Mystical practices are not my usual preference in books. However, I was drawn to The Light of the Midnight Stars and fell under its spell. Three sisters each posses a different power - healing and plant growth, fire, the secret of the stars. Additionally, themes of anti Semitism, being different, and love travel through the book. Rena Rossner has given us an empowering and magical book.

rounding up from 2.5 to 3 stars.

the premise of this book comes across as much more interesting than the follow-through, unfortunately. while i enjoyed the characters and their development, i just couldn't get attached to them or the plot. the sub-plots also felt under-developped and hasty. i did, however, enjoy the insight into jewish culture and religion which i found to be uniquely written in this book.

The Light of the Midnight Stars is a gorgeous, captivating book set in the 14th century. It is about Rabbi Isaac and his three daughters, all of whom have special powers. When the dark mist comes creeping in, however, can they be saved?

This is a wonderful combination of history, Bible stories, fantasy and folklore that is gorgeously written by Rena Rossner. I have heard some of the Bible stories all my life but they come alive in this book and are so well told.. The Bible stories and folklore are told as "stories within the story" and are fascinating.

Although I received a free digital copy of this book, I also purchased the audiobook because I had a feeling that this would be even better in spoken form. I was right. This is the way the original stories would have been handed down, verbally from generation to generation. Ana Clements does an amazing job as narrator.

This is a finely woven together creation that defies a rating. Five stars is not enough for this exquisitely crafted novel.

Anyone who read Rena Rossner's fantasy debut Sisters of the Winter Wood won't be surprised by the news that her sophomore novel, The Light of the Midnight Stars, is equally excellent. A beautiful meditation on faith, loss, displacement, and grief, it is also a story of triumph and perseverance in the face of tremendous odds, all told in the lyrical, evocative style of the best tales from folklore.

That Rossner's book feels magical from start to finish is an understatement. Buffeted by stories, excerpts, and snippets from regional folktales and the fictional religious text known as the Book of the Solomonars, The Light of the Midnight Stars feels as though it's a brand new story that also happens to be as old as time.

The light of the Midnight Stars is lovely. Lyrical, lush and poetic writing while telling a story that is often heartbreaking.

Sometimes, you have such astounding hopes for a book and they fall flat on their face. Unfortunately, that’s what happened with me and Rena Rossner’s The Light of the Midnight Stars.

The novel follows the tales of three Jewish sisters who each have their own specific type of magic: Hannah, Sarah, and Levana. Raised in the forested village of Trnava by their respected rabbi father, a violent and traumatic tragedy forces the family to flee the village and start a new life away from their heritage and traditions.

There are definitely elements I loved about this novel. The way Rossner weaves Jewish folklore and history into each one of the POV characters shows the love, care, and research she put into crafting this story. It truly was a story inextricably shaped by Jewish experiences to a degree I haven’t seen in a fantasy novel before, filling a dire gap in speculative fiction. I won’t personally speak to the quality of the representation within, but there are Jewish reviewers who have spoken on this and I would encourage you to seek out their reviews! In addition, the prose in many places was quite beautiful; this definitely got a fair number of highlights for poignant turns of phrase.

The main thing that didn’t work for me about this novel was that it tried to do WAY too much with the space it had. With three POVs (one of which was rendered in verse for a large portion of the novel), lots of interjected side stories, a complete shift in names and language at the turning point of the book, and each sister’s character arc going in vastly different directions after said turning point, a plethora of historical information mixed with magical elements… there just wasn’t enough space to accomplish the ambitious goals this novel had. A side effect of this is that I felt like I never got to really know Hannah, Sarah, and Levana as characters; so much of their chapters, in addition to jumping around right as many of them hit a stride, felt almost allegorical in nature instead of like three dimensional characters. As such, this made many of the emotional beats of the novel miss the mark for me.

I also feel it’s important to warn readers, particularly Jewish readers, that there is a LOT a antisemitic violence and trauma in this novel—far more than I was expecting, and with very little comfort by the end. This is representative of historical events, particularly in the 1500s, but if you aren’t in a place to handle detailed depictions of antisemitic violence, please give this one a pass until such a time as you are. On top of that, this was compounded for me by the other content warnings listed at the end of this review. From the synopsis and marketing, I was expecting a much lighter and fantastical tale, and I definitely wasn’t in the head space for this read.

