The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion

Danielle Cain #1

by Margaret Killjoy

Danielle Cain is a queer punk rock traveller, jaded from a decade on the road. Searching for clues about her best friend’s mysterious and sudden suicide, she ventures to the squatter, utopian town of Freedom, Iowa. All is not well in Freedom, however: things went awry after the town’s residents summoned a protector spirit to serve as their judge and executioner.

Danielle shows up in time to witness the spirit—a blood-red, three-antlered deer—begin to turn on its summoners. Danielle and her new friends have to act fast if they’re going to save the town—or get out alive.

Genres: Horror, Fantasy, Novella, Fiction, Queer, LGBT, Urban Fantasy

130 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 15, 2017

About the author

Margaret Killjoy is a transfeminine author and editor currently based in the Appalachian mountains. Her most recent book is an anarchist demon hunters novella called The Barrow Will Send What it May, published by Tor.com. She spends her time crafting and complaining about authoritarian power structures and she blogs at birdsbeforethestorm.net.

Reviews

[Jesse (JesseTheReader) · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

Great ideas, but lackluster execution in my opinion! :(

[Melanie (meltotheany) · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC provided by Tor in exchange for an honest review.

“The revolution is about taking power away from the oppressors, not becoming them ourselves.”

Friends, pick up this so underhyped, yet so deserving of more hype, novella. I am blown away. Within 100 pages, this book was able to create a beautifully diverse cast, talk about some pretty important issues, showcases a homeless main character, show the beauty of unconditional-loving found families, and it even gave me some pretty gothic spooky animals. This was amazing, and I think truly believe so many of my book friends would love it.

The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion follows Danielle Cain entering a new town of squatters, who have turned this little town in Iowa into something so damn special. In Freedom, Iowa these people have come together and created a community that truly believes in helping everyone and making sure everyone is treated equally and equally giving and taking from the community. Danielle is twenty-eight and has been moving from place to place for the last ten years. But Danielle sought-after this town specifically, because it was the last place her best friend lived before committing suicide.

“No cops, no bosses, no landlords. No poverty. No laws. Hard work and community and freedom and all the shit that we ought to have.”

And right off the bat, when Danielle meets Vulture, he asks her which pronouns she prefers, and then tells Danielle which pronouns he uses. It was so easy, but so important, and I wish we lived in a world where this was the standard when meeting someone. And it started the book off in such a great way for me.

Yet, on the first day Danielle comes to town, a man dies, pretty brutally, from a monster deer demon, named Uliksi, that was summoned to kill anyone in the town that tries to gain power over anyone. Yeah, you read that sentence right. And this tale quickly turns into a mystery of if Uliksi has turned against the town, or if this mystical deer is still only after those who have committed evil acts.

“Uliksi hunts the vengeful, the hateful. As Clay put it, Uliksi hunts those who wield power over others.”

These 100 pages hold such a magical story, but like I said above, they also hold such important themes and discussions. This book talks about the importance of pronouns. This book has an almost full queer cast, with a lot of racial diversity, too. Then, there are discussions to be had about how we live in the most powerful country in the world, but we give some citizens nothing, and others everything. And at the heart of this novella, it is a book about power imbalances, and how people misuse that power for the good of only themselves. Different power dynamics are always at the forefront of this book. Danielle has a panic attack in this book, and it is written exactly how mine feel. This was probably the most accurate description to my personal feelings when having (and starting) one, that I’ve ever read. Also, this book starts by Danielle wanting to go to the last lived in town of her best friend who killed themselves. And there is absolutely no suicide shaming in this book. There is a part where someone asks Danielle if she is upset and she says something like, “only at the world” and I was weeping. Perfection.

“We do good things too, but you don’t get props for not hurting people.”

Trigger/Content Warnings: mention of suicide, mention of rape, animal death, death of a friend/loved one, abuse, violence, and gore. Also, just in case I did a sub-par job at explaining it: this is a horror novel, so it’s a tad bit on the spooky side, so use caution.

“For the past year, we’ve had this benevolent, murderous spirit watching over us. Which is weird, but it’s gone fine.”

This is such a unique story too, because even though it is set in modern day times, with Instagram, the internet, and iPhones, it still feels and reads dystopian. But I loved this, I loved the aesthetic, I loved every emotion this short book was able to evoke from me. This was nothing short of a treat to read. Also, give me all the books about summoning demons, especially monster deer. Thanks.

Danielle finds herself trusting strangers and entering this beautiful found family who truly cares about the members, even though society has turned their backs on them. From witch’s huts, to towns built on trust, to undead animals, to secret notes left in books, I fell in love with this story. And I loved Danielle, but these side characters? Vulture, Thursday, Doomsday, and Brynn have all carved out a special place in my heart and I can’t wait to read more about them and their adventures in The Barrow Will Send What it May! Also, nothing warmed my heart more than Vulture and his Instagram! But please stop sleeping on this book and give this important and wonderful little book a try! I promise, you won’t regret it.

“There’s only a small handful of things in this world that make me happy, and coffee is one of them.”

