Short Book Review // The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden is categorised as historical fantasy. It's the first book of the Winternight trilogy, but you can read it as a standalone. For more information, visit the author's homepage, as I am still writing reviews, not summaries and fact dumps. 

So, let's get started with the review. The book is meant for adult readers, at least it says so on the author's website, but it is a coming-of-age story and young adult-friendly. Fortunately, the main character, Vasya, feels older than her years, making The Bear and the Nightingale work well for mature readers. The book is beautifully written–the language is as bright as the coldest winter day. It's also packed with Russian folklore and displays a plethora of the most fascinating mythical creatures.

The Bear and the Nightingale tells Vasya's–the youngest daughter of a regional lord in the northern Rus'–story from birth to the threshold of adulthood. Vasya is born with magical abilities in a time when the Orthodox Christian church does all in its power to root out the old ways and heathen beliefs from every corner of the empire. Vasya grows up listening to her old nurse's stories and fears more of the disappearance of the ancient guardians of the forest and household than the fiery pits of Hell. When a new priest from Moscow arrives to bring her home village to the church's order, she does all in her power to keep the mythical creatures dwelling in her house and the wilderness around from fading away.

I love the way Arden weaves folklore into the story. It feels symbolic and real at the same time, leaving me uncertain of what actually happened to Vasya. Which parts were real, which sheer imagination or dream–I couldn't say, and I don't mind that at all. The Bear and the Nightingale feels like a dark fairy tale, and it's an enjoyable book which I devoured in two chunks–one in November and the other during the past weekend.

If you're intrigued by folklore, slow-building suspension, and multilayered stories, The Bear and the Nightingale should be on your to be read-list. It would also be a wonderful story to listen to as an audiobook, on a cold winter night, curled up by the fire. I slightly regret that I didn't come to think of that before starting to read it as an E-Book, but perhaps I'll purchase the second book in the trilogy, The Girl in the Tower, as an audio version.