The Bear and the Nightingale (The Winternight Trilogy, #1) in Around the Year in 52 Books

Feb 12, 2017 Wendy rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, folklore-myths-sagas, 2017

My favorite thing about this is the prose! This is a sort of Russian fairy tale brought to life with just the right blend of rich historical detail, folklore, and magic. Third-person omniscient POV is rare these days, but here it feels consistent with a fairy-tale narration that paints a wider picture of the world than what the young main character would know. The story itself isn't particularly new or surprising, and I never quite found myself as emotionally attached to the characters as I woul ...more

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May 17, 2021 Jen K rated it liked it

I had been looking forward to reading this one for a while. It was fine. I really liked Vasya and the many various sprites that she befriended. I loved hearing about them and their purposes. It is such as cozy idea to have beings help with the mending, keeping the home safe and such sustained by offerings and belief. The story definitely provided a more tangible consequence of the spread of a more formal religion and how it could affect a community which was interesting.

I found the frost king a ...more

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Jan 10, 2018 Baroness Ekat rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-reading-challenge, aty-2018

An absolutely, wonderfully told fairy tale. I have been fascinated by Russian and Slavic tales and stories for some time and this had all the elements that made this perfect. The young girl, made motherless at an early age (in this case birth) who has always been seen as odd. The overly doting father who wants the best for his children who remarries to provide a good female influence in the house. The step mother who for some reason doesn't like the girl. Creatures/spirits/fairies/sprites of the ...more

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Feb 01, 2019 Marie (UK) rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019-reading-challenge

This started off well but just became confusing and repetitive - I don't understand why people love it. I have the second in the series from the library but i won't be reading it ...more

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Apr 23, 2017 Megan rated it really liked it

I really enjoyed this book. I know it isn't entirely accurate to it's Russian time period but I have little to no experience with Russian history or books so it felt nice to get a view of the Russian life at the time and Russian folklore. I think Arden did a great job of showing the struggle between the long standing folklore beliefs of the people and the spread of Christianity. I think I would have liked to be able to pronounce some of the Russian words better in my head as I read the book and ...more

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Jun 19, 2020 Hannah Peterson rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: aty-2019-2020

I really wanted to like this one. It had all the elements of a book I would like: the historical setting, the fantasy, the strong female character, the folklore. And so I kept trying to give it a chance, even though the writing felt overdone to me, the dialogue stilted, the characters distant. I didn't mind the slow moving plot, at first, or the fact that I kept getting confused by the characters' reactions and motivations. But I just never got pulled in. This book had no narrative urgency for m ...more

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Feb 09, 2020 Kayla rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Um, wow. I really have no words to describe this book. Very rich in Russian lore and not the easiest YA read. The pacing was often sleepy and slow, but it was artfully done and I felt immersed in their world where much was the same day after day and their lives revolved around old magic and the turning of the seasons. This book probably won't be for everybody, but I was completely captivated and am dying to read the next two books in the trilogy. ...more

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Feb 07, 2021 Amanda rated it liked it

I thought I would enjoy this more than I did. Maybe I missed out on some of the beauty and magic because I listened to it? I don’t know...it was good, but I had really been hoping for more from it.

Polarthon 2021
Team Walrus
Prompt: a polar fantasy

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Jun 15, 2018 Nicki rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fairy-tales, 2018

This just didn't grab me. It should have done. It was very well written. But in spite of the writing I just found it a bit of a chore... Lots of other people seem to love it though, so give it a try. ...more

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