An Assassin’s Guide to Love and Treason by Virginia Boeker

Oh man, was this book fun. There’s simply no other way to put it. If you’re like me and are weak for enemies to lovers, Shakespeare, Elizabethan England, and anything having to do with spycraft, then this is the book for you.

The story follows two spies, Katherine and Toby, one trying to kill the queen as an act of revenge for killing her father, and the other trying to root out the conspirators of a new assassination plot against the queen. Set the stage for Shakespeare’s newest play, being performed for the queen—the perfect opportunity for a would-be killer, and both Katherine and Toby join the cast, Katherine hoping to get close enough to kill the queen, Toby needing to find the killer before the assassination plot comes to fruition. Oh, did I mention Toby and Katherine, masquerading as a boy named Kit because, you know, Elizabethan England, are playing love interests?

One of the things I loved most about this book was its weaving of Twelfth Night, the play the cast is performing and the one Katherine and Toby find themselves living. Twelfth Night is one of Shakespeare’s most convoluted, at times ridiculous, plays, and An Assassin’s Guide to Love and Treason managed to capture that spirit of the fanciful without becoming ridiculous, in part because of brilliant nuances of Katherine and Toby’s inner conflicts and doubts regarding the paths they’d been set on and in part because of the author’s brilliant historical research. The atmosphere of this book was incredible, I truly believed all of this happened in Elizabethan England and that I was living there, everything from the clothing to the architecture to the customs was so well done, and as a massive history nerd (and a history minor) with a soft spot for Shakespeare’s London, I was thrilled and impressed.

Aside from the historical touches and atmosphere, Katherine and Toby were what really captured my heart. The two of them had such rich inner thoughts, Katherine torn between loyalty to her father, the conspirators who have taken her in, her upbringing as a Catholic in a very Protestant England and what she knows in her heart to be right as well as the new life and independence she’s found as the boy Kit, Katherine delved into the struggles of blood family versus found family, gender in a very patriarchal society, religious freedom, as well as who she is and what being a killer would demand of her. Toby is equally complex, struggling with unresolved feelings for his dead mentor, hiding his bisexuality in a world where it’s illegal, and being trapped in a life he no longer wants. The two of them individually and together are beautiful, charming, resilient, and ultimately hopeful. Oh, and did I mention they’re true enemies to lovers, on opposite sides with conflicting loyalties and biases, and outside forces they need to overcome before they can be together and not just bickering-for-no-reason enemies?

An Assassin’s Guide to Love and Treason is a criminally underrated book of mistaken identities, intrigue, star-crossed love, and betrayal, and more than that, a book of finding hope, freedom, identity, and yes, love, all tangled in Shakespeare’s theatre. It’s a love letter to Twelfth Night and Viola’s ability to break from societal conventions to find freedom, the person she wants to be, and the person she wants to be, a love letter that gets to the true heart of the play—shedding the masks of the people we were expected to be in order to become the people we were born to be.

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Again, But Better by Christine Riccio

Once upon a time there was a girl named Lindsay who was smiled down upon by the ARC gods and received this (signed!) beauty. And by ARC gods I mean arcfortrade, because we all know I’m not important enough to get ARCs any other way, BUT IT DOESN’T MATTER BECAUSE I HAVE THIS BEAUTY NOW *evil laughter* For real though, friends, I DEVOURED this book. Like, hiding under my blankets like a gremlin, refusing to emerge for food or showers or finals because I needed Christine’s debut more than I needed to be a person, and let me tell you, it was worth it.

20 year old Shane Primaveri is ready for a change. She’s done college all wrong so far—no real friends, no major she’s passionate about, no boyfriend—and so she sets out to study abroad in London during her junior year, determined to start over, make some lasting friendships, write her great American novel, and maybe even fall in love…

I was so nervous opening this book—more nervous than I’ve been for a book in a long time. I’m a huge fan of Christine’s channel and have been watching her work so hard on this book. But with a cast of memorable characters, hilarious banter, and quippy dialogue, I had nothing to be nervous about. Again, but Better is one of those books that makes you feel warm and gooey on the inside, not unlike eating a chocolate chip cookie straight from the oven, and I found myself smiling like an idiot while reading (really messing with my heartless, gremlin vibe).

