In The Heart of Hidden Things by Kit Whitfield

(Jo Fletcher Books, 2022)

Reviewed by Dave M. Roberts

Kit Whitfield’s previous novels took an interesting and different approach to very familiar fantasy tropes, dealing with the werewolf and mermaid myths. Some thirteen years since her previous novel, In The Heart of Hidden Things takes on the realm of faerie, or The People as they are referred to. More accurately, it deals with the lives of the ordinary people who have to live on the edges of their realm and cope with the unpredictable behaviour. The story is centred on the Smiths, the Fairy-smiths of the village, much of whose trade is concerned with containing The People in the forests, deterring them from their human interactions. Even when The People take a liking to someone, their behaviour can be disconcerting, such as changing all the milk and butter blue or either messing or tidying up people’s homes, depending on how they find them.

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Review from BSFA Review 19 - Download your copy here.