CONTENT WARNING: murder, blood, antisemitism, xenophobia, racism, violence, gore, death

I’ve read a few stories about Baba Yaga and her house with chicken legs, but this one absolutely blew the rest of those out of the water. Nethercott has put an entirely new spin on the story, melding historical fiction, Jewish folklore, magical realism, and fantasy with a story of two siblings facing the long legacy of intergenerational trauma, and I was hooked from the first page to the very end.

Isaac and Bellatine are two estranged siblings who are brought back together by a phone call promising a mysterious inheritance all the way from Russia. But when they actually receive it, it’s nothing like what they expected. It’s actually nothing they could have ever dreamed up, since it’s … a house on chicken legs, that responds to verbal commands delivered in Yiddish, a language that neither of them speaks.

In fact, the two of them don’t actually know much about their family history or background. They were raised in a family that didn’t focus on any kind of family history or religious traditions at all, eschewing them in favor of creating new holidays of their own. So they know nothing of the Yaga family or the land they came from. Instead, they focus on Isaac’s plan to put on some puppet shows across the country so that Bellatine can fulfill her end of the bargain, and Isaac will let her have the house, which they’ve called Thistlefoot.

However, there’s a dangerous thing following them known as the Longshadow Man. And he’ll do anything to destroy Thistlefoot, and anyone else who gets in the way. On their travels, Isaac and Bellatine come across a small group of people who know about the Longshadow Man, and are working to fight against him.

I really loved Bellatine and Isaac’s characters, despite their flaws. They’re two siblings who definitely don’t see eye to eye, and I can completely understand that. The two of them also have very different goals in life, and very different ways of living. Isaac is more of a wanderer, happy going from place to place and never settling down, which is conducive to his street performer/hustling lifestyle, while Bellatine is more of a homebody, happiest when she’s working with her hands as a carpenter. But they’re both keeping secrets, from each other and the rest of the world, and they’re not completely sure they can trust each other.

One of my favorite parts of the story is the way that traumatic events echo down through generations. Today we call it intergenerational trauma, which is a well-studied phenomenon, but they didn’t have words for it just a few generations ago. Both sides of my family left their countries of birth due to antisemitic violence in different generations, and it has carried over into the younger generations in various ways, whether we were aware of it or not. This quote hit me right into the feels:

“There are no ghosts of the dead. But events? Events, if they carry enough wailing, can leave a mark.”

I couldn’t stop reading this story, but at the same time, I almost didn’t want it to end. I probably could have flown through it, but there was just something about it that demanded that I slow down and savor the story. It’s written beautifully, with hints of romance that never overshadow the story. I loved the underlying Jewishness of the story, despite the fact that the two MCs aren’t religious or even culturally Jewish, because you don’t have to be knowledgable or practicing to be Jewish. It’s perfectly paced, with plenty of action and plot twists, and I couldn’t put the story down at any point. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for more of Nethercott’s work, even if I still think puppets are a bit creepy.

3.5 stars

Overall Thistlefoot is a wonderfully dark modern fairytale retelling, that kept me hooked from the beginning. I love Baba Yaga, it's one of my favorite stories, and loved the folklore and history behind. My only issue was the pacing to be a bit too slow for my liking, other than that it was wonderful

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

***

The cultural material from which this drew has always been interesting to me. Baba Yaga is one of my favorite stories, it's dark and delightful.

I like the evolution here and where the author takes this story. It's interesting and creative and just dark enough.

That being said, there's a lot to wade through, both language wise and perspective wise. It was a slow read and I had some trouble getting through it.

The style isn't quite for me, but I'm sure others will enjoy the intricate story and multiple POV design.

This is a very interesting take on the Russian fairytale/folktale of Baba Yaga and her chicken legged house. Baba is long gone and her house has been bequeathed to descendants-a brother and sister with unusual character about them. But there is also a dark force trying to get to them and the house. This is a suspenseful and nail biting story. It jumps back and forth from the past with Baba Yaga and her two daughters to the present with the brother and sister on the run and the various characters they come across on their journey. The only issue I had was understanding exactly who or what this evil force is and what it wants. At times I feel I was getting it but then another scene was finished and I got confused again. I think I got it by the end, though! But this really is a good read. Not a boring part. Not necessarily fast paced but not a boring part.

Wow! A wonderful and fantastic read! The writing is beautiful and the use of real legends and folklore is magnificently done. The cast of characters is intricate and so well developed. I am awestruck and almost out of adjectives to describe how much I absolutely love this book. The addition of the unexpected POV to me was the cherry on top. What an amazing story. A must read!! I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving a free copy.