Characters were definitely the strongest part of the novel. The banter and development of relationships flowed really well, and I just really want to be a part of their study abroad squad, okay??? But I’m definitely not witty enough, so I guess I’ll just stay here and cry.

Shane:
Our main character and not at all fearless traveler whose Lost and Davinci Code references went right over my head. I really loved Shane and saw so much of myself in her—except she’s funnier and has better hair. Her journey of reinvention was so relatable, especially when she wants to try to be more outgoing instead of resorting to her comfort zone. Did she seem a little self-insert for Christine? I mean, the girl wants to be a writer, keeps diaries she refers to as her horcruxes, and has a blog called Frenchwatermelon19, but I love Christine and it’s a debut and a contemporary, so you know what, I’m not mad about it.

Pilot:
Yes, like the plane or of a television series. Pilot is like if Etienne St. Clair from Anna and the French Kiss hadn’t been the absolute worst to his girlfriend, and while I appreciate it, there were also too many “ho don’t do it” moments for me to add him to the *very* exclusive fictional boyfriend list.HOWEVER, he did experience great character development, especially in the, let’s call it, again, but better (YES, I KNOW I AM BEING A TEASE) part of the book.

Do any of the other characters really matter? Nah.

My biggest issue with this book was the pacing. It was like a first date, going really well at first, but then you hit that part when things get ~weird~ and you’re sort of confused how things spiraled so quickly, but then you go home, take a bath, think about it, and go “ohhhhhhhh.” It almost felt as though parts one and two of the book could’ve (and should’ve) been standalone novels, because while the character and story arcs were completed, it wasn’t the smoothest of rides and I’m still not sure how we got there.

I don’t want to say too much about the plot itself because it’s still a new (and highly anticipated) release, but I will there is a plot twist that I’m still not sure how I feel about. My thoughts can best be described as “oh no, what’s happening, I’m uncomfortable, oh no, holy High King Cardan this is not what I signed up for. Oh no, I think I might like this? I like the results of this, but I don’t like this. High King Cardan help.”

Overall, I’m still going to keep with my chocolate chip cookie analogy—I laughed, I felt the warm fuzzies, I smiled, and I wanted more. I can’t wait to see where Christine’s writing career goes from here, and I’ll certainly be reading the next project she blesses us peasants with!

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The Waking Forest by Alyssa Wees

“I’m still here. Stuck at the point where madness meets miracles, immovable. Me, the God of all shadows that shimmer, of all souls burdened with a bottled scream.”

I can’t remember the last time I’ve read a book so beautifully, wondrously written. The prose is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced, and yes, experienced. Reading this book is akin to being transported to a fairytale, but not the tales of damsels and shining palaces—of thorns and brambles and nightmares, of witches in woods and luminous stars. For the writing alone I will read literally anything Alyssa Wees writes, including her grocery lists.

“Spider-bite midnight: an infected emerald sky strung with clumps of silk-woven stars, a cobweb moon.”

Rhea Ravena’s nightmares aren’t ordinary. They exist outside her dreams and transform her waking world into a liminal space where her senses deceive and impossibilities are realities. The lines between her two worlds blur further still when a boy of shadows and darkness appears in her attic and seems to know everything about her. Thus begins a game between the two where her family’s existences are at stake. And intertwined with Rhea’s story is that of the Witch of Wishes who lives in a palace of teeth and bone, granting wishes to children, and one day meets a fox-like boy who tells her stories of a princess who needs to save her land from her tyrannical grandfather.

“I will use your bones to drum the beat of our song, if you will not join along.”

I absolutely adored the first 2/3 of this book. It was everything I’d ever wanted—games, riddles, transformative prose, interweaving storylines—but unfortunately once the storylines came together, things became messy. It felt as though the author wasn’t quite ready to tackle the scope of the story, and the result was that while the idea was brilliant, the execution was sloppy. I would say more, but I can’t get into details without spoiling the plot twists. It’s one of those stories that works so well in theory and sounds incredible, but may have been a bit too ambitious for a debut.

