intention, to demonstrate how superstitions, naivety and baser instincts can ruin lives, but I didn’t connect with it.
The topic of fae folk is something that will always interest me, however it was never truly confirmed if events were accurate in how they were detailed on the page. Whilst I still came up with my own theory, the whole back and forth with teasing the supernatural just frustrated me more than it intrigued me. It could've gone either way – some things ordinary enough to be explained, with others a bit more bizarre. The ambiguous ending was mostly a miss, which was a shame as I often enjoy my own interpretation when answers aren’t directly offered. A prime example of an unreliable narrator, and in this case it just didn’t work as I was so detached from caring.
In conclusion: I wanted to love The Hidden People, but I just didn’t mesh with the story. Whilst it was beautifully written, full of vivid imagery of the countryside and the oppressive heat, the character of Albie didn’t appeal. I feel the real horror was in tragedy and human fault, but the attempt at creating tensions failed amongst the long-winded narrative. The watered down elements of the supernatural also didn’t keep me committed enough, and all in all I acknowledge Littlewood’s talent, but this wasn’t the book for me.
Notable Quote:
All the harshness and difficulties of life were here; the lack of forgiveness and the stern judgement; the sin and its fruit, hidden beneath a veil of sunshine and sweetness.
© Red Lace 2020
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(WARNING: This review contains MAJOR spoilers.)
I’m always in the mood for a historical setting with what’s described as a dark and gothic atmosphere, so when I initially sat down with The Hidden People, I was thoroughly looking forward to what lay ahead. The bulk of the story took place in 1862, from the perspective of the protagonist, Albie Mirralls – a high class Londoner. As you can imagine, Albie played the part of a pompous Englishman well, Littlewood’s writing excelling in not only portraying the differences of the times in all its nuance, but in painting an immersive setting. The season that took the forefront was summer, and I couldn’t help but appreciate the prose of the sun’s relentless assault; truly lovely writing, yet it dragged at times and I really think the book could've been slimmed down. There was a lot of repetition in the first-person, but I suppose the risk of rambling comes with the territory. That’s where my enjoyment of the book, as well as my understanding, unfortunately came to an end.
The story aspects didn’t engage me, most notably the motivation of the plot. Obsession played a prominent theme, of one man’s infatuation with a cousin he met only once in his youth for a short length of time. He believed he knew her despite it being years later, often called her his, and this struck me as far-fetched and almost predatory. Due to such an impression I was unable to connect with Albie; I was unsympathetic to his struggles, and mostly indifferent to the troubles he brought upon himself. I understand it wasn’t so taboo in the 1800’s to keep it in the family, but even if the cousin part of the equation was removed, it would've been just as impossible to relate with him. When it comes to dislikeable characters, it can be enjoyable to hate them, but it felt as if I was meant to have some sort of personal investment – the only inkling of compassion I had was for Lizzie herself. The rest lacked any redeeming qualities and suffered from terrible human being syndrome. Perhaps this was the intention, to demonstrate how superstitions, naivety and baser instincts can ruin lives, but I didn’t connect with it.
The topic of fae folk is something that will always interest me, however it was never truly confirmed if events were accurate in how they were detailed on the page. Whilst I still came up with my own theory, the whole back and forth with teasing the supernatural just frustrated me more than it intrigued me. It could've gone either way – some things ordinary enough to be explained, with others a bit more bizarre. The ambiguous ending was mostly a miss, which was a shame as I often enjoy my own interpretation when answers aren’t directly offered. A prime example of an unreliable narrator, and in this case it just didn’t work as I was so detached from caring.
In conclusion: I wanted to love The Hidden People, but I just didn’t mesh with the story. Whilst it was beautifully written, full of vivid imagery of the countryside and the oppressive heat, the character of Albie didn’t appeal. I feel the real horror was in tragedy and human fault, but the attempt at creating tensions failed amongst the long-winded narrative. The watered down elements of the supernatural also didn’t keep me committed enough, and all in all I acknowledge Littlewood’s talent, but this wasn’t the book for me.
Notable Quote:
All the harshness and difficulties of life were here; the lack of forgiveness and the stern judgement; the sin and its fruit, hidden beneath a veil of sunshine and sweetness.
© Red Lace 2020
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September 29, 2016
I received a copy of this via the publishers and NetGalley in return for a fair and honest review.
Worthy more of 3.5 stars than just 3.
I was intrigued by the stunning cover and blurb when first seeing this book as I'd not read the authors previous work, The cold Season, but had heard many good things about it.
This is the creepy story of Albie and his obsession with his cousin Lizzie, who he met only the once at the Great Exhibition of 1851, but she always remained on his mind, so when he learns of her murder many years later, he is consumed with rage and can only think of visiting where she lived to find out more and to maybe get justice on her behalf
Once he gets there the mystery of what happened between Lizzie and her husband that night is the talk of the village, but there is a lot more than meets the eye about the village and its' inhabitants and it doesn't take too long before Albie is discovering for himself the peculiar and odd ways of those who live there and talk of fairies and changelings - The Hidden People!
Albie is confused as to why LIzzie hasn't been buried when he arrives and is horrified by her treatment, and this is when the reader starts to learn more of the peculiarities of how things work in the ways of the village and their link with the fairies and the magical world.
His wife, Helena, soon travels up to join him although he doesn't seem too enamoured by this prospect and soon the weird goings on consume the family and you soon begin to wonder if history is about to repeat itself and that there is more to the power of the fairies and the spirits about. He also finds Lizzies' diary and this is a fascinating twist to the story as we get to hear her thoughts of how her life was at the time and I would have liked more excerpts of how she saw things.
I did find at times the story dragging a little, but it was so beautifully written that you couldn't help but carry on reading to enjoy the atmospheric setting and try and figure out if the whole village was just mad or there was more to be discovered about the changelings.
The use of the Yorkshire dialect was really powerful, if a little difficult to grasp at times, and really added to the authenticity of how it must have been for Albie as a Londoner visiting somewhere so different to the life he'd always known.
An interesting read overall and the perfect read with Halloween approaching as it was just the right amount of creepy and eerie horror!
Worthy more of 3.5 stars than just 3.
I was intrigued by the stunning cover and blurb when first seeing this book as I'd not read the authors previous work, The cold Season, but had heard many good things about it.
This is the creepy story of Albie and his obsession with his cousin Lizzie, who he met only the once at the Great Exhibition of 1851, but she always remained on his mind, so when he learns of her murder many years later, he is consumed with rage and can only think of visiting where she lived to find out more and to maybe get justice on her behalf
Once he gets there the mystery of what happened between Lizzie and her husband that night is the talk of the village, but there is a lot more than meets the eye about the village and its' inhabitants and it doesn't take too long before Albie is discovering for himself the peculiar and odd ways of those who live there and talk of fairies and changelings - The Hidden People!
Albie is confused as to why LIzzie hasn't been buried when he arrives and is horrified by her treatment, and this is when the reader starts to learn more of the peculiarities of how things work in the ways of the village and their link with the fairies and the magical world.
His wife, Helena, soon travels up to join him although he doesn't seem too enamoured by this prospect and soon the weird goings on consume the family and you soon begin to wonder if history is about to repeat itself and that there is more to the power of the fairies and the spirits about. He also finds Lizzies' diary and this is a fascinating twist to the story as we get to hear her thoughts of how her life was at the time and I would have liked more excerpts of how she saw things.
I did find at times the story dragging a little, but it was so beautifully written that you couldn't help but carry on reading to enjoy the atmospheric setting and try and figure out if the whole village was just mad or there was more to be discovered about the changelings.