This is my first 5-star review in a while, and honestly I'm wishing I could give Thistlefoot even more stars. Congratulations, GennaRose Nethercott, on a truly exceptional book.

Thistlefoot follows the lives of the Yaga siblings, Isaac and Bellatine, who inherit a house that walks around on chicken legs and find themselves grappling with generational trauma and what it means for your ancestors' past to be imprinted on your present. The book is filled throughout with absolutely beautiful prose; I found myself re-reading passages just to appreciate Nethercott's way with words--I even read some particularly exceptional parts aloud to my husband to explain why I kept gasping or sighing and saying "my goodness, this book!"

I don't want to give too much away, but if you're interested in modern fables, Jewish literature, magical realism, Eastern European folklore, or just truly incredible books, Thistlefoot is for you!

Huge thanks to Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for the eARC of this book, provided in exchange for a review.

This is a mildly creepy, a little spooky, and dark book that is perfect for fall reading. A folktale, told in 2 timelines, starting in the present day. The Yaga twins are bequeathed a mysterious package 70 years after the death of their great grandmother. This mysterious package turns out to be a house that is magical and mobile with chicken feet. The twins devise a plan to create a mobile puppet show theater tour with the house, only to be pursued by a creepy Shadowman who will not stop until he finds the house.

There are complicated sibling dynamics in play throughout. Both siblings have magical abilities they struggle to control. The house is non-verbal, yet becomes an amusing narrator. She brings humor as she tells the folklore of the 1919 owner of the house, Baba Yaga. In contrast, there are also accounts of Jewish Pogroms in Russia, and the impact of that reality is felt in the present time.

It's creepy, but not too out there. It's dark, but not throughout. There are elements of spooky, but not scary enough that it would keep you away if that is not your thing. This is good for a wide range of readers.

Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to review this book.

What a magical, marvelous old new faerie tale! I love Baba Yaga retelling and she is a witch like no other! Thistlefoot is her amazing house and the descendents are just as marvelous!

Thank you to Knopf Doubleday and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott is an adult fantasy that reimagines the story of Baba Yaga's house. The story revolves around the Yaga siblings - Bellatine and Isaac, who both have abilities that some would consider magic. One day, they learn that they've inherited Thistlefoot, a house on chicken legs - the house of fairy tales and folklore - which has been shipped from Russia to them. But along with the house are shadowy figures who have tracked the house to America. Will the Yaga siblings be able to outrun these villains?

Here is an enchanting excerpt from Chapter 1:

"Welcome, my ultimate babes, you thieves and lovers, to the greatest spectacle this side of the Mississippi!”
Isaac Yaga curtsied before the crowd, his black thrift-store suit splitting slightly in the knees. He had obsidian hair that levitated in soft waves around his head, as if experimenting with gravity. His face was pale and narrow, punctuated by a leaning, crow-like nose and pupils sharp as polished lead. If he had eaten well in the past month, you wouldn’t know it, his skeleton floating inside the old suit with room to spare.
Standing atop a sagging milk crate, he widened his arms to the crowd below. An invitation."

Overall, Thistlefoot is an adult fantasy that will appeal to fans of Eastern European folklore. One highlight of this book are the chapters from the house's perspective. I found those ingenious. I would read a book from the perspective of Baba Yaga's house. Another highlight of this book was the nice and realistic sibling relationship. I did take off 1 star, because I expected a straightforward fantasy adventure and instead got a lot of meanderings from the path. For example, I wasn't very interested in the chapters from the perspective of the secret agents following the main characters. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of fantasy books in general, I recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in September!

I'm a big fan of Slavic folklore and have read a few different interpretations of Baba Yaga so when I read the synopsis for Thistlefoot, I was eager to see a story featuring the infamous house with chicken legs.

I can honestly say that one of my favorite things about this book was the idea that when a house or community was in danger, the houses would come to life and sprout wings or legs to help them escape. While it is uncommon in the world of this book, it is mentioned that it happened to entire neighborhoods in New Orleans during Katrina. Ever since I was a child I have had this weird affinity for inanimate objects and believed that they all had their own personal lives and ambitions. I once cried for an hour because a fork fell behind the stove and I thought the fork would never make it back home to its family in the drawer. My mom eventually got sick of the crying because rational explanations weren't working and pulled out the stove to "rescue" the fork. But I digress.

Thistlefoot is the name given to the house when Bellatine and Isaac Yaga inherit the house from a relative. The house is shipped to the U.S. from Russia and has a mysterious and troubled past that is difficult to immediately discern. There are mysterious scorch marks and an intense mural in the attic. Thistlefoot only responds to Yiddish commands and Bellatine feels an immediate connection with the house.

