• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
FanFiAddict

FanFiAddict

A gaggle of nerds talking about Fantasy, Science Fiction, and everything in-between. They also occasionally write reviews about said books. 2x Stabby Award-Nominated and home to the Stabby Award-Winning TBRCon.

  • Home
  • About
    • Reviewers
    • Review Policy
    • Contact
  • Blog
    • Guest Posts
    • Lists
    • Neurodivergence in Fiction
    • Why You Should Read…
  • Reviews
    • Children’s / Middle Grade Books
    • Comics/Graphic Novels
    • Fantasy
      • Alt History
      • Coming of Age
      • Debut
      • Epic Fantasy
      • Fairy Tales
      • Grimdark
      • Heroic Fantasy
      • LitRPG
      • Paranormal Fantasy
      • Romantic Fantasy
      • Steampunk
      • Superheroes
      • Sword and Sorcery
      • Urban Fantasy
    • Historical Fiction
    • Horror
      • Debut
      • Demons
      • Ghosts
      • Gothic
      • Lovecraftian
      • Monsters
      • Occult
      • Psychological
      • Vampires
      • Werewolves
      • Witches
      • Zombies
    • Science Fiction
      • Aliens
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Alt History
      • Cyberpunk
      • Debut
      • Dystopian
      • Hard SciFi
      • Mechs/Robots
      • Military SF
      • Space Opera
      • Steampunk
      • Time Travel
    • Thriller
  • Interviews
    • Book Tube
    • Authorly Writing Advice
  • SFF Addicts Podcast
    • SFF Addicts Clips
    • SFF Addicts (Episode Archive)
  • TBRCon
    • TBRCon2022
    • TBRCon2023

Review: The Boatman’s Daughter by Andy Davidson

February 19, 2020 by David W Leave a Comment

45892207
Amazon
Audible
Barnes & Noble
Book Depository
Libro.fm
Goodreads

Rating: 10/10

Synopsis

A “lush nightmare” (Paul Tremblay) of a supernatural thriller about a young woman facing down ancient forces in the depths of the bayou.

Ever since her father was killed when she was just a child, Miranda Crabtree has kept her head down and her eyes up, ferrying contraband for a mad preacher and his declining band of followers to make ends meet and to protect an old witch and a secret child from harm.

But dark forces are at work in the bayou, both human and supernatural, conspiring to disrupt the rhythms of Miranda’s peculiar and precarious life. And when the preacher makes an unthinkable demand, it sets Miranda on a desperate, dangerous path, forcing her to consider what she is willing to sacrifice to keep her loved ones safe.

With the heady mythmaking of Neil Gaiman and the heartrending pacing of Joe Hill, Andy Davidson spins a thrilling tale of love and duty, of loss and discovery. The Boatman’s Daughter is a gorgeous, horrifying novel, a journey into the dark corners of human nature, drawing our worst fears and temptations out into the light. 

Review

Thanks to the publisher and author for an advance reading copy of The Boatman’s Daughter for review consideration. Receiving this ARC did not influence my thoughts or opinions on the novel.

An utterly enthralling southern gothic. When it comes to gorgeous prose, not many hold a candle. This oily black piece of supernatural fiction is going to stay with me.

These are the words I tweeted out upon starting this novel and now hold even truer having finished it. Davidson’s sophomore novel is one of the best pieces of horror fiction I have ever read. Its like ‘The Shape of Water’ meets Robert McCammon’s ‘Gone South’, but oh such much more.

I knew when I put down ‘In The Valley of the Sun’ that Davidson was a special talent. His ability to not only write descriptive world-building, but completely immerse the reader in it is astounding. I could feel the humidity rising off the pages, the insects crawling over my arms, and my legs getting caught in the bog. I saw myself alongside Miranda Crabtree as she navigated the channels in her Jon Boat, cutting through the brush and undergrowth that blocked our paths.

TBD doesn’t lack for characters with a story full of drug runners, an evil old preacher, a corrupt deputy, a witch, a special boy, and of course our bow-hunting girl of the hour. Every bit of the cast is given their own voice and become unique puzzle pieces to the ultimate climax, and with that comes some of the weirdest fiction I have come across that rivals that of Gaiman. Russian fairy tales mixed with the mysteriousness of the bayou is something to behold.

Andy didn’t win a Bram Stoker Award for his debut. He looks like a shoo-in with this one. I cannot recommend The Boatman’s Daughter enough.

Filed Under: Reviews Tagged With: Andy Davidson, Cormac McCarthy, Horror, Horror Books, In the Valley of the Sun, Joe Hill, MCD Books, MCDXFSG, Neil Gaiman, Paul Tremblay, The Boatman's Daughter

About David W

Believer, Hubby, Girl Dad. Owner/CEO of FanFiAddict. Works a not so flashy day job in central Alabama. Furthest thing from a redneck and doesn’t say Roll Tide. Enjoys fantasy, science fiction, horror and thrillers but not much else (especially kissy kissy).

Other Reviews You Might Like

Tread of Angels by Rebecca Roanhorse

Review: Blindspace (Book #2 of The Common) by Jeremy Szal

Review: New Yesterday by Frasier Armitage

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ola G says

    February 19, 2020 at 3:20 pm

    Sounds creepy and exciting! Glad you had such a blast with it!

    Reply
    • David W says

      February 19, 2020 at 3:20 pm

      Cheers!

      Reply
  2. essay-editor.net/blog/guide-to-language-styles says

    February 23, 2020 at 1:34 pm

    The cover of this book looks creepy, especially for me. I am already excited to read it, but, I don’t know, whether it is possible to get it in my city or not.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Sponsored By

Use Discount Code FANFI For 5% Off!

Follow FanFi!

Sign up for updates and get FREE stories from Michael R. Fletcher and Richard Ford!

What Would You Like To See?(Required)
Please select the type of content you want to receive from FanFi Addict. You can even mix and match if you want!

FFA Recommends

Get This Book
Get This Book
Get This Book
Get This Book

Recent Reviews

Recent Comments

  1. Adrian M. Gibson on Author Roundtable: Indie Marketing (with Kian N. Ardalan, Ryan Cahill, Aparna Verma & Gourav Mohanty)March 23, 2023
  2. zidane on Review: A Fractured Infinity by Nathan TavaresMarch 14, 2023
  3. Gary Weston on Bender’s Top 10 Fights in Fantasy BooksMarch 14, 2023
  4. David S on My Top 15 Favorite Male Anime Protagonists (So Far)March 13, 2023
  5. Komikinime on My Top 15 Favorite Male Anime Protagonists (So Far)March 11, 2023

Archive

Copyright © 2023 · Powered by ModFarm Sites · Log In