The use of the Yorkshire dialect was really powerful, if a little difficult to grasp at times, and really added to the authenticity of how it must have been for Albie as a Londoner visiting somewhere so different to the life he'd always known.
An interesting read overall and the perfect read with Halloween approaching as it was just the right amount of creepy and eerie horror!
November 28, 2016
A well written story meticulously researched with a hint of wuthering heights. A strange tale based on a murder by superstitious villagers in a remote village in Yorkshire, who believe in the fair folk and are convinced that their children are taken and replaced with changelings.
Set in 1851 at the opening of the Crystal palace with excellent writing and portrayal of simple country life with regional accents and old English words and sayings that had me looking them up in a dictionary for their meanings. Just a few so you can get an idea.
uxoricide, gnomon, widdershins, benighted ,drugget, quixotic, daedalum, foetor, exudation, surcease, bandoline, stook, louche, execrable, grimalkin, furze, hoydenism, odiferous, grotesquerie,somnolence, presaged.
This was Quite a slow read with a lot of deciphering of the local dialect and because i haven’t read Wuthering heights. i never got the gist of the story.
Set in 1851 at the opening of the Crystal palace with excellent writing and portrayal of simple country life with regional accents and old English words and sayings that had me looking them up in a dictionary for their meanings. Just a few so you can get an idea.
uxoricide, gnomon, widdershins, benighted ,drugget, quixotic, daedalum, foetor, exudation, surcease, bandoline, stook, louche, execrable, grimalkin, furze, hoydenism, odiferous, grotesquerie,somnolence, presaged.
This was Quite a slow read with a lot of deciphering of the local dialect and because i haven’t read Wuthering heights. i never got the gist of the story.
December 2, 2019
A murder mystery set in mid-1800s England where signs point to faerie involvement? Sign me right up! The premise behind Alison Littlewood’s The Hidden People caught my attention and played to multiple pet interests of mine, and so I was very eager to sit down and read my way through what I felt certain would be a fascinating trip into the past where the lines between the mundane and the supernatural were blurred.
Albie is a man who, upon learning of his cousin’s death at the hands of her husband, takes it upon himself to see justice done. He goes to Lizzie’s home of Halfoak to attend the funeral, only to find increasingly strange talk from the locals about how the Lizzie that was killed was not the real Lizzie at all, but was in fact a changeling. After the sudden and unexpected arrival of Albie’s own wife, who does not seem herself at all, Albie’s life turns on its head as he searches for the truth of what happened to his cousin, and what may well have happened to his wife.
The Hidden People is a “did it or did it not happen” kind of mystery, one that might frustrate readers who expect a clear progression of the story in which pieces of slowly revealed and the puzzle becomes more clear. The protagonist flips his opinion back and forth a dozen times through the narrative, first being sure that Lizzie was fully human, then doubting it, then doubting his doubt, then wondering if faeries may be involved after all, and so on. If you expect a story in which the pieces fit neatly together as Albie slowly figures out that mystical forces are present, then you’ll be disappointed. What this book offers is a look into a man who cannot fathom certain things happening for certain reasons, who doubts constantly and is unsure of anything, and who is dealing with an increasingly stressful situation in his life. In short, it’s magnificently realistic, for it’s a rare person who can find evidence of the supernatural and not at least consider that it may be a factor in things. Albie reacts as most people would to events and information, as sometimes it looks as though something supernatural may be at work, and at other times it looks as though everything can be traced back to superstition and willful ignorance. Until the end, it’s very hard to tell just what happened to Lizzie, and what is happening to Albie and Helena.
Though in mentioning it, even at the end of the book, some things are still ambiguous. Albie certain thinks he’s gotten to the bottom of things, and for the most part the mystery surrounding Lizzie’s murder has been solved, but some events could be interpreted either way. Was Albie’s behaviour rational given that he suffered a loss, or was it wild and irrational and influenced by powers beyond the mundane? Was Helena influenced by changeling motivations of by her husband’s inexplicable attachment to a cousin he only met once? If there were no faeries, what caused some of the more bizarre things that Albie experienced? It’s easy to interpret the ending one way, to say, “Oh yes, it was this all along,” but there are so many coincidences that matched local superstition that you’re left wondering how much was truly mundane and how much was supernatural.
Littlewood weaves a great story here, with plenty of questions and atmosphere to keep readers turning the pages, hungry to see what happens next. There’s so much wonderful local flavour, too, with people in Halfoak speaking in that particular Yorkshire dialect (which I myself only heard for the first time about a month ago, so it thrilled me to see it in text and to know, “I know exactly what that sounds like!”) and bringing in colloquialisms and the clash of cultures that inevitably exists between big city folk and those from further into the countryside. Seeing the story from Albie’s viewpoint, which ranged from calm and rational to frantic and chaotic depending on what he had just discovered, was wonderful, since many of the dual-nature aspects of the story take place within Albie himself, an inner reflection of the outer world. The tone of the narrative was such that you can fall into it easily, reading it not as yet another first-person viewpoint with dozens of observations that people don’t actually tend to make for themselves, but as the memoirs of a troubled man, something that truly feels as though it could have been written by him years after the fact. It’s hard to say specifically what separates the two; something in the tone of the writing or the way Albie speaks or the way it all sounds very much like diary entries from the time period. But this is a problem I’ve pointed out in the past with first-person narratives, how it’s meant to draw the reader further into the story by placing them immediately within the head of the protagonist, but for me it often fails because said protagonist always thinks in ways that people just don’t on a day-to-day basis. Littlewood’s presentation of Albie was such that it felt like I was reading his confessions, something he deliberately endeavoured to tell, rather than that I was just along for the ride.
My only regret with this book is that the ending did turn out to be so mundane. Yes, I did mention previously that it was somewhat ambiguous and not all questions really were answered, and I felt like it was left that way deliberately rather than as some authorial oversight, but it’s so easy to look only at the surface of the story and conclude that there was nothing supernatural going on whatsoever. And I was hoping, from the back-of-the-book premise, that it was going to be more of a supernatural murder mystery than just a murder mystery that probably only has the supernatural connected to it because of local superstition. You can blame that disappointment on me as a reader, since the book offered me no promises of anything, but the presentation leads you to think that way, and then it doesn’t happen.
On the flip side, though, I think that gives The Hidden People a wider appeal, since those who enjoy historical fiction and mysteries but who don’t read much SFF can appreciate this book with or without its ambiguities. It’s not just SFF fans that this book will appeal to, and really, I like encountering novels that transcend genre.
But regardless of that one piece of criticism, overall, I really enjoyed the journey into the past that came with The Hidden People. The story was compelling, the characters interesting and complex, and it was an evocative novel that’s going to have a solid place of my bookshelves from now on. Definitely recommended for those who are looking for something beyond typical urban fantasy fare, for those who enjoy historical fiction, and also, for those like me who have a soft spot for genre-breaking fiction that leaves you hungry for more.
(Book received in exchange for review.)
Albie is a man who, upon learning of his cousin’s death at the hands of her husband, takes it upon himself to see justice done. He goes to Lizzie’s home of Halfoak to attend the funeral, only to find increasingly strange talk from the locals about how the Lizzie that was killed was not the real Lizzie at all, but was in fact a changeling. After the sudden and unexpected arrival of Albie’s own wife, who does not seem herself at all, Albie’s life turns on its head as he searches for the truth of what happened to his cousin, and what may well have happened to his wife.
