Once was Willem returned from the dead to battle a great evil that threaten his village in early 11th century England. And this is his story.

In this story we meet Once-Was-Willem, a monster to those he used to know, but ultimately one that will bring together those that will fight a great evil in his village. The setting and characters of this story were developed with such care and love that each one was flushed out and had a place in your heart as a reader. Some that the reader could love and some that the reader could hate, something that I absolutely love in any story.

This story also was able to blend religion, history and a bit of fantasy into a dark, medieval tale that was hard to put down. The seamless mix of monsters, alternative ideas to the story of creation, and early English beliefs and superstitions, made the story intriguing and immersive. To describe this book is almost difficult in that it was beautiful, dark, and deep in its themes, but at the same time, easy to read and became engulfed in the story and swept into the world of early 11th century England.

This book was written with a beauty and finesse that is unsurpassed by anyone that I have read thus far. The writing was seamless and easy to follow, but yet felt very appropriate for the time period that was being discussed.

Simply stated, this book is worth a read for the reader to make their own opinions, in that, I truly feel that I can't put everything I want to say about it into words, in fact, waited a few days to see if it would help. It didn't. However, this is hands down a 5-star read, and I am looking forward to reading more from this author.

Have you ever wanted just a little more body horror in your cozy found family fantasy? Look no further! Once Was Willem is a wildly weird and wonderful story set in post-Norman Conquest England. We follow Once Was Willem, who was once Willem Turling but is now something a little more undead and... squishy. When Willem Turling tragically dies as a child, his parents turn toward recent arrival and sorcerer Cain Caradoc for help. A little necromancy and a power trip later, Once Was Willem is chased from his hometown of Cosham while Cain is installed at the local keep as adviser to a new robber baron (literally a robber turned baron). What follows is the story of the town dealing with messy medieval English politics and the fear of black magic fueled by the growing power of the Christian church. Alongside them, Once Was Willem discovers a new found family among the remaining magical, and slightly horrific, creatures from various Northern European traditions. It's a tale totally medieval, slightly grotesque, and wholly concerned with what makes a monster and what makes a man. My little medievalist heart cavorted through this book. Carey has such a deft hand at blending the real fears and politics of the time period with an epic, quest-like tale. There are skin-changers from Norse traditions, folktale creatures like Peter Floodfoot and Unsung Jill, and apocryphal Christian mythology. It's a feast for any reader, but especially for anyone who has touched medieval studies. A must read!

This was not what I was expecting. I have loved some of M R Carey's previous works, and they've always been compelling. I find that they pick really interesting ideas and really subvert expectations for how the story will unfold. I enjoyed the characters, and I thought the storytelling was unique and compelling. I don't really read much that could be considered medieval, so that was definitely a change when it came to thinking about the story. But overall, I really enjoyed it!

***Thank you to Orbit Books for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. My review contains my honest thoughts about my reading experience.***

I’ve never read anything quite like Once Was Willem. It had a strange mix of folksiness and horror that worked perfectly for a story set in medieval England. The story was interesting, and the plot had a steady pace that kept me wanting to read just one more chapter. The tale was mostly linear, but it did weave about quite a bit. There were times I wondered why certain things were relevant, but it all came together in the end.

I never expected to love the POV of a zombie quite so much. Once-Was-Willem was such a great character. He was a monster with a heart of gold. Anyone who has ever experienced being an outcast will be able to relate to him. Truthfully, I wish the book had focused on him even more. Despite him being the narrator, the story spent large swaths of time away from him to introduce his friends and set up the conflict. I enjoyed it all. I just wish we’d have gotten more time spent on developing the titular character even more.

The rest of the cast in Once Was Willem was great, too. Each of them had such a unique story. I particularly loved that such a myriad of monsters became the heroes of the story. The villain was truly ruthless in his quest for greater power and immortality. He did some really awful things that were often grotesque. I had a great time rooting for his downfall.

The world-building in Once Was Willem surprised me. I wasn’t expecting to love it so much. The inclusion of so many different creatures was interesting. Furthermore, I loved the depiction of the angels and the story’s take on Hell and the creation of the world. It was all so fascinating and left me thinking about free will and fate.