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[Kaleigh Robbins · Rating 1 out of 5]

Novellas can be a powerful tool when wielded by a competent crafter. The advantage of writing a novella is being able to delve into multiple aspects of one complex idea without having to reach for other sources of conflict. For storytellers more concerned with entertainment than deep thought, novellas are a challenge of self-discipline and creativity. They must tell a satisfying tale while heavily cutting anything that does not develop the narrative.
The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion does none of these things well. The author, Margaret Killjoy (who uses they/them pronouns), attempts to give us the story of an enclave of punk anarchist squatters who summon a vengeful spirit into their midst. The squatters summon this ‘endless spirit,’ a red, three-pronged deer named Uliksi, to dispatch a man who has become a tyrant in the community—wielding too much social and material capital. After killing the man for his crimes, the spirit gradually begins hunting down and killing his summoners. The characters feel compelled to undo the summoning and restore peace to the community. Also the United States is in the midst of, or recovering from, some great conflict and many cities are laying around abandoned. Already this sounds like the kitchen sink of concepts, which is foreboding of the disappointment in payoff to come. But from an outside perspective, I had a lot of perhaps undue faith in the unknown author to take this conglomerate of ideas and ring out something complex and gripping. In fact, I was incredibly excited to begin reading it. It was urban fantasy, it sounded unconventional, and it had a queer main character and supporting cast. There’s not much good queer fantasy out there, and I was desperate to find something of value to add to my shelves. So where does the novella stray from its promising path?
Punk drifter Danielle Cain is heading to the squatter town of Freedom, Iowa looking for answers to her friend Clay’s sudden, unexplained suicide. She quickly bumps into some of the residents of the town, who happen to be punk like her, and they all make a heavy-handed show for the reader of just how counter-culture they are and how cool and ideal that is. When introducing herself to the first person she meets, Danielle notes that her last name “wasn’t my legal name, but it was my punk name.” Then shortly after she notes that her new friends are incredibly friendly and welcoming, like all punks and squatters of course. She notes that they are on the couch, “lounging atop one another in the same way that punks and puppies do.” The statements here and throughout the book smell of the type of shirts that you can buy in teenager-aimed stores like Hot Topic that loudly proclaim “PUNK” across the front in a glaring font to remind their high school peers that they are the real thing. That is, it seems incredibly performative for observers and less meaningful for the people actually practicing it. To be fair, I am unfamiliar with punk culture, so I have no standard to gauge this representation against. But with how often the book insists on reminding the reader that the characters are punk and that punk is the way to be, it would make me think that punks are on a level with overzealous vegans in their insistence on convincing others of the virtue of their lifestyle.
The ideology of the book in general is oversimplified and preachy, when it truly could have been made into so much more. Animal Farm, a much better executed novella that the book references, dealt with the issue of authority by showing that power corrupts when left unchecked. Every aspect of Animal Farm works to explore that one central idea. The Lamb says that all power is inherently evil, but it doesn’t do anything to explore the deeper meaning of that statement. It wastes a good deal of its time expunging on the glory of punk anarchist culture, introducing a zany cast of characters, and bringing up small issues that immediately get resolved. A gay relationship is introduced that immediately falls apart and gets brushed under the rug. A hint of distrust and ulterior motives exists between the main characters that simply gets ignored and goes away over time. Uliksi holds the main character and her love interest hostage in a tree, then he leaves a few hours later and they can go, no problem. Amazingly, there’s a mini-conflict brought up and then destroyed within the space of a page, when some characters seriously contemplate keeping the spirit, then immediately get shot down by the wisdom of the main character, “I’ve been through way too much shit for you to switch sides on me now.” They drop the subject and never bring it up again. None of this is building up to commentary on anything, or at least, not any commentary intended by the author.
The central conflict seems to be this: who has the right to regulate morals in an anarchist society? Apparently no one, since the characters who decided to stand up against the tyrant in their community are punished by the spirit for wielding power over another person. Killjoy seems to say, “Look, I’m showing that judging tyrants is in itself evil, because judgement is wielding power over another person, and wielding power over people is bad.”
Despite how nonsensical it is to say that judgement is an act of evil that must be punished, (wouldn’t the spirit have to kill itself? For that matter, wouldn’t the characters we’re supposed to like be just as bad as the ones they’re fighting?) the author simply drops the subject at that point. The book is spent mostly moving about, wasting pages in various little tangents. The dialogue between the characters delves randomly into exposition and is often bafflingly wooden, “’Clay was my best friend,’ I said. ‘About a month ago, he slit his own throat.’ ‘Fuck,’ Brynn said. ‘That’s hardcore.’” The rest of the time is spent exhibiting how total anarchism plays out without going into any hard-hitting details of their lifestyle. It all just works, and we’re expected to accept that.
It is admittedly nice to see a large cast of queer characters filling roles straight characters get to do, but they get so little development that they, like the story, are underwhelming. Because we only get their identities—gay, queer, trans—and don’t see their characters fleshed out much beyond that, the representation falls flat. It’s also never explained exactly what the situation with United States is at the time; the beginning implication is that the economy has collapsed and a large portion of the country has become unlivable due to environmental hazards. But then one of the characters has an Instagram that he updates compulsively, and another buys a water key off the internet. They are mentioned to be getting food from a food bank, and Danielle drives easily to another state for a funeral, which all requires infrastructure, trade, tech maintenance, and highly developed government. This is all hand-waved as well. One could argue that the entire book is hand-waved.
The resolution of the book is a cluster of missteps. The conflict culminates with Danielle explaining to her new friends and the audience in the most soap-box moment she has that the spirit “was hunting his summoners because his summoners were predators.” Her friend who committed suicide was one of the summoners, so he “he killed himself, because he knew Uliksi was right to be after him” (emphasis hers). I’m still having trouble wrapping my head around this logic, especially since this cure-all solution is presented by her in one paragraph, with only bare-bones support from the previous 100 pages to back it up. In another bizarre reveal, one character admits that she was abused by her husband, so she killed him in relatively cold blood and then killed a few police officers in her escape. Danielle’s only response to this? “Damn.” This implies again that the main characters can do whatever they want, because they are the main characters and consistency with the moral code is inconvenient. Also it ends up that the spirit was leaving anyway because it didn’t feel like being there anymore, so banishing it was a non-issue the whole time. And for the epilogue, the gang decides to go and have a fun time hunting down more spirits without ever questioning the deeper morals of what they’re doing.
The story is inept in the way it handles its moral quandary, writing, dialogue, and plot, but it does have a few bright spots. Killjoy skillfully implies that the main character is trans, though never coming out and saying it, which is a surprising amount of restraint from a book that can’t seem to deal with anything else thoughtfully. They also somewhat convincingly show a community that has integrated acceptance into its very nature. “What pronouns do you prefer?” is dropped on page 18 during Danielle’s first meeting with the townsfolk, and no big deal is made of it. Danielle, a bisexual, begins an explicitly romantic relationship with another girl, Brynn, but they abstain from sex at Brynn’s request. This is treated as perfectly acceptable. It is nice to see both bisexual and celibate (perhaps asexual?) representation played out so front-and-center. Killjoy does have a certain way with words, especially when it comes to the descriptions of the horrific visage of the bloody demon deer and its undead host. Out of everything that the novel does, the images of the supernatural it evokes are what lasts after the reader turns the last page.
Overall, I would not recommend this novella to those looking for a thoughtful or inspiring read. Those who care less about quality and more about pulp entertainment might gain more from it than I did, but I am afraid that they too would find it ultimately disappointing in the final hand-wave of its action. I do wish to see what Killjoy produces in the future, since they did, after all, show a good deal of creativity in conceiving this project, and talent in the short bits of prose describing the dreaded monster stag. The world always needs more queer fantasy, though preferably good queer fantasy. Perhaps as their writing matures so will their interest in thoughtfully developing their work, and creating something more substantial out of it.

