When I started reading the first novel, I was enchanted by this world that captures real elements of a culture that many people ignore. I learned of creatures and a history that is largely ignored in American society. In the next novel, Katherine Arden does it again. She brings to life a culture while creating characters that are memorable and unique. The story is exciting and takes place immediately following the first novel; you are in for a ride and you won’t forget it.

OMG!! I know that the first book was amazing but my goodness! I never dreamed that this one would be even better!!

Vasya has long seen creatures from legend, and her ability to see has brought trouble down upon her and her family. Only the aid of Morozko (Frost, the winter demon from the stories) has kept her alive so far, and the love of Solovey, her magnificent stallion. With her parents dead and her village casting her out as a witch, Vasya knows her options are limited: life in a convent or marriage to a Moscovite prince. She wants neither, and disguises herself as a boy as she sets out to explore the world.

She finds burned villages, missing girls, and bandits that vanish leaving no traces behind. After she rescues three girls from the bandits, the Grand Prince of Moscow calls her a hero, and she is reunited with her brother and sister. But Vasya cannot reveal that she is female, or her entire family risks disgrace and death. Soon she realizes that a danger stalks Moscow and the Grand Prince, and even Morozko, who she no longer knows if she can trust, may not be able to help her.

Have you ever identified with a character so completely that it almost broke your heart? That’s how I felt about Vasya as I was reading The Girl in the Tower. Everyone wants her to be content to marry, raise a family, and be conventional, but she wants anything but that. She wants to travel, live her life, and be happy, but the people around her don’t want that for her: they want her to conform. And she doesn’t want to hurt those she loves, so she’s torn.

Vasya is a powerful character, so relatable that you want to cry for her struggles. This is a magical, vibrant book, and wonder permeates every page. The setting is so vividly depicted that I found myself shivering—and I hate cold weather!

Go. Read this! And if you haven’t read The Bear and the Nightingale, read it first!

(Galley provided by Del Rey in exchange for an honest review.)

Where do you go when the great villain is vanquished and you long to see the world? Well, when you're a woman in medieval Russia, the options remain limited. Freed from her home, Vasya decides to see the world atop Solovey, disguised as a boy. But dark forces are moving to prevent her dream—bandits are burning villages and stealing girls, the Tatar overlords want their taxes, and a mysterious enemy is slowly reaching out to destroy Russia.

This book is amazing. While I don't think it quite topped the awesomeness of the first book (mostly due to this one's abrupt ending), I really enjoyed it. The bleakness of womanhood in medieval Russia, particularly for a woman who cannot fit into the places society has molded for her. Vasya's freedom quickly reveals itself to be not only an illusion but fleeting as well, as she becomes wrapped up in the Grand Prince's party alongside her brother.

In addition to medieval Russian politicking (less of this than the first one, on both the religious and political sides), there is more beautiful Russian folklore and more stark winter scenery that is just as beautiful as it is deadly. A great follow-up to the first, and I can't wait for the final book!

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

The Girl in the Tower is the follow-on to The Bear and the Nightingale. If you enjoyed the first book, I highly recommend picking this one up since Ms. Arden continues to use her truly unique talent of historical fiction storytelling centered around Russian folklore that made the first book so much different than anything I had ever read. Readers join Vasya as she comes into womanhood and tries to find her place in the mortal and mythological worlds she inhabits. She did a lot of soul searching and development as a character this time around. Escaping marriage, she journeys across the Russian countryside disguised as a young boy. Russia at the time is a very politically unstable place to be, and I felt the author captured this nicely while interweaving the Russian folklore and mythology. Vasya gets caught up in this unrest while struggling with her feelings for Morozko, the frost demon. She also finds that she's not the only one possesses the gift of being able to see and interact with these mythological creatures from Russian folklore. The author had a good balance of mythology with the historical fictions aspects. I always enjoy reading a book I can learn something from, and this book continued to provide a lesson in Russian folklore that I recall from The Bear and the Nightingale. Ms. Arden does a fantastic job capturing the dark, cold, overcast Russian winter blanketing the world. Again, excellent follow-up to The Bear and the Nightingale.