Overall, Once Was Willem was a great read. It captured the essence of medieval England well and delivered an exciting tale from a unique POV. The supporting cast and world-building were fantastic, as well. I cannot recommend it enough for fans of historical fantasy with heaping dose of horror. Therefore, I rate it 4.25 out of 5 stars.

I'm not sure what I thought this book was about but it certainly was not what it was! I, of course, enjoyed the setting as this is one of my favorite times to learn about in history. It is impossible to not feel for Willem and the monsters. I do wish there was less time spent with the villagers and more spent with our main characters.

Grabbed me from the first chapter! An imaginative and Gothic Medieval Fantasy the makes you want more from this world. MR Carey made something really special with Once was Willam . All sorts of reader will gravitate towards this book, fantasy, horror, suspense, historical fiction readers can all get something out of it. The narration and voice was unique and fun. I’ll be reading more of a Carey in the future.

In the best way, this was such a unique read! It has a found family vibe that doesn’t fall into the trope catch-all that that is sometimes seen with newer fantasy. It takes place is medieval England, and it definitely sticks the landing in terms of vocabulary and structure.

The story follows Willem, a boy from a small village that finds itself subject to the machinations of a sorcerer intent on making himself immortal. While Willem is a main focus of the book, the book also covers multiple story lines of those in and around the village. The glimpses into the individual experiences were some of my favorite parts, and it helped take a story based in a real, historical location and truly make it into a rich and new world.

This is a standalone book that I definitely think is worth a read. It covers so many topics like religion, forgiveness, grief and loss, and societal norms that I think would be great for discussion. If you’re looking for a break from long fantasy series, or you just want a solid read, I highly recommend this one.

A beautiful, beautiful tale. It took me a couple of chapters to get into this, but then the story got better and better and better. It’s simply brilliant. There is such a wide variety of characters that you’re sure to find someone to like. There are themes of found family and heroism in the face of extreme danger, as well as bigotry and what it begets. Unchecked power runs rampant, until there’s a force that challenges it. It’s a tale about standing up and saying, “NO” and protecting the innocent, even if some of those people really, really don’t deserve it.

Would you defend a town that was cruel to you, that screamed in terror at the sight of your face, that breathed a sigh of relief when you removed your presence? What really makes a human, human?

I will read this again and again.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for the chance to read an early copy. I loved it.

All opinions are mine alone.

Part of what didn't work for me was how this one was written. The narrative is formed by Willem telling the story of what happened to and around him, which means that the whole work is told rather than shown (there was a lot of X did this, then that happened. Then Y did this and X felt that). While I get the narrative reason for this, I didn't enjoy it as it kept the work from ever really feeling immersive. The world and characters felt flat largely due to this.

I loved the premise, and there were moments when I was intrigued by the thought of what might happen. But there were long moments between things actually happening that weren't supported by anything much, which led to me becoming somewhat bored with the book overall.

I'm an outlier on this one, so if the premise sounds interesting to you, definitely check out other reviews. My thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

eARC Review: Once Was Willem by M. R. Carey 💀

This was an interesting mix of Christian mysticism, Norse mythology, and English folklore set in 12th century England. I thought the characters were wonderfully flawed, the story engaging, and the rescue mission gripping without being too overly drawn out. 🗡️

The story follows the creature known as Once-Was-Willem, who finds himself resurrected and then promptly abandoned. I thought Once-Was-Willem to be a shrewd narrator for the tale. While he is not exactly the child that died, he still retains a love and loyalty to the town of Cosham even though it turned him out. I really enjoyed Carey’s take on the idea of monsters and their roles in society and tales, especially during this period of history. It seemed to answer the question of are monsters the mindless and soulless creatures that we, as humanity, have made them out to be, or are they capable of feelings like love and loyalty? Of Once-Was-Willem’s monstrous friends, I found myself drawn especially to Anna and Unsung Jill simply for their abilities and personalities. 👁️👄