[destiny ♡ howling libraries · Rating 5 out of 5]

#1 The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion ★★★★★
#2 The Barrow Will Send What it May ★★★★★

”It’s strange how quickly it’s normal, there being magic in the world. It’s strange how little it changes about who we are as people.”

As a long-time horror fan, the biggest complaint I have had about the genre is how exclusive and problematic it can be. For a long time, it’s been really rare that you would find a horror book (or novella) that didn’t feature only white, straight characters—much less that you would find a story going out of its way to include a vast array of diverse characters and political commentary. When I heard that this series was a queer horror/fantasy storyline? I had to have it, and I was not disappointed in the slightest.

”Clay, he was traveling to try to find home, I was traveling because traveling was home. He wanted something like this, I was afraid of something like this. Someplace that would lure me away from the road. I’m more afraid of growing roots than I’m afraid of anything.”

Danielle’s story works perfectly as a novella, because it drops you right into the action. As soon as she reaches Freedom, Iowa, she’s immediately caught up in a whirlwind of terror, magic, uncertainty, and death. Even though there’s a lot going on, Margaret Killjoy still manages to pack a tremendous amount of backstory and character development into these 112 pages. Danielle is a fantastic anarchistic punk character, complete with a complete disregard for the system, a striking sense of self-awareness, and absolute horror at the thought of ever settling down.

Simple as that, we walked out the door. No money, no accounting, no ration cards, nothing. Trust alone. I’d found a town that worked on trust alone.

Not only do we get to learn so much about these fantastic characters, but Freedom itself is seriously a complete utopia. Everyone is so accepting and caring of one another, and it honestly made my heart ache to think that I don’t know if I’ll ever see a world as open-minded and kind as Freedom, Iowa. There are people of all sexualities and gender identities, all races and ages, slim and thick, short and tall. There are queer people everywhere, and it’s so normalized that nobody feels forced to put a label on their own sexuality or explain who they are or why. One of the very first pieces of dialogue in the story is a character introducing themselves and immediately following it up with, “What are your pronouns?” It was so beautiful and varied and I loved every moment of it.

”So yeah, welcome to Freedom, Iowa. For the past year, we’ve had this benevolent, murderous spirit watching over us. Which is weird, but it’s gone fine.”

Of course, at its core, this is still a horror novella, and it does have some creepy settings and moments that ticked all of my aesthetical checkboxes. There’s a creepy, blood-red, three-antlered deer/demon named Uliksi, who runs with a horde of undead animals of varying species, each with open, empty ribcages. He literally kills people who usurp power over others or bring harm to others, and it helps to keep the town safe from would-be thieves, rapists, murderers, and more, as everyone is stricken by the fear of Uliksi’s judgment falling upon them. It sounds harsh, but as Danielle muses at one point, it gets the job done, and its benefits vastly outweigh its costs.

