The Bear and the Nightingale (Winternight Trilogy, #1) in Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge

Jan 23, 2018 Kristen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, historical-fiction, medievalism, magical-realism, audio-book, mythology, 2018, read-harder-2018

In a medieval-ish Russian setting, Vasya is the daughter her mother most wanted, and the one who ultimately killed her. Growing up half wild at the edge of a deep forest, Vasya’s father eventually decides that he should remarry so that Vasya can have a mother. However, her new stepmother is city-bred and zealously religious. She forbids her household or the villagers from practicing the traditional rituals of honoring the spirits of the hearth, forest, and meadows which will protect their homes. In a medieval-ish Russian setting, Vasya is the daughter her mother most wanted, and the one who ultimately killed her. Growing up half wild at the edge of a deep forest, Vasya’s father eventually decides that he should remarry so that Vasya can have a mother. However, her new stepmother is city-bred and zealously religious. She forbids her household or the villagers from practicing the traditional rituals of honoring the spirits of the hearth, forest, and meadows which will protect their homes. Vasya knows this is wrong and is afraid, and she is right to fear. The crops and animals start dying, drought comes, and horrifying creatures straight out of Vasya’s nurse’s fairy tales begin walking the night. Her stepmother, convinced that Vasya is the cause of all the troubles, is determined that Vasya will either marry or go to a convent by midwinter. Vasya has to rely on her own talents, which she has kept hidden out of fear of being killed as a witch, to save her family and village.

“Vasilisa the Fair” is one of my favorite Russian fairy tales, and “East of the Sun, West of the Moon” is another of my favorites. This novel makes me think of both of these stories, drawing heavily from myth and folklore from a wide range of cultures. The setting is brutal and atmospheric - I got cold listening to parts of this! But I loved imagining the way the houses were set up and was curious about the stoves the family slept on. I had to look it up and learned a lot about the Russian oven! I loved the characters of the home, the house spirits and the men and women and the horses. Such horses! And Vasya is a tremendous character, brave and honest. I can’t wait to see what Arden comes up with for her next novel, which is supposedly set in the same world.

My only complaint is that the narration was a tad slow at times. But in general, I enjoyed listening to this on audiobook because I am unfamiliar with the Russian language. I would have been completely unable to pronounce the words correctly. I appreciated hearing them spoken aloud for me. ...more

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Mar 09, 2017 Shannon rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-harder-2017

Read Harder 2017: Debut Novel

Such a good book! Vasilisa is the youngest and strangest child in her Russian family. They live in the cold north, on the edge of the wilderness. Vasya can see things others can't see and this ends up both causing problems and serving her well.

This is a book filled with magic, story, history and myth. While I enjoyed the otherworldly yet real atmosphere of this book all the way through, the ending was stellar. Arden managed to surprise me, break my heart and even kn ...more

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Nov 02, 2017 Julie rated it liked it · review of another edition

I did like this, but I wished I liked it more. The Russian folklore was super interesting, and I loved the magical characters. I also actually liked how the Priest and Christianity were woven in (mostly because it wasn't flattering to Christianity...ha). I just thought it was too slow. I started skimming, which is never a good sign. It's a fairy-tale, really, and I think could have been told more concisely. ...more

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Apr 03, 2018 Alison rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: dcpl_elibrary, fiction

This was really excellent. I loved the fairy tale aspect and the low key magic. Looking forward to the next installment.

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Jul 10, 2024 Laurie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2024

I loved this book about Russia (I’m not sure when, but far in the past). There are household sprites, monsters in the forest, and most an untamable girl who can see into magic and tanto horses. I loved her story and this book gets pretty action packed towards the end.

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