Little Darlings by Melanie Golding is So. Freakin’. GOOD.
I’m not usually a fan of stories that blur the line between supernatural and psychotic – is there really something otherworldly going on, or is the main character just crazy? – but Little Darlings may be one of the best exceptions I’ve ever come cross.
Fair warning: don’t read this book if you have an intense fear of child abduction. This book made me sleepless, and I don’t even have children. I can only imagine what it will do to someone with kids, particularly twins, whether you’re prone to superstition or not.
I raced through Little Darlings in about two days. I read for hours, got about four hours of sleep, then returned to reading, unable to ignore its magnetic pull. Golding offers a fresh, new take on the classic superstition of changelings,which is when a human child is stolen by fairies and replaced with a look-alike fairy child.
I find the whole premise of changelings fascinating; as a result, I’ve read a lot of books about them. But, Golding’s tale is one of the best.
This is a hard review to write. I want to say SO MUCH about Little Darlings. The English major in me who wrote a term paper about William Butler Yeats is dying to get into an overly in-depth conversation about folklore. The epigraphs from Yeats, Grimm’s fairy tales (which are, in truth, quite grim), and other folklore and mythology found throughout the novel only fanned the flames of my nerd-dom.
However, I can only say very little about Little Darlings because too much backstory about folklore might 1) cause your eyelids to droop, 2) make you think I’m a little batty (you wouldn’t be entirely wrong), and 3) most importantly, give entirely too much away.
The first half of the book is almost tame when it comes to the supernatural. There are some unsettling interactions between new mother Lauren and a creepy woman who threatens to swap Lauren’s twin babies with her own. However, these encounters can easily be explained away by the postpartum depression Lauren is clearly experiencing.
The second half of the book, after the babies are stolen and then “returned,” is where the supernatural really kicks in. Golding expertly intertwines the real world with the otherworldly. Her writing makes you anxious and jumpy, worried that something will steal out of the shadows to take what’s yours. You empathize with Lauren, even though you mostly think her ordeal is caused by her depression But…there’s still something about her case that doesn’t sit quite right.
As a result, you’re constantly vacillating between the possibilities: is Lauren crazy, or were her children really swapped out with changelings? Even if you think yourself a factual person, Little Darlings will force you to entertain what’s laughably superstitious yet, in light of the evidence popping up and the deep conviction of the mother, unsettlingly possible.
Read it. Please, please read it. It’s an excellent book if you have any interest in fairy tales or faeries (and I mean true faeries – cruel tricksters who prey on human weakness, not sprinkle you with magic dust to make you fly), Irish folklore, or changeling tales. I guarantee you, you’ll devour this one.
And, if you’re just searching for a damn good thriller that keeps you guessing until the very end? Well, Little Darlings fits that bill, too.
What are some of your favorite changeling tales? I’ve read The Hidden People and Don’t Breathe A Word, but I’d love some more recommendations!
Be sure to check back in for my book-inspired recipe: Blood Orange and Rose Water Fairy Cakes!