I wish he’d listened to his own advice, though. I wish he’d kept going. I wish he’d found his way through.

Finally, the last thing that I adored about this book was its stance on suicide. We learn quickly that Danielle’s mission is inspired by a hope of learning why her best friend killed himself, but there is never a single moment of suicide-shaming or mental health-related ableism. When another characters asks Danielle if she’s angry, her unhesitant response is that she’s not angry at her friend, just the world that brought him to that desperate state. While the story does not glorify the act of suicide at all, I think it’s so crucial that it offers this kind take on it: while it’s devastating for those left behind, it’s not an act performed out of malice or cowardice. It’s an act of desperation.

Because he’d decided Freedom was home, and he couldn’t come back. That’s what having a home will do to you. Maybe.

I genuinely cannot explain to you guys, as a queer horror fan, how much this novella’s existence and this author’s work means to me. It was so wonderful to finally see myself represented in a horror story that never vilified me and people like me, or any other marginalized groups. On top of that, the writing itself is just so enjoyable and fluid, the characters are lovable (especially Danielle’s found family, who offer fantastic banter and I hope to spend much more time with in future installments), and like I said, it’s so delightfully macabre in its aesthetic. I am so happy that I took the time to pick up this novella, and I cannot wait to read the sequel!

[Richard Derus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4* of five
...the fuck did I just read...?

#ReadingIsResistance to run-of-the-mill fantasy reads. This ain't your uncle's LotR!

THE LAMB WILL SLAUGHTER THE LION
https://tinyurl.com/y8zkpfw5

4 stars to *really* new Urban Fantasy starring genderqueer, celibate, anarchist punk leads in a life-or-death battle against the cops, the otherworld, and themselves! Tor.com Publishing gets kudos for this great #Booksgiving gift.

[Matt Quann · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favourite things about reading is when I am able to inhabit a perspectives entirely different from my own. Reading is a great way to build empathy because it asks of the reader to abandon their own viewpoints in favour of another. When we engage with those different viewpoints, we are forced to try and understand them, and through that act come to appreciate another's existence. What's really special is when an author is able to provide such a unique viewpoint and voice that it makes even the old feel new.

Of course, there's not much old going on in Margaret Killjoy's The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion. I read this superbly paced novella in a single sitting and was astounded at how much Killjoy is able to pack into this slim package. There's a diverse and interesting group of anarchists living in the rural US that our lead, Danielle, meets as she strolls into town on her nomadic journey. It turns out Danielle's recently deceased friend was involved in the summoning of a murderous, three-horned, deer spirit that polices the town.

UH OH!

Where there's possibility for Killjoy to fall into tropes or cliches, they are cleverly avoided by political debates, romance, backstory, and a superbly fun voice. Though I didn't expect it from a horror novel, Danielle is a unique and often hilarious voice throughout the proceedings. The horror is more subdued from what I had expected based on the synopsis and other reviews. Indeed, horror has equal stage time as fantasy, politics, and mystery.

I loved the world and atmosphere that Killjoy crafts in The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion. There's a wide display of gender, sexuality, lifestyle, and opinions that makes every bit of dialogue seem hyper-realistic. Alan Moore had good things to say about this one, though I was reminded more of Gaiman's Sandman and its ever changing, diverse cast. Enjoyment of either author is reason enough to try out Killjoy.

I decided to read this one when I found myself briefly stranded with naught to read by my kindle. I figured a horror novella would fit in nicely with my pseudo-goal of reading more horror this month. It didn't exactly provide what I expected, but this is one in which I'm happily surprised. The ending seems to suggest there will be more in this vein, or at least more featuring Danielle. I'll be keeping my eye out for whatever Killjoy puts out next!

[4.5 Stars]

[K.J. Charles]

I wolfed this down. It's a lovely and unusual read: a queer traveller comes to an off grid type settlement of anarchists and dropouts which has been set up as a utopia to discover why her friend left it and killed himself. Part of the reason might be the giant murderous demon stag he helped summon. Oops.

This is on one level a tense horror novel, where forces of the State and society and male violence are as much a sinister and pervasive threat as the heart-eating magic deer. But, as that suggests, it's also a meditation on things like society, what anarchism means, how societies enforce rules and what it means to do so and who takes enforcement roles on themselves. How do we keep ourselves decent without a prospect of punishment for those who transgress? Who makes those calls?

Danielle has a terrific snarky narrative voice, without the smugness that often brings--she uses dark humour to hold herself together after a rough, rough life. I loved her and her band of new friends (it's an effortlessly diverse story with queer and trans and POC characters at front and centre) and I'm very excited this is the first in a series. More please!

[Skye Kilaen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this dark fantasy / horror, magic-monster-fighting novella with a queer anarchist female lead. I don't know how Killjoy gets so much done in such a tight space - this could have easily been a full novel. The cast is large but balanced really well, and the atmosphere of foreboding is pitch perfect. Also it's a great example of a cast that's mostly queer without their queerness being the point of the story. (Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just nice to have a mix.) Plus a slow, careful maybe-romance gets started between the main character and another woman, awww.

I'm not normally a horror reader but this one stayed on the okay side of the gore line for me. Beware, though, that there are undead animals and people getting murdered, it's a bit gross at times.