The Hidden People is a “did it or did it not happen” kind of mystery, one that might frustrate readers who expect a clear progression of the story in which pieces of slowly revealed and the puzzle becomes more clear. The protagonist flips his opinion back and forth a dozen times through the narrative, first being sure that Lizzie was fully human, then doubting it, then doubting his doubt, then wondering if faeries may be involved after all, and so on. If you expect a story in which the pieces fit neatly together as Albie slowly figures out that mystical forces are present, then you’ll be disappointed. What this book offers is a look into a man who cannot fathom certain things happening for certain reasons, who doubts constantly and is unsure of anything, and who is dealing with an increasingly stressful situation in his life. In short, it’s magnificently realistic, for it’s a rare person who can find evidence of the supernatural and not at least consider that it may be a factor in things. Albie reacts as most people would to events and information, as sometimes it looks as though something supernatural may be at work, and at other times it looks as though everything can be traced back to superstition and willful ignorance. Until the end, it’s very hard to tell just what happened to Lizzie, and what is happening to Albie and Helena.
Though in mentioning it, even at the end of the book, some things are still ambiguous. Albie certain thinks he’s gotten to the bottom of things, and for the most part the mystery surrounding Lizzie’s murder has been solved, but some events could be interpreted either way. Was Albie’s behaviour rational given that he suffered a loss, or was it wild and irrational and influenced by powers beyond the mundane? Was Helena influenced by changeling motivations of by her husband’s inexplicable attachment to a cousin he only met once? If there were no faeries, what caused some of the more bizarre things that Albie experienced? It’s easy to interpret the ending one way, to say, “Oh yes, it was this all along,” but there are so many coincidences that matched local superstition that you’re left wondering how much was truly mundane and how much was supernatural.
Littlewood weaves a great story here, with plenty of questions and atmosphere to keep readers turning the pages, hungry to see what happens next. There’s so much wonderful local flavour, too, with people in Halfoak speaking in that particular Yorkshire dialect (which I myself only heard for the first time about a month ago, so it thrilled me to see it in text and to know, “I know exactly what that sounds like!”) and bringing in colloquialisms and the clash of cultures that inevitably exists between big city folk and those from further into the countryside. Seeing the story from Albie’s viewpoint, which ranged from calm and rational to frantic and chaotic depending on what he had just discovered, was wonderful, since many of the dual-nature aspects of the story take place within Albie himself, an inner reflection of the outer world. The tone of the narrative was such that you can fall into it easily, reading it not as yet another first-person viewpoint with dozens of observations that people don’t actually tend to make for themselves, but as the memoirs of a troubled man, something that truly feels as though it could have been written by him years after the fact. It’s hard to say specifically what separates the two; something in the tone of the writing or the way Albie speaks or the way it all sounds very much like diary entries from the time period. But this is a problem I’ve pointed out in the past with first-person narratives, how it’s meant to draw the reader further into the story by placing them immediately within the head of the protagonist, but for me it often fails because said protagonist always thinks in ways that people just don’t on a day-to-day basis. Littlewood’s presentation of Albie was such that it felt like I was reading his confessions, something he deliberately endeavoured to tell, rather than that I was just along for the ride.
My only regret with this book is that the ending did turn out to be so mundane. Yes, I did mention previously that it was somewhat ambiguous and not all questions really were answered, and I felt like it was left that way deliberately rather than as some authorial oversight, but it’s so easy to look only at the surface of the story and conclude that there was nothing supernatural going on whatsoever. And I was hoping, from the back-of-the-book premise, that it was going to be more of a supernatural murder mystery than just a murder mystery that probably only has the supernatural connected to it because of local superstition. You can blame that disappointment on me as a reader, since the book offered me no promises of anything, but the presentation leads you to think that way, and then it doesn’t happen.
On the flip side, though, I think that gives The Hidden People a wider appeal, since those who enjoy historical fiction and mysteries but who don’t read much SFF can appreciate this book with or without its ambiguities. It’s not just SFF fans that this book will appeal to, and really, I like encountering novels that transcend genre.
But regardless of that one piece of criticism, overall, I really enjoyed the journey into the past that came with The Hidden People. The story was compelling, the characters interesting and complex, and it was an evocative novel that’s going to have a solid place of my bookshelves from now on. Definitely recommended for those who are looking for something beyond typical urban fantasy fare, for those who enjoy historical fiction, and also, for those like me who have a soft spot for genre-breaking fiction that leaves you hungry for more.
(Book received in exchange for review.)
July 19, 2017
The mid-Victorian Gothic novel, Byronic Romanticism and the 'Female Gothic' appear to be alive and well in the carefully crafted pages of Alison Littlewood's THE HIDDEN PEOPLE. It's an elegantly crafted novel that plays wonderfully with 21st century psychological horror themes, while simultaneously conjuring up the literary spectres of both Arthur Machen and Emily Bronte, and then wrapping them within the superficial framework of The Wicker Man. It's one hell of a juggling act, yet Littlewood never drops even a single ball.
The use of language is simply brilliant, whether in terms of grounding time and place (1862 Yorkshire) or in building a deceptively effective sense of dread, the usage is 'pastiche perfect' across the board. The plot is relatively simple: Young Albie Millais met his lovely and intriguing cousin, Lizzie, at the Crystal Palace, some ten years previously and is now disturbed to find she has suddenly died a grisly death at the hands of her husband, who believed she had been taken by the Fair Folk and replaced with a changeling, so newly married Albie heads to the rural village of Halfoak to handle funeral arrangements and look into the circumstances surrounding her death. What this rational, if all too socially proper, young man finds is a village utterly in thrall to ancient superstitions. While this easily could have devolved into a basic rational vs. supernatural story, there is considerably more depth at work, in that Littlewood also manages to engage in questions surrounding gender roles and the inherent restrictions in a patriarchal society and the seemingly transgressive approach taken by women looking to make their way within it. Add to that the dichotomy of thought and behaviour between rural and city folk, plus the same again with class distinctions, as well as the war between rational and irrational thought processes, to say little of the power of belief, and that simplicity of plot expands into a richly layered and surprisingly deep, and largely satisfying, read.
My only niggles with the book are in respect to the climax and denouement, both of which seemed less adroitly handled than the lead up. In this instance that translates to the difference between a 4 and 5 star rating, so not even close to a deal breaker. Still, a truly fine read, particularly for those who enjoy the twisted intricacies of a Victorian Gothic. Quite frankly, this is an impressive work.
If you enjoyed this novel, hunt up a copy of Littlewood's recent novella COTTINGLEY. It's a very tight and atmospheric work and mines a similar, if more traditional, vein.
The use of language is simply brilliant, whether in terms of grounding time and place (1862 Yorkshire) or in building a deceptively effective sense of dread, the usage is 'pastiche perfect' across the board. The plot is relatively simple: Young Albie Millais met his lovely and intriguing cousin, Lizzie, at the Crystal Palace, some ten years previously and is now disturbed to find she has suddenly died a grisly death at the hands of her husband, who believed she had been taken by the Fair Folk and replaced with a changeling, so newly married Albie heads to the rural village of Halfoak to handle funeral arrangements and look into the circumstances surrounding her death. What this rational, if all too socially proper, young man finds is a village utterly in thrall to ancient superstitions. While this easily could have devolved into a basic rational vs. supernatural story, there is considerably more depth at work, in that Littlewood also manages to engage in questions surrounding gender roles and the inherent restrictions in a patriarchal society and the seemingly transgressive approach taken by women looking to make their way within it. Add to that the dichotomy of thought and behaviour between rural and city folk, plus the same again with class distinctions, as well as the war between rational and irrational thought processes, to say little of the power of belief, and that simplicity of plot expands into a richly layered and surprisingly deep, and largely satisfying, read.