Bellatine and Isaac aren't exactly a happy brother-sister team. They grew up in their parents' traveling puppet theatre. When Isaac grew up, he decided to hit the road for his own reasons. En route, he becomes an actor and huckster, stealing and conning his way across the states. Bellatine struggled with her parents due to her "gift" of being able to animate unliving things. As she grows older, she is taught to conceal her gift and control it to the point that she tenses whenever she is around anything that looks humanoid (figurines, statues, etc.) Because the siblings are essentially estranged from the parents and each other, the inheritance of Thistlefoot gives Isaac an opportunity to use his sister to ultimately get what he wants (money) by performing the family puppet theatre in a traveling show for one year. Bellatine agrees reluctantly.

Unfortunately, they do not realize that Thistlefoot's mysterious past is chasing after them in the form of the Longshadow Man. The Longshadow Man is one of the most chilling villains that I've read in a long time. His introductory scene alone made me put the book down for several days.

I won't go into more plot details here because I feel that the true merit of this book is in the way that Nethercott combines the elements of storytelling. Though Thistlefoot is mute in the contemporary narrative, there are flashbacks narrated by Thistlefoot and to add spice to the mixture, the house is unreliable. I love the idea that a house can live through the people who inhabit it and while Thistlefoot insists that there is no such thing as ghosts of people, the Longshadow Man is evidence that experiences and history have a way of reckoning with modern times.

Nethercott's history is researched in brutal detail and the representation of all of the different peoples who were punished simply because they were named "other" is stark and painful. While the book develops from the horror of pogroms in Russia, we can, unfortunately, see the same nightmarish genocidal qualities inflicted all over the world. Nethercott's insistence that by bearing witness and remembering those that were killed helps remove the power of the villain seems sadly too little, too late. History moves in patterns and looking at the rise of fervent nationalism in European nations and the US rings serious warning bells for those of us familiar with the past. Considering that the National Holocaust Museum receives hate mail by people insisting that the Holocaust was faked and that a "real" one needs to happen in the future is terrifying.

While this book is at turns delightful and magical, the reveal of what caused Thistlefoot was so heartbreaking that I cried silently. If this is GennaRose Nethercott's debut novel, I am spellbound and can't wait for what comes next. This book will stay with me for a long time.

A retelling of the old Russian/Ukraine/Belarus stories about Baba Yaga and her chicken-footed house. This time around though, she’s not just a creepy, child-eating monster. Many years have passed since Baba’s time, and now her progeny, Bellatine and her brother Isaac, have inherited Baba’s chicken-footed house (which arrives in America in a really large shipping container).

Bellantine and Isaac decide on the only logical (in their minds) thing to do with their new home. Having grown up with theatrical parents and knowing quite a bit about putting on a show themselves, they name the house Thistlefoot and take it on a country-wide tour, putting on shows for the locals from the house’s balcony.

That’s the initial premise. But there’s *so* much more going on inside the house, inside Isaac, and most intensely, inside Bellatine. While the trio struggle to find their place in the world, we slowly learn their secrets. And we meet the various people who can’t help but latch onto them – as well as one particularly dangerous guy who won’t stop following them.

This is a rather huge book, written in elaborate, beautiful prose. It’s not going to be a quick read, the words need to be savored. If you are the impatient sort, you might find the style irritating. If you adore the beauty of words, I think you’ll love it.

I have only read one other book this surreal and beautiful, with such a broad scope of history, human nature, real magic, love and lust, hatred and destruction. On my bookshelf, Thistlefoot belongs right next to Tom Robbin’s Jitterbug Perfume.

My thanks to GennaRose Nethercott, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital advance review copy of this book. This review is my honest and unbiased opinion.

I absolutely ADORED this book!

The Characters, the themes, the plot, the world. I loved every moment of reading this and plan to buy a copy when it comes out.

I went in blind, so will keep this vague in case someone else wants to stay blind to the plot. If you are looking for an immersive read that is character driven, grab this book! It is about history, family, personal acceptance, living life, it's just everything to make you feel good but has enough darkness and gloom to keep in interesting and not super happy go lucky all the way through. You cared and wanted the characters to win their battles, but you could feel the dangers along the way.

I honestly just want everyone to read this book. It will be a top rec from me forever now and this author will be an auto buy for me moving forward.

Read this book! :)

I will read any book based off of or related to fairy and folk tales. The book is about two siblings who are descended from Baba Yaga and inherit her house. The pacing was a little slow in some sections but I overall really enjoyed this book and look forward to more from the author.

Home is where the heart is. In the case of GennaRose Nethercott's debut novel, Thistlefoot, home can be wherever home chooses to go. And along being the resting place for the heart, home is also where generational trauma from an entire community comes to roost.