“He laughs: rabid, enraptured a sound somewhere between an elegy and an alleluia”

Aside from the prose, I really did love the characters. While Rhea’s dynamic with the boy of shadows was both beautiful and riddled with games, it was the Witch of Wishes and her fox who captured my heart. I’m always a sucker  one character telling another stories, and especially when they use stories to capture a cold heart, which is exactly what these two gave me. I adored the slow burn between them, the buildup of their friendship, and the hesitant trust. Everything between them felt as fragile as whisper, yet tense as a knife’s blade, and I was completely enchanted.

“This is how the world ends: in a kiss cut short, a storm of sleeping synapses, in a murder mistaken for mercy. My dream is dying, dead.”

Overall this is a gorgeously written book. The prose alone makes it a 5 star read, and the first 2/3 of the book were outstanding. I’d definitely recommend this book to writers because it’s a masterclass in evocative, lyrical prose, and I’ll be reading every book this author writes. I just wish the execution of the story had been better—but because it’s a debut I’m excited to see how the author grows, and I truly think she bit off more than she could chew with this one, but that her storytelling craft will improve with subsequent books.

“‘You are breathlessness,’ and I am all skin and nerves, and every inch of me glitters, every inch of me groans. ‘You are cold fire. You are wonder and curiosity that cuts through bone. You speak to Death and convince him to give you what’s rightfully his. You promise him diamonds in exchange for souls, but give him coal and time instead. And Death, he falls for it again and again, because your smile is a sword that no one, not even a god, wants to feed with his blood.’”

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*All quotes are taken from an advanced reader’s copy and are subject to change upon publication*

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Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

“Get in quick, get out quicker”

Excuse me while I petition for every YA fantasy world to be a queendom instead of a kingdom because Four Dead Queens is the feminist fantasy murder mystery I never knew I needed. Vivid, fast-paced, and suspenseful with the perfect amount of humor and romance, make me the fifth dead queen because I am trash for this book.

Keralie is a thief and quite good at it, possibly the best, but when one of her assignments from Makiel, her mentor and a Kaz Brekker type who runs a thriving black market, goes horribly wrong, Keralie finds herself in possession of crucial information about the murders of the four queens of Quadara. As Keralie tries to untangle the mystery of what happened to the four dead queens and who killed them, she’ll learn just how little she knows about Makiel, herself, and her world.

Intricately woven with immersive world building, complex characters with hidden motives, and unpredictable plot twists, Four Dead Queens is a standalone fantasy that will keep you at the edge of your seat and flipping each page frantically, dying (horrible pun intended) to know just what happened to these queens. I tried playing detective while reading, and wasn’t able to predict anything that happened. This book is a RIDE that had me gasping at the plot twists and hungry to piece everything together.

Perhaps my favorite thing about Four Dead Queens was how cleverly the story was told. Alternating between the perspectives of Keralie and the queens, the reader gets to see both Keralie attempting to unravel the murders and the events immediately preceding them. I’m particularly a sucker for political intrigue, so getting to see the politics from the queens’ perspectives and the secrets they had was especially a treat—and trust me, there were some wonderfully scandalous secrets.

Of course, I can’t end this review without talking about the world, because WOWZA, catch me packing my bags and moving to Quadara because I’m obsessed. Each region was so unique and well-built with distinct cultures and values, and the author did a fantastic job of making the reader feel as though they knew and lived in each one. I can already imagine the BuzzFeed “Which Region of Quadara Do You Belong In” quizzes. The story was perfect for a standalone, but the world makes me wish it was a series, and I’m really hoping the author will write more books in this universe, because I’m in love.

If this review hasn’t convinced you already, let me put it bluntly, Four Dead Queens is GOOD. I haven’t been this excited for a YA fantasy—especially a standalone—in a long time. Plot twists. Queendom. Political intrigue. Mystery. Need I go on? (Trust me, I can). If you haven’t already, be sure to preorder Four Dead Queens (release date, FEBRUARY 26th 2019) because I need people to obsess over this book with as soon as it’s released. In the meantime, I’ll be chilling in Quadara with Keralie and Varin—a girl can dream, okay?
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Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan

ARC provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review

“Blood and blood and bone. Magic and monsters and tragic power.”

Listen, no one is as shocked or disappointed by this rating (★★) as I am. But, with female characters like Jude Duarte, Vasya Petrovna, and Inej Ghafa, I couldn’t give this book a higher rating. Before we get into why I didn’t love Wicked Saints the way I’d hoped, let’s start with what it’s about.

