3.5? I sort of expected more movie stuff.

An interesting idea that gets bogged down by too much story. The main character is captivating and complex, and the story of her navigating her life as an undead child in the world of the cinema is unique. Unfortunately, there is a point in the novel when it seems like the author is less in control of the story than the story is in control of him. There's just too much here that needs not be here.

Review for Monster Librarian forthcoming.

My main issue with this book was the disconnect between title and tone. The title suggested to me something far more lighthearted. The actual book is quite dark and occasionally deeply disturbing, and as I have no nostalgia for golden age horror cinema it just really did not resonate with me.

This was an unexpected and strange book. A girl dies during the Spanish influenza pandemic of 1918, and comes back to life thanks to some last minute conjuring by her mother, who also dies and reanimates thanks to the same magic. Maddy, the girl, abandoned by her free-spirit mother, goes on to pair up with a World War I veteran she calls Mutter, and finds herself caught up in the early days of filmmaking. Kind of a creepy Forrest Gump, she finds herself part of major points in cinematic history, from the horror films of German Expressionism to the glory days of Universal's monster movies. Characters like Lon Chaney, Boris Karloff, James Whale, and Tod Browning have supporting roles.

Fans of Hollywood's golden age and filmmaking buffs will sit through this one, but there's something missing to pull it all together and make it unputdownable.

I thought the plot involving Maddy and classic horror films in old Hollywood was very interesting, but there were some aspects of the novel, such as Maddy and her relationship to Volker, that were a little off-putting.

I really liked the main premise of this book and all the parts that dealt with movie-making. It could have done without all the sexual abuse and the entire Nazi holocaust section felt squeezed in. An interesting take on real horror vs horror films.