Book Review : The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherin Arden

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“She looked like a wild thing new-caught and just barely groomed into submission.” This quote aptly described not just the main character in the book but somewhere it also describes the actual book and the way it progesses. The Bear and the Nightingale is the first of Winternight trilogy by Katherin Arden, a beautiful book based in Russia which revolves around Vasilisa and her family and the way their lives tangle with elements of superstitions and Gods.

Blurb:
In a village at the edge of the wilderness of northern Russia, where the winds blow cold and the snow falls many months of the year, an elderly servant tells stories of sorcery, folklore and the Winter King to the children of the family, tales of old magic frowned upon by the church.

But for the young, wild Vasya these are far more than just stories. She alone can see the house spirits that guard her home and sense the growing forces of dark magic in the woods...
What's good with the book:
1. The beautiful plot. The way the characters are slowly weaved into your wind, it makes us attached to the protagonist dearly. You root for her at every point and it involves you quite deeply as the story progresses.

2. The story brings a fresh air to the fantasy genre which is nowadays quite filled with almost similar mythical creatures such as Dragons, Elves etc. This one deals with demons of a person's everyday lives which has been given shape by the author as actual demons.

3. The setting becomes another advantage for this book as the crazy winter of Russia becomes an interesting element for the story to move forward.

What's wrong with the book:

1. One needs to have immense patience while reading the book. Especially, as many are more prone towards reading British/American names in most of our books, remembering the names of the characters including their nicknames tests the readers' patience a lot.

2. The pace of the book is another issue with the book. The pace swindles from fast to slow and back. This could have been avoided at times is something I strongly feel.

My take on the book:

If you are into fantasy genre and have enough patience for the rest of the books to release, go for it. This book is bound to take you on a beautiful journey and does make you ask for more when the book reaches its end. Pick it up and wait just for a few more weeks as the second book in the series is almost on its way to launch. This was my third book of 2018 and I just couldn't ask for a better start to the year.

Ratings: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 out of 5

Book in Three Words: Beautiful. Must-Read. Magical.

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