This story took some time to get into (and not only because I was flooded with social gatherings that made it rather hard to really dive into the tale) simply because the tale uses a kind of speech that modern readers might find tedious, but once the story got going (and I had the chance to read for more than an hour), I had no problem enjoying the story and the characters. 😊

The only other thing that kind of felt a bit off for me was that the antagonist, Cain Caradoc, felt rather cartoonish simply because there’s no real redeeming qualities in the sorcerer. This might also be me having read too many villains who are more misguided beings than just simply pure evil. 😈

Overall, I had a fun time and look forward to looking into Carey’s backlog for more tales like this for future reads! Thank you goes out to Orbit Books and NetGalley for accepting my request to read this in exchange for an honest review, and to the author, Carey, for creating such a fascinating tale in the English countryside. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Publication date: March 4!

Overall: 4.25/5 ⭐️

I really enjoyed this book! More than I think I realized I would! This is a dark medieval fantasy told from a pretty unique perspective. We are being told the whole story from our main character William, or should I say Once Was Willam. It felt to me, like I could be sitting with him in a room as he retold his accounts or even reading a journal he left. I did not expect one of the big plot points and I’ll not give it away in case I can give you the reading experience I had going in. Although I do this the blurb gives it away to you.

The writing style is also very unique as it’s trying to take on the language style probably used in the time this novel takes place, which is 12th century England. I was able to get used to it over time and actually found it deeply poetic sometimes. I enjoyed it but I know it could be weird at first for readers going in. For how dark this story is, the author somehow is able to make it so that it doesn't make it feel heavy and at times throws in some silly language I’m sure is used to bring a little lightness to the situation.

My favorite part however is our main character and the Frankenstein like themes woven into the story and his character and he is struggling with many thing. Willam, I think I’ll always think about.

I do recommend this fantasy book and I know I am deeply curious to read anything else from M.R. Carey now.

Thank you so much NetGalley, the publishers, and authors for allowing me to read this. 🩶

This horror/fantasy is so good it will make you come back from the dead just to read it.

I love when a story is set up as if 'we, the reader' are sitting across from the teller. This feels like I'm sitting around a fire at night being told a dark fairytale.

We have magical monsters, including Once Was Willem, who are essentially 'good' but run out of town by ignorant townsfolk, until an evil magician/sorcerer threatens to sacrifice their children. The townsfolk appeal to our magical monsters for help and a battle begins.

This has a fast-paced plot, but I enjoyed the character building just a much. It felt very immersive and the characters were well drawn. I'd love to see this made into a film. It would be great!

🪓 Dark fairytale vibes
🪓 Necromancy
🪓 Angel, werewolf shifter, water spirits and more
🪓 Ignorant towns folk
🪓 Found family
🪓 Quest adventure
🪓 Visit to literal Hell

This book is best read with your best friends, after rising from the dead.

3.5 Stars

Once Was Willem by M.R. Carey is the kind of dark folktale that feels like it’s been whispered around fire pits for centuries—except this one comes with a power-hungry sorcerer, a resurrected boy, and the kind of bone-deep dread that makes you check for monsters under the bed.

Set in 11th-century England, in a village where fear and superstition rule, Willem is yanked back from death, only to find that everyone now sees him as an abomination. The irony? The real monster is a certain sorcerer with a God complex. Carey expertly plays with the theme of good vs. evil, proving that what looks monstrous isn’t always what we should fear. (Villains with unchecked ambition? Always a red flag.)

The storytelling here is immersive—equal parts haunting, lyrical, and strangely hopeful. It reads like an oral legend passed down for generations, except with the narrative polish of an author who knows how to keep readers hooked. Think gothic fairytale meets medieval horror, with a protagonist you can’t help but root for, even as the world insists he’s the villain.

If you loved The Girl With All the Gifts, you’ll devour this. Carey proves once again that he can twist familiar tropes into something wholly original and deeply moving.

Huge thanks to M.R. Carey, Orbit Books, and NetGalley for the eARC—this one sticks with you. Official release: March 4, 2025.