Vasya was independent as ever. She refused to do the only two socially acceptable things which were get married or go to a convent. With the help of Morozko she went out to see the world. The only way to do it was to pretend to be a boy. After inadvertently getting the attention of the Grand Prince, she put the lives of her siblings in danger.

I admired Vasya for being bold and brave. She was willing to risk it all to live life on her own terms. However risking it all meant possible death. She had no desire to die, but didn't do much to prevent it either. Her recklessness aggravated me. It was hard to believe someone could be so cavalier about their own life. It was that behavior that made her seem immature. Even with everything she had been through she managed to be incredibly naive about the dangers of the world.

In those days the world did not favor women, so pretending to be a boy seemed wise in the moment. Some things about it did not seem entirely plausible. It was always emphasized that Vasya was not pretty, but would she have passed for a boy? Masculine was never used to describe her. It was unusual that two of her siblings lived in the palace yet no one thought it odd that they had a brother whom they'd never heard of show up. It irritated me that Vasya was blind to the consequences of her actions. Her rouse put her siblings and nieces in danger.

Morozko was my favorite character. He stole every scene he was in. I really like him and Vasya together although when I think about it I don't understand why he feels the way he does about Vasya. She always doubted his motives. Creatures like him don't do things out of the goodness of their hearts. On the other hand how many times does he have to come to her rescue before she sees the truth? Almost everyone in her life let her down at one point or another, so that may be why she was hesitant to trust him.

It didn't end on a cliffhanger, but a lot was left open ended in regards to Vasya's fate and her relationship with Morozko. I looking forward to the next book especially since this was even better than The Bear and the Nightingale.

The Girl in the Tower, the second book of The Winternight Trilogy, continues on with the story of Vasya, in the same magical tone as told in the first book. Vasya, now older and a bit wiser, is left if the choice of marry or spend her life in a convent as a nun. Neither option seem to agree with this Vasya, who is only left with one option: flee before she can be forced into a life she doesn't wish for. As in The Bear and the Nightingale, Vasya seeks help - even unconsciously - from Morozko, the winter god. With Solovey, the horse Morozko gifts her, she goes on to travel through Russia dressed as a boy, and hoping to see the parts she has never been to. Her journey leads her to the rescue of three young girls from bandits, and later back to her favorite brother Sasha, and their cousin: the Grand Prince of Moscow - Dmitri, who thinks of her to be his cousin Vasilii - a man. This deception, although not intentional, leads Vasya into much more trouble, as her true identity eventually gets revealed to all, putting her, Sasha and her sister Olga at risk. 

Throughout the book, we can note Katherine Arden's beautiful use of prose, and travel to old Russia through Vasya's eyes. Each page is a turner, with intrigues lying around, and the battle between 'old' Rus and new Russia unveiling in this fantasy. We get a glimpse of the life during that time, especially of the place women held in society, and how they were treated. If The Bear and the Nothingale had some flaws, I can confidently say that this sequel was even better than the first part. I found The Girl in the Tower to be more complex and more nuanced, and I think fans of the first part will love this second part, where history, fantasy and magic cohabit together in harmony.  

Thank you to NetGalley, and Random House Publishing Group - Ballatine and Del Rey for an ARC of The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden, in exchange for an honest review.

Historical fiction and fantasy lovers will both find satisfaction in this series. The little girl of The Bear and the Nightingale is grown, and she takes us on a fast-paced adventure through rural and city life, folklore, religion, and politics of Medieval Russia. Not once did I feel that the plot slowed or that I could predict what was coming next. A very good read. My one complaint - the author seems to have a bit of an obsession with "bared teeth."

