Speaks The Nightbird
McCammon’s latest is an overlong, plodding mix of horror and mystery set in Carolina in 1699. The story concerns the hamlet of Fount Royal and the possibility that it has been cursed by a witch. The accused, Rachel Howarth, a recent widow whose husband died horribly, is beautiful, exotic, disliked by many, and provides a convenient scapegoat for the many ills plaguing the community. Charles Town Magistrate Isaac Woodward and his young clerk, Matthew Corbett, are summoned by town founder Robert Bidwell to hear the case against Rachel. They find themselves quickly enmeshed in situations concerning several gruesome deaths, adultery, unexplained fires, Spanish spies, piracy, hidden treasure, and involving a host of almost unbelievably bizarre townspeople. When Woodward falls desperately ill, young Corbett is challenged to untangle the web of lies and deceit to discover the truth of what really ails Fount Royal.
Accurate details of colonial daily life and customs add to the overall atmosphere, but there’s not enough action or sustained suspense to propel the story or keep the reader turning pages. Disappointing.
