Customer Reviews

Crowfield Curse

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The Crowfield Curse has already gotten attention from awards committees, and I can see why. It's the best depiction of a child's life in medieval Europe since Karen Cushman's books, as well as a powerful blending of historical fiction and fantasy.

The year is 1347, and 14-year-old William Paynel has lived at a poor abbey since his parents died, working odd jobs in return for scant room and board. What he doesn't know is that the abbey is keeping secrets--at least, not until Will ends up with a secret of his own. Will comes across a creature caught in a trap in the forest and frees it, then brings it to Brother Snail to heal. Only this isn't a fox or a squirrel; it's a hob, a creature of the fay. The hob, whom Brother Snail and Will call Brother Walter with gentle humor (since the fay cannot give their names), begins to trust his two rescuers and adapt to life at the abbey. Fortunately, none of the abbey's other inhabitants know he's there.

Walsh peoples her book with colorful and eerie characters, including an angry ex-soldier named Brother Martin who runs the kitchen and a canny woman from the village, Dame Alys, who goes about with a white crow on her shoulder. There is also a forbidding, haunted spot in the forest, Whistling Hollow.

As it turns out, the hob is only the first strange visitor to come to the abbey. Soon after his arrival, Master Bone and his odd servant arrive, paying handsomely for the privilege of rooms at the abbey. It seems there is something buried nearby, and the two have come looking for it.

The mystery deepens, with Will learning more than he ever thought he would about beings of darkness and light, about music and harm and healing of many kinds. In time, he discovers that his future is linked to the fay and their ways, whether he likes it or not.

In broad strokes, this plot may sound more like typical fantasy than it is. Once you read The Crowfield Curse, you find that Walsh has a way of building a mystery with a near-gothic feeling of suspense, never forgetting the power of her setting and the ways of medieval England. Her fay are more real and more grim than those you may have encountered in half a dozen YA paranormals recently, and her young hero and the other monks are gritty with the poverty and superstitions of their time.

As the book comes to a close, the buried secret takes on an entirely new meaning, as does the presence of Master Bone and his servant at the abbey. We also learn that Will's story is just beginning. So we can look forward to reading another book about William Paynel and his dealings with the fay.

Although I have to add, the snowy setting was so powerful that if the next book takes place in high summer, it will be a shock to the system!

Note for Worried Parents: There's talk about the grim realities of life in the Middle Ages here, along with some scary fay creatures. But The Crowfield Curse is appropriate for most readers in the 9-to-12 crowd.

As I expected from the description, this turned out to be an interesting read. The placement of a fairy myth lore into a Christian context creates something different than the typical fairy fantasy. Also, understand that when I say fairy myth lore, I'm not necessarily referring to fairies specifically in the sense of little creatures with wings, but the fairy court, fay warriors and such.

In some ways it actually reminds me a lot of Tithe by Holly Black, but in my opinion is actually better because it's a lot less confusing and I'm not forced to employ so much willing suspension of disbelief in regards to character interaction. However, the main differences are the time periods and the target age group, plus Tithe is really a love story at it's core, whereas The Crowfield Curse is more of an adventure/mystery. Ultimately, it's a quick fun read, the ideas are somewhat original, and there's a nice little glossary of terms in the back to help grasp some of the jargon words related to the life in the Abbey to give a little education.

-Lindsey Miller, [...]

I am constantly on the hunt for books that will fill the void left by the completion of the Harry Potter series and am so glad to have stumbled upon The Crowfield Curse.
The old adage 'write what you know' seems to have worked wonderfully for Pat Walsh as she is able to share her extensive knowledge of the Middle Ages with her readers, from the architecture of the Abbey to the revolting vegetable pottage constantly cooked by Brother Martin. At the same time Walsh has created a world in which angels and the fay both belong, whereas in the majority of stories the existence of one cancels out the possibility of the other.
William Paynel is an instantly likeable and engaging protagonist, and by the end of the fifth chapter I found myself desperately wanting to find out what was in store for him. Since finishing both The Crowfield Curse and The Crowfield Demon I have placed him on the same pedestal I had previously reserved only for Thomas Ward from Joseph Delaney's Wardstone Chronicles.

In 1347 at the remote Crowfield Abbey in England, young orphaned William is a servant for the resident monks. While in the woods, William hears a cry for help and frees a strange creature that calls himself a "Hob" from a hunter's trap. William takes the hobgoblin back to the monastery to nurse him back to health. But the hob isn't the only visitor the monastery has. A wealthy and mysterious man has come along with his servant in search of a secret that the abbey holds. And William soon finds himself involved in a battle between good and evil in a world of magic that he didn't know existed.

