Such a powerful story rooted in pain, within a very quick novella read.
Based in Chicago, Dymitr is a knight tasked to slay monsters…with a sword made from his spine, splitting his soul into two. Meanwhile, Ala is cursed with witnessing atrocities over and over, a pain inherited from her mom. Together, they are on a mission to find the legendary witch Baba Yaga (yes, that one of old lore) and potentially a cure.
The magical realism-fantasy taking place in a modern city like Chicago, mixed with folklore, left me more confused than anything, and made it hard to get into the story, despite the shorter novella length.
Thank you to Tor Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 3.5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
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When Among Crows is a novella coming in just under 200 pages or 4.5 hours on audio. While this seems like it may be long enough to create a great story, this is jam packed with information. It’s told in a multi POV which was really awesome, giving each character a voice was perfect.
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This story has a bunch of mythical creatures that live among the mortals. I really struggled with the different creatures at first, I felt super confused as to what each of the creatures translated to, and what they did. I eventually was able to understand them but wish that there could have been more world building with these creatures to really dive into what each does. The three main characters Niko, Dymitr and Ala were great. I loved how each of the character grew, though I feel like their growth would have been so much more interesting if this story was longer so they could have each been really fleshed out.
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The story in and of itself was super fast paced. I really enjoyed the entire adventure. The twist wasn’t overly surprising, but I love where Roth took the story. There are themes of becoming the best version of yourself, redemption and forgiveness, making this for a super fun real.
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I listened to this one via audiobook while reading the ebook on my kindle. Having the two were great in order to understand the different words used for these creatures. Helen Laser, James Fouhey and Tim Campbell were awesome narrators and they complimented each other well. I highly recommend listening to this one while reading it as well.
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Overall I really enjoyed this one, I just really wish that this was a full length novel in order to really do some world building, to really get to the nitty gritty of these creatures and to flesh out the characters more. Definitely think this will be one people will enjoy!! When Among Crows releases on 5/14. Be sure to check this one out! Huge thank you to NetGalley, Veronica Roth, MacMillan Audio and Tor Publishing Group for the eARC and ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor for an advanced copy!

I have always been a huge Veronica Roth fan--Divergent will forever be one of my favorites. But this one just wasn't for me. The book was well-written, but as I find in a lot of short novels (this one was under 200 pages), I didn't feel like I was able to connect to the characters much in such a short amount of time. I have also read a few books that incorporate Russian folklore, and it isn't my favorite. So, to sum it all up, I love Veronica Roth's writing in general, but this one just wasn't for me.

When Among Crows is a creative novella that explores Slavic folklore against the backdrop of modern Chicago. This urban fantasy looks at the weight of family burdens, expectations, culture, and guilt on our character. I was particularly impressed with how complete the story was.
Despite the shortened length, the characters felt fully developed and the author did not shy away from big emotions and themes. I am not familiar with Polish folklore, and found the cultural mythology interesting. The story involves a quest that brings together people who we initially believe to be disconnected. As the story evolves, there are glimpses of the truth that is hidden from us at first. The ending was very satisfying and while I would like to spend more time in the world Veronica Roth has created, the story felt complete.

Thank you Tor Books and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

Veronica Roth did an amazing job of fitting an entire fantasy world into a Novella. Very engaging and so nice to fall into and finish a fantasy in one book!

I enjoyed this novella, but like all novellas, I wished it was longer. I was intrigued throughout the entire story, it was fast paced and deeply immersive. I loved the urban fantasy mixed with Slavic folklore. I loved all the characters, Dymitr being my favorite. We had three POV’s, all in third person. I found myself getting lost and trying really hard to follow along with the pov switches. I really enjoyed Dymitr’s and Ala’s, but not so much with Niko. I liked him as a character but I don’t know how much his pov added to the story overall. I think he would have been a great side character had the story came from Dymitr and Ala only.

I was expecting more fantasy than urban fantasy and magical realism. I find both of those genres hard to get into because they're modern life, but not modern life and fantasy, but not fantasy. I do think that Veronica Roth wove a good story and having Baba Yaga grounded it into a framework that helped me orient myself into the story. I am not sure I am the correct audience to fully enjoy this book, but I think someone who likes this genre would like this story.

