Emma Seckel

Praise

• An eerie, melodic debut.

  —The New York Times Book Review

• Gorgeous.

  —The Star Tribune

• Haunting. . . . asking questions about homecoming, perception, communal grief, memory—and hope.

  —NPR Books

• A moving historical novel haunted by folklore and reality alike, best enjoyed during the slow slide from summer into fall.

  —Lit Hub

• Somehow both dreamy and nightmarish, speculative and concretely real, The Wild Hunt is a richly emotional tale about home, community, love and self.

  —Bookreporter

• A story world drawn with exquisite care. . . . thoroughly compelling.

  —Ploughshares

• I cannot wait to read Emma Seckel’s folk-horror-infused new island thriller, The Wild Hunt. The sluagh, or birds rumored to carry the souls of the dead, fly thick above the Scottish islands in October, the skies heavy with the souls of the dead, and in this immediate-post-war-set novel, the spookiest month of the year comes with unique dangers.

  —Crime Reads

• Stirring and atmospheric. . . . Seckel draws a dense portrait of a community in turmoil and Leigh’s determination to find a way forward. The result is a moving story exploring home, loss, and grief, and it is an irresistible read.

  —Necessary Fiction

• Intoxicating and atmospheric. . . . This moody meditation delivers.

  —Publishers Weekly

• Treading deftly into the worlds of folklore and magical realism, Seckel keenly captures a tone that echoes the eerie moor scenery of the island: hazy, haunting, and teeming with misgivings. A foreboding mystery with surprising glimmers of hope.

  —Kirkus Reviews

• Promising premise, beautiful writing.

  —Library Journal

• Seckel weaves historical fiction with mystery and fantastic elements and threads of romance in this tale of love, grief, attachment to place and resistance to change. Her island setting is both otherworldly and firmly rooted, and her prose style is lushly evocative. This imaginative novel is memorable and wild indeed.

  —Shelf Awareness

• A Gothic autumnal immersion.

  —The Daily Kos

• Seckel’s writing is vivid and transports the reader to the moors and rocky cliffs with crows swarming overhead. . . . A haunting mythology and an exploration of human emotion.

  —Southern Review of Books

• Moody, atmospheric. . . . Seckel deftly weaves Celtic legend into the story so seamlessly it feels like real life.

  —The Best of Times

• Unusual and imaginative. . . . a well-written romance intertwined with fantastical elements of a legend not widely known.

  —PopMatters

• Perfect for a hint of Halloween.

  —Likewise

• Lyrical and tender.

  —Historical Novel Society

• Extraordinary. . . . Stunning. . . . Powerful and gorgeous­ly executed, author Emma Seckel has crafted a compelling title that occurs in another time, but is more fitting than most for the troubled world we are living in today.

  —Locus Magazine

• What a debut for Emma Seckel! The Wild Hunt is a gorgeous, haunting novel that will stay with you long after you finish reading.

  —Ann Hood, author of The Knitting Circle and The Book That Matters Most

• The Wild Hunt is a thriller, and a family drama; a mystery but also a romance; a war novel and a ghost story. It’s a social commentary. It’s a tear-jerker. I’m not sure how one novel can be all of these things, and also be gut-punchingly sad, beautifully written, and oddly hopeful, but it is. Evocative, haunting, and deeply compelling, The Wild Hunt weaves together the known and unknown worlds in pursuit of the answer to the most elusive of life’s questions: how can life go on after devastating loss?

  —Amy Brill, author of The Movement of Stars

• The Wild Hunt is a gorgeously written, entirely captivating debut novel set on an island off the coast of Scotland in the wake of World War II. Rich in atmosphere and historical detail, this novel and its exquisitely drawn characters will transport even the most reticent reader to a different time and place, and captivate them until it’s satisfying conclusion. A deeply engrossing read.

  —Cristina Alger Wang, author of Girls Like Us