“He says my name sometimes. Tells me to come to the tree.”
Richard and Juliette Willoughby are grieving after the death of their five-year-old son, Ewan, and this may be manifesting itself in different ways. Richard has become obsessed with digging up the field opposite their house in search of the legendary Stythwaite Oak. It seems that Juliette feels Ewan’s presence in their home and after a visit from a group called The Beacons and after Richard digs up the skeleton of a hare in the field and brings it back to the house things take a peculiar and otherworldly turn.
This novel tackles the difficult subjects of grief, in particular losing a child whilst also approaching the subjects of family and tradition.
Andrew Michael Hurley has written Starve Acre beautifully using atmospheric, dark descriptions that make the surroundings leap from the page. The starkness and bleakness of the countryside create a feeling of coldness throughout and I felt as though I witnessed the novel in black and white.
Starve Acre is home to a small cast of wonderfully written and well-developed characters whom I grew to like and dislike in equal measure.
My only complaint is that I would have enjoyed spending more time here, another hundred pages perhaps, and have had the scenes with Jack Grey explored further. But that is just me being greedy.
Starve Acre is a wonderfully creepy, disturbing and beautifully written story with an ending to strike horror into even the hardest of readers.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Starve Acre and will definitely go back and read Andrew Michael Hurley’s previous work.
Thank you to John Murray Press, NetGalley and Readers first for the opportunity to read this book.