My only niggles with the book are in respect to the climax and denouement, both of which seemed less adroitly handled than the lead up. In this instance that translates to the difference between a 4 and 5 star rating, so not even close to a deal breaker. Still, a truly fine read, particularly for those who enjoy the twisted intricacies of a Victorian Gothic. Quite frankly, this is an impressive work.
If you enjoyed this novel, hunt up a copy of Littlewood's recent novella COTTINGLEY. It's a very tight and atmospheric work and mines a similar, if more traditional, vein.
September 22, 2016
I received this book free via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The blurb sounded interesting, and didn’t quite occur to me until after I was approved to read it that it was classed by Amazon as a horror. I am not good at scary books, so I did approach it tentatively after that. I feel like my own nervousness made getting into the book difficult; however I was soon hooked despite my cowardice!
Despite my own inability to focus, this novel was very good and definitely had an interesting premise. I feel like it was very realistic as a piece set in Victorian Britain; the language was largely convincing, although I wasn’t as sold by the Yorkshire accents. The story had the feel of a Victorian novel; I often found that I’d have to remind myself that it is a contemporary piece – I’m someone who’s read an awful lot of Victorian fiction, so I’d say that’s effective writing!
I personally wouldn’t have classified this as horror. While there was a lot of suspense, and there was certainly some horrific imagery, I was never really scared by it. As a massive wimp, I’m honestly quite glad of this! It works very well as a historical suspense or even a crime novel. While the story was mostly uneventful, with the main events occurring before the main story begins and towards the end, it was very enjoyable and certainly worth reading for the sheer amount of detail and work put into it – it is obvious from the start that Littlewood’s story is the result of huge amounts of research, and is clearly a labour of love. I love a novel that clearly has a huge amount of background work behind it, especially when it is executed as well as this.
Overall, I found that The Hidden People was an engaging and detailed read, with plenty of twists and suspense. It made for a great read, and although I imagine for many the ending could be unfulfilling, I found it satisfying and very Victorian. The story cuts through the pastoral Victorian country life, showing an incredibly dark side to the simple, peaceful existence of the people of Halfoak and by extension many rural areas in the 19th century. The version I was sent, which will presumably be the same as the eBook edition when it’s published, includes author’s notes at the end describing the very real cases and folklore the story came from – most notably the case of Bridget Cleary. As I’ve mentioned before, Alison Littlewood uses this history and information very well, and I would definitely recommend this book.
Despite my own inability to focus, this novel was very good and definitely had an interesting premise. I feel like it was very realistic as a piece set in Victorian Britain; the language was largely convincing, although I wasn’t as sold by the Yorkshire accents. The story had the feel of a Victorian novel; I often found that I’d have to remind myself that it is a contemporary piece – I’m someone who’s read an awful lot of Victorian fiction, so I’d say that’s effective writing!
I personally wouldn’t have classified this as horror. While there was a lot of suspense, and there was certainly some horrific imagery, I was never really scared by it. As a massive wimp, I’m honestly quite glad of this! It works very well as a historical suspense or even a crime novel. While the story was mostly uneventful, with the main events occurring before the main story begins and towards the end, it was very enjoyable and certainly worth reading for the sheer amount of detail and work put into it – it is obvious from the start that Littlewood’s story is the result of huge amounts of research, and is clearly a labour of love. I love a novel that clearly has a huge amount of background work behind it, especially when it is executed as well as this.
Overall, I found that The Hidden People was an engaging and detailed read, with plenty of twists and suspense. It made for a great read, and although I imagine for many the ending could be unfulfilling, I found it satisfying and very Victorian. The story cuts through the pastoral Victorian country life, showing an incredibly dark side to the simple, peaceful existence of the people of Halfoak and by extension many rural areas in the 19th century. The version I was sent, which will presumably be the same as the eBook edition when it’s published, includes author’s notes at the end describing the very real cases and folklore the story came from – most notably the case of Bridget Cleary. As I’ve mentioned before, Alison Littlewood uses this history and information very well, and I would definitely recommend this book.
August 1, 2016
When I ordered the ARC copy of this book it was the blurb that drew me in. A pretty young woman is burned to death on her hearth, her husband thinks she is a changeling. It was a much different experience from what I was expecting.
Re-wind to a brief moment a few years earlier when the dead woman (Lizzie Higgs) meets her cousin (Albie Mirralls) at the Great Exhibition of 1851 and leaves an impression on him with her mild ways and beautiful voice. She left quite an impression on him in that one meeting.
In the present Albie is horrified to learn of the terrible death of his cousin Lizzie, murdered at the hands of her own husband. He leaves his wife and father to travel to where Lizzie lived to investigate her death in the wilds of a village called Halfoak. Halfoak is mired in superstition about faries "The Hidden People" almost to the point of obsession.
When he arrives in Halfoak, Albie is horrified to find his cousin has not yet been buried, but is being kept in an old washhouse. He takes a room at the inn and arranges her funeral to which none of the locals turn up to. Albie is angered by their behaviour and ends up moving into his dead cousin's cottage to try and discover what really happened. The longer he stays there it is harder for him to separate fact from fiction as the inhabitants of Halfoak fill him with tales of supernatural goings on and fairies stealing away people and replacing them with changelings.
Things get worse when Albie's wife turns up at the village and moves into the cottage with him and she doesn't seem quite herself anymore either and he starts to wonder if she might be a changeling too. Although, he doesn't take his suspicions a 100% seriously it's enough to cause a rift in their marriage, along with his obsession with his dead cousin that he didn't even really know.
As Albie delves deeper into the mystery he discovers, along with his cousin's journal, a much more selfish and self seeking reason why these tales of the fairies abound.
There were really interesting moments to this book and at other times it did drag. I even thought of giving up reading it once or twice because of the pace, although the book is soundly written I found my mind wandering at times and it should have ticked all of the boxes for me as to what I like reading.
Re-wind to a brief moment a few years earlier when the dead woman (Lizzie Higgs) meets her cousin (Albie Mirralls) at the Great Exhibition of 1851 and leaves an impression on him with her mild ways and beautiful voice. She left quite an impression on him in that one meeting.
In the present Albie is horrified to learn of the terrible death of his cousin Lizzie, murdered at the hands of her own husband. He leaves his wife and father to travel to where Lizzie lived to investigate her death in the wilds of a village called Halfoak. Halfoak is mired in superstition about faries "The Hidden People" almost to the point of obsession.
When he arrives in Halfoak, Albie is horrified to find his cousin has not yet been buried, but is being kept in an old washhouse. He takes a room at the inn and arranges her funeral to which none of the locals turn up to. Albie is angered by their behaviour and ends up moving into his dead cousin's cottage to try and discover what really happened. The longer he stays there it is harder for him to separate fact from fiction as the inhabitants of Halfoak fill him with tales of supernatural goings on and fairies stealing away people and replacing them with changelings.
Things get worse when Albie's wife turns up at the village and moves into the cottage with him and she doesn't seem quite herself anymore either and he starts to wonder if she might be a changeling too. Although, he doesn't take his suspicions a 100% seriously it's enough to cause a rift in their marriage, along with his obsession with his dead cousin that he didn't even really know.
As Albie delves deeper into the mystery he discovers, along with his cousin's journal, a much more selfish and self seeking reason why these tales of the fairies abound.
There were really interesting moments to this book and at other times it did drag. I even thought of giving up reading it once or twice because of the pace, although the book is soundly written I found my mind wandering at times and it should have ticked all of the boxes for me as to what I like reading.
August 17, 2018
An Adult Fairy Tale without a Fairy-tale Ending.
