Buckle up, lovelies, it’s time to talk about one of my favorite books of all time. Moira Fowley-Doyle’s The Accident Season is perhaps one of the best examples of magical realism that I’ve come across in recent years. Fans of ambiguous magic and not entirely reliable narrators will no doubt find delight in this story, as I have.
Greatest Hits:
The gothic setting of the abandoned house, the weaving of description with imaginative imagery and metaphors (both visual and textual) make this an incredibly immersive story to read. The foreshadowing is done so skillfully that on a first read through, you might not even know you’re being given clues until they begin to tie together.
One incredibly impressive thing I noticed in this story was the romantic tension. Without delving too much into spoilers, what I can say is that the romantic pairings in this story could very easily have come off awkward and forced. The skill it took for the author to write these relationships in a way that felt believable and organic is evident in every scene, every page. Whenever the love interests encounter one another, the book feels electric, and readers are pulled almost magnetically into the midst of their angst-filled character arcs.
Every single character was memorable, to such an extent that arguably, they are all protagonists. In many works, this would’ve made the story feel too vast, too messy to really focus in on. Fowley-Doyle has taken on this ambitious ensemble cast and done it so well that it’s almost possible to forget what a gargantuan task that is for a writer. Even the dialogue, that dreaded thing which so many talented writers fall short on, felt as real and organic as if the author had simply transcribed it from life- as if the characters were alive. And as fantastic as this book was, I have to believe that to the author, they were.
My Conclusion:
Set aside a day to read this book, because you won’t be putting it down until you’ve finished it. This book was thoroghly engaging and perfect for fans of the gothic genre, as well as readers who enjoyed the works of Nova Ren Suma and Rosemary Clement-Moore. Worth buying in hardback or requesting at your local library, this book is one readers will enjoy through multiple reads. Happy reading!
-Kat
Kat Pollock 