Adored it from the first word to the last! The Girl in the Tower is the sequel to the luminous The Bear and the Nightingale. The abrupt ending of The Bear and the Nightingale is completely forgiven now that Ms. Arden has gifted us with more of Vasilisa's story. Vasilisa continues to be a fierce and bold heroine moving in a society dominated by men; she also continues to make some mistakes in her passionate naiveté, which are painful to watch as reader. Vasilisa's family remain core in her story and affections. Ardent and complicated characters, untamed magic, a breath-taking setting, a twisting plot, a mysterious adversary, and spot-on pacing, make this a must read. This is fantasy at its best. Although not written for a young adult audience, they would certainly enjoy this series. Do note that it is strongly recommended to start with the first book in the series.

Hands down, The Bear and the Nightingale and The Girl in the Tower have been my favorite new novels of 2017.

Review of an Electronic Advance Reader's Copy

THE GIRL IN THE TOWER continues the story left off from The Bear and the Nightingale, where Vasya decided to go off adventuring into the world, to avoid the villagers at home who accused her of being a witch and perhaps because she also felt guilt at what had happened to her father. This is still a coming-of-age story, where Vasya tries to find her identity in a world that would suppress her movements and desires, just because women have a "place" in society--either marriage or the convent. Yet, for Vasya, who is wild and spirited and clever and brave, either of these wouldn't have been enough for her. They were traps she wanted to avoid, especially when she holds her independence so dearly.

And so she went forth on her adventure, enabled by Morozko, the frost demon and dare I say, (romantic) hero of this book? I love all their interactions together and I read those scenes over and over, hoping to find some inkling of romantic development. Perhaps there were some, but alas, our hero and heroine are in different places in their lives at this time and our heroine has to "grow up" and lose something first so that she could be on equal footing with him before a truly romantic situation would occur. Perhaps in the next book, and I wait for it with bated breath.

THE GIRL IN THE TOWER is a great adventure sequel to The Bear and the Nightingale, with a bit of mystery and suspense to heighten the mood and the tension. That deciding race--I cringed with Vasya when her identity was finally revealed, yet, despite the humiliation that she suffered, I admire her courage and loyalty when she still did what had to be done to save her family and Moscow.

Vasya is growing up to be an admirable young woman and I can't wait to see what she'd evolve to in the next book. Oh, and there seems to be a bit of family mystery solved here, too, and I was particularly intrigued with the author's statement of how Vasya's life would've been different if she'd known the answer to a question that she asked of Morozko, but because of some distractions, Morozko wasn't able to answer. I can't wait to read the next book!

After receiving a preview copy of this book, I went online and read all the reviews. The idea of a Russian fairy tale appealed to me, the covers were intriguing and people who reviewed the first book loved it. While I don’t always begin with the first book in a series, since this sounded like something I would very much enjoy, I bought a copy of the first book: The Bear and the Nightingale. And I loved it!

Katherine Arden has done a truly stupendous job of bringing them all the characters to life. If a writer could create real people, the ones in this book would walk off the pages and be alive somewhere, and we would know more details of their lives than they would probably care to share. I have not been so enthralled by a book of this type since the Harry Potter series, not that it is exactly like Harry potter, but the book is so carefully crafted right down to the smallest details. I hope that people everywhere have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world Arden has created where there is a bit of magic, caring families, adventurous people, a brave heroine, storytellers, mysterious fairy-tale beings who care for homes, animals and sometimes people, as well as mysterious beings who do not.

I can’t wait for the last book in this series. It looks like it will be out in August of 2018. I would not be the least surprised if the books in this series become treasured collectors items.

Holy. Moly. This book was sooooo good! I mean, I figured it would be great, considering how much I loved the second one. But, seriously. So fantastic. I don’t know how I’m going to be able to wait until next year to get my hands on the final book. I need it now!!!!!

Given my slightly incoherent gushings, it might surprise you that I had some trouble in the beginning. Honestly, this actually might be more of a me-problem, rather than an issue with the book itself. For some reason, I had a really hard time getting into the story. Maybe it was because I had to stop and start a few times at first because life got in the way. But, thankfully, my struggles didn’t last long. After the first chapter or so, I was hooked.