Nadya is a cleric, but unlike other clerics *refrains from making a bad not-like-other-girls joke* can communicate with not one, but all the gods and use her prayer beads to call upon their powers. Within the first few pages of the book, the monastery Nadya was raised in is under attack by Serefin—blood mage and the crown prince of an enemy country—and so Nadya must flee the only life she’s known with the hopes of her country’s future resting on her shoulders. While on the run, Nadya teams up with a group of rebels, led by Malachiasz, another powerful blood mage to end the war.

“You must make a choice, little bird. Do you continue on with your wings clipped or do you fly?”

Promising, right? I’d thought so too. I was so excited for this book, like, who-needs-to-study-for-midterms-when-I-can-devour-this-book excited. In all honesty, I’m a little afraid to post this review because there’s been an unbelievable amount of hype surrounding this book, and that’s why I’ve put off writing this, but it’s 2019 and YA readers deserve better. We deserve female characters who are allowed to have both agency and a romantic relationship, not one or the other.

My biggest issue with Wicked Saints is Nadya. This isn’t Nadya’s book, it’s Malachiasz’s. The book promises a strong and powerful female character who is determined to vanquish her enemies, the tagline is even “let them fear her,” but Nadya doesn’t do anything. While she does have arguments with Malachiasz and is steadfast in her beliefs for a bit—I’ll get more into this when I discuss the handling of religious discourse, which I did think was very well done—there comes a point when she doesn’t make any decisions of her own, simply going along with Malachiasz’s plans and listening to whatever he says.

I’m so tired of being promised strong female characters only to have them forsake agency as soon as a romantic subplot is introduced. Nadya has such an amazing power, one she learns has much more potential than even she had known, and yet, she’s reduced to the love interest in her own story as soon as she has a romance. Friends, when I say she doesn’t do anything, I mean anything. She can’t even kill someone in a fight to the death, Malachiasz has to do it for her. And she constantly forgives him for everything, only standing up for herself to a point before literally going weak at the knees.

It truly feels as though Nadya is a side character in Malachiasz’s story, and it makes me so sad because I thought we’d finally reached a point where female characters are allowed to have agency and romantic relationships, not one or the other. With iconic lines such as Inej Ghafa’s, “She would fight for him, but she could not heal him. She would not waste her life trying,” and female characters such as Jude Duarte who can kiss a boy, plot with him to steal a kingdom, and then betray him in order to do so, I can’t support stories that make female characters choose between the two, and worse, be reduced to one dimensionality as soon as they enter a romantic relationship. I’ve seen discussion online about Wicked Saints dismantling tropes, but for me it relied heavily on tropes without questioning or subverting them.

“Don’t be a martyr. We have no use for yet another saint.”

With everything I didn’t like about the book, I will say the braiding of religion, magic, and politics was extremely well done and handled carefully and respectfully. Wicked Saints starts a really great and important dialogue about questioning our beliefs, opening our minds to others, and thinking/deciding for ourselves instead of simply following the things we’re taught. It’s the kind of YA book that is truly written for teenagers because it has the conversations they should be reading about—without passing judgement or shying away from the various arguments. While reading, I kept going back and forth between who I agreed with, who I wanted Nadya to agree with, and how I wanted the characters to find a middle ground.

However, while thematically the magic system worked well because of how it related to religion and politics, I will say, on a practical level, it did fall apart at the end. I’m a stickler when it comes to magic systems, and in particular, well-built magic systems with rules and consequences for broken rules. I’ve seen a lot of comparisons between Wicked Saints and Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha trilogy, and while I do see similarities, those books have a highly structured magic system where we know the rules, limitations, and what happens when the boundaries of magic are pushed too far. Wicked Saints, on the other hand, does a good job of building the magic system and its rules throughout the book, but everything we learned about it collapses in the end in order for certain plot points to occur. I’ve reread the ending multiple times and am still confused, and in all honesty, it almost feels lazy? As though the rules that had been previously established suddenly didn’t matter because certain plot points needed to happen. This is definitely something I’m finicky about and other readers won’t mind, but I’m a very logic driven reader and love well-structured magic systems, so I was disappointed with how the ending events transpired.