The Yaga siblings were once close. Helping their parents run a puppet theater will do that to kids. But now, as young adults, their lives couldn't be more dissimilar. Bellatine, the younger of the two, wants to open up a woodshop and never look at a puppet again. Isaac, the older one, ran away from home at age 17 and only looks back when the siblings get a mysterious summons to a port. As the youngest members of the Yaga clan, they are the joint recipients of an odd inheritance: a house set upon two giant chicken legs. And it moves.

The house once belonged, of course, to Baba Yaga, the old forest witch of folklore fame. How she got her name and how the house came to walk on two oversized chicken legs are both stories that have many variations. All stories are true, Isaac says to another character at one point, but for some the truth is of a more concrete sort than others. Bellatine wants to live in the house forever while Isaac has no interest in even a walking house's definition of stability, so he makes her a deal. If she'll help him put on a traveling puppet show for one year and let him keep all the profits, he'll sign over his half of the house to her. She agrees, reluctantly, on the condition that she doesn't have to touch any of the puppets herself. But it doesn't take long for things to go awry, most frequently at the hands of a mysterious figure dubbed the Longshadow Man, who sows chaos wherever he goes and seems to be very interested in finding a house walking on chicken legs. As he gets closer, the people nearest to Bellatine and Isaac become more and more at risk, and it's up to the siblings to stop bickering long enough to figure out why the Longshadow Man wants the house—and how to stop him.

What starts as a fun, folklore-y tale about two young people with slightly magical powers trying to unpack multiple generations' worth of baggage as they travel down the Eastern Seaboard ended up a heavy, poignant tale that made me cry. Not necessarily because I loved the present-day characters so very much, but because of the decades of sorrow that all culminate in them having—well, not exactly normal problems, because of the whole slightly magical powers thing, not to mention the otherworldly antagonist chasing them, but relatable ones. Not feeling like you're living up to family expectations, feeling like you don't belong anywhere, feeling like the world and your own frailties are conspiring against you, being the recipient of a legacy you didn't ask for and probably don't want—all of these things resonate with how my early 20s were.

As siblings, Bellatine and Isaac are so similar to each other, yet that similarity is the very thing that keeps them from connecting. Both have innate abilities that separate them from their peers, and both suffer physically when they don't use those abilities. For Isaac, the so-called Chameleon King, he can use his powers of uncanny imitation to move through the world unseen if he wishes. For Bellatine, whose power is somewhat more, uh, dynamic, the pent-up energy just might drive her mad.

In truth, I didn't come to love either one as a friend who just happened to live between the pages of a book, as happens sometimes in books. Isaac in particular was more difficult to connect with, though that could be that not even he knows quite who he is or what he wants besides running away. Bellatine's reluctance to do what her body needed to do and the war against fragments of herself was painful and frustrating to witness, but also understandable. But I think a better quality for characters to have than being liked is to evoke emotion. Isaac and Bellatine may not have ended up feeling like friends, but I felt an overwhelming sense of grace and sympathy for them, especially by the end. I want the world for them, whatever shape that world might need to take to suit them perfectly.

Thistlefoot, though—what an easy entity to love. Thistlefoot gets its own point of view, as the only conscious thing that knows the story it's in from beginning to end. It matter-of-factly tells multiple versions of its tale, each one containing a piece of what the reader might call truth. And when the story it tells comes to an end, I had to stop reading for a moment to collect myself.

Fortunes ebb and flow, we learn in Thistlefoot, and joy and tragedy carry equal weight to life and time. But what you remember of those ups and downs also carries weight. The stories told about the events that make up a life, or a death, matter as much as the events themselves. Things that seem buried are still alive generations later in the souls of those who live on. Whether contained in stories or burning with words unspoken and forgotten, we are taught, what happened cannot and should not be erased. I eagerly await whatever stories Nethercott tells next.

(This review, in its entirety, will appear on RingReads, linked below, on 13 September 2022 at 1:57 MDT. A shortened version of this review currently appears on Goodreads, also linked below.)

I love folk tales, and Baba Yaga and her house, Thistlefoot have been around for a long time. The way GennaRose Nethercott used this background to weave a story with Jewish folklore and history, with a story of family and friends, was magical.

Isaac and Bellatine Yaga are descendants of Baba Yaga who inherit her magical house, Thistlefoot. The siblings have been estranged from their parents and each other but inheriting the house has forced Isaac and Bellatine together, at least for a time. The house is sentient, and able to move around on chicken legs, so a journey begins as they try to raise money by putting on the puppet shows the siblings grew up with.

