Anya sets off with her friends Hakon and Ivan to find her father, who was supposed to have returned from the war by now. As they set along the dangerous path, they fight a powerful creature attacking travelers along the road near Kiev and find a worse evil under the city itself. This is a wonderful story of magic and adventure, friendship and family, good and evil. Anya is a strong and caring character. Aspects of Jewish life, beliefs, and discrimination are woven into this story of fantasy and heroism. I only hope there will be a third book!

I did find it a bit confusing that Anya begins to see the magical threads in this book as if she’s never seen them before. However, in the first book, Anya and the Dragon, although she doesn’t have magic, she begins to see the magical threads that others are able to use to perform magic.

I listened to the audio book and loved it! The narration is just right – pace, accent, tone.

i got this audiobook from netgalley

This is the second in a delightful middle-grade fantasy series that features mystical creatures from Jewish mythology.

i havent read the 1st book

n the second book, the dragon joins Anya and Ivan on another adventure, and an LGTBQ+ theme is subtly introduced as it is implied that Ivan is bisexual.

this book was very enjoyable, and would highly recommend this series for middle-grade fans of fantasy, particularly those seeking dragon stories, and it would be a great for a fun vacation read

The adventure itself is engaging and described perfectly: vivid, imaginative, and almost cinematic. Plus the book deftly balances screwball humor with darker moments.

•Character development- 4☆
• Story Plot- 4☆
• Side characters- 4.5☆
• Flow of the story- 4☆
• Overall - 4.5☆

This is a Jewish Fantasy Middle Grade book, and this is the second book in the Anya series. I have to say it took me a little bit to get into this book, but I feel enjoyed the ending. The characters where colorful and very developed. I really loved being in this world with these characters. I started out reading the kindle edition of this book then I switch to listening to the audiobook. I have to say the audiobook really made this story come to life. I really think if you read this book you should check out the audiobook as well. The narrator of this audiobook did so good with this story.
I requested this as my first audiobook on Netgalley, not knowing this was part of a series. I think the author managed to sum up the first book well enough to be able to follow this story, and though it did take me a little bit to get into this book I ended up really enjoying it.
Set in Kievan Rus, Anya and her friends, the fool Ivan and the dragon Håkon, embark on a quest to find Anya’s father. Instead, they end up in Kiev, where the Tsarina’s daughter swears she will reunite Anya with her father, but only if they manage to capture the Nightingale.

Continuing the remarkable saga that began with Anya and the Dragon, young Anya is bound for Kiev with her friends Ivan the fool and Håkon the dragon. She hopes to find her father who was conscripted into the tzar's army.
The journey is filled with peril: a forest filled with spirits, an underground dungeon, a horrific monster...and magic. There is a lot of magic: sound magic, water magic, healing magic, to name just a few. It seems that everyone has the gift of magic except Anya.
However, this thirteen-year-old adventurer possesses a clear head in the face of danger, courage, loyalty, and a willingness to attempt what seems to be impossible. Anya is an intrepid traveler, working through her own fears while battling foes and outwitting those who stand in her way.
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Anya and the Nightingale introduces an interesting diversity of characters who interact with one another in natural ways while retaining their uniqueness: a blind grandmother who creates healing potions for villagers, a deaf elf who communicates with hand signals, a bisexual character, and a dragon who must choose between living in animal or human form.
Pasternack introduces multiple belief systems that co-exist and intersect comfortably in Anya's world. She is a devout Jew living in a community with no Rabi. The Russian priest is a community spiritual leader. Local Slavs have their forest spirits. There are animals which take human form and vice versa. Anya retains her own religion, while acknowledging the beliefs of others, including a Sabbath observance quite different from what she has experienced.
Keating's performance brings the story to life, with the individual voices for each character. Anya's wonder, confusion, and determination shine through. Pacing is excellent, sometimes hinting at sarcasm. Accents highlight differences in Eastern European and Jewish communities in a country that will eventually become Russia.
Magnificent imaginative graphic design captures the magic and mystery of Anya.
A fantasy series filled with history, folklore, and adventure. Readers will be enchanted.

Although I started this book without knowing it was a sequel, I didn’t feel lost or confused as I listened. The author did well to remind the reader of what transpired in the previous book without coming off as redundant.

Each of the characters in the book came across as relatable, specifically Anya who is our MC.

The plot was an interesting one, but it derailed closer to the 3/4 mark when it should have been wrapping up and decided to focus on religion and stir up some issues there in the story. I am not opposed to the insertion of religion or even learning about it via a book, but it seemed drawn out and like a distraction from the meat of the story.


All in all, I think this is a great read for a voracious young reader looking for a lengthier series to devour. It is Middle Grade, but the page length is around 400ish

3.8 savvy crowns

Thank you to netgalley.co.uk for giving me a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

This was an interesting audiobook, I thought the narrator did a good job in portraying a teenage girl. I did request it, not realising it was the second book in a series however once I got into the book, I felt I knew exactly what was going on and that I knew the characters already.
I thought the characters really drove the story, they were well written and handled serious topics like anti-semitism; this is something I don't see in literature

This audiobook was received as an ARC from Recorded Books in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

Since we last saw Anya she just got done saving a friendly dragon, now a greater threat lurks through Zmeyreka and everyone is so oblivious to it all and think that it is someone else but it ends up being something greater than they thought putting everyone at danger. Anya and Ivan become unlikely friends with Kievan and discover that Anya's family and the kingdom on Zmeyreka are in grave danger but Anya to the rescue and she will stop at nothing until everyone is safe and all of the questions have been answered. Hearing this through the audiobook really brought the story to life and it was so easy to imagine yourself along with Anya for the ride. This will circulate very well in our JAudiobook collection.

