This month we are discussing Starling House by Alix E. Harrow.
Content Warning!!! Before reading this book please be aware it contains situations and subjects related to: classism, racism, drugs, alcohol, death of a parent, murder, and blood/injury description.
Spoiler Warning!!! This post is full of spoilers for Starling House by Alix E. Harrow.
Discussion:
Michaela: Hello friends and welcome to our discussion of Starling House by Alix E. Harrow! This book really jump started us into the spooky season. I really enjoyed the atmosphere with this book. It also had so many elements I love in a story like the haunted house/a house that’s alive, the mysterious love interest, the creepy crawlies, the small town drama. I love it, right up my street for sure.
Jac: This book had the perfect amount of spookiness to it for me. I can handle some mild horror, depending on the type, but in general I tend to prefer a dose of creepy and spooky over anything else. I think Harrow does a really good job of building the atmosphere in Eden - I could feel the weight of living in that town, with the poisoned river and the smoke in the air, as I read. It mirrored the weight that Opal was carrying on her own shoulders, to protect her brother and provide him with the stability their mother was never able to provide. I gotta tell you, there were some points where I had to take some breaks because I know so deeply what it’s like to be a homeless teen with younger siblings to be responsible for, and I know what it’s like to lose a mother entirely too early.
Michaela: I thought the character of Opal and the things she went through were written really well and made her feel real. Despite the story being about a haunted house with a door to an underworld of monsters in it, the whole town, the characters, and the stakes all felt serious and believable for me. I felt like it was a lot more character focused than on the creepy stuff which I didn’t hate but I do wish there had been more interactions with the creepy elements to the story.
The ending, as well, I liked it while at the same time wishing there was more to that ending at the same time. But the history with Nora and the real events compared to the children’s book version she wrote was fascinating to read. Then learning that the house began to act on its own accord to find guardians for itself and then cared for them. Tell me why a sentient house makes me want to weep.
Jac: I really enjoyed the layered storytelling. It mimics real life - how there can be a handful of histories, ones that may begin as true and then become warped over time. Eleanor/Nora’s story gutted me. I suspected awful things, but each story we heard of Starling House was worse than the last and hers was truly a nightmare. She was partially the villain, but she only existed as that because she was first a victim of those horrible men. I cried for her at the end, of this pain and loneliness she’s experienced for generations. She created a home that called for the homeless and the lost, that gave the Wardens love if it received it in return, and it’s particularly heartbreaking to me that she never got to truly experience that love. I see a lot of her echoed in both Arthur AND Opal.
Michaela: I truly thought it was beautiful that the “villain” was a parallel of the two main characters and that her villainy was very grey area based. I thought the author also had a good understanding of the dark side of small towns and the secrets that get pushed under the rug so much that everyone starts to “forget” and accept new truths. Having lived in a small town, though obviously not one as dark as this one, it felt realistic and fantastical all at once. Also, Bev was the best character, I love her. Her and Charlotte deserve the world.
This story gave me similar vibes to Fairy Tale by Stephen King, which also involves a house built with a whole to another world under it, which I really enjoyed. Also, had a little bit of a Stranger Things vibe as well, something else I like. Basically this book was a perfect fall read for me. I kind of wish we had had more of a journey through the Underland. Nora’s book felt very Alice in Wonderland so I was expecting some sort of journey like that even if it was all crammed in at the end.
Jac: It definitely had some parallels to both Beauty and the Beast and Alice in Wonderland which was a cool mashup. I really liked that the Beasts ended up kind of trying to help the town in the long run, by not allowing Eleanor to bring the ash pond yuck into the river itself.
I loved Charlotte and Bev. We all know that Shelf Explored loves a good found family story. I’m glad that the epilogue mentioned that those two and Jasper would come visit the Starling House. That visual was lovely.
Speaking of visuals, the illustrations peppered throughout the book were very cool. I think my favorite one was of Opal laying in the river on her back, with the beasts below the surface of the water. They perfectly complemented the spooky/beauty vibe of Starling house.
I do kind of wish we got a little bit of insight into how the house acted once the Beasts were gone. Did it lose its sentience when it no longer had people to protect? Or did it continue to flourish under the care and attention that Opal and Arthur gave it once they came back from their seemingly long “vacation” into Underland.
Well friends, that’s it for this month’s book. Thank you for joining us, and we’ll see you next time!