The Bear and the Nightingale: A Novel

In The Bear and the Nightingale, deep in the Russian wilderness, Vasilisa is born, and she can see things others cannot. She speaks to the household spirits, and the horses teach her to speak their language and ride bareback. Her stepmother is a very devout woman because she can see those things as well but chooses to treat them as demons. She forbids the family from bringing offerings to the spirits, which weakens them. Vasilisa is warned by Morozko, the winter spirit, that his brother, the Bear, is about to be freed, which will bring a terrible storm and death to her people. Vasilisa has to decide if she will hide her gifts or use them to save her family and her people.

If you like fairy tales at all, I think you will enjoy this book. I could not put it down. I love fairy tales and everything Russian, so I was completely enamored with this book. I enjoyed every part. I thought it was well written, and it kept me engaged. Vasilisa’s character was someone you could relate to, even though she had a bit of magic to her. You want her to be free and brave, as you might hope to be. I look forward to more from this author, and I will definitely be reading this again.