The other thing Duncan really nails is atmosphere. It’s clear she not only has a love and appreciation for Russian and Polish culture, but also did her research. The setting descriptions were hauntingly beautiful with snow and iron spires and architectural descriptions that left me drooling. The world is so vivid and rich with lore, geography, history, and religious canons that created an immersive reading experience. The world building was easily one of my favorite things about the book and was done with such care and precision, even the languages being artfully constructed, and this is a world I didn’t want to leave.

“He was a liar and she wanted his truths.”

Overall, I did have a lot of issues with the book, but I also flew through it. I like to think of it as candy—easy to gobble down quickly, but not necessarily the best thing for you and your teeth and stomach may hurt a little after. A big reason why I was so disappointed by Wicked Saints was because of how it was marketed. I’d expected an epic story on par with the works of Holly Black and Leigh Bardugo, and it simply didn’t deliver. I will say though, the sexual tension is peak and there’s enough angst in here to rival your emo years, so if you love all those things and Slavic lore and aren’t expecting a masterpiece, life-altering book, go forth and conquer—I hope you love it more than I did!

“This act—the pressure of his lips against hers, and the heat that flooded her veins—this was heresy.”

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*All quotes are taken from a bound manuscript and are subject to change upon publication*

Trigger warning: self-harm and parental abuse

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Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han

1.)  To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before ★★★★
2.)  P.S. I Still Love You ★★★

“One day all of this will be proof, proof that we were here, proof that we loved each other. It’s the guarantee that no matter what happens to us in the future, this time was ours.” 

Some books just give you that warm and fuzzy feeling that has you crying happy tears almost every page. Well, that’s this book. I feel an intense need to redo high school because I’m having some serious regret about never writing love letters and having them sent out into the world (where can I find my Peter Kavinsky???) But in all seriousness, this book still maintained the same sweet, fun, and lightheartedness that made me fall in love with the series, while also tackling real life themes of choosing a school, the uncertainty of the future post-high school, and saying goodbye that most YA stays away from.

Lara Jean and Peter are in the midst of senior year—a year of uncertainty about the future, of goodbyes, of last chances, and of change. But Lara Jean doesn’t like change. So what should she do when the future she’s always imagined for herself suddenly isn’t a possibility and the two paths laid out before her will require she follow either her head or her heart?

“I guess that’s part of growing up, too—saying goodbye to the things you used to love.”

I’m way past my high school days, but this book took me back to my senior year, and now we’re going to get personal for a second so I can tell you why this book resonated with me so much. I always thought I was going to pursue musical theatre (for some reason high school Lindsay thought she was talented enough to make it on Broadway) and when I say pursue, I mean working on audition songs and monologues with my vocal and acting coach and only looking at BFA programs. But I realized in the fall of my senior year that I simply wasn’t talented enough, and it wasn’t going to work out. Every school I’d looked at and planned on applying to was geared toward musical theatre—there were no backup options, or at least there were none I actually wanted to go to. Except one. But it was also a reach school. I applied early decision, having fallen in love when I visited and just had that gut feeling it was the school for me. I didn’t get in. I’d gone from being certain about everything to certain about nothing. I was more scared and anxious about my future than I’d ever been, and like Lara Jean, I don’t do well with change or uncertainty.

Reading Always and Forever Lara Jean now made me wish I’d had it with me when I was going through my senior year, because Jenny Han is able to capture the fear and uncertainty of not knowing what your future holds, the teenage need to romanticize and perfect our last moments of high school, and yet also the magic of having all these possibilities up for the taking, if you follow your heart and are brave enough to take them.

“Never say no when you really want to say yes.”

Always and Forever Lara Jean managed to recapture everything I loved about To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (yes, including Lara Jean and Peter’s relationship) while adding a maturity to it that the first two books lacked. Lara Jean is growing up, she has grown up, and her story will forever hold a very special place in my heart, but this book especially.

“At college, when people ask us how we met, how will we answer them? The short story is, we grew up together. But that’s more Josh’s and my story. High school sweet-hearts? That’s Peter and Gen’s story. So what’s ours, then? I suppose I’ll say it all started with a love letter.”