The second novella in this series, The Barrow Will Send What It May, is IMHO even better.

Content warning: reference to past suicide.

[Fiona Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Third reread update - I really do love this punk/anarchist novella. Some things just get truer the longer they're in the world.

I read an excerpt from this, about a month before it came out - that was one long month!

It's a fantastic novella. I've read other, shorter, stories from Margaret Killjoy and they're usually the epitome of punk - short, punchy, and unapologetically unusual. That wouldn't always translate well to a longer form, but this book mellows out just enough. Mirroring the storyline, it's the punk that's found home, that can relax while staying true to themselves.

Danielle Cain is a semi-autobiographical character but isn't pulled into becoming a Mary-Sue. Hoping for answers after a friend's suicide, she finds her way to Freedom; a town abandoned before being adopted by anarchists. As with all idealist utopias, there are those who would see it as a chance for their own private kingdom - and that's when the tale took a turn, and a force is summoned that will go so much further than they can control.

While this book deals mainly in aftermath, the quality of the writing and the potential for the rest of the series were really fantastic. This stands far apart from the crowd, and I'll be waiting for the next books with massive anticipation.

[Gerhard · Rating 3 out of 5]

You have to love the opening sentence of this short novel, which kind of sets the pace of everything that follows, due to its fatalistic energy: “Sometimes you have to pull a knife.” And use it, of course. But what do you if your opponent is a demon deer that kills animals and people with its deformed antler rack, using it to rip open their chests and devour their hearts … After which they carry on living, in true zombie fashion.

We meet the main character, Danielle Cain (whom you never want to call Dani) while she is hitchhiking to the town of Freedom in Iowa, the last place where her boyfriend Clay lived before he committed suicide (in a particularly gruesome fashion, as is befitting the general level of gruesomeness here.)

Freedom is also home to an anarchist commune, not to mention the three-antlered red demon deer called Uliksi. This begins a quest to uncover the deeper meaning behind her boyfriend’s suicide, and the possible role he played in resurrecting the demon deer. In other words, WTF is going on in Freedom!?

I wish that Margaret Killjoy had given us more insight into the anarchist commune itself, which just seems to exist to provide fodder for the demon deer and other undead animals (and people). There are some really interesting ideas here, but they could have been far more effective if they had been, er, fleshed out more. Moreover, the resolution is far too simple to be satisfying for the reader.

The ending is also a tad annoying as it clearly sets up the sequel, The Barrow Will Send What It May, with Danielle, Brynn, Thursday and Doomsday now seemingly cast in the role of demon hunters extraordinaire. Perhaps they also hand out anarchist pamphlets along the way.

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a refreshing change of pace! Most horror stories rely on supposedly intelligent people doing stupid things to drive the plot, but The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion relies on stupid people doing stupid things.

[Starlah · Rating 4 out of 5]

TW: mention of suicide, mention of rape, animal death, death of a friend/loved one, abuse, violence, gore (this is a horror story)

Danielle Cain is a wanderer who makes her way to Freedom, Iowa looking for a reason behind her friend's recent death. These 120 pages hold such a dark, magical story. and in so few pages, this book touches on many important themes and discussions with such a racially diverse and queer cast.

- the importance of pronouns
- living in the most powerful country in the world
- distribution of power

- people's (and more specifically, figures of authority's) misuse of power
but at its core, this is a book about imbalance. imbalance within ourselves, within our community, within our government, within our world. highly recommend, totally underhyped, from a trans author. im excited to read the sequel.

[Corn8lius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Imaginez un Scooby Gang revisité et boosté à l’anarchisme : vous obtiendrez cette très bonne novella que j’ai lu en un éclair !

On y suit Danielle Cain, jeune américaine pro-anar qui se rend dans la ville de Freedom. Dans cette ville, la vie en communauté est le maître mot. On y partage tout et l’argent n’existe pas. Cependant, tout a un prix, et pour installer ce régime anarchiste, les habitants ont dû recourir à la magie et invoquer un démon prenant la forme d’un cerf à trois cornes. Dommage qu’il ai décidé de se retourner contre ses invocateurs 🫢

Si j’ai passé un bon moment de lecture, j’ai tout de même trouvé qu’il y avait quelques raccourcis/facilités dans le récit. Cela s’explique évidemment par le fait qu’il soit si court, mais j’ai trouvé certaines choses très (trop) précipitée. J’ai cependant très hâte de retrouver les personnages dans leur prochaine aventure.
Gros point positif : j’ai beaucoup aimé l’inclusivité du texte, ses engagements politiques, et sa manière de nuancer ce qui semble être l’utopie anarchiste et exposer ses limites. Bref, lisez-le !

[Leah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very forgettable, a bit didactic and far too American, this novella suffers from the real problem of having the author's passion foremost and the fantastical elements thought up to fit in with it.

Collectivist anarchists call up a spirit to ensure nobody can have power over anybody else. I guess it's supposed to be a meditation on the futility of utopianism and far-left dreams, but it bogged itself down in light urban fantasy style and fell flat. Too much Charles de Lint, not enough Tao Lin. This is a story that needed to be told differently, not in the style of its oppressors.

Pull quotes from Alan Moore and Nick Mamatas, a great title and a glorious cover are not enough to make this good.

