The Winter of The Witch, by Katherine Arden, encompasses everything I love about fantasy novels: imaginative world-building, strong characters, storytelling that uses elements of folktales, and plenty of action sequences to keep those pages turning.

What I Liked:

World-Building:

A good story begins with a rich universe. The Winter of The Witch continues to build on the world the author created in the first two books of the series. On top of the setting of medieval Russia, there many fantastical spirits such as Ded Grib (a mushroom spirit), Lady Midday (a spirit who wanders hayfields causing heatstroke), and Pozhar (a firebird).

One of the most creative aspects of this universe is when Vasya travels on The Midnight Road. This is a never-ending land of all the midnights the world has ever known, spanning locations, climates, and time itself. I loved this!!!

Themes:

One of the central themes of this series is the conflict between old and new religions. As the Christian church is rising in power, people are discouraged from offering tributes to the Chyerti (various spirits found in Russian folklore). This is causing the Chyerti to fade. But the Chyerti play a vital role in protecting those who believe in them.

Vasya believes in both Christianity and the Chyerti. Her task is to find a way to create acceptance between the two belief systems.

Fully Formed Characters:

Vasya, the main character, is a strong female who bristles against the tight constraints that women are subjected to in her society. As the series begins, Vasya's choices are to be married off to make babies, or to join a nunnery. Neither hold any appeal.

Vasya also has the "Sight". She can see Chyerti and makes regular offerings to them. In exchange, she gains protection and learns of dangers to her and her family ahead of time.

I love Vasya because she is so NOT perfect. As she is drawn into an ancient conflict between The Bear (the king of Chaos) and Morozko (the king of death), she doesn't always make the right choices. She also starts to understand that as she uses magic, the power she wields will drive her insane. Can she do what is needed to save Russia and protect her family?

There are no cartoonishly evil or saintly people in this novel.
As the book progressed, I found myself having empathy for characters such as Father Konstantin (who I originally loathed), and even The Bear. Both characters do truly dispicable things, yet the author gets inside their heads to show the reader how they became who they are. To paraphrase Vasya, "I've done good things, and evil things. But I am neither." That is what makes these characters so complex.


Russian History & Folklore:

I was delighted to read at the end of the book that many of the plot points in The Winter of the Witch are drawn from actual historical events! Russian folklore is also woven into the story to include characters such as Baba Yaga, and Lady Midnight. I loved that the author shows the rich cultural traditions of Russia.

Tension:

This book is definitely a page-turner! Just when you think Vasya is out of danger, another problem pops up (she just can't get a break!). Vasya is either running for her life, fighting her way out of a corner, or fighting her urge to go mad with magical power. There is also tension of the sexual kind as Vasya tries to resist her feelings for The Winter King...

What I Was Mixed About:

Lack Of A Recap:

This is a pet peeve of mine. When I read a series, I like it when there is a small recap of who the people are with a quick synopsis of what has happened earlier. I often had to work hard at the beginning of this book to remember who everyone was. That said, I would highly recommend re-reading the first two books (The Bear and the Nightingale, and The Girl in the Tower), in order to be able to fully enjoy this book.

I'm so grateful to NetGalley for giving me a chance to read this early!
(I also already pre-ordered it because this series is so magically wonderful.

My heart is so full after finishing this.
This story is more than magic, and folklore, and love and the great battle's of men.
It's about a young woman, who takes her life into her own hands, in a time where women are shut in and overlooked and lack power and authority. And decides that no one else can tell her what to do with her very life. Her existence. She takes the power back and equalizes.
And becomes so much more than she ever knew she could be.
She is a force.

That ending still has me all choked up.
Katherine Arden you hit this out of the park, it's truly incredible work!

If you have a soft spot for characters who truly own themselves, fairytales and love that isn't simple or easy. Please consider picking up this series! It's honestly one of my favorites.
It's so well written and beautiful.

