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A review by erebus53
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I picked up this one as a book club read and it lives up to the writeups I read on it. Set in Russia it tells the story of a girl who has The Sight, who catches the attentions of the two Lords of Winter and Storms. (Definitely a similar flavour to Naomi Novik's Spinning Silver)
It's a nuanced story that illustrates the tensions between Russian Orthodox Christianity and the practice of tending household gods, and also the tensions between the traditional roles of women and the desires of the main character to have her own freedom.
The harsh climate of the setting creates a hostile environment, that makes people getting on with one another even more intrinsic to survival. It also increases the perceived risk of either, not being God-fearing, or severing ties with the old gods that have protected the people so far.
Also cool spooky freehold havens are fun, and spiritual presences that have more than one form make for dream logic that really pulled me into the story.
I shall follow up on this read as it's only the first book.
It's a nuanced story that illustrates the tensions between Russian Orthodox Christianity and the practice of tending household gods, and also the tensions between the traditional roles of women and the desires of the main character to have her own freedom.
The harsh climate of the setting creates a hostile environment, that makes people getting on with one another even more intrinsic to survival. It also increases the perceived risk of either, not being God-fearing, or severing ties with the old gods that have protected the people so far.
Also cool spooky freehold havens are fun, and spiritual presences that have more than one form make for dream logic that really pulled me into the story.
I shall follow up on this read as it's only the first book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Death, and Death of parent