Once Was Willem

In Once Was Willem, M. R. Carey's gorgeous prose weaves a fable full of dread and wonder, a deeply intelligent and emotionally gripping story boasting one of the nastiest sorcerers you'll ever meet, and a narrator as inwardly gentle as he is outwardly monstrous. A masterpiece of medieval dark fiction. I love this book. Highest recommendation. * Christopher Buehlman, author of BETWEEN TWO FIRES *
An incredible masterwork of medieval fantasy-horror, dark and twisted and burning bright with humanity. Once Was Willem is packed with magic, folklore, superstitious fear, and horrors that bring hope. * Cameron Johnston, author of THE MALEFICENT SEVEN *
A delicious blend of horror, fantasy and historical fiction, Once Was Willem gave me exactly what I crave most as a reader - the unexpected. That, and a main character I would fight to the undeath for. A unique and brilliant book that leaves you wanting an immediate sequel * Jen Williams, British Fantasy Award-winning author of THE NINTH RAIN *
A wild fever-dream of a novel. It's a brilliant, coherent, complex story that I'm not sure anyone else alive could have written - complicated and beautiful, monstrous and ultimately human * Seanan McGuire, Hugo Award-winning author *
It's a long time since a book has reached out and just entirely enveloped me in its world the way Once Was Willem did. Astounding, and I loved every moment of it - it had me absolutely rapt. * RJ Barker, author of THE BONE SHIPS *
It's so absurdly fun and readable, you nearly miss the incredible use of language and lore. Lovable grotesques and ghastly villains populate a compelling folk-tale. Absolutely wonderful * Gareth Hanrahan, author of THE GUTTER PRAYER *
Carey crafts an empathetic portrait of a medieval monster as a young man in thisrevelatory dark fantasy . . . Willem, the cherished son of a farmer, dies at age 12 in Cosham village. His grieving parents reluctantly allow malignant magician Cain Caradoc to raise Willem from the dead in exchange for a tithing from the boy's soul, which Caradoc uses to maintain his foothold in immortality. But after the boy gruesomely rises from his grave, outrageously ugly and no longer quite Willem, his parents and the whole village reject him as monstrous . . . Once-Was-Willem finds unusual nonhuman allies, and chronicles their lurid backstories and bloody struggles to free the town of Cosham from Caradoc with wit and compassion, building to a wonderfully satisfying climax. Powerful, captivating, and occasionally stomach-churning, this quintessential tale of good and evil is sure to win fans. * PUBLISHERS WEEKLY *
It's a long time since a book has reached out and just entirely enveloped me in its world the way Once Was Willem did. Astounding, and I loved every moment of it - it had me absolutely rapt. * RJ Barker, author of THE BONE SHIPS *
It's so absurdly fun and readable, you nearly miss the incredible use of language and lore. Lovable grotesques and ghastly villains populate a compelling folk-tale. Absolutely wonderful. * Gareth Hanrahan, author of THE GUTTER PRAYER *