Reviews with content warning for Gore - When Among Crows

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When Among Crows by Veronica Roth

19 reviews

gondorgirl's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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natashaleighton_'s review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Lush, ethereal and utterly unputdownable! Veronica Roth’s Slavic folklore infused Urban Fantasy was a gorgeously crafted novella exploring themes of family heritage, sacrifice and redemption that I couldn’t get enough of.

Set in modern day Chicago, we follow a human (Dymitr) who convinces Zmora (Aleksja aka ‘Ala’ ) to find help him find the legendary witch Baba Jaga. In exchange for an enchanted flower that can cure the curse placed upon her bloodline by the monster-hunting group known as the Holy Order.

But time is of the essence as the flower— once picked— only has 36 hours before it dies… and all of their hopes along with it.

I don’t read novellas very often as, usually, if they aren’t connected to an already established story or series, they can sometimes fall flat for me- especially when it comes to the worldbuilding and character development. But, I’m glad to report, that was absolutely not the case for Veronica Roth’s newest work.

Despite its only 170-ish page length, Roth weaves quite a vivid and compelling narrative with an endearing cast of characters that I found soo easy to immerse myself in.

I liked all three of our POV characters (Ala, Dymitr and Niko) but it was Dymitr who fascinated me the most with his mysterious backstory and reasons for wanting to meet Baba Jaga kept secret from us for the majority of the story. His with detailed knowledge of monsters also makes him an enigma to Ala and Niko who were desperate to figure him out just as much as I was.

Having grown up in such a multicultural part of the UK, I love learning about different cultures so enjoyed getting to explore Chicago’s Polish immigrant community in such an intimate and unique manner.

With reference to the November uprising, as well as scenes exploring Slavic and Polish traditions (one of my fave being when Dymitr translates an old lullaby Ala’s mother used to sing) Roth’s descriptions felt rooted in experiences of real diaspora communities and the varying degrees of connection (or disconnect) that can arise over time.

My only real complaint is that it wasn’t longer! I’d adored the world-building and characters, and hope that Roth will someday take the chance to revisit in future projects.

If you love Urban Fantasy, The Witcher or Slavic folklore, then you should definitely consider checking this out. Just check TWs beforehand.

Also, thank you Titan Books for the proof.

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ravensandpages's review against another edition

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I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley and Tor!

I am a bit sore I have to dnf WHEN AMONG CROWS at 39%, but only a bit, and I think that is unfortunately a sign of a few of the problems I was having while reading.

This novella has such an interesting premise that really kept me going. I loved the elements of Slavic folklore and how the narrative didn't shy away from them. I also normally enjoy magic centered around pain, but graphic nail gore is one of the few things I just can't read, which led to my very sudden DNF. I liked pretty much every other aspect of the mystical misery, though there was something missing. I wish I was more experienced or smart enough to put my finger on it, but the book didn't hook me the way I wanted it to. Dymitr is normally a character I would be obsessed with, but something about the writing didn't dive deep enough into it for me. Ala was very cool, at least.

Overall, I'll wonder what I missed out on, but I'm okay waiting for a review with spoilers or for someone I know to read this.

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bookrecsbyjess's review

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dark medium-paced

Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC of When Among Crows by Veronica Roth. All opinions are my own.

My only experience with Veronica Roth’s writing was reading the Divergent series years ago. I absolutely loved Divergent, so I wanted to give this book a try. Plus, the synopsis for this story sounded super interesting!

That being said, this book just wasn’t memorable for me. The only parts that stand out to me a few days after finishing the book are the parts where there was gore. I remember these because they made me feel a bit queasy.

This isn’t a bad book, but I feel like there’s a reason that most fantasy books are not novellas unless they’re part of a series. I just didn’t get attached to these characters. They were fine, and maybe I would’ve loved them more if they were part of a longer book or series.

The setting was interesting, and I do feel like I could picture the world considering that this book didn’t have the length for elaborate world-building.

Overall, this book was okay. I think some people may really love it, but I don’t think I would really recommend it to a lot of people.

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sarahweyand's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Thanks to Tor Books and NetGalley for providing me an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and feedback are my own.

I haven't read any Veronica Roth since my DIVERGENT days, and I was really pleasantly surprised! This was a fast-paced, well-written, fun little novella that I got a kick out of. I enjoyed the worldbuilding and lore, I liked the relationships between the characters that were as developed as you'd expect in less than 200 pages. I enjoyed the twists and turns the story took, and I liked the ending. Not much to complain about!

My personal beef is that I didn't realize this was urban fantasy, and I'm much much more of a high fantasy girlie. I would have loved to see a novel-length version of this in its own developed world, but I'm not complaining about what we got! If you've been hesitating on post-DIVERGENT Roth, I think this is a great book to pick up.

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pewterwolf's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

In modern day Chicago, Polish folklore is alive. Monsters feast on human emotion, knights split their souls to make their weapons and witches always take more than what they give.

Pain brings Dymitr and Ala together. Dymitr’s pain is the monsters he and the other Knights of the Holy Order slay and split his soul into two to create his sword from his own spine, while Ala’s is the family curse she has inherited to see visions Of the horrors that the Holy Order committed.

One fateful night, the two meet and agree a bargain: if Ala can help find the legendary witch Baba Jaga. In exchange, Dymitr will give her an enchanted flower that might cure her.

But Ala doesn’t know who Dymitr is and what he truly wants and with less than 24 hours before the flower dies, killing her hopes of the curse being broken, the two need to move fast. But others want the flower and Baba Jaga’s location and they aren’t afraid to hurt and kill to get them…

It’s been a long time since I read Veronica Roth, but there was something about this that got me excited.

I will admit that this does have a slower start as this does throw you at the deep end. There is a lot of world-building at the start of the novella to explain the folklore, the urban fantasiness. Because of this, I did struggle to find my feet and to keep all the creatures straight in my head (if you know Polish folklore, it will help you get you on a even heel).

However, once this story gets over the world-building and the story/characters find their feet, the story runs and it fits an urban fantasy (though the cover doesn’t scream urban fantasy, but something a little more gothic).

It grows into a gripping read though I do feel that it could be a tad longer (not a full blown novel, but an extra few pages to flesh out ideas as I do think some readers will find that some aspects of the premise needed to be more fleshed out). Plus, I would have loved more pages to read the gentle and sweet M/M romance.

Might not be every urban fantasy readers cup of tea, I really liked this and feel that we could have more novellas in this world, very similar to Seanan McGuire’s Wayward Children series (if this does happen, I will be all over it!)

***eProof gifted by UK publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review/reaction***

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booksdogsandcoffee's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

5.0

Roth masterfully blends myth, modern day Chicago and the magic of old in this enthralling novella.

This books is so different from everything I have seen from Roth to date. I love the polish folklore mixed with modern day Chicago. It is absolutely wonderful and could see her winning awards for this book. And absolutely must read.

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thecanadianbookworm's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It's funny how I seem to gravitate to series usually, yet I have a growing love for fantasy novellas.

I love how much depth of character, and world building they can have in such a short time.

This novella is one of the best I've ever read, and I don't say that lightly considering I rarely enjoy urban fantasy.

Dymitr's story, told in the span of 2 days, is beautiful and haunting. I absolutely adored the dynamic between him, Ala and Niko!

The lore? Wow. I would absolutely LOVE to see more books in this world.

If you like dark, gritty, well built yet fast paced fantasy: be sure to check this out.

I won't summarize more than the synopsis does, because I truly think the best way to enjoy this story is by going in blind.

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tinumorien's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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