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A review by sch91086
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
4.0
3.5 Stars. I want to start by saying I actually really enjoyed most of this book. It was a solid 4 star read right up until the end. Then the last few chapters came and it felt rushed.
This is a Russian fairytale retelling about a girl named Vasilisa who sees the house spirits her people once prayed to and left offerings for. The town folk call her witch. She is not like other girls her age. She has no desire to get married. She wants only to be free and run wild in the woods.
The setting is told very well. It was very easy to picture the small, cold, Russian farming town in which this was set, or envision the huge oven the family sometimes slept on to keep warm. The vast expanse of woods near her home.
I don't know much about the original fairytale this was based on, so I can't comment on the accuracy of it. This was a slow burn kind of read, but the writing was excellent and keeps you engaged regardless. The middle and end of the book is twisting and turning and will have you on the edge of your seat.
I adored Vasilisa as a character. She is not pretty (her nickname is frog). She is not well loved by anyone but her father, nurse, and siblings. She is very levelheaded most of the time, in a town where so many others seem consumed with madness. She is brave and courageous. I also enjoyed Dunya, the nurse, even if she was somewhat stereotypical, and her brother, Alyoshka, always trying to protect her.
I deducted half a star because the ending just felt wrong. Here we are meandering through this wondrous tale and then BAM! it ends and the reader is left with quite a few questions.
*possible spoilers ahead*
For example: this trinket the frost demon spends so much of his time trying to convince Dunya to give to Vasilisa, does next to nothing and is never really explained. It plays no large part in the ending. It's just this thing we spend entire chapters reading about that hangs around Vasilisa's neck.
The frost demon, who needed Vasilisa so badly, supposedly to defeat the baddie, never explains his motives. In fact, when they finally meet he seems to try his level best to take Vasilisa back home.
The final fight seemed too easy. We have this huge buildup, with all these other factors contributing to the ending (I'm thinking of the offerings and religious undertones), and all seem ignored in favor of a physical fight.
*end spoilers*
All in all- I will probably check out the sequel eventually. I'm not in any huge rush. It's a shame that ending really left so much to be desired. I didn't feel anything when it was over. Just a confused: "That's it?" But overall I'm curious enough about the characters and enjoyed the writing enough to continue. I'd recommend this to fans of Russian folklore or readers who like a good fairytale.
This is a Russian fairytale retelling about a girl named Vasilisa who sees the house spirits her people once prayed to and left offerings for. The town folk call her witch. She is not like other girls her age. She has no desire to get married. She wants only to be free and run wild in the woods.
The setting is told very well. It was very easy to picture the small, cold, Russian farming town in which this was set, or envision the huge oven the family sometimes slept on to keep warm. The vast expanse of woods near her home.
I don't know much about the original fairytale this was based on, so I can't comment on the accuracy of it. This was a slow burn kind of read, but the writing was excellent and keeps you engaged regardless. The middle and end of the book is twisting and turning and will have you on the edge of your seat.
I adored Vasilisa as a character. She is not pretty (her nickname is frog). She is not well loved by anyone but her father, nurse, and siblings. She is very levelheaded most of the time, in a town where so many others seem consumed with madness. She is brave and courageous. I also enjoyed Dunya, the nurse, even if she was somewhat stereotypical, and her brother, Alyoshka, always trying to protect her.
I deducted half a star because the ending just felt wrong. Here we are meandering through this wondrous tale and then BAM! it ends and the reader is left with quite a few questions.
*possible spoilers ahead*
For example: this trinket the frost demon spends so much of his time trying to convince Dunya to give to Vasilisa, does next to nothing and is never really explained. It plays no large part in the ending. It's just this thing we spend entire chapters reading about that hangs around Vasilisa's neck.
The frost demon, who needed Vasilisa so badly, supposedly to defeat the baddie, never explains his motives. In fact, when they finally meet he seems to try his level best to take Vasilisa back home.
The final fight seemed too easy. We have this huge buildup, with all these other factors contributing to the ending (I'm thinking of the offerings and religious undertones), and all seem ignored in favor of a physical fight.
*end spoilers*
All in all- I will probably check out the sequel eventually. I'm not in any huge rush. It's a shame that ending really left so much to be desired. I didn't feel anything when it was over. Just a confused: "That's it?" But overall I'm curious enough about the characters and enjoyed the writing enough to continue. I'd recommend this to fans of Russian folklore or readers who like a good fairytale.