4 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2025/03/03/review-once-was-willem-by-mr-carey/
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Slow Start but Patience Rewarded

Once Was Willem was, for me, a book that took a little time to get it’s feet under the table, but once it did so it kept me utterly hooked. Such a strange yet enjoyable mediaeval fantasy horror with a truly unique voice. A sort of Frankenstein-Magnificent Seven smash up if you will.

I suppose what you need to know first of all is this is Once Was Willem’s story, which shouldn’t really be a surprise given the title. Once Was Willem is a revenant, brought back to life at the request of his parents by an unscrupulous and conniving wizard. We take a little while to get to this particular aspect of the story but once we meet Cain Caradoc – the evil wizard himself – the narrative really takes off.

OWW is of course reviled by his parents. They hadn’t really given much thought to the fact that they were bringing back to life a body that had been in the ground for almost a year, they didn’t understand that he would no longer be the Willem that they knew and loved, and if Caradoc was aware of the terrible implications, which he was, he certainly wasn’t inclined to share these thoughts but was more interested in his tithe – a sliver of Willem’s soul to feed his thirst for immortality. Willem is chased from the village by your typical angry mob bearing pitchforks and begins to find a new family living remotely in the mountains, a strange cast of characters that I loved. He begins to forget Willem although he at times hankers after his village and friends and family.

I won’t give too much away, this is your basic story of good vs evil but with some very unlikely characters picking up the slack on behalf of the poor downtrodden peasants. It’s very much a story of accepting people and literally not judging them based on appearance alone.

What I really enjoyed about this.

Set some time between the 11th and 12th century Willem tells his tale with an archaic voice that I really enjoyed and is seriously easy to get used to. This isn’t one of those stories that modernises everything including the language or prettifies the people and the landscape. Times were hard. People were oftentimes even harder. Thieves and outlaws live in the forests – temporarily at least! Life was cheap back then. And evil wizards need souls for their dastardly tinkering. So, yes, I enjoyed very much the way Willem tells his story. It’s with a straightforwardness that helps to make some of the slightly more horrible aspects readable. Lets just say I don’t think I’d like to get on the wrong side of an author who can come up with such a despicable way to create a suit or armour – or indeed a puppet without strings. Cringes.

As I said, the start meandered a little and at one point I was curious about where this was going but I’m so glad I continued, my current reading mood is very temperamental so I almost thought of putting this aside – but Carey is an author that I really like and I was so curious to see what was going to happen.

I loved the Magnificent Seven vibe. A group of misfits, coming together to help the underdog – and, essentially, save the world I suppose, because once an evil wizard has access to great power – well, they’re not known for their overwhelming sense of ‘great responsibility’.

I’m being a bit cautious with this review because I don’t want to give away too much so I’ll conclude by saying if you fancy a read that somehow manages to contain magic, folklore, Christian mythology and creative horror whilst bringing together the most unexpected found family ever – then this is the one for you. Dive in and enjoy.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

Published by Orbit Books and available March 4, 2025, Once Was Willem is something I thought I'd never find a good example of -- a fantasy story set in a real medieval era. This story follows a revenant (a reanimated corpse) and his found family of shape-shifters and spirits as they fight to defend the town's children from an evil sorcerer. The book combines dark fantasy, medieval folklore, and Gnosticism for the worldbuilding, and I was really impressed. I'm not particularly a fantasy fan and I've read too many bad attempts to mix fantasy with the Middle Ages but this was not one of them. There was a major historical error, referencing the so-called Children's Crusade before it was said to have happened, but that was all I caught, and for the most part the historical detail is really nice. This will appeal to fans of both dark fantasy and realistic depictions of the Middle Ages, as well as those of you who are monster lovers (hey, I'm one too!)

The Zombie POV is a seriously underserved market.

After being rejected by his family and village due to his unfortunate condition (aka being a zombie), Willem flees to live in the forest, content to be left alone. But when a new evil threatens the very people who cast him out, he faces a choice—turn his back on them or answer the call for help.

