Once Was Willem
On sale
4th March 2025
Price: £20
Genre
‘A MASTERPIECE OF MEDIEVAL DARK FICTION’ Christopher Buehlman, author of Between Two Fires
From the bestselling M. R. Carey comes an enthrallingly dark medieval tale – a story of twisted folklore, macabre magic and the strangest of found family. This is the tale of Once-Was-Willem.
Eleven hundred and some years after the death of Christ, in the kingdom that had but recently begun to call itself England, I, Once Was Willem, rose from the dead to defeat a great evil facing the humble village of Cosham. The words enclosed herein are true.
I speak of monsters and magic, battle and bloodletting, and the crimes of desperate men. I speak also of secret things, of that which lies beneath us and that which impends above. By the time you come to the end of this account you will know the truth of your own life and death, the path laid out for your immortal soul, your origin and your inevitable end.
You will not thank me.
‘An incredible masterwork of medieval fantasy-horror, dark and twisted and burning bright with humanity. Once Was Willem is packed with magic, folklore, superstitious fear, and horrors that bring hope’ Cameron Johnston, author of The Maleficent Seven
‘Weaves a fable full of dread and wonder, a deeply intelligent and emotionally gripping story . . . A masterpiece of medieval dark fiction. I love this book. Highest recommendation’ Christopher Buehlman, author of Between Two Fires
‘A delicious blend of horror, fantasy and historical fiction, Once Was Willem gave me exactly what I crave most as a reader – the unexpected. That, and a main character I would fight to the undeath for. A unique and brilliant book’ Jen Williams, British Fantasy Award-winning author of The Ninth Rain
‘It’s a long time since a book has reached out and just entirely enveloped me in its world the way Once Was Willem did. Astounding, and I loved every moment of it – it had me absolutely rapt‘ RJ Barker, author of The Bone Ships
‘It’s so absurdly fun and readable, you nearly miss the incredible use of language and lore. Lovable grotesques and ghastly villains populate a compelling folk-tale. Absolutely wonderful’ Gareth Hanrahan, author of The Gutter Prayer
‘A wild fever-dream of novel – complicated, monstrous and beautiful’ Seanan McGuire, Hugo Award-winning author
From the bestselling M. R. Carey comes an enthrallingly dark medieval tale – a story of twisted folklore, macabre magic and the strangest of found family. This is the tale of Once-Was-Willem.
Eleven hundred and some years after the death of Christ, in the kingdom that had but recently begun to call itself England, I, Once Was Willem, rose from the dead to defeat a great evil facing the humble village of Cosham. The words enclosed herein are true.
I speak of monsters and magic, battle and bloodletting, and the crimes of desperate men. I speak also of secret things, of that which lies beneath us and that which impends above. By the time you come to the end of this account you will know the truth of your own life and death, the path laid out for your immortal soul, your origin and your inevitable end.
You will not thank me.
‘An incredible masterwork of medieval fantasy-horror, dark and twisted and burning bright with humanity. Once Was Willem is packed with magic, folklore, superstitious fear, and horrors that bring hope’ Cameron Johnston, author of The Maleficent Seven
‘Weaves a fable full of dread and wonder, a deeply intelligent and emotionally gripping story . . . A masterpiece of medieval dark fiction. I love this book. Highest recommendation’ Christopher Buehlman, author of Between Two Fires
‘A delicious blend of horror, fantasy and historical fiction, Once Was Willem gave me exactly what I crave most as a reader – the unexpected. That, and a main character I would fight to the undeath for. A unique and brilliant book’ Jen Williams, British Fantasy Award-winning author of The Ninth Rain
‘It’s a long time since a book has reached out and just entirely enveloped me in its world the way Once Was Willem did. Astounding, and I loved every moment of it – it had me absolutely rapt‘ RJ Barker, author of The Bone Ships
‘It’s so absurdly fun and readable, you nearly miss the incredible use of language and lore. Lovable grotesques and ghastly villains populate a compelling folk-tale. Absolutely wonderful’ Gareth Hanrahan, author of The Gutter Prayer
‘A wild fever-dream of novel – complicated, monstrous and beautiful’ Seanan McGuire, Hugo Award-winning author
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Reviews
It's so absurdly fun and readable, you nearly miss the incredible use of language and lore. Lovable grotesques and ghastly villains populate a compelling folk-tale. Absolutely wonderful
An incredible masterwork of medieval fantasy-horror, dark and twisted and burning bright with humanity. Once Was Willem is packed with magic, folklore, superstitious fear, and horrors that bring hope.
A wild fever-dream of a novel. It's a brilliant, coherent, complex story that I'm not sure anyone else alive could have written - complicated and beautiful, monstrous and ultimately human
It's a long time since a book has reached out and just entirely enveloped me in its world the way Once Was Willem did. Astounding, and I loved every moment of it - it had me absolutely rapt.
Carey crafts an empathetic portrait of a medieval monster as a young man in this revelatory dark fantasy . . . Willem, the cherished son of a farmer, dies at age 12 in Cosham village. His grieving parents reluctantly allow malignant magician Cain Caradoc to raise Willem from the dead in exchange for a tithing from the boy's soul, which Caradoc uses to maintain his foothold in immortality. But after the boy gruesomely rises from his grave, outrageously ugly and no longer quite Willem, his parents and the whole village reject him as monstrous . . . Once-Was-Willem finds unusual nonhuman allies, and chronicles their lurid backstories and bloody struggles to free the town of Cosham from Caradoc with wit and compassion, building to a wonderfully satisfying climax. Powerful, captivating, and occasionally stomach-churning, this quintessential tale of good and evil is sure to win fans.
In Once Was Willem, M. R. Carey's gorgeous prose weaves a fable full of dread and wonder, a deeply intelligent and emotionally gripping story boasting one of the nastiest sorcerers you'll ever meet, and a narrator as inwardly gentle as he is outwardly monstrous. A masterpiece of medieval dark fiction. I love this book. Highest recommendation.
A delicious blend of horror, fantasy and historical fiction, Once Was Willem gave me exactly what I crave most as a reader - the unexpected. That, and a main character I would fight to the undeath for. A unique and brilliant book that leaves you wanting an immediate sequel