This story is just so beautiful. I loved the fairy tale feel, and the heartrendingly real emotional depth. It truly was magical, both in the literal and figurative sense. At times the story seemed a bit slow, but I was so invested in the plot and the characters that I actually didn’t mind the slower parts. It gave me a chance to really get to know the characters and this world.

Speaking of characters. Oh my goodness. Vasya is one of my favorites. She’s so precious, but at the same time one of the toughest, most stubborn humans. And Solovey is an absolute doll that deserves all the porridge and treats he can handle. They both had better get a happy ending or I will be verrrrry upset.

Basically, you guys need to read The Girl in the Tower when it comes out. And if you haven’t read The Bear and the Nightingale, get on it! This series is so freaking good!

The Girl in the Tower spends less time on Vasya discovering who she is, and more time on her acting. Disguised as a boy while adventuring, she takes risks and seeks out what she could do in the world outside the limited role she would otherwise be consigned to as an upperclass woman in medieval Muscovy. The Winter-King/God of Death continues to sweep in to her rescue, to her (and our) annoyance. This sequel is able to focus on political machinations, the claustrophobia of aristocratic women being secluded from the world of men, and ties up many of the loose ends from A Girl in Winter. In turn, I found myself missing the powerful descriptions of cold, snow, as well as the focus on small-scale struggles of old traditions/superstitions and new church teachings. Still, it's a compelling fairy tale. This book supplies the plot and ending aspects of a fairytale, while the first focused more on the feeling and setting.

I just finished this book and all I can do is wish that I was still reading it. Katherine Arden is a masterful story weaver. I was completely lost in this world. I loved it and truly wish that I was still in this world that Katherine Arden wove.

I had doubts that this book could match the first in the series and I was wrong. It is just a beautiful and just as powerful. I cannot even imagine picking up another fantasy in the next few weeks simply because this book has created a world that I do not wish to leave.

The characters are the same characters that we all found and loved in "The Bear and the Nightingale" but they have matured and shown great growth. The plot was unique and it engulfs you in flames. It really is beautiful.

If you're a fan of Juliet Marillier's Sevenwaters series this will be an enchanting read for you. It has the beautiful characters and world that you are accustomed to.

This book picks up right where the last left off, except this time we find out more about her family. I am consistently amazed by Arden's attention to historical detail, family dynamics, and atmospheric world building. This was a thrilling sequel, and I am a fan for life. I would read every single one of these books. Vasya is as heartwarming as ever, but her family is even more complex and the stakes seem even higher than before in this book - if you can imagine that.

<I>The Girl in the Tower</I> by Katherine Arden

<b>Star Rating</b>: ★★★★★ 5/5 stars

<b>Format</b>: paperback ARC

<b>Summary</b>: The sequel to The Bear and the Nightingale, this book follows Vasya on her travels after leaving her childhood home.

<b>Review</b>: I received a free arc galley copy of this book from NetGalley and BookishFirst for review.

I loved the first book in this series, I wasn't sure if would be possible to love the sequel more than that first book but I totally did. I think the fact that the story was already established so we got right into the action of it rather than having to do world building or much exposition. I enjoy Vasya as a character and there was much more of her in this than the first.

The love story between Vasya and Morozko ended up being much more enjoyable than I imagined. I thought I wouldn't like them because the first book was so vague about their relationship but it was a real nice slow burn.

I actually liked Kasyan until the horse race. I thought he was an interesting character and I thought there could have been good chemistry between him and Vasya. Although, I did suspect when she ran into him in the first village she visits that he sent the men after her.

We get more explanation about Vasya and why she sees chyerti. And also the reunions I was waiting for with Vasya's brother and sister finally happen. I wished Vasya and Olya's reunion was happier than it ended up being.

The language in this is beautiful. The book is long but it reads fast because the story is so good. It keeps me enthralled in it, I kept wanting to pick it up and continue reading. The story is really magical, I love Russian folktales and I think this series does a good job bringing them to life.

