Kensington
Published July 28, 2026
Reviewed by Meredith Frazier
Set on a remote Irish island where many residents proudly proclaim they’ve never ventured beyond the rocky coast, A Penance for Crows evokes an insular, claustrophobic atmosphere where suspicions, distrust, and abuse eventually reach a boiling point, and the results will forever change the community. This is a dark gothic mystery, but it is entirely enticing.
Grizela Urquhart has lived on the island for 40 years but will always be an outsider. The fact that she’s an artist who does most of her painting at night, has nothing but contempt for the old-school priest who rules the island, and keeps her past a secret furthers the mistrust held by most of the islanders. But she does have a few friends, including her Lassies—four young girls she’s watched over since they were babies. When Grizela finds the body of the younger, more moderate priest with a sigil drawn on his chest and notices the distress her Lassie’s feel about what seems to be an accidental death, Grizela becomes more watchful than ever. Before long, more sigils appear on the island, and each sign seems to usher in the death of someone connected to the Lassies. While all the deaths appear to be accidents, a sense of unease swirls through the community, secrets are exposed, and the world Grizela and the islanders have built for themselves comes apart at the seams.
Told from Grizela’s point of view and creating a rich, mysterious atmosphere filled with thousands of all-knowing crows, dangerous bogs, and swirling mists, as well as the havoc humans can create, A Penance for Crows is hard to put down, even though the action isn’t particularly fast-paced. The characters—especially Grizela—are all interesting, and the plot peels back layers revealing both Grizela’s past and the islanders’ current, not-so-well-hidden secrets in such a way that the reader is drawn in ever deeper. And while the conclusion may be guessed at, the reveal may still come as a surprise, and the final solution manages to be both chilling and something to maybe be admired.
Overall, author Shannon Morgan exposes a dark side of humanity that is, frighteningly, entirely believable—both the actions and the reactions, the trauma and the hysteria, the impulse to turn a blind eye and the choices surrounding holding abusers and bullies of all sorts to accountability, and what that might entail. Some of the characters veer toward stereotype, and some things are a bit over-the-top, but Morgan sets it all up so well, it’s easy to suspend disbelief and take both characters and events for what they are. In the end, the characters, the setting, the atmosphere, and the mystery all create an intriguing escape story with some unsettling, thought-provoking conclusions.