A review by mysimas
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Maybe more of a 3.5* book, but it made me happy, so rounding up.

Sometimes I felt like I was reading one of those horsegirl stories for young teens — seriously, the obsession of this book with horses is astounding — but other than that, I was sucked into the 14th century Russia and fell in love with both its human and magical inhabitants alike (with the exception of Konstantin who was a major creep and eerily similar to Hugo’s Frollo — ew, just ew, get them away from me!!). 

There’s strong themes of religion (Christianity killing the old gods and in extension the humans) which I didn’t mind as I’m not Christian (but I can see why some Christians wouldn’t be happy with this theme), and just as strong themes of female oppression, and it was cathartic to see Vasya’s small victories in this regard. 

My major complaint is the book ends rather abruptly and some questions remain unresolved (such as thee importance of Vasya’s blue pendant). Maybe they’ll be dealt with in the sequels??
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