We will consider adding this title to our JAudiobook collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

This was such a wonderful sequel that I enjoyed just as much as the first one. The first one was about the mysterious dragon and the second one is about the mysterious nightingale.
Although the book started off a little slow, I loved how the unresolved problem of Anya's dad gone in the war in the first book was the main problem in this book. We find out that Anya's dad really shouldn't have gone and Anya wants to find him and bring him home. Ivan and the dragon (whose name I will not butcher...) in human form travel with Anya to Kiev to find her father. This book was about another one of the rare magical creatures, the nightingale (who turns out to be an elf) and how the princess will send Anya's dad back home if she brings her the nightingale.
I loved the friendship between Anya, Ivan and Hokun (?) aka the dragon. They are the cutest little friend group. Ivan also has the best family where everyone is named Ivan so they call them by numbers. The new characters we got introduced to (I don't want to say too much because of spoilers) were wonderful and interesting and the new monster was so scary!
This book brought in more intense themes like PTSD (Anya keeps having flashbacks from something that happened in the first book) and LGBTQ+ characters which I thought were very well done.
A very solid sequel to a really fun, adventurous middle grade series!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and RB Media for the e-ARC of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was so excited to received an audiobook version of Anya and the Nightingale! My daughter and I just loved the first book in this series.

Sofia Pasternack created a very well developed and exciting Jewish fantasy. The characters were so easy to fall in love with and the storyline flowed with ease.

I can’t wait for Anya’s next adventure.

Title: Anya and the Nightingale
Author: Sofiya Pasternack
Narrator: Laura Knight Keating
Rating: 4 ⭐️

This was far more entertaining than 1st book. In this book Anya, Ivan and Hacone find themselves battling a monster that lurks beneath the city and only Anya can keep her friends safe.

Laura Keating does a wonderful reprise of Anya. Her voice is so good and calming and she helps make Anya sound more mature. (Which she is.)

I received this audiobook from @recordedbooks via @netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

#audiobook #netgalley #fantasy #middlegrade #dragons #russian #jewish #fiction #anyaandthenightingale #adventure #familyfound #magic #middlegradefantasy

I started reading Anya's story mainly because of her cover, and unfortunately, I wasn't a fan of the first book. I rated it 3.5 stars. I enjoyed this book much more.
Our protagonist Anya is a typical MG protagonist. Ivan and Hakon are a lot more fun for me, I laughed a lot at them. I liked the world, it reminded me of The bear and the nightingale. It takes place in Eastern Europe (Russia and Ukraine) around the 10th century with added fantasy elements. The families of the main characters have magic. There are many different types of magic. In addition, magical creatures are also strongly present.
Let’s start that I’ve listened to the first book as an audiobook, and this as well. I really liked the narration in the first book. It sounded very strange for this one at first, but in the end, I got used to it. But I think the problem was with my copy which I got on NetGalley. Since I was listening to the first book on Scribd, I looked at what the sound was there. It didn't seem distorted there, but it corrupted, so I finally decided on NetGalley's audiobook.
I liked this book better than the first one. It still had its own mistakes, but the characters became much more lovable I liked it, though it was quite a filling part in terms of the story when Anya had dinner with a Jewish family, thus introducing Jewish customs. It didn’t bother me because I don’t know much about the Jewish religion, so although I could get to know a little better, it didn’t add much to the story.
Almost all characters are diverse. I liked these diversities (Anya is Jewish, another character is part of the LGBTQ+ community, the third is deaf-silent and the fourth is a dragon :D ) because she presented much different diversity.
In addition, the universe also expanded, we got a couple of new magical creatures, and the war got closer.
I'm already looking forward to the next part.

*I received a free review copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review of this book.*

I requested this as my first audiobook on Netgalley, not knowing this was part of a series. I think the author managed to sum up the first book well enough to be able to follow this story, and though it did take me a little bit to get into this book I ended up really enjoying it.
Set in Kievan Rus, Anya and her friends, the fool Ivan and the dragon Håkon, embark on a quest to find Anya’s father. Instead, they end up in Kiev, where the Tsarina’s daughter swears she will reunite Anya with her father, but only if they manage to capture the Nightingale.

This was my first time listening to an audiobook, and I really thought the narrator managed to make this story come alive.
I think the characters were my favourite aspect. They were delightful and had surprising depths., and I really loved following Anya and her friends on their adventure. The story also handles some more serious topics, like PTSD, anti-Semitism (the main character is Jewish), discrimination and subtle LGBTQ+ themes.
I would really recommend this for young readers who love fantasy, or readers looking for Jewish representation.

I requested this audiobook as my first ever on NetGalley and didn’t realise it was part of a series.
I went into it blind with no back story but still enjoyed it. It was easy to follow and would be perfect for its targeted audience age.
It was maybe a bit young for me but it was great for the drive to/from work as something to pass the time.

My only complaint is when I increased the speed my audiobook echoed.

This is a Jewish Fantasy Middle Grade book, and this is the second book in the Anya series. I have to say it took me a little bit to get into this book, but I feel enjoyed the ending. The characters where colorful and very developed. I really loved being in this world with these characters. I started out reading the kindle edition of this book then I switch to listening to the audiobook. I have to say the audiobook really made this story come to life. I really think if you read this book you should check out the audiobook as well. The narrator of this audiobook did so good with this story. I can see this book becoming a movie. I cannot say how much I enjoyed this book. I think this middle book is great for 4ht grade and higher and adults will enjoyed this book as well. I was kindly provided an e-copy and e-audiobook of this book by the publisher (Versify and RB Media) or author (Sofiya Pasternack) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review about how I feel about this book, and I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.