I quickly devoured the first two books of The Winternight Trilogy, and I was greatly looking forward to The Winter of the Witch. I'm really glad to say that it did not disappoint! Truly, I devoured this book, even when I was supposed to be working on grad school assignments - I couldn't put it down! Katherine Arden has such a way with world building and characters, that everything jumps out at the reader and you're truly transported. Simply put, and aptly so, this was a magical read. It's a bit of a long read, but it didn't feel like it and the story flowed smoothly. I'm not one to find military escapades interesting, but the blend of history and magical pulled me in and I was on the edge of my seat through most of the story, even the bits on military planning and battle executions. I adore the addition of Ded Grib, he was very fun and a good call to the whimsy of fairytales even in the heaviness of war. I do wish, however, there was a bit more with Polunochnistsa and Vasya and the development of their partnership. The reader gets to see this long road that Vasya takes with Morozko, her journey with Medved, and even an adventure with Ded Grib. I really, really liked Polunochnitsa and I found myself rooting for Vasya and her to strike up a friendship, so I wish that had been developed a bit more but I also understand that there's a time and a place for everything. Overall, I wanted for nothing during this read. I'm pleased to say that the whole trilogy can sit upon my favorites shelf, and I'm sad that it's over!

What a conclusion to this amazing series! This book was intense and amazing, as I knew it would be after reading the previous books.

This was incredibly well written. The writing was vivid and I felt like I was right there in the middle of the action. I was pulled in right away and I was completely engrossed in this story until the final page.

I enjoyed this book, and this series, immensely and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy or folk-lure stories.

*I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher. A positive review was not required. All opinions are my own.*

The more one knows, the sooner one grows old.

There are no monsters in the world, and no saints. Only infinite shades woven into the same tapestry, light and dark.


The big reveal, the ending of all book trilogies. Does it live up? Did I get my Morozko X Vasya fix?

yes. roll credits.

Did I think the series was going to end the way it did? no, no I didn't. Does it feel like the end of a great movie series?

Yes. Btw this series would make a great movie/ series on Netflix.

Okay here's the real review:

The Winter of the Witch is a book of highs and lows. Vasya picks up where she left off in The Girl in the Tower and throws you into action and a new threat. Unlike the previous two books (which, for the most part have stationary settings) The Winter of the Witch throws you all over Rus' and even into the more magical realms, ending up on the final battle field in Kulikoso.

Like before Vasya has my heart, truly my favorite character in the entire series. She is the most willful, impetuous, reckless, follows-beat-of-own-drum kinda girl and I've loved watching her grow from the little girl in Lesnaya Zemlya to the woman who took on Kasyan in Moscow. Just about any thing she was told or warned against she did the opposite. She embraced herself when she needed too and did it without making the reader feel like it was "girl power" it was just simply Vasya being Vasya.

So this book pulls out all the stops, as a reader who loved, maybe too much the previous book I knew this was the end of the journey and my hopes where at 11. The story itself is clearly well executed, I still couldn't help but feel like it went through highs and lows. There were points with non-stop, nail biting action, that would counter with low points where it felt like the story had little to no progression at all. This happens throughout the book, especially before battle scenes.

Another bit that I noticed throughout the book is all the abrupt stops. It seems like this happens with shall we say "villain characters" the most. They are well built up and then bam! gone. It feels like the length of the build up and the (usually) rather easy defeats just don't satisfy the reader. But maybe that's just me. I tried to reflect this in the opening of my review by being very abrupt with my answers.

Over all, I liked The Winter and the Witch. It has everything I asked for at the end of The Girl in the Tower actually more so. I'm sad it's over, I will miss the series because as a whole I think it ranks as one of the best I've ever read. It left me wanting more to read, and I know that I'll re-read the series someday (all at once hopefully) and have that feeling of mystery that I felt when I read the initial Winter Maiden story that got me so excited in The Bear and the Nightingale.

Katherine Arden has crafted a beautifully written, exciting, suspenseful, and worthy conclusion to her Winternight Trilogy, begun so wonderfully with "The Bear and the Nightingale". Each of these books take the reader on a ride with the now young woman Vasya who walks through the world populated by creatures of Russian mythology, and the humans of early Russia. She is one of the few who is truly both of each of these worlds and of neither. In "The Winter of the Witch" Vasya strives to her breaking point to save each world by uniting them against a common enemy-- the only way to save them both.