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P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han

1.)  To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before ★★★★

“Let’s go all in. No more contract. No more safety net. You can break my heart. Do whatever you want with it.”

Fun, charming, and heart-felt, P.S. I Still Love You takes place right after the events of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before with Lara Jean trying to clean up the mess she’s made with Peter and attempt the relationship for real. I flew through this book almost as quickly as I did To All the Boys, and I wish I could also say I was just as entranced, but unfortunately, this book had a lot of problems.

Lara Jean’s immaturity lacked the same true-to-life feel it had in the first book, and I frequently found myself upset with both her and Peter. They both told lies of omission and said/did things that honestly made me uncomfortable. There was some resolution in the end, but not enough to ease my discomfort heading into Always and Forever, Lara Jean.

I was also very upset with the inclusion of the love triangle. It honestly wasn’t needed, and it felt as though this character only served as a foil to Peter as opposed to adding to Lara Jean’s story. I didn’t like how perfect this character was made to be, especially because his good qualities only served to highlight Peter’s flaws. A good love triangle is meant to be dynamic and compelling on all sides, but this triangle fell flat and felt very forced by the author.

“I don’t think it was our time then. I guess it isn’t now, either. But one day maybe it will be.”

Honestly, my favorite part of this story was the family dynamics. In my review of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before I talked about how nice it was to see the inclusion of the family in a YA novel, and those dynamics were only explored more deeply in this book. I loved Kitty and Lara Jean’s relationship and how much they act how real sisters do, and I really appreciated how much more fleshed out Lara Jean and Margot’s relationship was with them behaving more as equals as opposed to Lara Jean a child and Margot her surrogate mother. Daniel Covey is such a great father and I was really pleased to see him, his personal life, and his relationships with the girls play a more prominent role in this book!

One thing I do really want to talk about is how much the conversation about and attitude towards sex changed in this book. One of my biggest complaints with To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before was the sex-negative undertones, but I was SO happy to see sex talked about in a positive way in this book. P.S. I Still Love You has a lot of conversations about sex between Lara Jean and various people in her life, and thankfully it was handled in a much more mature and open way than it was in To All the Boys. I think Jenny Han did a fantastic job of creating a sex-positive dialogue that is still age appropriate for the younger YA readers.

“In memory, everything seems to happen to music.”

Overall I did enjoy P.S. I Still Love You, and it was as un-put-downable as To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, but it was just lacking that same magic I found in the first book. I’m definitely going to read Always and Forever, Lara Jean, and I hope the aspects I found troubling about the relationship will be fully resolved in the third book!

“You have to let yourself be fully present in every moment. Just be awake for it, do you know what I mean? Go all in and wring every last drop out of the experience.”

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Wonder Woman: War Bringer by Leigh Bardugo

“Sisters in battle, I am shield and blade to you. As I breathe, your enemies will know no sanctuary. While I live, your cause is mine.” 

This book was so much more than I expected. Diana Prince is an Amazon, but because she was born on the island, Themyscira, and hasn’t technically earned her spot on the island as an Amazon warrior, she’s never felt as though she belongs with her sisters. When Alia, the Warbringer, is drowning after a bomb has destroyed her ship, Diana is faced with a choice: save Alia and risk the fate of the world, or let Alia die and prevent an age of war. Choosing to save her, Diana and Alia must then embark on a quest to find “the place where Helen rests” yes, the Helen, in order to cleanse the Warbringer and end the cycle.

This book had everything I wanted and more—mythology, adventure, danger, a touch of romance, plot twists, a diverse cast of characters, and above all, empowering female friendships.

“I am done being careful. I am done being quiet. Let them see me angry. Let them hear me wail at the top of my lungs.”

In a story titled Wonder Woman you’d expect Diana Prince to be the main focus, but Alia shows just as much, if not more, strength, bravery, and courage. Both of these characters, as well as Nim and Theo, are complex, three dimensional, and experience great character development. I cared so deeply for each of our main characters, and the depth of their friendship was truly inspiring.

*SPOILER*
I was truly shocked by Jason’s betrayal and felt just as hurt as our main characters,
but what made it so real was that Leigh Bardugo did what she does best when it comes to villains and anti-heroes—she made us understand Jason’s motivations, and a part of me sympathized with him.