I really enjoyed the medieval setting and how the supernatural elements were seamlessly woven into a historical backdrop. Willem’s world is brutal and unforgiving, yet the characters within it range from heartwarming to downright terrifying. The novel explores themes of found family, forgiveness, and the power of compassion—challenging both the characters and the reader to look beyond appearances and question what truly makes a "monster."

That said, while I appreciated the book’s creativity and message, I did have some issues. The plot takes a while to really get going, and I found myself wishing we spent less time with the villagers and more time with the creatures and outcasts—the actually interesting characters. The villagers were so insufferable that it was hard to muster any sympathy for them, yet the narrative lingered on them more than I felt was necessary.

But my biggest issue? The memoir-style narration. While this approach isn’t unheard of in epic fantasy, it’s almost always a miss for me. It leans too heavily on telling rather than showing, which creates distance from the action. The format also lends itself to infodumping, pulling me out of the story instead of immersing me in it. I understand that writing in this style is a deliberate choice (and a skill!), but for me, it just didn’t land.

Overall, this is a fun and unique fantasy read, and whether you enjoy it will largely depend on how you feel about the narrative style. If memoir-style storytelling doesn’t bother you, I’d say give it a shot! If you struggle with that kind of prose, though, this one might not be for you.

Done from the point of view of a zombie who’s been risen from the dead, this was a fun mix and horror and fantasy. Once-Was-Willem travels along and meets all sorts of supernatural, creating a found family with the unlikely duty of helping the villagers defeat evil. It takes a couple chapters to get used to the medieval language (and I definitely had to look up a few words), but once I was settled into the story it was a really good read.

Note: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to The author, Orbit Books and Netgalley for the review copy.

Once Was Willem by M.R. Carey is a dark, atmospheric tale that weaves folklore, mystery, and horror into an immersive and chilling read. Fans of T. Kingfisher will find plenty to love here, as it shares her knack for blending the eerie with the heartfelt, crafting a story that is as unsettling as it is compelling.

While I didn’t particularly enjoy the stylistic choice of the writing, I was completely drawn in by the world-building. Carey excels at creating a setting that feels both grounded and otherworldly, where every detail adds to the creeping sense of unease. The way the story unfolded kept me engaged, revealing its secrets at just the right pace to maintain tension and intrigue.

As a big fan of audiobooks, I’d like to think that I would appreciate the writing style much more with a skilled narrator. Sometimes, a narrator’s delivery can bring out the rhythm and nuance of a book in a way that reading it on the page doesn’t quite achieve.

Though the writing style wasn’t my favourite, the strength of the narrative, the atmosphere, and the depth of the world made Once Was Willem a fascinating and rewarding read.

This book is worth picking up if you’re a fan of unsettling, folklore-infused horror with a strong sense of place.

4 Stars (when I have the audiobook this might change to a five)

I loved The Girl with All the Gifts but haven’t read anything from Carey since. So I threw myself into Once Was Willem and was pleased it hit that same mark for me. Once Was Willem was of a completely different genre than TGwAtG but in both the narratives are compelling and the characters flawed in the most lovable way.

In Once Was Willem were taken to the small village of Cosham in 12th century England. The Turlings have lived a comfortable life there, even when the robber, Horvath, takes control of the nearby castle and moves his gang in. The Turlings have a son and when he dies prematurely they are sunk into a deep depression. A year later they seek out the dark wizard, Cain, who is able to return their son to them. Unfortunately he is returned yet not quite restored so he doesn’t quite fit in with the rest of the village. His parents ask him to leave and he migrates to the woods to live in peace until he is sought out again.

Once-Was-Willem, Anna, Kel, Peter and Morjune were all fantastically dynamic characters. The book goes into some wild territory which really added unique components to this medieval dark fairy tale. It’s really not your standard story despite many common tropes. Carey has done something distinctive with a typical story and this was a great read. Definitely recommend to my dark fairy tale/medieval horror crowd with some weird elements thrown in.

I really like the setting, and the characters are interesting. I do feel like Carey has a thing for undead children at this point, though. It’s well crafted and a respectable entry to their canon. It has a literary-ish fairytale feel to it that’s popular these days. I wish most of the characters were a little more substantial and complex, but I respect how weird this book is.