Scan barcode
A review by allthatissim
The Wise and the Wicked by Rebecca Podos
4.0
Full review: Flipping Through the Pages
This story is about Chernyavsky family who had fled from Russia and had long-hidden secrets. They were being hunted for their powers but now their power has weakened as they suppress them to keep themselves safe. Ruby lives with her two sisters and has grown up being told this story. The Chernyavsky family is predominantly women, with men appearing only to a point to father a daughter. When the girls reach teens years, at some point they see their Time in which they can see themselves at the age they will die. Ruby has been told since her childhood that the Time can’t be changed or avoided. But when her great aunt Polina dies at 95 years old, it was revealed that her death doesn’t match with what was written as her Time in the family’s record book. Ruby, with her cousin Cece, then tries to find out how was that possible and how can she change her own or her cousin’s Time. But in doing so, she discovers that her family’s secrets are way deeper than what she always thought.
Ruby is not a character that could be remembered for a long time yet I found myself rooting for her. She was an angsty teenager who wanted to dig up family secrets so that she can save herself and her cousin. Ruby and Cece’s relationship was wonderful and they kept me invested in the story. Though it was not smooth all the time, I appreciate how they tried to be as closer as they can and how much they loved each other. Cece’s representation also brought queer rep to the story which I really appreciate. Ruby’s sisters, Dahlia and Ginger were good characters but I wish the sisters relationship was explored a bit more? It felt they were just there for filling the role of Ruby’s mother.
There were multiple side characters but my favourite was Dov, Ruby’s love interest. I appreciate how the author has incorporated trans character into the story through Dov. We need more trans rep in YA! Dov’s family, the Mahalels, later played a big part in the story but what I loved was his relationship with Ruby. The romance was not in our faces and I loved how beautifully it was incorporated. Both the families had big secrets and I enjoyed reading how their relationship grew over those secrets. Though the romance was quite good, this story is mainly about family, secrets that bind them together, the love between them and the things they can do to protect each other.
The idea of Chernyavsky magic and the Russian family folklore was incorporated beautifully into this book. I loved how the author has talked about the idea that words and stories passed down over time can be twisted to meet the needs of those telling them. This magical realism story kept me interested from page one and I was engrossed in the world of Russian fairy tales, hidden family secrets and a character who is trying to understand the difference between the stories and the reality.
Lot of things are good in the story but what didn’t work for me and for most of the readers, I guess, was the ending. My kindle was showing I am at 80% but then I flipped the next page, boom.. story ends. That made me feel betrayed. I wasn’t ready for the story to finish on such a loose end. I generally don’t mind when authors leave a story with open end, but I felt, the ending of this story was abrupt and I certainly don’t like abrupt ending. This story needed an additional 50/100 pages to give us all the answers. There is no sequel to the story and that being said, the ending was a huge turndown for me which made me to instantly lower my rating, which otherwise would have been a 5 star read.
Overall, I truly enjoyed reading The Wise and the Wicked. If it wasn’t for that abrupt ending, this book would have been one of my favourites of the year. The story is really interesting. It is well written and queer representations are lovely. The mystery element keeps you hooked till the end. I would definitely ask you to pick it up if you like Russian folklore and magic realism.
Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook | Ko-fi |Amazon
This story is about Chernyavsky family who had fled from Russia and had long-hidden secrets. They were being hunted for their powers but now their power has weakened as they suppress them to keep themselves safe. Ruby lives with her two sisters and has grown up being told this story. The Chernyavsky family is predominantly women, with men appearing only to a point to father a daughter. When the girls reach teens years, at some point they see their Time in which they can see themselves at the age they will die. Ruby has been told since her childhood that the Time can’t be changed or avoided. But when her great aunt Polina dies at 95 years old, it was revealed that her death doesn’t match with what was written as her Time in the family’s record book. Ruby, with her cousin Cece, then tries to find out how was that possible and how can she change her own or her cousin’s Time. But in doing so, she discovers that her family’s secrets are way deeper than what she always thought.
Ruby is not a character that could be remembered for a long time yet I found myself rooting for her. She was an angsty teenager who wanted to dig up family secrets so that she can save herself and her cousin. Ruby and Cece’s relationship was wonderful and they kept me invested in the story. Though it was not smooth all the time, I appreciate how they tried to be as closer as they can and how much they loved each other. Cece’s representation also brought queer rep to the story which I really appreciate. Ruby’s sisters, Dahlia and Ginger were good characters but I wish the sisters relationship was explored a bit more? It felt they were just there for filling the role of Ruby’s mother.
There were multiple side characters but my favourite was Dov, Ruby’s love interest. I appreciate how the author has incorporated trans character into the story through Dov. We need more trans rep in YA! Dov’s family, the Mahalels, later played a big part in the story but what I loved was his relationship with Ruby. The romance was not in our faces and I loved how beautifully it was incorporated. Both the families had big secrets and I enjoyed reading how their relationship grew over those secrets. Though the romance was quite good, this story is mainly about family, secrets that bind them together, the love between them and the things they can do to protect each other.
The idea of Chernyavsky magic and the Russian family folklore was incorporated beautifully into this book. I loved how the author has talked about the idea that words and stories passed down over time can be twisted to meet the needs of those telling them. This magical realism story kept me interested from page one and I was engrossed in the world of Russian fairy tales, hidden family secrets and a character who is trying to understand the difference between the stories and the reality.
Lot of things are good in the story but what didn’t work for me and for most of the readers, I guess, was the ending. My kindle was showing I am at 80% but then I flipped the next page, boom.. story ends. That made me feel betrayed. I wasn’t ready for the story to finish on such a loose end. I generally don’t mind when authors leave a story with open end, but I felt, the ending of this story was abrupt and I certainly don’t like abrupt ending. This story needed an additional 50/100 pages to give us all the answers. There is no sequel to the story and that being said, the ending was a huge turndown for me which made me to instantly lower my rating, which otherwise would have been a 5 star read.
Overall, I truly enjoyed reading The Wise and the Wicked. If it wasn’t for that abrupt ending, this book would have been one of my favourites of the year. The story is really interesting. It is well written and queer representations are lovely. The mystery element keeps you hooked till the end. I would definitely ask you to pick it up if you like Russian folklore and magic realism.
Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook | Ko-fi |Amazon