<b>Recommendation</b>: This is a great series, the first book starts a little slow but the second is fast paced and such an amazing story. I can't wait to read the third book in this series.

The Girl in the Tower is the continuation of The Bear and the Nightingale which is a lush and lyrical Russian history/fairy tale. Vasya still has a long life to live after the first book and so we follow her journey and the journey of Russia along with her.

For, while The Bear and the Nightingale was a fairy tale come to life, The Girl in the Tower is far more real. It is a coming of age story, a clash of cultures, a clash of religions, a clash of genders, a clash of mortal and immortal. It is magic and reality and multi-layered with fantastic things. But it has lost the lyrical quality of The Bear and the Nightingale. It is heartbreak.

In Vasya, we see all these clashes as she travels, reunites with family, fights for what she believes to be right. But we also see painful love stories as we follow Morozko, Solovey, and later Kasyan. These love stories are both beautiful and tragic. And my heart broke over and over. In the final reckoning, my heart broke utterly for Morozko for he beguiled and entranced me like the girls of the fairy tales. In Morozko alone is such a wealth of story and emotion.

Vasya breaks all taboos. She sees the spirit world, in defiance of Christianity. She keeps alive the old ways, the old spirits. She dresses and acts as a man - passing herself off successfully for some time. The Tatars and the Rus are slowly breaking and, while the crisis is not yet upon them, it will be soon. The Girl in the Tower is very historical and very political as it takes us through that time period. Against this backdrop, Vasya is growinig up at last, but she is caught between all these dichotomies.

I loved Morozko. And I loved Solovey. Vasya's spirit horse who has chosen to give himself to her and his devotion is beautiful to watch. Seeing the political side and how religion and politics intersect was interesting. But despite the couple of deeply emotional relationships, I found Sacha and Olya, and even the prince to be less. Only Marya, Olga's daughter felt truly alive.

I am eager to read the ending of this trilogy as much for Morozko's and Solovey's and Marya's stories as for Vasya's story. While this book wasn't as deeply lyrical as the previous, I liked it for all the depth and layers and for the exquisite love stories which are not yet finished.

In this next installment of the Winternight trilogy, we see Vasya as a young woman without a home. Forced by her former homestead to either marry or join a convent, Vasya runs away to her sister in the wooden city of Muscovy, where she faces new challenges and adventures, opposition from her family, and a city under siege.

Katherine Arden is quickly becoming an author I love and cherish. I was enthralled by the first book in this series, but that was surpassed when I found myself engrossed in the second book, unwilling to put it down and stop the story. Once again I found the book beautifully and lyrically written and impeccably researched and thought out. This book also follows a different fairy tale at its forefront, with references to others throughout the story.

The setting of these books is one I always find myself in love with. As with the first book, I was fully transported to Russia. I could feel the freezing temperatures, see the city of Muscovy and imagine the women’s terem. Arden has such an amazing talent to transport the reader, to send them wherever she wants with or without their consent, and to make them see the world and into the hearts of the characters.

The character development was also striking in this book. We see Vasya continue to be unabashedly herself, despite opposition from her family and most of the people she knows. We see her stand up in the face of sexism and harassment, refusing to take any of it, and refusing to accept a “woman’s role”. We also see her finally fall for Morozko. *heart eyes* EEEEEEEE!!!! I also liked that Vasya has flaws. She is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. She makes many mistakes in the books, and she does put others in danger. And that has consequences.

I also loved the side plots with Morozko, his conflicts and development, and the development we see with Vasya’s sister and brother. I liked how her brother became more accepting, and her sister understood, if she did not accept her sister.

I am SO EXCITED TO READ THE NEXT BOOK IN THIS SERIES!!! I can’t wait to see what happens next and how our story concludes. Arden is such a talented writer. I would go so far to compare her to Tolstoy in her writing of setting and characters, and in her absolutely addicting writing style. These books will draw you in and will capture your heart and your soul in its clutches.