[Lucille · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was going to rate this 4 enthusiastic stars and realised that I actually see no reason to not give this 5 stars so: 5 stars!

Edit 10/05/17 : Just found out this is going to be a series and I'm HAPPY!! *currently working on my review but this is an August release so I won't post it this month ><*
_______________________
Review originally posted on my blog!

I started reading this novella without having read the description first (as I often do…), mostly because it was super short and I was thinking “Well, it’s from Tor Publishing, this can only be good” so you know…

Now I have read the description and what else can I say? Because frankly if the description alone doesn’t make you want to read this I don’t know what else I can do or say. I’ll try anyway because it was too good and I’d feel bad if someone was to miss on this super cool novella.

The main character is a middle aged woman and I LOVED that! She has lived and known pain, and has some very deep and very funny thoughts. She lives her life and we find her here in search of answers regarding a close friend who commited suicide (TW for this, if you hadn’t seen on the description of the novella.)

There is an instance where she has a panic attack and the way it was written was amazing. It was anxiety-inducing but at the same time so well written, so real, that I had to read the passage several times.
Denise is also a fighter, she is used to live on the road and loves that, but she also is aware of the dangers it entails. The events of this novella will show how she is more than ready to act when there is need to.

“I didn’t open my juice because that took both hands, and I don’t follow strange men into the darkness without at least one hand free for fighting.”

Right from the beginning, the first person Denise encounters asks her what pronoun she uses before making assumptions and I loved that. I love how books and social-media are teaching us how to be more inclusive and that this is a totally normal thing to say to someone.

“Could have been a squirrel, or a bird. Hell, could have been a mountain lion. Better a living mountain lion than an undead squirrel.”

This book is full of awesome elements. There are zombies animals eating people who are bad, a demon deer gone rogue, creepy vibes, a diverse cast of characters, a deep sense of community, a lovely and real w/w relationship with no strings attached, questions about doing the right things… There is a bit of a Supernatural vibe to it, if Supernatural was not so problematic 😉
This novella also made me think a lot, it has ways of thinking not often found in literature or SFF, or at least I hadn’t encountered them yet. Just to give you an idea of what’s going on, here is the author’s bio from goodreads :
"Margaret Killjoy is an itinerant author, editor, and photographer whose interests include forest defense, anarchism, and the serial comma."

The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion felt like an origin story. When I finished reading this novella, I felt READY to read some more with those characters and the premise of all of this. I was ready to be all “uhhhh I wish this was a series!!!” all over twitter, but then I found the cover reveal where it is said that it is “The first in a new series” so : I’m happy!

A review copy (e-galley) of this book was provided by the publisher. Some things might change in the final copy.

[Sadie Hartmann]

"I'm more afraid of growing roots than I'm afraid of anything."

A dark, urban fantasy with apocalyptic vibes, even though I don't think anything catastrophic is actually going on, it just *feels* that way with the way Freedom, Iowa is home to an off-the-grid commune--a haven for wanderers, squatters, anarchists, punks, and travelers.

Danielle is traveling to the last known location of her best friend Clay. Both Danielle and Clay lived a nomadic lifestyle and seemed to thrive in moving from place to place. They lost touch and then, suddenly, Danielle gets a cryptic text from Clay saying he was living in a commune that is the ideal. He invites her to come but then he unalives himself.
Upon arrival, Dani realizes Freedom, Iwoa is a ghost town. The people are cursed/hunted by a demonic entity that they summoned themselves to kill a man who was trying to rule their commune.

Now they can't un-summon the demon or the demon's ghouls--wild animals that look like him. (it's very WHAT MOVES THE DEAD-ish) although, this book was released in 2017!

I loved the anarchy/punk element (fascinating, informative) and the gender fluidity/diversity of the cast of characters. A fast read too! Borrowed and read in-app on Hoopla

[Sarah A-F · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Fucking hell,” Thursday said. “It’s almost like you can’t summon otherworldly beings into existence, let them loose on your enemies, and set up a culture of worship around them without people getting all crazy.”

#1: The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion ★★★★
#2: The Barrow Will Send What it May ???

i really liked this! it's not necessarily a new favorite, but it's an exciting horror novel that takes place in an anarchist commune and is filled with queer characters. i felt like things happened a little too quickly toward the end, and some scenes just didn't feel organic, but otherwise i don't really have any complaints! i'll definitely be recommending it to others, as it's a quick read to satisfy one's horror cravings.

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[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I REALLY enjoyed this, but I do think my enjoyment was very colored by the fact that I already own the sequel to this.

I really enjoyed the ways Killjoy played around with ideas of power. This is set in an anarchist/squatter commune that has summoned a (maybe?) vengeful demon. Killjoy examines how, often, we become the very thing we claim to be overthrowing. When it comes to power, this is something that we can observe throughout history. That she condensed a seemingly expansive theme into about 130 pages is seriously impressive.

The best way I can think to describe this reading experience is that it felt a bit like a TV pilot episode. The plot was self-contained enough to resolve in under 200 pages, but hinted at more to come. Similarly, the world building was just enough--we get introduced to some bits of magic, but it never gets out of hand, and Killjoy leaves plenty of room for things to be explored in later books without leaving the reader feeling that they haven't been given enough in this volume. Our main character Danielle Cain feels fleshed out, and the side characters are at times a bit flat, but give the impression of an ensemble we'll come to know and love. Knowing that I have the second book ready-to-go emphasized the pilot vibe--on to episode two!