This is a relatively minor note in comparison, but one of the reasons I picked this up was because I understood there to be a sapphic relationship within. While one of the sisters is LGBTQIA+ (I would say bisexual if the term existed in the 1500s), her relationship with what I would term a genderqueer character does not get a lot of focus AT all and it’s definitely not a romance as far as mood or genre considerations. Another note for readers who might have been interested for the same reasons.

Overall, this just wasn’t the book for me, as much as I wanted to love it. I still plan on checking out The Sisters of the Winter Wood at some point because I can absolutely see the skill and care Rossner brings to her craft. As long as you’re in the space to deal with the content warnings provided, I’d still recommend this to readers looking for a standalone fantasy book with a powerful foundation of Jewish history and folklore, because your feelings may absolutely differ from mine.

Thank you to Orbit for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

CW: extreme antisemitism, extreme misogyny, rape, graphic depictions of violence, religious bigotry, murder, infanticide, confinement, and sexual relations between minors and adults.

This is a good whimsical mixture of fantasy and historical fiction. I really felt like I related the most to Hannah as the oldest child also.
I liked how the sisters interacted with each other and their family.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

The Light of the Midnight Stars
By. Rena Rossner
P. 416
Format: eArc
Rating: ***
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I received an e-arc from @Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
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The Light of the Midnight Stars is a Jewish inspired YAish fantasy story. The story follows three sisters born to a Jewish Rabbi. The story starts when the middle child turns twelve and follows them into adulthood.

I personally have never read a Jewish inspired fantasy story and I appreciated the uniqueness of that. It is also a historical fantasy, which I surprisingly enjoyed for the most part. The characters were relatable and developed with the exception of the youngest sister. I also appreciated the way that a few characters battled with the internalization of gender and gender expectations.

I really enjoyed the novel at first. You got a sense of community and tradition with fantastical elements. It was a bit concerning to read about a thirteen year old getting engaged. I am sure it was historically accurate, but not acceptable now and it was uncomfortable reading about. The storyline also turns very dark and you are left with a tale of misery, and a message that women must always sacrifice for the next generation, a message that seemed contrary to the internalized battle of gender identity and was just a lot.

The story also transitions to more of a fairy tale. The third sister has a plot line that is way to fantastical and her dialogue turns from prose to verse. I didn’t enjoy this storyline at all and to then read that this was one of the main focus for writing the book threw me off even more.

I am sure that this book will become beloved by many. It is excellently written, it was just too much for me. Also, there are trigger warnings for just about everything. It is a dark fairy tale.

THis book had a very interesting concept! I really liked the jumping between characters to get all the dirrent opinions and storylines! I do wish it had been shorter though as it took me forever to get through!

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

The story of three young girls born into a family descended from King Solomon. Their father, a rabbi in a small Hungarian town, has mystic powers that have been passed down from King Solomon but no one outside his Jewish community are aware of them.

The girls also have elemental powers derived from earth, fire and the heavens. This tale is comprised of myth, legend and history and the sisters experience love, heartbreak and disillusionment. While fairytale like in it's presentation, no one lives happily ever after.

An enjoyable read.

So, this book wasn't what I thought it would be. It was marketed as a lesbian fantasy grounded in Jewish mythology/folklore. And while I was surprised at how orthodox the book is, that is not what bothered me. Actually, the religious elements of the book were one of the few things I genuinely loved.

When I look for Jewish books to read (especially fantasy), I don't expect antisemitism after antisemitism, pogrom after pogrom. I did not realize how much of this book was based on historical antisemitism, i.e., how Ashkenazi Jews systemically suffered in Europe at the hands of Christians. And it was way too much for me. It was honestly traumatizing to read—from the pogroms, to the systemic murders, to the Jewish violence. It would have been worth it had the Jews who perished miraculously came back to life, but it didn't. The antisemitic violence in this book is definitely a significant part of the story, and it should be addressed before reading. I walked into this story completely blind to the level of this violence, and as a result, I found it extremely traumatizing. There was no moral or point to it. It did not contribute to the sisters' faiths. The antisemitism could have been dialed down by a lot, but still be just enough for the family to mask themselves as goyim. It was just so unnecessary, and painful, and there was no warning going into the book.

