Fog & Fireflies - by T H Lehnen

About the Book

A wizard's war scarred the earth. A malevolent fog blankets the land, carrying towns like ships adrift at sea. The phantoms it creates are deadly to adults, so children must guard the walls now, and care for each other.

Book Synopsis

With refreshing echoes of golden age fantasy, Fog & Fireflies is a novel that brings together an imaginative world and fantastical cast of characters to explore the difference between growing older and growing up.

Hundreds of seasons ago, a wizard's war scarred the earth, leaving a malevolent fog blanketing the land, and carrying the settlements within it like ships adrift at sea. The phantoms the fog creates are deadly to adults, so children must guard the walls now, and care for each other.

Ogma watches the fog from the walls of her windmill town. What felt like a game as a child becomes more of a creeping dread with each season she gets older.

Ogma's town is attacked. Caravaners who roam the fog in inhuman forms have come to kidnap the children, and Ogma is lost in the fog. She must find hope, find courage in herself, and find her friends.

A novel for readers who enjoy rich worldbuilding in the style of Hayao Miyazaki, a unique cast of creatures and characters that harkens back to L. Frank Baum and Arthur Rackham, and the bonds of found family akin to the work of Maggie Stiefvater and Makoto Shinkai.

Review Quotes

" ★★★★ 'Why do we grow more scared as we get older?'

I really liked this book. It read like a Studio Ghibli movie. The book blended fantasy and reality, had compelling characters, and an independent female hero. The way of worldbuilding spoke to me. A lot of the fantasy aspects are not really explained, they are just there. That makes the story feel more authentic.

[...]

All together, it was a great story, and I recommend it to everyone who likes Studio Ghibli movies, and reading about found family, hope, and a compelling female hero."

• Lianne on GoodReads

"★★★★★ Dark atmosphere with Pan's Labrynth vibes.

[...]

T. H. Lehnen's prose is glamourous, part like a heartfelt folktale featuring adorable children, enchanting adventures, and mysterious dreams - and part dark fantasy with frightening monsters, mercyless attacks, bloody wounds and killings. He has a good sense for making the scenes vivid and impactful, portraying the dynamics easy to understand, yet fluid enough not to seem simplistic. During the suspense I often heard the intensifying epic music in my head. I like stories in which experiences of hearing, smelling, touching are just as important as seeing; it greatly enhances immersion. Representation of thoughts and feelings organically blends into the text, allowing the story to flow smoothly without abrupt perspective shifts.

I loved how the story unfolded from a fantasy children camp to an exciting adventure with darker tone, impressive creatures, life-or-death-level pledges, and perhaps more in later books."

• Félszipókás_Ősmoly on GoodReads