In The Hidden People, Alison Littlewood has woven a lyrical tale of enchantment, delusion and jealousy, in which urban Victorian rationality collides with lingering rural folk belief, with neither emerging unscathed. Whereas the much-lauded The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry aspires to explore these themes and fails to deliver upon its promise, this cannot be said of Littlewood’s The Hidden People, for it is by far the better-written and more satisfyingly plotted book of the two. It is a novel steeped in the Gothic, in which the wild and outlandish sentiments of the uneducated country folk are rendered in a rich Yorkshire vernacular, which contrasts with the staid speech of the middle-class London protagonist, Albert Mirralls, whose presence is at best viewed as an unwelcome intrusion into what appears to be an everlasting bucolic summer.
Fairy lore and the spirit of Wuthering Heights loom large in this story, where the power of belief in the malign power of the fairy folk and changelings is convincingly portrayed, leaving the reader guessing as to what is real, and what is not, in a world refracted through the first-person narrative of ‘Albie’ Mirralls. It is his obsession with his cousin, Lizzie Thurlston, that provides the thread which the reader must follow with a compulsive zeal until the final revelation with which the book concludes. There is also a powerful underpinning theme of loss and yearning, which is expressed through the blindness of the central character to what he has, whilst he remains locked into the pursuit of his idée fixe, to the detriment of himself, and to those closest to him. It is a novel sure to appeal to those with a taste for historical fiction, mysteries, and psychological horror. That said, if forced to pigeonhole this work into a single genre, its best fit would be folk horror with a pronounced Gothic streak.
In The Hidden People, Alison Littlewood has woven a lyrical tale of enchantment, delusion and jealousy, in which urban Victorian rationality collides with lingering rural folk belief, with neither emerging unscathed. Whereas the much-lauded The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry aspires to explore these themes and fails to deliver upon its promise, this cannot be said of Littlewood’s The Hidden People, for it is by far the better-written and more satisfyingly plotted book of the two. It is a novel steeped in the Gothic, in which the wild and outlandish sentiments of the uneducated country folk are rendered in a rich Yorkshire vernacular, which contrasts with the staid speech of the middle-class London protagonist, Albert Mirralls, whose presence is at best viewed as an unwelcome intrusion into what appears to be an everlasting bucolic summer.
Fairy lore and the spirit of Wuthering Heights loom large in this story, where the power of belief in the malign power of the fairy folk and changelings is convincingly portrayed, leaving the reader guessing as to what is real, and what is not, in a world refracted through the first-person narrative of ‘Albie’ Mirralls. It is his obsession with his cousin, Lizzie Thurlston, that provides the thread which the reader must follow with a compulsive zeal until the final revelation with which the book concludes. There is also a powerful underpinning theme of loss and yearning, which is expressed through the blindness of the central character to what he has, whilst he remains locked into the pursuit of his idée fixe, to the detriment of himself, and to those closest to him. It is a novel sure to appeal to those with a taste for historical fiction, mysteries, and psychological horror. That said, if forced to pigeonhole this work into a single genre, its best fit would be folk horror with a pronounced Gothic streak.
May 18, 2017
'The Hidden People' is a wonderful, intricate and absorbing novel. It's a book I felt completely immersed in, and didn't want to climb out!
The novel is a huge accomplishment on many levels. It feels completely authentic, both in the speech patterns of the middle-class Victorian characters, as well as those from rural Yorkshire. On top, and maybe more importantly, the thought processes of the narrator, Albie, seem completely credible as those of a youngish, slightly pompous Victorian rationalist.
The setting is superbly evoked, in all its vivid intensity, with rich, sublime language that had me referring to my dictionary on more than one occasion. And the plot kept me gripped from start to finish, wondering who I could believe, what was real and what was in the imagination. It kept me guessing to the last.
The book's strengths mean that it won't be to every reader's taste. Some may find the descriptions overwhelming, with a lark or peerless blue sky too many for some. I must admit that I found the middle-to-end dragging ever-so slightly, and a little repetitive.
I have rarely read a book that evokes the beauty and strangeness of the English countryside in the heat of summer so well. It's the literary equivalent of a Richard Dadd painting, or Edward Hughes' 'Midsummer Eve.' And despite the heat, it also definitely gave me the shivers!
The novel is a huge accomplishment on many levels. It feels completely authentic, both in the speech patterns of the middle-class Victorian characters, as well as those from rural Yorkshire. On top, and maybe more importantly, the thought processes of the narrator, Albie, seem completely credible as those of a youngish, slightly pompous Victorian rationalist.
The setting is superbly evoked, in all its vivid intensity, with rich, sublime language that had me referring to my dictionary on more than one occasion. And the plot kept me gripped from start to finish, wondering who I could believe, what was real and what was in the imagination. It kept me guessing to the last.
The book's strengths mean that it won't be to every reader's taste. Some may find the descriptions overwhelming, with a lark or peerless blue sky too many for some. I must admit that I found the middle-to-end dragging ever-so slightly, and a little repetitive.
I have rarely read a book that evokes the beauty and strangeness of the English countryside in the heat of summer so well. It's the literary equivalent of a Richard Dadd painting, or Edward Hughes' 'Midsummer Eve.' And despite the heat, it also definitely gave me the shivers!
June 8, 2023
I liked this book, but I find it kind of challenging to evaluate. There's a lot going on and the main character is a bit of an idiot. He's a frustrating person, frustrating investigator, and frustrating husband. He's also arrogant and snobbish...but I think he means well. If you can handle disliking the main character and you like gothic historical mysteries with maybe a bit of magic/fairies, then I would check it out. I personally found the book very absorbing and read the bulk of it in one sitting. There were times where I wondered where the book was going and why we were meeting certain characters, but it all came together in the end. I was a bit disappointed, but not surprised by the ending.
Enjoyed learning about fairies and rural life in 19th century England. I found the characters believable and enjoyed following on their journey, even if Albie is a bit of a drag...annoying people can be fun to observe. I really liked the rich descriptions of the setting. It was easy for me to imagine it in my mind.
Didn't totally get the WH references...felt they were a bit unnecessary, but didn't hate them either.
For a first book, I thought it was really good and I plan to read more from the author.
Enjoyed learning about fairies and rural life in 19th century England. I found the characters believable and enjoyed following on their journey, even if Albie is a bit of a drag...annoying people can be fun to observe. I really liked the rich descriptions of the setting. It was easy for me to imagine it in my mind.
Didn't totally get the WH references...felt they were a bit unnecessary, but didn't hate them either.
For a first book, I thought it was really good and I plan to read more from the author.
June 7, 2020
3.5* very well written historical fiction with an element of magical realism thrown in. The plot is very cleverly crafted and you could empathise with the female characters. However I had a problem with the pacing which for me made it very long winded and slow at times. It then gathered pace towards the end with an explanation that shows how cleverly crafted the plot is.
I thought hard about my rating. For personal enjoyment 3* but for the narrative and writing style 4*. So an average of 3.5 seems fair.
If you enjoy the classic style this will be for you.
I thought hard about my rating. For personal enjoyment 3* but for the narrative and writing style 4*. So an average of 3.5 seems fair.
If you enjoy the classic style this will be for you.
October 5, 2016
I'm grateful to the publisher for an advance copy of this book.
I've come to look forward to a new ghost or horror story from Alison Littlewood as an Autumn treat, timed to come alongside the smell of bonfires, falling leaves and of course the darkening evenings. The Hidden People - while set at the height of Summer, indeed, in a place where it is always Summer - doesn't disappoint although it's a departure for Littlewood, being set in the past, the mid Victorian age.
Albie Mirralls is the son of a prosperous family, working at his father's firm in the City. Early in the book we see the two visit the Great Exhibition of 1851 along with Albie's cousin, Lizzie, and her father. A connection is made between the two that endures, albeit sleeping, until after her death a decade later.