I also didn't like how Sarah's situation was glorified in the end because she managed to pass on the Solomnar line through the Bulgarian throne. Ivan brutally raped and abused her, and the narrative paints it as similar to Esther's sacrifice, therefore it is noble that Sarah stayed? It was revolting and traumatizing. Not everyone had to have a happy ending, but the way Sarah's future was described made it seem like it was okay because she was just like Queen Esther. It's disgusting. There is no moral to the story. I don't care if Solomon's descendants lived on in the Bulgarian throne. It is a weak excuse to glorify rape and abuse.

Also, why is this marketed as an LGBTQ+ book? Yes, we discover Theodora is a lesbian and Sarah is bisexual, and they do fall in love. But the book isn't about their romance, even if it is a significant part. There is a difference between an LGBTQ+ book, and a book with LGBTQ+ characters. The Light of the Midnight Stars is definitely the latter, and it should definitely be clearer going into the story. It was extremely misleading.

So, overall, I was very disappointed. However, The Light of the Midnight Stars had some redeeming qualities, such as the beautiful writing and poetic language, and Jewish culture and magic. These elements definitely boosted my rating, but I was still disappointed. And I ended up having nightmares because of the traumatizing antisemitism that was not even suggested in the marketing of this book.

Actual Rating: 2.5 stars

Deep in the Hungarian woods, the sacred magic of King Solomon lives on in his descendants. Gathering under the midnight stars, they pray, sing and perform small miracles - and none are more gifted than the great Rabbi Isaac and his three daughters. Each one is blessed with a unique talent - whether it be coaxing plants to grow, or predicting the future by reading the path of the stars.

Sadly, The Light of the Midnight Stars just wasn't the right book for me despite loving the original premise of a whimsical, folklore-inspired story with sapphic characters. I wasn't aware this was going to be made up of shorter stories/narratives—I had a difficult time being connecting with the plot and characters. Even by the end when things were tied up it was still somewhat hard to figure out what exactly happened. Another major plot component of this book involved the main characters being desperate for marriage and sex despite being young girls. For the time period I'm sure this was normalized but reading about it was pretty uncomfortable.

I do want to highlight that this book features sapphic (bisexual and lesbian) romance and is heavily influenced by Jewish folklore and history so I do think this book will find its place with the right readers!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this arc.

This book started out very slow for me. Some of the terminology was unfamiliar, so it almost “snagged” in a sense. After about 28% or so, I really started getting into it. I love the authors writing style. It’s so lyrical and easy to get caught up in once you have the basics. I pre-ordered myself a copy shortly after finishing the book. So beautiful.

Gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous. I loved this book. The writing was lyrical and flowing. I felt the mixture of fairytale and reality worked very well. I loved the way the author took Jewish folklore and turned it into this stunning novel. Characters, setting, the writing itself . . . all of it was great. Highly recommend to anyone and everyone.

Rounded to 4.5 stars.

I’ve recently come across a lot of OwnVoices Jewish books, but this is the first time that I’ve ever read a Jewish-themed fantasy. I loved the book, and devoured the entire thing in a single day. I knew that this most likely wasn’t going to have a happy ending, just like so many stories throughout Jewish history, but to me, it was worth every moment.

I’ve never read a mainstream book that fully integrated Jewish religious practices and customs into the story before this one. This book is very much a book written by a Jew for a Jewish audience, but it also makes the frequently unknown and commonly misunderstood aspects of Judaism accessible to a wider audience. To me, this book felt like coming home. There was something about reading a book where the prayers of my people, the religious practices, and the customs were slipped into the text in such a natural way. I grew up exposed to Orthodox Judaism, which is close to how the characters practice their faith, and it’s so rare to see in books.