His story was wonderfully heartbreaking, and he got the ending he deserved.
*END SPOILER*

“We can’t help the way we’re born. We can’t help what we are, only what life we choose to make for ourselves.”

This book did what all great books do—it made me a better person after reading it and changed me for the better. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

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The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden

1.)  The Bear and the Nightingale ★★★★★

“She was the wind, the clouds gathering in the smoky sky, the thick snow of deep winter. She was nothing. She was everything.”

Haunting. Dark. Lyrical. Magical. The Girl in the Tower contains everything I loved about The Bear and the Nightingale while allowing the characters to grow, the world to expand, and the story to deepen.

Picking up shortly after the events of The Bear and the Nightingale, Vasya is left with two options: join a convent or marry. Either choice leaves her confined within physical walls and the inescapable walls of her society. And so, Vasya chooses not to decide, disguising herself as a boy to live a life on the road as a traveler.

“Every time you take one path, you must live with the memory of the other: of a life left unchosen. Decide as seems best, one course or the other; each way will have its bitter with its sweet.”

I simply don’t have the words to describe how much I adore this book and this series. Katherine Arden uses beautiful language and draws from both historical and fantastical Russia to create a haunting story of bravery, fear, family, the roles of women in society, and what it means to challenge those roles.

My love for Vasya only grew in this story as she tried to carve her own path every time those around her tried to place her in a metaphorical and physical tower. While she still has her reckless spirit and courage that I adored in The Bear and the Nightingale, loss, age, and understanding have made her wiser. What I love most about Vasya isn’t that she is fearless— it is that she is courageous and strong even when she is scared; it is that we see her bravery falter and then watch her stand taller. Vasya has become my favorite female character of all time, and she is the kind of protagonist I want young readers to look up to.

“That love of maidens for monsters, that does not fade with time.”

Of course, I could not finish this review without talking of Morozko—the frost demon and the winter king who has my heart. I didn’t think it was possible, but I love him even more in this book than I did in the first as we begin to truly understand him and his position. Without giving anything away, I’ll say this: Morozko broke my heart and brought me to tears in a way that a fictional character has not done in a long time, if ever.

“You cannot love and be immortal.”

If you loved The Bear and the Nightingale, then you’ll love The Girl in the Tower perhaps even more. It maintains all of its strengths from the first book, particularly the atmosphere, while adding new layers to these beloved characters and introducing a new storyline where the stakes are raised.

“Think of me sometimes,’ he returned. ‘When the snowdrops have bloomed and the snow has melted.’”

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The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

“I would walk into the jaws of hell itself, if it were a path of my own choosing. I would rather die tomorrow in the forest than live a hundred years of the life appointed me.” 

The Bear and The Nightingale is about a girl named Vasya who must save her village and loved ones from a threat that should belong in the fairytales her nurse Dunya told her. But more than that, it’s about family dynamics, gender roles in society, and the courage to stand up for what you believe in.

“In the north, the wind had teeth that bit after sunset, even in summer.”

This book’s strengths really come through in the setting. Katherine Arden has created a rich and atmospheric world. A hybrid of a Russia rooted in history as well as fantasy, you feel as though you live in this world with the characters. As I was reading I could feel the cold, the chill of the Winter Demon’s words in my ear.

In terms of characters, I loved Vasya, it was impossible not to. She’s wild, she’s fearless, she stands up for what she believes in, she doesn’t conform to what society expects of her, and she has a kind heart. She endures a lot from not only her stepmother, but also her village, but does so with such strength. She has a wonderful relationship with her brother, Aloysha, which was wonderful to read, because so often the most important relationship for a female character will be the one between her and her romantic interest.

“Sleep is cousin to death, Vasya. And both are mine.”

Speaking of romantic interest…I really hope something more develops between Vasya and Morozko because between the scene with them after her nightmare and the kiss, I’m dying to see more interactions between them in the sequel.

Overall, I loved this book so much and I can’t wait to pick up the sequel, The Girl in the Tower! I’ve left more of my favorite quotes below!

“Wild birds die in cages.”
“Vasya felt cold despite the steam. ‘Why would I choose to die?’ ‘It is easy to die,’ replied the bannik. ‘Harder to live.’”

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