The Necromancer's House

By: Christopher Buehlman

Narrated by: Todd Haberkorn

Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

"You think you got away with something, don't you? But your time has run out. We know where you are. And we are coming." The man on the screen says this in Russian. "Who are you?" The man smiles, but it's not a pleasant smile. The image freezes. The celluloid burns exactly where his mouth is, burns in the nearly flat U of his smile. His eyes burn, too. The man fades, leaving the burning smiley face smoldering on the screen. "Oh Christ," Andrew says. The television catches fire.

Andrew Ranulf Blankenship is a handsome, stylish nonconformist with wry wit, a classic Mustang, and a massive library. He is also a recovering alcoholic and a practicing warlock, able to speak with the dead through film. His house is a maze of sorcerous booby traps and escape tunnels, as yours might be if you were sitting on a treasury of Russian magic stolen from the Soviet Union thirty years ago. Andrew has long known that magic was a brutal game requiring blood sacrifice and a willingness to confront death, but his many years of peace and comfort have left him soft, more concerned with maintaining false youth than with seeing to his own defense. Now a monster straight from the pages of Russian folklore is coming for him, and frost and death are coming with her.

©2013 Christopher Buehlman (P)2013 Tantor

Critic reviews

"The logic of the plot is eclipsed by the eruption of characters who evoke Dickensian whimsy and range from the merely unusual to the bizarrely imaginative. Within this magical universe, rivalries, revenge, and self-seeking contend with the willingness to sacrifice." ( Publishers Weekly)

I don't know how to feel *spoilers*

Disclaimer, I like the author's flawed characters and see where he's going with the complicated feelings of the (initially) main female character, but don't like it. She's maybe understandable but not sympathetic. And that the male protagonist gets the lesbian because of some f*ckery that gives him a woman's body is kinda messed up since he's just a man who was unwillingly shoved into in a (shock horror) conventionally attractive women's body, doesn't change his gender identity as being a man's. It's not like he has gender dysphoria before this happens, however feminine he's described as. The politics are shoved down our throats but yet the nuance of trans and lgbt issues are ignored here...
I love Between Two Fires, The Lesser Dead, and Those Across The River was excellent. I don't know what went wrong here.

Baba Yaga brought to life in modern day America...

This book has cast a spell over me... I've never before listened to a book over and over again like I have this one. I love the characters and the narration is the best! The story is like none other, it almost makes me believe there is a folklore character by the name of Baba Yaga.

This book is at the top of my list of favorites-- favorite line: "here is the devil" If you only listen to it once, you might not get all the very clever nuances. Great story with a satisfying ending... I just wish this was a series.

I loved it!!

It's really weird and you have to pay attention to the flashbacks so you won't get lost! I really loved the different accents and voices of the characters! The saddest part is that it's over! Would be great if there were a sequel, I've just fallen in love with Andrew!!

Creative and engaging

Would you consider the audio edition of The Necromancer's House to be better than the print version?

Having read all three of Christopher Buehlman's published horror novels now, I can say that it has been a treat following his success. I know the author from his Renaissance Faire performances and have been a huge fan of his work there for years. I have to say that this book begins much like his performance work at Faire. "Unapologetic-ally Descriptive" was what a friend of mine and I came up with when we discussed the book over a few beers when we were both finished with it. Christopher Buehlman has a knack for painting a very detailed picture with his words. And that's how he hooks you!

In addition to his descriptive prowess, he is not afraid to delve into psychology and personal stories with his characters. And in this way, side characters who may not begin as characters you care about become Very important to you throughout the story.

The narrator on this work was great overall. The pacing and performance aided in a couple of "driveway moments" for me. However, I could not give the narrator a full 5 star rating like I wanted to because he MISPRONOUNCED the author's name. How does one mispronounce an author's name that they are narrating??? I am shocked that the narrator was not asked to re-record that one piece or that another voice was not hired to provide a recording of the book credentials.

Well performed, not ideal for audio.

The reading performance was excellent. It included multiple accents and easily distinguishable male and female voices. I would definitely check out more from the reader.

I am a fan of the author's other works, and it seems like this was the hardest of his novels to adapt to audio.

Unlike "Between two fires" or "Those across the river", this story bounces around to different locations and timelines, which makes it difficult to follow in an audio version.

I love the author, and the reader was excellent. I would still, however, recommend listening to one of the author's other books first, or just physically reading this one.

Trldr...good story, good reading, but the two don't match up well.

You won't be disappointed!!

As I've come to expect, an excellent book!! The only regret is that it's over.

Wizards Behaving Badly

It is The Craft for grown-ups, if The Craft was steeped heavily is Slavic folklore and the edge lord teens were, instead, edge lord adults.

For people new to the author, Buehlman's self assured style is fast, fun, and exciting. There is a pretty clever use of metaphor in the subtext of the novel as well. The mix of the beautiful and the crude, self-absorbed users acting selflessly, and victims forgiving their victimizers, makes a tale as gruesome and violent as this one, feel hopeful.

He was not yet there

1. why would you say a character is gay if all their sex is hetero?
2. the protagonist is selfish and unwise
3. rambling
BUT I love Buehlman and am glad I've read his more current books, which are excellent
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY: While the narrator was great, he mispronounced 'Buehlman' huh????

So entertaining

Not only does Buehlman provide an entertaining and at times hilariously dark story, Todd was such a good choice to narrate.

It was fun!

Blankenship is like Rick Sanchez but with magic instead of science. Good times. Definitely worth a credit.