When Lizzie is horrifically killed by her husband, who has come to believe that she's a changeling, a fairy, Albie sets off for the Yorkshire village of Halfoak, to investigate...
So the main story begins. It's an ambiguous tale, on several levels. First, what does Albie make of events? He's presented as a great rationalist (introduced, remember, at that most modern and scientific of celebrations) and he confidently scorns the Yorkshire locals and their strange beliefs (for example opening the curtains of his inn room despite the warning from the landlord that it's unlucky to gaze on the full moon: lots of things in this story are said to be unlucky and Albie makes a point of doing most of them). What, then, can there be for him in Halfoak? The husband is imprisoned and will no doubt hang, the funeral is soon arranged (none of the villagers will attend), what more, as rationalist, can he do? He surely can't expect that, somehow, Lizzie, that girl he met so briefly, will come back from under Pudding Pye Hill?
This is all the more inexplicable given that Albie has a wife, Helena, who soon arrives from London, clearly feeling somewhat neglected. The relationship doesn't seem to be very healthy. As Albie mopes around, investigating ever stranger and more tangential angles to the 'mystery', Helena begins to get... strange.
The attitude of the villagers is also shifty. They clearly accept and even welcome the eruption of the supernatural into their lives, yet it also drives them to dreadful ends - the murder of Lizzie, the boycott of her funeral - and to a degree they seem to have the same relationship with the modern world: Albie, arriving from London is as much an over-worldly intrusion on their centuries old way of life as the fairies are, or would be if they were real.
This reality of this last is a matter which Littlewood also keeps hidden - there is no out and out splurge of horror or the supernatural here, only things (such as Helena's midnight walks, her strange use of the local dialect, or the cleaning of the house) which are suggestive. I'd go so far as to say that she writes the book in such a manner that neither a purely rationalistic explanation nor a clear supernatural one quite fits. This produces an unease throughout the story, paralleling the odder and odder behaviour of Helena and, especially, Albie. It's clear that there has been more going on in Albie's mind with regard to Lizzie than is healthy for the state of his marriage and I'd suspect it's been going on longer than he admits. (Another way the unease is heightened is through numerous references to clocks and other timepieces, to time lost track of, to the fact that the summer ought to be ending but isn't: most notable, to the church clock with three hands so it can show not only London but local time - what is the time, really? Perhaps we're not in 1862 any more...)
So the horror comes not only from a straightforwardly supernatural threat but from a real sense of unease at what seems to be a relationship fragmenting slowly before our eyes, and the fear of what that might lead to (the book exposes, without being heavy handed, how the belief in child-swapping fairies is helpful in legitimising not only wife but child murder) as well as a loss of hold on time itself, which becomes slippery and inconstant.
All of Littlewood's previous books had some sense of ambiguity, of being between two worlds, but The Hidden People makes it much more perfect, producing a story that's exquisitely unsettling rather than out-and-out Gothic (yet also, clearly at least second cousin to all those tales of mistreated wives shut up or driven to an early grave which were so popular in the period described here).
Strongly recommended.
I've come to look forward to a new ghost or horror story from Alison Littlewood as an Autumn treat, timed to come alongside the smell of bonfires, falling leaves and of course the darkening evenings. The Hidden People - while set at the height of Summer, indeed, in a place where it is always Summer - doesn't disappoint although it's a departure for Littlewood, being set in the past, the mid Victorian age.
Albie Mirralls is the son of a prosperous family, working at his father's firm in the City. Early in the book we see the two visit the Great Exhibition of 1851 along with Albie's cousin, Lizzie, and her father. A connection is made between the two that endures, albeit sleeping, until after her death a decade later.
When Lizzie is horrifically killed by her husband, who has come to believe that she's a changeling, a fairy, Albie sets off for the Yorkshire village of Halfoak, to investigate...
So the main story begins. It's an ambiguous tale, on several levels. First, what does Albie make of events? He's presented as a great rationalist (introduced, remember, at that most modern and scientific of celebrations) and he confidently scorns the Yorkshire locals and their strange beliefs (for example opening the curtains of his inn room despite the warning from the landlord that it's unlucky to gaze on the full moon: lots of things in this story are said to be unlucky and Albie makes a point of doing most of them). What, then, can there be for him in Halfoak? The husband is imprisoned and will no doubt hang, the funeral is soon arranged (none of the villagers will attend), what more, as rationalist, can he do? He surely can't expect that, somehow, Lizzie, that girl he met so briefly, will come back from under Pudding Pye Hill?
This is all the more inexplicable given that Albie has a wife, Helena, who soon arrives from London, clearly feeling somewhat neglected. The relationship doesn't seem to be very healthy. As Albie mopes around, investigating ever stranger and more tangential angles to the 'mystery', Helena begins to get... strange.
The attitude of the villagers is also shifty. They clearly accept and even welcome the eruption of the supernatural into their lives, yet it also drives them to dreadful ends - the murder of Lizzie, the boycott of her funeral - and to a degree they seem to have the same relationship with the modern world: Albie, arriving from London is as much an over-worldly intrusion on their centuries old way of life as the fairies are, or would be if they were real.
This reality of this last is a matter which Littlewood also keeps hidden - there is no out and out splurge of horror or the supernatural here, only things (such as Helena's midnight walks, her strange use of the local dialect, or the cleaning of the house) which are suggestive. I'd go so far as to say that she writes the book in such a manner that neither a purely rationalistic explanation nor a clear supernatural one quite fits. This produces an unease throughout the story, paralleling the odder and odder behaviour of Helena and, especially, Albie. It's clear that there has been more going on in Albie's mind with regard to Lizzie than is healthy for the state of his marriage and I'd suspect it's been going on longer than he admits. (Another way the unease is heightened is through numerous references to clocks and other timepieces, to time lost track of, to the fact that the summer ought to be ending but isn't: most notable, to the church clock with three hands so it can show not only London but local time - what is the time, really? Perhaps we're not in 1862 any more...)
So the horror comes not only from a straightforwardly supernatural threat but from a real sense of unease at what seems to be a relationship fragmenting slowly before our eyes, and the fear of what that might lead to (the book exposes, without being heavy handed, how the belief in child-swapping fairies is helpful in legitimising not only wife but child murder) as well as a loss of hold on time itself, which becomes slippery and inconstant.
All of Littlewood's previous books had some sense of ambiguity, of being between two worlds, but The Hidden People makes it much more perfect, producing a story that's exquisitely unsettling rather than out-and-out Gothic (yet also, clearly at least second cousin to all those tales of mistreated wives shut up or driven to an early grave which were so popular in the period described here).
Strongly recommended.
September 23, 2016
I received this book for free from NetGalley in return for an honest review and I forgot what section I found this in. My usual genre is fantasy, not mystery, which made reading this book a pretty great experience.
Albert, a gentlemanly Victorian Londoner, heads to Yorkshire when he hears about his cousin being burned to death by her husband because he thought she was a changeling. At first Albert just wants to sort out his cousin's affairs, spurred on by a sense of guilt that he ignored her while she was alive, and a golden memory of the only time they met. He gets way too embroiled in the weird superstition going on the Yorkshire village and ends up in something of a battle between city rationality and rural belief in the supernatural.
First, the writing: I honestly thought fairies were going to walk out and dance around at any given moment in this novel. Partially because of the aforementioned uncertainty over the genre of the book, but partially because Littlewood does a great job creating the atmosphere of the place. The landscape, the people, the cousin's cottage, are all explored very well. It may have helped that I come from roughly the area described so it was easy for me to slot in the beautiful fields I passed daily, the Victorian cottages, the country lanes. The descriptions made me pretty nostalgic for home, despite the fact that the people in the book and in reality are often ... questionable.
