Josephine Jay finds a pacy, gothic thriller, full of wonder and compelling sibling dynamics, in C. L. Hellisen’s latest novel, The Shape of Monsters.

The Shape of Monsters
By C. L. Hellisen
Published by Tor

Siblings on the run, Aleks and Vaira Kercheval, have carved out diverging lives for themselves in the wake of a catastrophe that destroyed their family. Having rejected their magical roots and salvaged what normalcy they could from fractured childhoods, Vaira has now turned of age, and inherits Aubrey House – the family home the two of them have not seen since infancy. Unwillingly reunited as adults, Aleks and Vaira find themselves uneasy allies in the fight to restore what was lost and reclaim their birthright.   

C L Hellisen’s writing will appeal to adult fans of CS Lewis, Lemony Snicket, Eragon and anyone intrigued in writing which pokes at the fabric of reality and the intricacies of sibling rivalry. 

Hellisen, when not writing, enjoys ice skating and splitting their time between South Africa and their base in Scotland. Their writing focuses primarily on mythopoeic fantasy with touches of horror, having previously penned, When the Sea Is Rising Red, House of Sand and Secrets, Beastkeeper, Cast Long Shadows, and The Girls Who Go Below which explore dystopian settings against a tapestry of class and political violence. The Shape of Monsters is the first book to hit shelves in The Crossfades series (previously released on Audible.) Its sequel, A Million Points of Light is currently available for listening on Audible, performed by Omari Douglas.  

The Shape of Monsters sees Aleks and Vaira plunged into a world governed by shifting alliances and power struggles; both unwitting pawns in a game started decades before their birth. Aleks, an anomaly in the magical line is unable to conjure whereas his sister, Vaira, wrestles with newfound forces she cannot control. The two must find which ties bind and which break as they face dark and ancient magic seeking to control them. Additionally, they battle the ever-shifting manipulations of several powerful families seeking to enact their own agendas on the Kercheval children. When Aleks summons a monster from the void which he inadvertently binds to him, this new alliance between man and monster throws Vaira’s magical capability into question and pushes both siblings to examine the true shape of monsters without and within.  

Aleks and Vaira’s world is complex and well-considered, Hellisen invests great care in describing the lore of the new world in which the Kercheval siblings find themselves immersed. Reconnecting with their family lore and magic as adults serves as a narrative conduit to induct readers into Hellisen’s world-building and explain laws of magic.  

Hellisen explores possibilities of other worlds in their writing. They examine the implications of converging realities and monsters held at bay by thin sheets of magic and in doing so, examines what it means to be human and tied to a single mortal existence. Their writing examines personhood and death, questioning how much of a person is held in memory and flesh rather than spirit. Victory, death, love and sex are folded into the same act of consumption – a proximity that defies all rationalisation in its pursuit for utter envelopment.  

As Aleks and Vaira gain a deeper understanding of the world they have grown up estranged from, each begins to wrestle with the seductive nature of power and their own insecurities. In framing their reconnection against the backdrop of the family home and omnipresent gaze of their magical legacy, Hellisen weaves elements of queer storytelling into their writing with ease, juxtaposing the idea of chosen family, blood relationships, love and loyalty against the dark walls of Aubrey House.  

Their writing presents the clash of an old magical world seeped in lineage, duty and familial allegiance against what presents as a 20th century setting, which lends a dichotomy and charm to the book. Hellisen’s creation of Aubrey House – Vaira’s birthright – drips with gothic fantasy and is the perfect caged environment for the siblings to clash in. Hellisen employs wry, pacey dialogue – despite their years apart, the siblings bicker with natural ease and vitriol.  

The character’s motivations shift continually; the Kerchevals enact a quickstep of suspicion, jealousy and protection as they struggle to make sense of the person their sibling has grown up into in their absence. Both are flawed individuals trying to survive an unevenly stacked deck, though their rivalry, while understandable, is not explored as thoroughly as perhaps it could be. Hellisen’s book is fast-paced, occasionally jumping ahead of itself in its eagerness to deliver plot and conclusion.  

Hellisen pairs the Kercherval siblings against each other as foils for natural talent versus chaotic dumb luck. Aleks’ happy-go-lucky, self-destructive persona serves as narrative accelerant for the novel’s progression whereas Vaira’s caution steers the novel into its more reflective moments. Where Hellisen struggles slightly is in reconciling Vaira’s character arc, from her reluctance to harm living animals – a brief flirtation with veganism quickly abandoned for a bacon sandwich –  with her pursuit of dark magic which engages animal sacrifice.  

Hellisen’s world is one that ponders the driving forces of fate against personal agency – asking what it means to be human and fallible against the titanic forces of magic and monsters. The Shape of Monsters, is the perfect autumn read to herald in the spooky season while one waits for the print release of A Million Points of Light. 

The Shape of Monsters by C. L. Hellisen is published by Tor, priced £20.