Arden once again writes with skill of the emergence of a more modern Russia which is turning to Christianity and political evolution, and away from traditional beliefs. Her characters struggle for freedom, struggle against ignorance, and struggle to define their world. Perhaps her greatest achievement in this is her capturing, so vividly, the complexity of characters that could so easily have been (and were expected to be) one dimensional.

I was so excited to get the third and final book in Arden’s “Winternight Trilogy” through NetGalley. Who knew that I’d be this obsessed with tales of Russian Folklore and Witches?

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The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden

SO MUCH HAPPENS IN THIS BOOK! In 384 pages, there is a little bit of everything:

Witch burnings, devil sightings, horses that can fly, secret midnights, WAR, and of course, Zombies. Zombies you ask? Well, let’s just say the devil has a way of calling an army of the dead in the fight for Russia.

And most of that takes place in first three parts of the book. *Phew*

I will say, there is one part in the beginning of the book that broke my heart so thouroughly. It’s redemeed by the end, but man, I was gutted.

At the end of the second book, Vasya is found to be masquerading as a boy to help Moscow and Russia. She is roundly condemed, and her old nemisis rears his ugly head after making a deal with the devil. Through deals and escapes, the devil/bear has reappaered and is determined to rid the world of people who dont believe in his kind of spirits. Vasya goes through the darkest midnights to recover and find her heritage. It’s here how she learns to fight for her beliefs and fight for her family.

The winter king looms large, and she must depend on his help even more. This book culminates in a war (in which the second most heartbreaking thing of the book happens) and we learn that man must trust the spirit world in order to survive. It was a beautiful conlcusion to this series.

Even with all the stuff happening in this book, I still wanted to learn more about Vasya’s young niece stuck in the captial with the same powers as her Aunt. Does she travel to the cottage by the lake to learn her craft, or is she destined to go through the same trials and tribulations of her Aunt? I would love to know more!

This series has been amazing, and I can’t wait to read what Arden has next up her sleeve.

(For reference, here is the link where I talk about the first book in the series: https://wordpress.com/post/nicolesbookcorner.wordpress.com/427)

https://nicolesbookcorner.wordpress.com

A great ending to the series. I love Arden's knack for weaving history with fiction. The characters are well developed and her description of the landscape were amazing. My only issue was the ending. I felt that it left the reader hanging. Overall, well written and engaging.

10 Reasons Why I Loved The Winter of the Witch

1. Fairytale magic – As with the entire trilogy, I loved how fairytales were woven into The Winter of the Witch. It made the book feel magical and full of whimsy.

2. Solovey – I adored Solovey, Vasya's horse, in the first two books, and his role in The Winter of the Witch was particularly emotional. His connection with Vasya was one full of love and loyalty. I couldn't get enough of these two, and their relationship really took me on a rollercoaster in this book!

3. The relationship between the brothers - There was so much going on between the Morozko, the Winter-King, and the Medved, the Bear in this book! Morozko and Medved were both developed nicely in The Winter of the Witch. I appreciated the tenuous strands of their relationship and how the two were truly polar opposites.

4. A dose of wit – Most of the humor in The Winter of the Witch was provided by Medved. As far as characters go, he's morally gray, and by that, I mean dark gray. Dark, dark gray. But he's funny. He just wants to provide a little chaos in the world and revel in the turmoil he reaps. I found myself growing rather attached to his character!

5. Pozhar - Pozhar is another character in the book I found myself loving. Or maybe I just love magical horses in general? Pozhar is cautious, strong, and the very opposite of modest. She knows she's an amazing firebird of a horse. While she causes Vasya all sorts of trouble in The Girl in the Tower, she becomes an interesting ally in The Winter of the Witch. 

6. The world of Midnight - I thought the whole concept around Midnight and the road to Midnight was fascinating. Lady Midnight, or Polunochnitsa, is the keeper of the road to Midnight, and her realm is Midnight--all the midnights. I loved everything about this!

