In addition to crafting the epic His Dark Materials series, Philip Pullman has written a number of fascinating stand-alone titles that are equally worth reading. Among them is the eerie and atmospheric Count Karlstein. Here, Pullman takes the reader to a fictional village in the Swiss Alps, where two young orphan girls, Lucy and Charlotte, are living with their uncle, the eponymous Count. Generally, the Count pays no attention to his charges, so when he offers them a holiday at his hunting cabin deep in the alpine forests, suspicions are raised. As they should be, for Karlstein has sold his soul to Zamiel the demon huntsman in exchange for wealth and power. The reckoning is coming due, and the Count hopes to offer up the souls of Lucy and Charlotte instead of his own.
It takes a plucky serving girl, her sharpshooting brother, an intrepid English governess, and traveling mountebank to save the day and save the girls. As in all of Pullman’s fiction, character is central to the appeal of the work. You’ll find a fascinating mix of village characters to enjoy here, including the pompous policeman, a toadying secretary, and an ominous lawyer, in addition to the aforementioned group of heroes. Pullman does an excellent job of of building the suspense up to the final arrival of the demon huntsman and his pack. The book exhibits a fine mixture of humor and creepiness and is a great read-aloud story for the whole family.
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[...] Count Karlstein, by Philip Pullman [...]