The family of Rabbi Isaac Solomonar live a pious life. They each have their own form of magic which is strongly linked to their faith. The rabbi has three daughters: Hannah, with her ability to connect to the earth, grow things, and heal; Sarah, with her unpredictable and often uncontrolled connection to fire, and her frustration with the limitations of being female; and Levana, with her connection to the stars. The strength of this book was the way the story was told through the eyes of each of these MCs, who had their own goals and struggles, even as they intertwined. I managed to connect with each of the sisters, as different as they were.

When tragedy strikes on the heels of the Black Mist, a pogrom (antisemitic massacre) occurs and the family has to leave the town. They find a new place to live, but make the decision to change who they are to draw less attention to themselves. This means new names, a new profession for Rabbi Isaac, and a complete turnaround in regard to their religion. They pose as non-Jews to better fit in, but this also means giving up the link to their magic.

The Black Mist itself is a combination of symbolism for antisemitism and the Black Plague, which are historically linked. Jews in those times were often blamed for the Plague, and pogroms were frequent. There’s a fantasy element to the Black Mist as well, in that it wasn’t just a disease or an ancient hatred, but more of a sentient evil, looking for cracks to work its way into.

In addition to the fantastic Jewish rep, there was a queer aspect to the story. The way that Jewish, female, and queer identities were introduced and addressed were intriguing, and I loved that representation, even though my heart broke for the queer characters and what their lives were like in those times. Life is always hard when you live outside of the majority culture, and it was even more difficult in those times.

While this story wasn’t an easy read, it was a good one. This story told the poignant, difficult, bittersweet, and often painful history of my people. Life back then was very different, and this book illustrated a lot of that. The content warnings were a normal part of life for people living in the 15th century, which is when this book was set.

I loved so many aspects of this story, but I did feel like there were a couple of loose ends. I would have liked to see a little more development of some of the characters, and it felt like the parents completely faded after moving to their new town. The ending felt a little rushed, but it left me with a beautiful sense of fulfillment after the very last page. And after reading the author’s note, I was blown away by the intense amount of research and the personal connection that the author had to the story itself.

Readers of this blog may know that I try to read books from authors of a large variety of backgrounds. Its an approach that has been tremendously rewarding, with it introducing me to worlds and experiences far beyond my own, by peoples with their own different cultures and difficulties that I have or will likely ever have in my life - and these experiences have led to tremendous stories, with tremendously powerful themes. But one thing I have not done is managed to do is read many SF/F stories based upon my own heritage - namely that of Ashkenazi Judaism*. Rena Rossner's 2018 novel, Sisters of the Winter Wood (My Review Here) was one of the few books I've read that did do so, and when I saw her second boo - this book - would feature 3 Jewish sisters in 14th Century Europe, I pretty much had to give it a read.

*This is not to say that Jewish fiction is a small genre, just that I have not read much of it, especially in where it intersects with SF/F*
Of course, the thing with reading your own heritage is that you feel far more connected to the material, and you can absolutely feel more when things go wrong for people like you. And as The Light of the Midnight Stars is essentially a tragedy, showing hard the struggle of 14th century Jewry, it hit me brutally hard. Bu at the same time, when the material itself goes in problematic directions, it's a lot easier to tell. And well The Light of the Midnight Stars' attempt to mix together old Eastern European folktales with the stories of such Jews is often very problematic, especially as it attempts to use real actual historical characters in the end. The result is a book that I sadly cannot recommend to others, and feel disappointed about in how it wasted a really compelling tale of Jews torn between the forces of oppression and assimilation & hiding.

TRIGGER WARNING: Rape.




------------------------------------------------Plot Summary----------------------------------------------------
As a descendant of King Solomon, Rabbi Isaac, leader of a small Jewish community in his Hungarian village of Trnava, possesses a number of magical powers. And those powers passed on to his three daughters - older Hannah, a calm girl who can grow plants and heal others with a prayer; emotional Sarah, who can call fire from nothingness and wants nothing more than to learn it, control it, and to learn how to transform like her father; and the youngest girl, Levana, the shy daughter who can read the magic of the stars. But the girls are coming into their powers during a time of great change and misery, as a Black Mist begins to spread across Europe.