7. Girl power - Vasya kicks so much butt in The Winter of the Witch. She is a fierce (yet sweet) girl who just wants to the live she wants to live. She shucks societal norms in favor of a life filled with adventure. When someone needs her, she comes. When someone needs rescuing, she hatches a plan. I loved reading about her adventures in this book.

8. The Night-King - I think Morozko's character is so cool! He is cold as the winter realm he rules, but something about Vasya cracks his tough exterior. I like that his relationship with Vasya is far from traditional, but even though it's not traditional, love and respect are present.

9. Religion - Yes, there was a little religion in this book. As with the entire series, the monks are very much against the old beliefs and the old gods. This belief system was really challenged in The Winter of the Witch, and I loved the progress made and the eventual outcome.

10. The ending - While I didn't want this trilogy to end, I loved the ending. It gave the trilogy a nice sense of closure, and I like where Vasya ended up in life. The Winternight Trilogy can definitely be counted among my favorites, and The Winter of the Witch really secured that position!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing the Kindle version of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Without rival this is the greatest historical fantasy series I have ever read. I'm left heartbroken that its over but feeling so privileged to have been able to enjoy it. I am in awe of Katherine Arden's talent both as an author and a historian. She's seemlessly blended medieval Russian history with the dark, beautiful magic of its folklore and arrived at a truly perfect union of fact and fantasy.

Vasya is one of the all time great female fantasy heroines, honestly she's one of the all time great's period. Wise and fierce and full of passionate love for her family and her dark winter prince I have followed her breathlessly through three amazing books and would happily follow her through a hundred more.

I so long to live in a world like Vasya's where old beliefs and new ones can share the hearts of men and differences are celebrated rather than seen as signs of evil.

I sincerely don't recall ever enjoying a fantasy trilogy as much as I adored this one. Thank you so much Ms. Arden. I'll be on tenterhooks waiting for your next story.

This book was absolutely amazing! I love the Bear and the Nightingale trilogy and this book is the strongest of the three. Throughout the trilogy you get to see Vasya grow from a frightened, confused child who doesn't understand her powers and where she fits into the world, into a confident young woman who starts understanding her place and learning how to harness her powers. I really loved how her relationships with the Bear and the Winter King evolved in this book. This book was everything I wanted for the last book of this amazing trilogy.

An awesome conclusion to the trilogy, it fulfilled all the promises of the first two and Vasya really claimed her own power. I like this much better than the second as that one had SO MUCH misogyny (for good reason, it was a huge part of the story, but it is still hard to read) and this one had a lot more female power. I liked how threads were pulled together of the forces that aligned and the family histories revealed. The "romance", if it can be called that, was treated really well, a part of the story but never overwhelming it. I would be very interested to read another series with Marya as the main character and Vasya as a cameo.

I thought this trilogy was excellent overall and would definitely recommend to anyone who enjoys Russian folklore/sort of magical realism fantasy and/or epic quest type lit with strong female characters and elaborate world building set in actual history and myth.

Winter is over, Moscow has burned, and the bear has once again been set free to rein his chaos on Russia. Vasya finds herself alone facing old enemies while trying to build new allies. As war approaches Vasya will desperately try to save her home, her family, and the magical world she loves.

The Winter of the Witch is the epic final novel in the Winternight Trilogy. I have to say that this is one of those series that completely pulled me into the fantasy world and I couldn't wait to see how it ended. I was very attached to all of the characters and I may have been crying my eyes out through most of this novel...It's really sad. Although I am heartbroken that this series has come to an end, I felt it was the perfect conclusion to Vasya's tale. I loved being able to see how the character transformed from the wild eyed young girl in the first novel into the powerful young woman she became in this novel. I loved so many things about this series and in particular this novel. I enjoyed reading the author's notes on how she tied historical people and references to the story. I loved how the author incorporated more of the fantasy element in this book with appearances from characters in the previous books as well as some new ones. I also appreciated how all the loose ends and unanswered questions from the previous books were tied up beautifully without it feeling forced or rushed. This is probably one of my all-time favorite series and I highly recommend it. I can't wait to add this to my library so I can enjoy the whole series over and over again.

