Hilda and the Mountain King: 12/12/19

Hilda and the Mountain King by Luke Pearson is the sixth of the Hildafolk series. Hilda wakes up naked inside the troll mountain city. When she tries to escape, she discovers she's been transformed into a troll! Meanwhile her mother has been given a troll changeling. Can the two reunite?

In previous volumes, more time is spent in setting up the situation but now with five previous volumes, and a Netflix series, Pearson choses to give a one page visual recap of relevant details before jumping in media res.

Hilda's situation ends up being secondary to a larger on-going conflict between the trolls and the humans. The trolls are being called to the city but can't enter because of the bells and the huge wall. The humans believe the trolls wish to destroy the city; the trolls swear they don't. The truth ends up being more complex than either side realizes.

An especially large troll, though, offers a solution to Hilda, one she takes without questioning his motive or his words. She knows that humans bell trolls to keep them under control. She doesn't stop to consider that trolls might also use that method or why they might.

Ultimately though, the central theme is the bond of mother and child. Even while the trolls swear there isn't that sort of bond, Hilda and her mother prove them wrong. They also manage to bring peace between the two factions through this revelation, although, the city is nearly destroyed in the process.

The artwork continues to be the bright, vibrant, primary color drawings that make this series so memorable. The trolls, though, are sometimes done in muted earth tones, to set them apart from Hilda's mother and the other humans. Emotional scenes, though, are done in saturated monotones: reds or blues.

Five stars

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