Little Spoons by Deidre J. Halbot

Reviewed by Gina Catherine Grant

I look forward to being an older woman with a penchant for trinkets. I am currently a 32-year-old woman with a growing interest in trinkets, but I haven’t found my niche yet. My mother and my oma leaned on their Dutch heritage for inspiration: Delft pottery sprinkled their homes with scenic landscapes in blue and white. A range of visuals from florals to windmills cover their surfaces. Their patterns are bright and inviting, but I like to think the memories they hold are strong enough to provide some kind of protection to the household.

It was this interest of mine that drew me to Deidre J. Halbot’s debut novel, Little Spoons, where the titular item acts as history, protection, and revelation. Halbot introduces us to Mary, a single mother living in Halifax with her twelve-year-old son, Thomas. Estranged from her roots, Mary is propelled back to Robinsons, Newfoundland upon the news of her grandmother’s death. Her passing is ruled a suicide, which Mary finds disconcerting and difficult to believe.

Mary’s return to Newfoundland is fraught with lingering fear from her past and the possibility of confronting old ties. She fled her hometown twelve years before to protect her then unborn son, and coming back leaves her on uncertain ground with past connections. Out of respect and reverence for their cherished relationship, Mary begins to sort through her grandmother’s belongings and tries to finish the work her grandmother started. She learns of a troubling series of “accidents” in Robinsons, deaths that occurred sporadically over multiple generations with little to no investigation, and the victims primarily women. Mary feels she must vindicate her grandmother, who was shunned by her husband’s family due to her Indigenous roots, and whose independence stirred rumours of witchcraft within the town.

Although it’s not marketed as such, Little Spoons reads as a promising YA thriller, minus some occasional profanity and a scene of jarring violence near its end. The prose is easy and smooth, and Halbot’s descriptions of Newfoundland help set the sombre mood. Overall, the novel felt a little two-dimensional at times. Certain characters and plot points lacked edges and filling to round out such an ambitious storyline. I felt there was a lack of development in the secondary characters, which left me surprised at certain events that were presented as obvious. Despite these points, Mary’s personal journey reaches a satisfying conclusion.

About the Author

Diedre Halbot is a writer, essayist, and horror enthusiast from the Bay of Islands, Newfoundland and Labrador. She’s never met a beer she didn’t like and has a passion for sharing stories of her French-Indigenous heritage. She works in Environmental Science but likes to spend her spare time bullying local politicians on the internet, practicing gluten-free cooking, or trying to seem cool (and failing) around her teenage daughter. This is her first book.

About the Reviewer

Gina Catherine Grant is an artist, writer and former contemporary dancer. She lives in Menahqesk/Saint John, NB, with her tuxedo cat, Richie. Her writing has appeared in The Seaboard Review of Books, It’s Burning Off, and Billie: Visual - Culture - Atlantic.

Book Details

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Breakwater Books

• Publication date ‏ : ‎ Feb. 24 2026

• Language ‏ : ‎ English

• Print length ‏ : ‎ 119 pages

• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 177853077X

• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1778530777