The Twisted Ones

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. The novel blends the witty, modern voice of its narrator with intense folk horror. How did this combination of humor and cosmic dread work for you? Did the humor enhance the horror by making Mouse more relatable, or did it occasionally pull you out of the experience? Knowing that this blend of humor and horror is a feature of T. Kingfisher’s novels, are you inclined to explore her other works, such as A House with Good Bones?

2. The Author’s Note explicitly connects The Twisted Ones to Arthur Machen’s classic story “The White People.” Were you familiar with Machen’s work before reading this book? How does knowing this connection, or learning about it now, change your perspective on the novel’s use of found manuscripts and ancient evils?

3. What was the most genuinely unsettling moment or image for you in the book? Was it a supernatural encounter, like the deer effigy at the window, or something more grounded in human behavior, like the description of the grandmother’s relentless cruelty?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Mouse travels to a very isolated rural setting to clean out her grandmother’s house. Have you ever felt a sense of unease or otherworldliness in a remote or unfamiliar place? What aspects of the North Carolina woods setting resonated with your own experiences of nature?

2. Cotgrave’s journal and the Green Book manuscript are central to the plot. What is the most interesting or mysterious object you’ve ever found, like an old diary, a box of letters, or a strange family heirloom? What story did it seem to tell?

3. Bongo is Mouse’s loyal companion throughout her ordeal, serving as an emotional anchor and a connection to the normal world. Have you ever had a similar bond with an animal companion?

4. Mouse often uses sarcastic wit as a coping mechanism when faced with overwhelming horror. How do you or the people around you use different emotional tools to manage fear and stress?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. The novel is part of the folk horror tradition, which often explores the clash between modernity and older, rural traditions. What does The Twisted Ones suggest about the modern relationship with the wilderness and forgotten folklore? Does the story feel uniquely American in its setting and concerns?

2. The novel uses the grandmother’s hoarding to build atmosphere and character. Do you feel it portrays hoarding, which can be a symptom of mental illness, with sensitivity, or primarily as a horror device to create a threatening environment?

3. Mouse finds crucial support not from her biological family, who practice avoidance, but from her new neighbors at the commune. What does the novel seem to say about the importance of “found family” versus biological family, especially when dealing with inherited trauma? How does this dynamic reflect broader cultural ideas about community?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. The story is told through nested texts: Mouse’s retrospective account, Cotgrave’s journal, and the Green Book manuscript. What effect did reading a story within a story have on your experience of the horror? Did you find it an effective vehicle for conveying The Double-Edged Power of Narrative?

2. Mouse’s mother died when she was young, and her grandmother was notably abusive. To what extent does Foxy serve as a maternal or grandmotherly figure?

3. The effigies, or “poppets,” are a recurring motif that connects the novel’s domestic and supernatural horror. What are some other ways Kingfisher establishes parallels between the two storylines or worlds?

4. T. Kingfisher is known for fantasy novels like Nettle & Bone that often feature pragmatic, relatable heroines. For those who have read her other works, how does Mouse compare to Kingfisher’s other protagonists? How does the author’s distinctive narrative voice translate from fantasy to the folk horror genre?

5. The novel explores duality in many forms: For instance, the carved stones are both art and a threat, while the grandmother is both a human tormentor and a supernatural shield. Where else did you see this kind of duality at play, and what purpose does it serve in the novel’s overall message about reality?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Foxy gives Mouse a hickory-wood rosary as a protective talisman from the “normal” world. If you had to create a talisman to ward off the “weirdness” of the holler people, what would it be made of? What everyday object or material from our world do you think would have the most power against them, and why?

2. If you discovered an effigy near your own home, what local materials and discarded items would it be made from, and what might its form reveal about your community’s fears or history?