The resultant tides of change, and the blame that will be laid at the feet of Jews like themselves, will force the three daughters, and their parents, into crises of faith as all those they love and care about are torn apart by the darkness. And so the three girls will be forced into their own separate paths as they try to find a way forward, something to love, and a future for themselves and their descendants.....
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It is practically impossible to talk about The Light of the Midnight Stars, and where it goes right and wrong, without spoiling the book's mid-book plot twist. The story is told in segments, with an omniscient narrator telling some details about what is happening in the setting at the moment, and then following that with chapters from each of the three daughters' perspectives in succession. The daughters begin the story as unique but sheltered girls - with Hannah being calm but desperate to possibly get a chance to explore the rest of the world, a chance she's given when a Prince comes and begs for someone to help heal his mother; with Sarah being desperate to have someone teach her about how to use her powers when her father seems to refuse to, and desperately latching on to a boy in her father's group who takes a shine to her and tries to teach her the blessings related to her power; and with Levana looking up at the stars and seeing inklings of what's coming and wishing someone else would see them too, even as she happily follows her father to synagogue as the seeming favorite of the trio.

The one thing I will say, without spoiling, is that this is not a happy story, even as it seems it could be heading in that direction in the beginning - the Black Mist (a fantasy version of the plague) and the pogroms and the sense of being Others will prevent the Jews of the region, such as our protagonists, from simply being able to find happy lives in their own segregated village. It's a tale that, unlike Rossner's prior novel, deals with some heavy serious Jewish themes of the time - the issues of intermarriage in multiple ways, the difficulties of trying to survive among oppression and the choice to possibly hide instead of practice one's religion openly, or even to assimilate. But while its three characters are really strong and really done well, the story has a number of problems that overwhelm its great character work and interesting themes, problems both specific for Jewish readers and for readers in general, that really hurt this book hard.

Spoilers below
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The book's mid-book twist really shines a light on the struggle of Jews in the area, and how so many of them wound up trying to assimilate into their Christian neighbors' customs, as the family escapes a pogrom that kills Hannah's husband (the prince who converted for her) and Sarah's love, and the Rabbi decides they will no longer be Jews. They each take new names, which replace their original names at the start of each chapter, but while we see this effort by the Rabbi, slowly but surely their old Jewish customs come out in small ways, especially for the daughters who can't help remembering the blessings (the youngest daughter even at one point, in a bit of an anachronism, saying "Ani Ma'amin"). And this is very much what happened to a lot of Jews of this era (including as per the author's note, Rossner's own heritage), who may have even forgotten why they performed some customs as they tried to assimilate, but nonetheless kept doing them....because even as they try to assimilate like this, they can't escape their true heritages both internally in their own minds and externally as they see how others react. This is especially strong when seen by Hannah's story.

But while that storyline is really well done, and the themes are easy to see as parallels to our real world, Sarah and Levana's storylines in the second act are utter disasters. Levana's storyline appears to combine per the author two folk tales - one of children born with a star of light on their forehead, which Rossner connects to Jews by making the stars the Magen David, as well as a story of a girl who fell in love with and had children with a star. And so the result - with a girl having children through what is essentially sex with a celestial being has some clear issues when it involves a Jew - even if the fact that she has two boys rather than a single child removes the possibility of a clear Jesus parallel. And of course the tragic way in ends, with Levana being lynched for it and Hannah saving the children, doesn't help too much, even if it ends on a hopeful note.

But Sarah's storyline is even worse, and I just don't understand what Rossner was thinking here. After her first love never comes back from the end of the first act, Sarah falls in love with their new region's Prince, Theodor. Except Theodor turns out to be Theodora, a girl, which Sarah realizes, given how much she is hiding of her true self - she seems to be a magical serpent inside (spoiler: she's more) - is not a problem. But Theodora is a real historical person, and like in real life, she is married off to a Prince of Bulgaria, Ivan Alexander, and Sarah comes with Theodora as her ladies' maid. But Ivan Alexander knows that Theodora is queer and has no interest in her, and instead essentially rapes Sarah to get an heir instead (Sarah agrees to bear children for Theodora's sake...out of love?). And then Theodora and Sarah go to a monastery so that Sarah can have the child without it being clear whose child it was....and Theodora, after the two transform into animals and escape for a bit, escapes and leaves SARAH behind - the Jew martyrs herself for her Christian love?