Baba Yaga was suspected of being a witch, and both siblings have magical abilities. Isaac uses his gift to change his appearance to trick people, using his sleight of hand to steal from them. He lives his life as a vagabond, haunted by an event in his past, and doesn’t seem to be able to get past his feelings of guilt. I really liked Bellatine; she has focused on her woodworking skills, has a small circle of friends and a strong sense of responsibility. She hides her ability, afraid of what she is capable of doing. They are total opposites.

Add a mysterious stranger who seems to be tracking Thistlefoot, leaving death and destruction in his path plus a small group who is tracking the stranger and trying to put a stop to his evil. When they all meet up with Isaac the story takes on a new trajectory.

I really enjoyed the chapters written in the house’s point of view and Bellatine’s relationship with Thistlefoot. There are times when the book seemed to drag, but then things would speed up. One thing I went away with was the importance of remembering people, past events, the truth. Some things should never be forgotten.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for this ARC, these are my honest opinions.

I simply can not get into this one. I tried I really did but after being 1/3 of the way through I still do not feel connected to the story or the characters. This will be a huge hit for a lot of people. it just wasn't for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for the advance copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Other than the original tale, I have read and enjoyed a few different takes of the Baba Yaga fairy tale before and "Thistlefoot" was definitely one of the best. It is a captivating and enchanting story which is told like a folktale and has a bittersweet ending ~ the kind of ending that I really like. The author GennaRose Nethercott is also a poet, so you can see how this poetic side transfers to the book as you read it. Definitely a must-read for fantasy, mythology, and folktale lovers.

Things I loved:
Baba Yaga. I will never turn away from something connected to such a deliciously complex, chaotic character. I really loved the historical connection here, that her myth grew from the pogroms and her survival.

Things I didn’t love:
The pacing. This was a really slow book. I had to keep putting it down and picking up something else because it felt like it wasn’t going anywhere.
The characters. There was an unfortunate lack of Baba Yaga herself, and neither of the Yaga siblings became particularly interesting until the final third/quarter of the book.

Who this book is good for:
Fans of both urban fantasy and historical fiction, folklorists, those who enjoy long, meandering journeys

I went into this book hoping for an offbeat fairytale retelling with Night Circus vibes, compelling characters, and strange magic, and this book delivered in spades. Thistlefoot takes the Baba Yaga folk tales as its jumping-off point: Isaac and Bellatine Yaga, estranged adult siblings with strange abilities, receive a cryptic note from a Ukrainian attorney that they’ve inherited a very large box kept in storage for decades. I don’t want to give too much away, but the story manages to combine a puppet show, a strange band of musicians, magic powers, a very unique house, and a mysterious, deadly stranger in a meditation on generational trauma and the importance of storytelling. If you like the work of Erin Morgenstern (The Night Circus), V.E. Schwab (The Secret Life of Addie LaRue), Naomi Novik (A Deadly Education), Leigh Bardugo (Ninth House), or you’re a fan of Stranger Things, you should pick up this book!
Likes: I loved all the different characters. Two of the narrators, Bellatine and Isaac, are both deeply flawed and yet sympathetic. The third narrator, whose identity I won’t reveal, weaves in elements of folk tale that are crucial to the book’s conclusion. There’s a small cast of supporting characters including Hubcap, a small black cat with a big heart. Nethercott combines historical fiction, fantasy, folktales, and romance into an original and refreshing brew. And her prose (did I mention that she’s a poet?) is beautiful and unique. This book packs an additional punch given the current war in Ukraine.
Dislikes: really nothing.
FYI: murder, attempted murder, pogroms, massacres, suicidal ideation, accidental death, difficult parent-child and sibling relationships.

e-arc provided by netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

"to let too many stories in- it will undo you. you could not bear it."

this is a story in layers.

a house on chicken legs hosting a puppet show across the vast expanse of america.
a pair of estranged siblings dealing with strange gifts and their past, both shared and secret.
a russian man seeking to destroy the last of a jewish-ukrainian family's legacy.

there's probably something for everyone in this book. however, that made it very fragmented, which didn't work for me as much as i wished it had. there's a pov change every chapter, and though it offered insight into both the minds of the yaga siblings' and the strange house they chose to call home, it kept me from immersing myself into the story. it also only picked up speed around the 75% mark, at which point i did manage to sit down and read more than a chapter at a time.

i'm not sure if it was that, my bizzare reading slump, or just an unfortunate series of coincidences that made me take over a month to finish this book. however, i think that if i ever got my hands on a physical copy and took my time with it, i'd find the story of thistlefoot among my favourites. there were certainly countless passages i wished to highlight, and characters pretty much engineered to be the objects of an obsession.