William is humble and obedient with a good heart. Walsh has created an imaginative world of fey and magic in a late medieval setting. The time period is already dark and ominous, adding to the mystery and suspense of the magical beings within the forest. Suspenseful and highly engaging, The Crowfield Curse is a magical tale of good versus evil. Building to an exciting conclusion, fantasy fans will be eager for the next in the series.

Dear fellow readers,
This is my absolute favorite book. From 1-10 I'd rate it a definite 11. This story is an easy read that is great to sit in bed on a stormy night and just have fun with! I'd advise everyone in the whole entire world to read the magnificent words of Pat Walsh. Lichteinshtien, India, Ireland, etc. JUST READ THE BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

William Paynel is not like other people. Not only did he survive a fire that killed his whole family, but he has the Sight, a gift that allows him to see the fay world that is hidden from others.

He discovers this gift one morning while he is gathering wood for the monks at the monastery where he lives, and he hears a strange voice. When he realizes the voice is coming from a small animal-like creature, his world is turned upside down.

William quickly frees the creature from a trap, befriends him, and takes him to Brother Snail, the monastery's healer. With this friendship comes an introduction to a mystery that the monks have been covering for centuries, two enigmatic strangers, and a dangerous enemy.

Hobs, the Seelie Court, the Unseelie King, and angels are just a few of the magical beings that are entrenched in the secret of Crowfield Abbey and its curse.

Walsh creates such a captivating story with her first novel that readers won't want to put it down. Woven into the story is a history lesson that is so subtle that it will enchant while it teaches.

Reviewed by: Theresa L. Stowell

I thought the first few pages were a little slow and seemed like a "typical youth fantasy". But the plot quickly got better and better till I couldn't put it down and now I am running out to buy the 2nd one.

Pat Walsh's THE CROWFIELD CURSE tells of Will's discovery of a hobgoblin in the woods who confesses that a mythical being doomed by an ancient curse is buried in the snow. The problem is that Will already serves a brotherhood of monks - and his involvement in the hobgoblin's secret will place him in direct danger in this fine story packed with intriguing fantasy and twists and turns.

I've been looking for a great fantasy/quest/mystery to fill the void left by the completion of the Harry Potter series. While The Crowfield Curse may not be great, it's definitely good. Although I'm an adult, I gravitate toward young adult fiction because regular adult fiction tends to be far to verbose and the authors get much too wrapped up in how fantastic their prose is instead of getting on with the story.

That's where this author shines. She give you the set up and immediately puts you into the action. In fact, there isn't a huge amout of discussion about Will, the principle character or any of the others for that fact. She gives you just enough and allows you to make up your own mind about the rest. Because of this, the book really clips along which makes it a fun and fast read.

The setting and set ups are unique and interesting. It's refreshing when you DON'T find a young adult fantasy these days that's about a young boy with magical powers who goes to study at a magical academy and is involved in a prophecy. Sound familiar? Luckily, this book is NOT a copy cat.

Walsh sets her story in a religious abbey/monastary, which carries its own element of spookiness, not to mention the enchanted wood that surrounds it. She fills the book with many interesting characters that are never clearly good or bad and keep you guessing.

There were certain references to religion and the Creator and I'm really curious to see where this "message" is going to go. I know where I'd like it to go, but that's not my business. I really liked the subtle combination of traditional dogma set against broader spritual philosophy and earthen magic. While the book didn't blow me away, it was certainly original enough and quite refreshing. Something about the characters, setting and set up kept hooking me in and I found myself getting more eager to finish it. That's a good sign for me and I hope it's a sign of more good things to come from Walsh.

Very atmospheric, for the reader who would love to read about snowy life at a remote monastery in the 1300s. William is an orphan who has "the Sight." This allows him to see and befriend demons and "fay," fairies in human form, and strange animals too. One new friend is a hobgoblin the size of a cat. The mystery part of the story involves the search for a buried angel who will spring to life if a person of good soul pulls an arrow from the body. Of course William is that person and must achieve this task, guided by a Leper (Jacobus Bone) wearing a mask, and his inhuman guardian Shadlock.

There are several references to Christianity with the monks and the angel, who arrives at the time the Abbot dies to take his soul away. At the same time there is a Dark King who shows up late in the book but kills innocent woodland animals. Not for sensitive kids! Will finds these still warm, dead animals hanging from a tree and cuts them down to lay them on the ground.

Harry Potter lovers should like this, although it doesn't have the humor that JK Rowling puts into her books. The good and evil sides become clear at the end of the book, so the reader is kept guessing.

Will has a future so I'd expect sequels about this "sighted" boy. Not for all 4th graders. Fine for Harry Potter types but some kids might wait until 5th grade to read this one as it's a bit creepy.