The people are rendered well. This is written in first person from Albert's point of view and he's pretty snooty about the local people so doesn't get close to any of them. Still, his brief interactions with other characters always left me feeling like there was more behind them, they weren't merely vehicles for the story.
The Yorkshire dialogue was just spectacular. Or, as we say in Yorkshire, reet good. At first I got a bit annoyed because there are a lot of contractions. Yorkshirians really like to miss off their Hs and cut 'the' into 't' and Littlewood writes out every single one of these. If dialect irritates you a lot, probably best to stay away from this book, but I forgave it fairly quickly because it is SPOT ON. All the weird little turns of phrase, the grammar, the pronunciation of Yorkshire ... so perfect. Apparently this is because she's from Doncaster, but I lived most of my life in Yorkshire and I couldn't do the dialect justice so I'm impressed.
The writing style is pretty Victorian, but I think it does a good job of balancing that for modern readers. I got a Dickensian feeling from it without the boredom I get from actual Dickens. According to the acknowledgements, Littlewood wrote this as a response to "Sherlock Holmes Abroad" so I'm guessing this isn't her usual style, but she certainly knows how to use words.
The plot itself is a mixture of murder mystery--except you already know the murderer you just don't know the events that drove him to it--and some kind of descent into madness narrative. It felt a little bit Yellow Wallpaper in that you were watching someone gradually lose it. Taking a step back it was relatively easy to see how irrationally Albert began to act, but part of my brain kept thinking "but what if there are fairies?????" just like Albert.
It's a pretty slow book. The story doesn't rattle along, it unfolds, and maybe you're not quite sure where it's unfolding to but for me that was part of the enjoyment and part of the mystery.
I was pretty happy with the plot until right at the very very end when I went from being satisfied to wondering what was going on and what was the point of it all. I'm just going to pretend the last few pages didn't happen because I did thoroughly enjoy the rest.
I wouldn't say it's impossible to predict this story, but it felt unpredictable to me. Unbalanced. Uncertain. It all added to the tense atmosphere. All in all, if you're wanting a mystery and like a bit of wordy Victorianism, you might well enjoy this.
Albert, a gentlemanly Victorian Londoner, heads to Yorkshire when he hears about his cousin being burned to death by her husband because he thought she was a changeling. At first Albert just wants to sort out his cousin's affairs, spurred on by a sense of guilt that he ignored her while she was alive, and a golden memory of the only time they met. He gets way too embroiled in the weird superstition going on the Yorkshire village and ends up in something of a battle between city rationality and rural belief in the supernatural.
First, the writing: I honestly thought fairies were going to walk out and dance around at any given moment in this novel. Partially because of the aforementioned uncertainty over the genre of the book, but partially because Littlewood does a great job creating the atmosphere of the place. The landscape, the people, the cousin's cottage, are all explored very well. It may have helped that I come from roughly the area described so it was easy for me to slot in the beautiful fields I passed daily, the Victorian cottages, the country lanes. The descriptions made me pretty nostalgic for home, despite the fact that the people in the book and in reality are often ... questionable.
The people are rendered well. This is written in first person from Albert's point of view and he's pretty snooty about the local people so doesn't get close to any of them. Still, his brief interactions with other characters always left me feeling like there was more behind them, they weren't merely vehicles for the story.
The Yorkshire dialogue was just spectacular. Or, as we say in Yorkshire, reet good. At first I got a bit annoyed because there are a lot of contractions. Yorkshirians really like to miss off their Hs and cut 'the' into 't' and Littlewood writes out every single one of these. If dialect irritates you a lot, probably best to stay away from this book, but I forgave it fairly quickly because it is SPOT ON. All the weird little turns of phrase, the grammar, the pronunciation of Yorkshire ... so perfect. Apparently this is because she's from Doncaster, but I lived most of my life in Yorkshire and I couldn't do the dialect justice so I'm impressed.
The writing style is pretty Victorian, but I think it does a good job of balancing that for modern readers. I got a Dickensian feeling from it without the boredom I get from actual Dickens. According to the acknowledgements, Littlewood wrote this as a response to "Sherlock Holmes Abroad" so I'm guessing this isn't her usual style, but she certainly knows how to use words.
The plot itself is a mixture of murder mystery--except you already know the murderer you just don't know the events that drove him to it--and some kind of descent into madness narrative. It felt a little bit Yellow Wallpaper in that you were watching someone gradually lose it. Taking a step back it was relatively easy to see how irrationally Albert began to act, but part of my brain kept thinking "but what if there are fairies?????" just like Albert.
It's a pretty slow book. The story doesn't rattle along, it unfolds, and maybe you're not quite sure where it's unfolding to but for me that was part of the enjoyment and part of the mystery.
I was pretty happy with the plot until right at the very very end when I went from being satisfied to wondering what was going on and what was the point of it all. I'm just going to pretend the last few pages didn't happen because I did thoroughly enjoy the rest.
I wouldn't say it's impossible to predict this story, but it felt unpredictable to me. Unbalanced. Uncertain. It all added to the tense atmosphere. All in all, if you're wanting a mystery and like a bit of wordy Victorianism, you might well enjoy this.
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November 3, 2016
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With such a gorgeous cover and an intriguing synopsis, I was super excited to read The Hidden People by Alison Littlewood. Slow to build, the pacing was problematic enough that it knocked the rating down two stars to three. Other than the pacing, the characters and story itself were absolutely fantastic! An amazing mystery that messes with your mind and keeps you wondering what is happening from start to end.
The characters were extremely interesting and well developed. The narrator was fantastic and reminded me of Edgar Allan Poe's narrators in which they are strong of conviction and slowly begin to wonder if they are slowly giving in to madness or if madness is suddenly invading the real world. Leading him to wonder whether he is going insane is his wife Helena and her erratic behavior. While I know her behavior was altered to make the reader and narrator wonder whether she was herself or a fae changeling, it didn't seem to make sense at the end, with the explanations given after everything unravels. I can't go into it further without getting into spoilers so I'll leave it at that. Mrs. Gomersal is perfect at her role as well, just so well developed and complex.
The story itself is great and leaves you as a reader confused and constantly wondering what is happening. Are changelings real? Are they not? What is happening? Then once the reveal happens, everything clicks and you realize what a fool you were for not seeing it earlier. It was incredibly well thought out and put together.
Pacing, however, was a big issue for this book. It didn't pick up for me until around the 50% mark. It was a big hurdle. I kept having to push myself to keep going, telling myself it would pick up. It did, but if I hadn't stuck with it, I would never have known have great it was in the end.
The Hidden People by Alison Littlewood has fantastic characters and plot, but with troubling pacing, it will take a dedicated reader to reach the payoff.
// I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this title. //
October 25, 2016
Originally posted on:> http://lauraslittlebookblog.blogspot....
The Hidden People was a book that I heard about back in May at the Headline and Quercus Autumn highlights event and I was very intrigued to read it.
Lizzie Higgs has been burnt by her husband who believed her to be a changeling, a fairy who was not part of this world. But is she actually a changeling as her husband thought she was? When her cousin Albert hears of her death, despite having only met her once, he takes it upon himself to go to Yorkshire to sort out her affairs, feeling guilty he did not make more of an effort to see her when she was alive. However once there the mystery surrounding her death is not something Albert can't ignore, but in a place where superstition and reality are blurred, he begins to wonder if the hidden people are more real than he thinks.