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Danielle Cain is an itinerant traveler who arrives at the town of Freedom, a town in Iowa that's been abandoned and is now haven for other travelers, anarchists and squatters. Danielle's friend Clay had given up a life of traveling like Danielle's to settle there, but he'd suddenly left there and then committed suicide just a month ago. Danielle's in town to try to find out why.

After getting there and meeting various friends of Clay who'd been regaled with stories of the traveler, Clay's description of her, she discovers that the town has somehow summoned a vengeful protector spirit/demon who has just killed a man. The people of Freedom are having a strong disagreement about what to do next; whether to continue living under the aegis of the spirit or to try and dismiss it.

It's a credit to the skill of the writer that we can get such a strong sense of place and the characters of the large cast, along with both the horror of the situation and a feeling of the counter-culture that the author and main character represents. If the material was more my taste, I could easily give this 5 stars and I will definitely read the next one.

[Scottsdale Public Library]

Danielle Cain recently lost her best friend, Clay, to suicide. She is headed to Freedom, Iowa, the last place he lived, to find out what happened. Turns out, all the residents of Freedom are punk anarchists and they're being protected by a red deer with three antlers (it's a demon, guys). Being a punk anarchist herself, Danielle likes the people in Freedom. But the demon has started targeting the residents... This novella is a quick punch to the gut. It packs suspense, magic, and anarchist politics into less than 150 pages. I look forward to reading more of Danielle Cain's adventures. – Mike M.

[Acqua · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion is the first novella in the Danielle Cain series, which follows a queer woman who has lived on the road for years and is now investigating the death of a friend. This leads her to Freedom, Iowa, a small almost-utopian town in which anarchy apparently works. If we ignore the murderous three-antlered deer who loves to disembowel those who try to seize power, of course.

I thought this was a solid beginning for a series, but nothing more - and I wanted more from this premise. I've never read anything similar, and you'd think that a book about a deer-like demon and its ribcage-less cronies made from dead animals would be something more than "almost forgettable", but if it hadn't been for the ending, I doubt I would have anything to say about it at all. The setup and the creepy atmosphere were interesting, but there's not much to the characters.
Don't get me wrong, The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion was fine, it wasn't bad, I just wanted something more than fine.

I have to say that with the ending I started to really enjoy the character's dynamics, and these may be more developed in the sequel (which I will consider reading). What this book said about anarchy and choices - will you become a monster to make sure your utopian future doesn't have a place for monsters? - was really interesting to read as well.

Another thing I really liked about this was the diversity: there's trans rep and there are also hints of a f/f romance - I didn't care that much about the character themselves, as I don't feel like I know them at all yet, but I liked that pairing.

[Ellis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm pretty down with anarchist punk Danielle Cain and her misadventures involving a demon elk in the town of Freedom, Iowa. Good for me for reading this now, since the second Cain book is out already, and I can placate myself when I'm done with that by reading everything that Margaret Killjoy has ever written.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's Pride Month, and Tor decided to offer this novella for free in a collection of four stories featuring LGBTQ characters and themes. This is the first story, and man oh man, look at that cover! Gorgeousness. And such an intriguing title. I'd have picked that up, had I heard of it prior to getting it free. LOL Minor spoilers ahead, FYI.

Anyway, so my acquiring this in the way that I did meant that I didn't know anything at all about what the story would be about, and.. it was different. For sure. It starts off with a hitchhiker making her way to Freedom, Iowa, a punk squatter commune filled with outcasts and misfits and anarchists. You know, idealistic people who just want to be allowed to live their lives without The Man telling them how. Our hitchhiker is Danielle Cain, and she is there to find out what led her friend Clay to kill himself.

So, generally, I really liked this story, and I think that I'd likely pick up the follow up, should I see it out in the world somewhere. But I'll be honest, some of the progressive wokeness of this story actually worked against it and took me out of the story at times, which wasn't ideal. For instance, Danielle falls asleep in a chair on the porch of a house, feet kicked up on a table, and the resident of said house comes out to tell her to get her feet off the table, he's trying to keep things neat around here. And then, this:
"And who are you?" he asked.
"Danielle," I said. [...] "I, uh, didn't know anyone lived here," I told him.
[...]
"Oh, you're new. Like, new new. Like, don't know anything new."
"I just got here," I said. "I was thinking maybe there wasn't anyone left."
"I'm Vulture," he said. "What pronouns do you prefer?"
"She," I said.
"I use he," he told me.
I nodded.
Now, maybe this is just my ignorance, but it just seems like a very awkward way of shoehorning that into the conversation. Is that how these types of conversations usually go? I would think that if you are going to address this right up front, that you'd want to do it right around the name exchange, which is usually when identity info (if one is willing to provide it) would be given. Vulture is described as "he", obviously, but also that he's wearing a dress, so I think we're supposed to assume that this character doesn't fit a binary gender identity, and therefore that's why he's asking. It makes sense that he would want to ask and know someone's identity preference, but this just seemed like it was forced into the conversation by being where it was. I feel like there were a couple other more natural openings for that question to come up.

