Spider, Spider by L.C. Winter (book review)
‘Spider, Spider’ is the debut novel from L.C. Winter. The categorisation on the rear of the volume defines it as historical fiction and indeed it mostly is. There are hints of fantasy due to the employment of sympathetic magic by the heroines, but this is a minor aspect to the tale. What we have here is a tale of revenge set in darkest Victorian London. As such, it obviously follows a fine tradition.
The novel actually features not one but two protagonists. The younger is Nancy Ratcliffe, who escapes from the harshly run home for destitute named the Brethren. This is seemingly benign on the surface but is run by the tyrannical and cruel Mr. Darner. This instantly dislikable leader clearly has a liking for extremely violent punishments which he dresses up as religious penance. Nancy has sworn vengeance upon Darner quite understandably. What Darner does to her father is quite beyond the realm of reason and it is quite easy to be sympathetic to Nancy’s somewhat homicidal intention.
The other protagonist is Sara Atherton who, in the ‘current’ events, has adopted the nickname Spider. The book opens on Spider using her bone oracle sticks to realise that Darner has returned and is now running the Brethren. She lives in her big old ancestral home Hangcorner House, once home to a large family with staff and adjoining business but now only housing Spider, her housekeeper Patience and her corvid companion, Corbeau.
The novel tells in retrospective chapters how Sara and her mother moved back from India to be with Sara’s Uncle Jeremaiah. This uncle does not much appreciate having to look after his sister and child, especially as the business is failing. He cruelly manipulates his sister who eventually commits suicide while Sara looks on. This begins Sara’s descent into the Spider persona but this is not complete until Sara is at the mercy of Darner. Suffice to say, she also has plenty of motivation to kill Darner. At one point, Spider reveals that she thinks of Darner as already having metaphorically killed her. Unlike Nancy’s stabby intentions, Spider is much more subtle, cooking up various hallucinogenic poisons in her greenhouse.
To be honest, Spider sneaking around her over-sized mansion full of dolls, dead spiders and crows does rather conjure images of Chantal and Zelda. Corbeau fits in nicely, too. I don’t know if Winter is a fan of the comics but she does evoke certain episodes of ‘The Sandman’ quite effectively.
One issue I find with this book is that Darner is actually a bit of a mystery. Yes, he needs to be an absolutely despicable antagonist and dressing it all up in the guise of fervent religion makes him all the more terrifying, but we don’t know how he got that way. It seems he just sprung out of nowhere as a ready-made hellfire breathing punishment addict. Admittedly, this kind of faith twisting maniac is quite in keeping with the dark Victorian setting but he feels rather one-dimensional without a back story.
These three characters are the main focus of the story. There are others: Patience the housekeeper, the other members of Nancy’s family, Darner’s assistants, etc. Winter manages to invoke a fair amount of vibrance in these supporting players but that is only really so the main characters can shine all the more so.
First novels often feel slightly clumsy or naïve. Winter does not come across clumsy but the text does feel somewhat naïve. The relative straightforwardness of the plot keeps the novel approachable but feels a little light. Focussing almost exclusively on just the three antagonists keeps thing simple. The book runs to just under 280 pages and, although flavoursome, within that span it does feel like there is more going on in the background that Winter does not explore. The reader might be left longing for a bit more investigation in the deliciously macabre setting.
I understand Winter’s desire to open the book with Spider fully formed and then tell the tale of her creation in flashback but this clashes with a pet peeve of mine. I mislike flashbacks and Winter seems to make half on the novel such. I like my stories to start at the beginning and proceed in chronological order to the end. Alas, Winter uses this device extensively even to the point where I found the transition from one chapter to the next to be quite jarring or even confusing. Maybe I should start a Campaign Against Flashbacks in Novels. Although I need a better acronym; CAFiN doesn’t ring so good. But I digress.
To be honest, this is a pretty impressive debut. Winter seems to have deft touch and the characters give the impression of being finely crafted to be exactly what the author wants. I was also rather impressed by the ending which comes about suddenly and isn’t exactly what the reader might expect. This is actually somewhat more sophisticated than most of the rest of the book and makes an enigmatic conclusion.
Despite any criticisms I might have of this volume, I did thoroughly enjoy it. Winter knows how to spin a ripping tale that does not outstay its welcome. Winter manages to invest her setting with a suitable dark Victorian paradigm. Indeed, she seems to do so effortlessly without baffling the reader with impenetrable Victorian slang or archaic vocabulary. The text reads pleasingly and easily, zipping along with a fine pace. I suspect this will be light distraction for fans of the genre but it is also not a bad place to start and dip one’s toe into this sort of thing. So those of you that are fans of darkest Victoriana will no doubt enjoy it as a light repast. However, I also invite the curious to give it a try. You might even like it.
Dave Corby
May 2026
(pub: Duckworth, 2026 (UK). 288 page hardback. Price: £18.99 (UK). ISBN: 978-0-71565-582-5)
check out website: www.duckworthbooks.co.uk/book/spider-spider/?srsltid=AfmBOopcElhlZ1V87-d5fcf0Kzu_-LFkWrJqt3ZOVSpm2Ps-oEBZacyW