Once again I am blown away by this series. The Girl in the Tower is the sequel to The Bear and the Nightingale. My emotions were all over the place as Vasya tries to make her way in the world without her family and with just the occasional help from her friend Morozko-a kind of winter king-god who is sometimes almost human and sometimes freezingly remote. All of the Russian folkloric imagery is just so beautiful. I loved how Vasya started to come to terms with herself and how she is different from those around her in this installment. I can't say enough good things about this series.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Ballantine for this ARC in return for my honest review.

4.5 of 5 stars

Mark my words, Katherine Arden is definitely going places. Early this year, she enchanted me with her lovely debut The Bear and the Nightingale, and now she has done it again with its follow-up The Girl in the Tower, which I thought was just as good—if not better—than its predecessor.

The story continues the journey of brave Vasya, a young woman with a gift that grants her a special connection with the wilderness and the spirits that dwell within. But in the small Russian village where she lives, her abilities and strange behaviors eventually give rise to rumors that she is a witch, made worse by the town’s zealous priest who holds a grudge against her. Now she has been driven out of her community, her options reduced to either letting her older sister arrange a marriage for her, or spending the rest of her life in a convent. Neither are acceptable to Vasya, so in the end she decides to take her fate in her own hands and attempts to forge a third path.

Disguising herself as a boy, Vasya takes to the road with Solovey, her trusty horse. Her adventures are cut short, however, when she encounters a group of bandits who have been preying on the nearby villages in the countryside. Unfortunately, her swift dispatching of them ends up drawing the attention of the Grand Prince of Moscow, whose party had been in the woods at the time, trying to track down the same bandits. Worse, riding with the prince is Vasya’s own brother Sasha, who had left home years ago to pledge his life to the monastery. Seeing through his sister’s disguise at once, Sasha nonetheless agrees not to reveal Vasya’s true identity as the two of them ride on to the capital with the prince, pretending to be brothers. For the moment, it seems our protagonist’s secret is safe, but with the precarious political situation in the city and the eye of the Winter King trained on her, Vasya must remain on her guard at all times.

While I loved The Bear and the Nightingale, like many debuts, the first book suffered from some flaws. Some of the ones I wrote about in my review included uneven pacing, which slowed to a crawl in certain parts of the story, as well as the excessive number of POVs and minor subplots that felt haphazardly inserted into the narrative, further disrupting the flow. The good news is, I experienced almost none of these problems in The Girl in the Tower, which really speaks to Arden’s growth as an author. It seems she’s ironed out most of the issues readers had with the first book, and the result is a much smoother and more tightly-plotted sequel.

When I read the first book, I also thought it a bit strange that Arden would make Sasha was such a huge part of Vasya’s life, only to send him away to become a monk, seemingly to be forgotten. As it turns out though, she actually had big plans for him in the second book, and indeed Sasha is one of the main characters in The Girl in the Tower, along with Vasya and their older sister Olga. While it’s true that they don’t always see eye to eye (especially when it comes to Vasya’s future), it still really pleased me to see more interaction between the three siblings, especially given how long we’ve watched Vasya struggle by herself. It was nice seeing her surrounded by love and support again, even if it was only for a brief period of time.

And speaking of developing relationships, this book also builds upon the complicated one between Vasya and Morozko, the powerful spirit known as the Winter King or the Frost Demon. Again, the story teases a bit more about his character—still not giving us all the answers, but readers who wanted to see more of his involvement in Vasya’s journey will be very happy with the way things are going, I think.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to make of it when I initially heard that The Bear and the Nightingale was going to be the start of a trilogy instead of a standalone. It’s always a challenge to follow up a successful debut, and I was worried Katherine Arden wouldn’t be able to come up with more to Vasya’s tale that’s worth telling. I realize now that those concerns were unwarranted, and I am glad because I found The Girl in the Tower to be as enchanting as the first book. In some ways, it even surpasses its predecessor, with a story that features more action, better pacing, and darker tones. As a reader, I just can’t ask for more than that. Now I’m very excited for the third book, which I’m sure will a finale to remember if this upward trend continues.