Earlier this year, I absolutely burned through The Bear and the Nightingale and Girl in the Tower. It was the first time I’d read through the night in years. When I got an ARC approved from Netgalley, I literally shrieked. I’d been waiting months for this, and I want to cry now that it’s all over.

Lately, I feel like I’ve read a lot of sequels and series that just let me down after a wonderful first entry. I must stress: Winter of the Witch is NOT one of these instances.

This final book in the trilogy gave me everything I needed in a closing book. My heart broke right off the bat, and it was such an emotional journey from a gutwrenching opening to an ultimately hopeful and satisfying close. Arden leaves you both emotionally depleted and incredibly satisfied. I was nervous, I screeched with joy, I cried, my heart swelled again — without spoilers, this was everything a book is supposed to be. I’m crushed it’s over.

I’m also finding myself in the midst of a growing obsession with Slavic folklore and fairy tales. I’m really hoping Arden gives us more in this genre. If you see this, witchy mom, thank you for a beautiful series that reminded me why I love reading again.

Vasya's journey comes to an end, but I wish there were more. A satisfying ending was reached, but with some of the things revealed in this book, there is so much more that could be explored with the characters and the world. The world building is my favorite thing in this series, and things were taken to a whole new level.

The one issue I’ve had throughout the entire series is Vasya. I love it that she’s brave. She defied conventions, and no matter what always did what was right. There are many things to admire about her. It’s rare to find such strong, independent female characters in YA literature. However there are qualities of Vasya’s that I can’t stand. Her bravery borders on recklessness at times. She never considers the consequences of her actions. The only thing that makes some of her poor choices bearable is that she does everything she can to rectify them but some things cannot be undone.

Morozko was not in this as much as in the other ones, which was disappointing simply because he’s my favorite character. His absence was there to show how independent and powerful Vasya had become. I liked the developments in their relationship. Part of what made Morozko a great character is that he always accepted Vasya for who and what she is.

The ending was great but incredibly sad. This was an awesome series. I would absolutely love it if there were books with Vasya and Morozko or a spinoff with her niece.

Wow! What a feminist masterpiece. I loved The Bear & the Nightingale, was slightly less excited about the The Girl in the Tower, but this action=packed finale blew me away. I don't know that I have enough words to praise it. Katherine Arden ripped my heart out then slowly pieced it back together. Vasya is a woman who knows what she wants and is unafraid to take it. She's fiercely loyal and steadfast in her devotion to her family and country. Somehow the series' biggest villain is my new favorite character (can we get a trilogy on the Bear's past or future exploits? Thanks!) and I'm a devoted Arden fan for life.

Once again Katherine Arden did not disappoint. The Winter of the Witch has a much darker tone compared to The Bear and the Nightingale and The Girl in the Tower. I’ve heard a number of people mention that they prefer to read this series in the winter. In my opinion, this doesn’t matter. Katherine Arden will take you to winter. You can feel the stillness and silence of the snow softly falling in the winter of each of the Winternight trilogy books, which speaks to Arden’s ability as a writer. In The Winter of the Witch, Vasya truly comes into her own. Although I am saddened about the prospects of no longer reading any future adventures of my favorite heroine, Vasya, I cannot wait to see what Katherine Arden does next.

I did not think it was possible to have my heart broken and put back together so many times in one book. What an ending to the book and series. Perfection! Is it too early to for this to be the number 1 book of 2019?

Arden brings her Winternights trilogy to a mostly triumphant conclusion. There can't be a trope from Russian folklore that Arden hasn't dared to skillfully work into heroine Vasya’s epic journey through a mythical landscape of pagan creatures rapidly being outnumbered by the icons of an increasingly Christian world. In vast frozen landscapes of 14th century Russia, monks and demons battle for the lives and souls of humans. Arden isn't afraid to critique the cruelty of both ‘verses towards women, animals or those of lesser social rankings, or to kill off favorite characters. Vasya evens strays towards some sex and violence in the midst of her pilgrimage. The poor girl is threatened once more with witch burning, loses track of her almost love, frost king and death god Morozko, tangles with the Bear, Morozko’s devilish twin, and must convince a host of supernatural beings that by following her, they will preserve their magical ways. Vasya is a strong heroine who follows ritual tropes of heroism - leaving and losing family, an intense bond with a horse, passing as another gender, acting as a counselor to misguided princes, enduring public bouts of violence while negotiating for her soul, life and magical powers. Arden mixes elements of Russian narrative poetry, fairy tales, religion, art, and history into a great and glittering work. Her crystalline, stylized prose only occasionally feels a little stilted, with characters speaking in carefully wordy, correct sentences no matter what horrors they face. The ribbons of plot are woven together to make the three books a flashing triptych of narrative, an altarpiece that keeps our attention through fantastic images and the inevitability of Vasya’s choice between two powerful worlds.