But it gets worse - Sarah changes her name to Sarah-Theodora, and it's supposed to be hopeful that she reigns as Empress and has a child who is very like Theodora. But Sarah-Theodora was a REAL PERSON, a Jew who married the Prince, converted to Eastern Orthodoxy, and PERSECUTED JEWS. Yes that's right, our hopeful ending is that our Jewish bi-girl martyrs herself for her Christian love, marries the cruel prince, and becomes the historical monster who persecuted other Jews. It is an absolutely dumbfounding choice, one which most people won't realize until they read the Author's Note and realize Sarah-Theodora was a real person and then look her up....and then find themselves utterly horrified.

The result here is that well, while there's some really interesting and poignant stuff here, the ending of those two plotlines, 2/3 of the book, is just utterly dumbfunding and infuriating, especially to a Jewish person such as myself. I cannot explain these choices and they made it impossible for me to enjoy this book in the end. Sigh.

Almost 5 stars but not quite.

If you like fairytales or books that read like fairytales, this book is for you.

This novel was a very comforting read to me. The atmosphere was amazing. The Eastern European/Jewish mythology made me feel at home. It weirdly reminded me of my childhood and how much I love fairy tales. I loved the stylistic choice the author made to tell each sisters' story. I felt so much for our main 3 characters and I thought Rossner did a decent job fleshing them out. However, I thought the relationships between the sisters and the side characters in the 2nd half of the book were rushed. I wanted the author to take more time developing those relationships, another 100 pages would've been ideal. That was essentially why I couldn't give this book 5 stars. That being said, I loved everything else and it felt like this book was written for me alone.

Thank you to Redhook for an advanced reading copy!

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I did not enjoy this novel for the simple fact that I got confused while reading it. My fault, not the authors. I enjoyed the magical talents that the family exhibited but there was lots of folklore contained in the book. Names and places that I could not recognize and I got lost and frustrated in my inability to follow the stories. I kept having to reread the book’s description to try to get a feel for what the book is about.

In an amalgamation of folklore, fairy tale, and myth, this historical fantasy follows a Jewish family with three daughters in 14th century Eastern Europe. In their early teens, the girls experiences tragedy after tragedy rooted in religious persecution.

First of all, I think several content warnings are necessary here, and there may be more: anti-Semitism, violent deaths, rape, death of a spouse, forced migration, stigma/discrimination against LGBT characters, sexism.

This is a story full of trauma, but not as a descriptive emotional delve with our characters. Something that bothered me about this story was that its strength also became a weakness. In matching the lilting, twisting tone of the parent material with impressive finesse, the story lost opportunities for personal connection and strong characterization. The sisters definitely read like flat folk tale denizens, imparting lessons through their struggles without being encumbered by multiple dimensions. This isn't my personal preference as a reader, and I took issue with it most when trauma became an overwhelming deluge with no respite or reflection. The new griefs just pile on. I think relationships in the story fall into the same traps. They are static, predictably depressing, and fulfill plot functions rather than adding the spark of humanity that touches me most in an excellent book.

In addition, the three daughters are young teenagers but experience a slew of adult situations. While I think this is historically accurate, I can't shake my own alarm at reading about young girls with partially developed brains getting married, making major decisions about their own and others' emotional well-being, or trapped in unalterable life circumstances. As someone who teaches students of that age, reading the not infrequent reminders of their youth set me on edge.

Ultimately, I think this book did a good job of taking on a complex and storied genre in terms of writing style. I also think stories of religious persecution are important and powerful. On a personal level, I must confront the fact that I found this reading experience frustrating and unfulfilling. A reader with different tastes and perspectives may find a more positive result.

DNF. I really liked the premise but the writing did not work for me at all. It wouldn't be fair to the book if I finished reading and gave it a low rating.