This story was peppered with slight awkwardnesses like that. Like the town being referred to multiple times, by its own residents, in conversation with other residents, as "Freedom, Iowa". Freedom-comma-Iowa. Why the need to specify? I think everyone would understand that Freedom, capital F, is referring to the town. You'd say "Freedom" as in the town differently from "freedom" as in the concept. You should be able to hear the capital F in the proper place name in speech, but as this is a written story, it's even less necessary to specify, as we can SEE the difference.

Little things like these take me out of the story and get in the way. I am all for inclusion and representation and wokeness and such, but I ALSO want it to feel natural and fit the story, not feel like it was shoehorned in to meet a quota or something.

Anyway, those little nitpicks aside, I did enjoy this story overall. I really liked the way that the plot of the story was both pretty simple, but also a little bit convoluted. Though at one point, when there was a kinda-maybe-sorta vote, and it was 75% of the nearly 200 residents (150ish) in favor of Plan A to 10 opposed, and then they turn around and say "Well, we can't really decide anything..." I'm like "Uhhhh... why y'all having a meeting then?? Seems like the majority very clearly has spoken."

I really would have liked more about Uliksi and his summoning, though I admit that I wanted him to be more of a threat. I wanted him, and his forces to be a real threat, a real danger. As it was, it was almost too easy. I would have really liked for the resolution to have been more... defined and directed and intentional, and feel like there was a real crisis averted. As it was, it seemed more like an expiration than a real "saved the day" solution.

Still though, I liked it well enough that I would be inclined to pick up the followup and see where these characters and the story goes.

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this. I found the action a little chaotic and found it a little hard to keep some of the characters straight in my head, but there was something about this story, and its weary main character that I liked. The deer and all the zombie wildlife were pretty creepy, and I liked the claustrophobic feel of some of the scenes where Danielle and Brynn were skulking and hiding.

[Katie.dorny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This quick read was amazing! It was kick ass, full of action and had dope characters who were straight to the point.
Danielle Cain is a wanderer, a rare one who does not want a fixed home. She wanders to Freedom, Iowa to discover the reason behind her friends death.
It’s an amazing plot, I hope I can discover more of this series to follow her and I would recommend this quick read to everyone!

[Wealhtheow · Rating 2 out of 5]

Danielle Cain hitchhikes to Freedom, Iowa to discover what it was there that led her best friend Clay to kill himself. As soon as she arrives she sees an undead bloodred stag feeding on a rabbit. So clearly, something weird is up. She rapidly falls in with some of Clay's old friends, and they spill the story: Clay and a few others summoned a spirit to get rid of a power-hungry guy, and now the spirit pretty much rules their town. The townfolk (and for that matter, Danielle) are split about this: on the one hand, super cool to have proof that magic exists! Great to have an impartial omniscient arbiter of who has preyed on others! On the other hand, the spirit has killed several townsfolk already. The town fights over whether to dismiss the spirit, and it all ends bloodily.

I got a good sense of Danielle's personality, but not her life. I don't know if that's just because she's so itinerant that the little things I did pick up on--her taste in music, her methods of defending herself, her tactics for staying fed--are her life, or what, but it left me feeling like she was more of a cipher than I wanted. Since this is a novella, there isn't much characterization for the various townsfolk. The town as a whole gets a nice bit of description, like what the food store is like or how they make decisions and share information. I think I'll remember the feel of Freedom, Iowa long after I forget the plot (such as it is) of this book. Speaking of plot, everything just sort of happens and then Danielle and her new friends decide to become hunters of the supernatural. Hopefully all subsequent stories will be more fleshed out!

[Annemieke / A Dance with Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Upping this to 4,5 stars because the more I think about this book the more I realize it deserves it.

So many interesting ideas in this lovely novella that i througly enjoyed. I had honestly not heard of this before Tor had it as a free ebook of the month. But I am glad I grabbed it because this was great. A horror fantasy with queer representation. We need more of those.

You get dropped right into the action and I found that a little confusing at first but we get explanations quickly. It deals with anarchy, utopia and violence. Who can you really trust? The age old question in horror but it worked great here. The ending kind of lost me because I didn't feel that we needed the addition of the police. And I thought the ending was a bit too easy. But everything else was just too great to be bothered by that for too long.

[Netanella · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Fucking hell," Thursday said. "It's almost like you can't summon otherworldly beings into existence, let them loose on your enemies, and set up a culture of worship around them without people getting all crazy."

Yup. You can't.

Not that the gender fluid queer punk celibate shamanistic travellers / hoboes don't try. The entity they summon, an undead three-antlered deer with a propensity for eating the living heart of its enemies, is really just misunderstood. The community they create, the collective utopia sweetly named Freedom, Iowa, is the real winner in this book.

Kudos to the author! This was an incredibly awesome read.

[Dylan · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars.

I feel as if this rating might be unfair since this just...isnt my genre, but this novella was so *so* underdeveloped and non- sensical and I just couldn't bring myself to care about these one dimensional characters.

Bleh.

[RG · Rating 3 out of 5]

A weird combination of Animal farm with Demon hunters in a horror setting. Decent enough. May have been better if a longer fleshed out story had been developed.