Winter of the Witch proves, as few trilogies do, that the hat trick is possible. Three books without any deviation from the stellar quality of the first, each with a unique story and meaningful resolution, but also character and plot development across three books and a satisfying grand finale. Put it like that and it's hard to see how anyone can manage it, but Katharine Arden pulled it off with élan. This is one of the rare pitch-perfect books in which the emotional drama keeps pace with the action, making each skirmish that much more thrilling and devastating. There are also some George R. R. Martin-levels of character death, which upped the stakes for every encounter.

Her third installment featuring Vasya returns with the fledgling witch still in Moscow, the events of the second book still recent and raw. Previously, Vasya had defeated the sorcerer Koschei (aka Koschei the Deathless) and freed the firebird, setting fire to the city of Moscow in the process. Fire begets fire, and Vasya is soon in danger from old enemies and new, spirits and men. She is caught up in the symptoms of a much larger fight, and in this book she finally faces them head-on: she finally begins to tackle the seemingly insurmountable divide between the old faith (and gods) and the new.

In so doing, Vasya comes into the fullest realization of her powers, both magical and not. She braves some of the strangest lander her wanderer's heart could desire, and she gets to test her mettle against some true horrors. I'd say she comes full circle, but really she comes full spiral, drawing around and around the powers she has been encountering since the first book, encompassing them and drawing them into her orbit. Her path grows increasingly wide, even as her focus narrows to a single—if huge—point: she must save her land and her people.

But what is her land, and who are her people? Are they her family alone, those who stand by her when others condemn her for her powers? Are they her allies, spirits of hearth and forest? Or can she and her magic do more, and make a place for her enemies as well? Already in the first chapters she is forced to make bargains with bad and worse, blurring a world she thought was purely good and evil. But it's not just moral compromise that brings the book to interesting places. It's Arden's recognition of the potential for redemption and complexity that really enlivens this story. Even wicked things can be made to work toward benign ends, and even the damned can make good.

Vasya herself has mistakes to atone for, and the road is not easy. Arden does weariness and darkness well: Vasya's slogs made me tired, but her determination made me determined to read on, too. I finished this book in less than a day. It was impossible to put down, sometimes quite literally, and I'm sure my husband got a kick out of watching me juggle a book, a cat, and a toothbrush. The only logical stopping place was midway through, where there was an abrupt change in direction. It's not one I minded, but it was only lightly telegraphed, and therefore a bit jarring. In fact, the first half felt so much like a complete book, it took a little while to get back into the idea that the story wasn't over, even though I was glad to have more time with Vasya and her companions.

The thread that holds the two halves together is the question of the chyerti. What will become of the old gods and spirits now that the new god of Christianity has spread so far and sunk so deeply into the fabric of Rus'? Everyone but Vasya is convinced that there must be battle and bitter loss. And Vasya must endure both before the end to convince them otherwise.

I appreciated that Arden gave subtlety and gradation to the faiths she depicted. Pagan and Christian did not equate with good and evil, nor even with accepting and exclusionary, respectively. There were many men (and a few women) of Christian faith, but some are warrior-monks, and some are gentle abbots, and some are just frightened townspeople. The same is true of those who keep the old ways, whether they have the second sight or not. Arden manages to convey the realities of dvoeveriye, dual faith, in all its pragmatic glory. Her world of Rus is vast and strange and wonderful, barely able to contain all the magic with which she infuses it.