The Hidden People had a very Victorian Gothic vibe and reminded me very much of Wuthering Heights, which actually has a side role in this story. This was also very much felt in the atmosphere that was created around the story. It really did have that mysterious and eery feel to the story. It felt as if at any moment a fairy would appear and like Albert, our sense of what was real and what was unreal started to become questionable.
The villagers in Halfoak always remain elusive to Albert and the reader, this is in part due to Albert's snobbishness, but we learn enough to know that the characters are shifty and not to be trusted. There is always that sense of unease and the not knowing what to believe.
Although we already know who Lizzie's murderer is, we still don't know how exactly her murder came about. The mystery unfolds gradually and whilst this had it good points, there was a stage where I did want the story to reach it's climax as it seemed to be skirting around the edges a bit too much.
You never know what to believe whilst reading this and the ending came as quite the surprise and everything suddenly fitted into place. Although the pace was a little bit too slow for my liking, the book creates a fantastic atmosphere and a was pleasantly surprised with the ending. If you are looking for an eery read this Halloween, then The Hidden People makes for the perfect read.
The Hidden People was a book that I heard about back in May at the Headline and Quercus Autumn highlights event and I was very intrigued to read it.
Lizzie Higgs has been burnt by her husband who believed her to be a changeling, a fairy who was not part of this world. But is she actually a changeling as her husband thought she was? When her cousin Albert hears of her death, despite having only met her once, he takes it upon himself to go to Yorkshire to sort out her affairs, feeling guilty he did not make more of an effort to see her when she was alive. However once there the mystery surrounding her death is not something Albert can't ignore, but in a place where superstition and reality are blurred, he begins to wonder if the hidden people are more real than he thinks.
The Hidden People had a very Victorian Gothic vibe and reminded me very much of Wuthering Heights, which actually has a side role in this story. This was also very much felt in the atmosphere that was created around the story. It really did have that mysterious and eery feel to the story. It felt as if at any moment a fairy would appear and like Albert, our sense of what was real and what was unreal started to become questionable.
The villagers in Halfoak always remain elusive to Albert and the reader, this is in part due to Albert's snobbishness, but we learn enough to know that the characters are shifty and not to be trusted. There is always that sense of unease and the not knowing what to believe.
Although we already know who Lizzie's murderer is, we still don't know how exactly her murder came about. The mystery unfolds gradually and whilst this had it good points, there was a stage where I did want the story to reach it's climax as it seemed to be skirting around the edges a bit too much.
You never know what to believe whilst reading this and the ending came as quite the surprise and everything suddenly fitted into place. Although the pace was a little bit too slow for my liking, the book creates a fantastic atmosphere and a was pleasantly surprised with the ending. If you are looking for an eery read this Halloween, then The Hidden People makes for the perfect read.
October 30, 2016
I haven't read many stories that are very dark and gothic but this one was all that and so much more. A lot different from some of the creepy books I've read this month but a lot more spookier. The Hidden People is very gripping and a story you just want to read until the end, even if it does give you the chills.
Set in the 1800s - Albie has only met his cousin, Lizzie, once when he was younger. But, the news of her death saddens him and makes him question what happened to the wonderful girl he met all those years ago. He travels to her home town of Halfoak where most people believe there are fairies around, The Hidden People.
He moves into her home and suddenly can't separate fact from fiction as the locals tell him of the tales of The Hidden People, how they take people and replace them with changelings. His wife arrives but things don't seem to be going well between them. She starts to act a little strange and before he knows it he is all caught up in the superstition surrounding this town and his cousins death.
Alison does a really great job of writing this book. She really brings the whole story to life and the dark moments.
It was great reading about this mystery and reading about it all unraveling, it really added to the tense atmosphere of the book. It makes you question certain things and you never know what to believe until the end and that's what kept me gripped from the beginning. Wanting to figure out what happens and figure out what was real and not. A fantastic book from Alison, a dark, gothic, story that any reader will love at this time of year!
Set in the 1800s - Albie has only met his cousin, Lizzie, once when he was younger. But, the news of her death saddens him and makes him question what happened to the wonderful girl he met all those years ago. He travels to her home town of Halfoak where most people believe there are fairies around, The Hidden People.
He moves into her home and suddenly can't separate fact from fiction as the locals tell him of the tales of The Hidden People, how they take people and replace them with changelings. His wife arrives but things don't seem to be going well between them. She starts to act a little strange and before he knows it he is all caught up in the superstition surrounding this town and his cousins death.
Alison does a really great job of writing this book. She really brings the whole story to life and the dark moments.
It was great reading about this mystery and reading about it all unraveling, it really added to the tense atmosphere of the book. It makes you question certain things and you never know what to believe until the end and that's what kept me gripped from the beginning. Wanting to figure out what happens and figure out what was real and not. A fantastic book from Alison, a dark, gothic, story that any reader will love at this time of year!
November 13, 2017
Read it a while ago and I just loved it. I have always been into novels that invest in atmospheric details and I received plenty of it here. Changeling is a subject that I had only heard about vaguely and it was extremely fascinating to read a whole book about these Hidden People. Very satisfied with this read and I look forward to more works by the author
September 7, 2020
Best book I’ve read in a long time. Deep, dark, dreary...suggestive between the lines. The ability of the author to put you in her own setting. I loved it. If you get a chance to read The Hidden People by Alison Littlewood. Do it! Especially if you like the Bronte sisters.
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July 1, 2021In “The Hidden People” by Alison Littlewood, the reader is transported to Victorian England. Told in the first person by Albie, an upper middle class English gent, this story begins in the 1850’s when Albie met his charming chartreuse cousin, Lizzie. Years later, Albie, who has idealized his cousin from this one-time meeting, is dismayed to hear of her horrifying death. He feels honor-bound to settle Lizzie’s affairs and becomes embroiled in the superstitions of a small village in northern England. Albie’s jealous wife’s appearance further complicates matters.
This story is largely inspired by the 1895 real-life “capgrass” murder case of Brigit Cleary whose husband was convinced she was a changeling left by the fairies.
In this ambling, atmospheric story, Ms. Littlewood imitates Victorian speech patterns and feelings of Anglo-superiority. The lead character is, therefore, frustrating. He romantically idealizes a woman he met once while ignoring his own wife. He scoffs at the “simple peasants,” yet toys with their fairy beliefs. Worse, he withholds evidence and ignores the law. In all, though, it is an interesting tale.
This story is largely inspired by the 1895 real-life “capgrass” murder case of Brigit Cleary whose husband was convinced she was a changeling left by the fairies.
In this ambling, atmospheric story, Ms. Littlewood imitates Victorian speech patterns and feelings of Anglo-superiority. The lead character is, therefore, frustrating. He romantically idealizes a woman he met once while ignoring his own wife. He scoffs at the “simple peasants,” yet toys with their fairy beliefs. Worse, he withholds evidence and ignores the law. In all, though, it is an interesting tale.
September 1, 2018
Enjoyed this one a lot. It's an atmospheric tale with a sense of things not being quite right rather than outright horror. Definitely recommended if you like your uncanny fiction to get under your skin.
April 16, 2023
Bought on sale. Thought it was a gothic mystery. It’s actually kind of like if you bought _Johnathan Strange & Mr. Norrell_ from Wish. I’m not into Fae mythos and this is full on Fae. Not my cup of tea.
DNF but you may like if you groove on Fae.
DNF but you may like if you groove on Fae.
July 23, 2025
I found myself really enjoying a traditional fae folk tale. This however flipped the usual narrative on its head and I found myself questioning everything I knew about 'hidden people' . This was definitely a change of pace for my usual reads. Thoroughly enjoyable and would read again!
August 16, 2018
Boring, repetitive garbage, a disappointing train-station purchase.
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