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Vassa in the Night

Sarah Porter

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Jul 26, 2016 Lindsay rated it really liked it

A dark fantasy based on the Vasilisa the Beautiful fairy-tale. Strongly reminiscent of Catherynne M. Valente and Frances Hardinge, I would recommend if you like your YA fantasy to be dark and weird and beautiful.

Vassa is a 16 year-old girl living in Brooklyn with her step- and half- sisters, her step-mother and a creepy wooden doll that only she knows about. Night in this world has been getting longer and longer. Not in terms of hours and minutes, but in terms of experience. If you can wrap your ...more

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Feb 23, 2017 Amanda rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars - this book is weird, I mean it's a retelling of sorts of a Russian fairytale so I expected strange. There are some really fun parts to this but it would have made a much better novella. There were a few too may dream sequences and just not enough over all content for a full length novel. I'm not sorry I read this and I would read other books by this author I was just a little disappointed. I did like the bittersweet ending. ...more

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Feb 25, 2017 Helen rated it liked it · review of another edition

The first 40% of this kept me awake in bed. It totally appealed to me; I too will cut my nose off to spite someone so I understood Vassa and her motivation.

Then the setting changed and whilst the story moved forward I didn't feel that same connection. The writing was lovely, imagery great (or horrific depending on the scene) and action etc carried on.

The descriptive language reminded me of Hardinge, quite lyrical. I did enjoy the book but at times I wanted it to move along. ...more

4 likes · Like · see review