This was a beautiful urban fantasy based on Slavic folklore. Roth is able to define the characters and create a well paced story with action, intrigue and redemption in a novella that is less than 200 pages. Amazing! Thank you Net Galley for my ARC.

The world building is stunning and grounded. I found the characters to just move in certain scenes and be impactful in others. I was astounded by a complete story in under 200 pages.

Thank you , NetGalley and Tor Publishing for an advanced copy.

I am always so impressed when authors can pack such a lot of story into less than 200 pages. I thought the hidden world of the zmora, the banshees and all the other creatures from Slavic folklore at play was absolutely fascinating and we were given enough information about each one for context without being bogged down in backstory. I thought the relationships between Dymitr, Nico and Ala were really well done and I enjoyed the plot very much. All in all, I had a great time with this one and would definitely read more set in this world.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

⭐️: 4.5/5

Dymitr, part of a family of monster killing hunters, is tasked with a deadly mission to find the witch Baba Jaga, but to to do so, he must ally with the monsters he’s previously sworn to kill. Ana is a fear-eating zmora saddled with a curse that will kill her. When Dymitr offers her a cure in exchange for her help, she has no choice but to agree. Together, they find themselves fighting against the rest of the Chicago underworld, but will Dymitr’s true motives lead to their destruction?

When I first saw this title by Veronica Roth, I didn’t realize it was going to be a short story/novella. I do love a novella though, so it wasn’t entirely a bad surprise, but still, after reading it in one sitting, I kind of wish it was more of a full length book. The world that Roth depicted in When Among Crows felt so immersive and rooted in a folklore about which I know relatively little, so learning the world was really fun. For a shorter book, I feel like she managed to fit an extraordinary amount of world building, which was really impressive. This was pretty much impossible NOT to read in just one sitting, since it’s so short and basically nonstop action. The characters are also really interesting and complex, so you want to know the resolution, and also HOW there can be a resolution in such a short amount of pages. I wish that there were more books set in this world by this author, but I suppose I’ll just have to be happy that I was able to read this little one.

Thank you to @netgalley and @torbooks for this free eARC for my review!!

5 Stars! Thanks to Netgalley and Tor Books for an ARC!

I picked up this book because the author was recognizable, and I'm so glad I read this! Dymitr, Ala, and Niko were such interesting characters and having Polish Urban Fantasy set in Chicago is right up my alley. I truly wish this was a full novel because I was not ready for it to be over so quickly.

The blurb does make it seem less queer than the story ended up being, which is a great bait-and-switch. Though, "less queer" than two kisses isn't saying much.

Having this story be a novella made the pacing feel a little rushed, but all told, the story was fun, spooky, and tense at times.

First, thank you NetGalley for this e-arc!
I was really excited to read this book only from it’s summary! Also, I didn't read anything by Veronica Roth since Divergent (and it's been a while, I was a teenager back then!)
It is short, I didn't expect that to be honest, I read it so fast (and it's not bad, it means you're in it pretty quickly and that's a good thing!)
I do love a good found family story (because to me, that was it is) it made me think of Six of Crows in that sense (which I loved very much too).
I loved the characters development and the fact that, you think you know what's happening but you don't truly know until the end.
That being said, I wish some things would have been explore more, I wanted to know everything about some creatures or how The Holy Order works. But let's not forget that this is a novela and a great one! I really enjoyed my reading of it!

Thank you NetGalley and Tor for the e-arc!
I love the premise behind this book, but I wish it was a little bit longer. The folklore and fantasy elements work so well in this book, but I want more. There were so many elements that I wanted to see more of, and I felt like because the book was shorter, it didn't get the opportunity to really showcase what a fantastic story this is. The beginning especially suffered for it as trying to balance the information needed for the story and the timeline made the beginning a bit rushed. That being said I still loved the world.
The characters were phenomenal, and Dymitr was my absolute favorite. He was just such an amazing character to read about, and I would love to see more of this world. The magic behind the holy nights with their spine swords was so creative. Dymitr and Nico definitely felt more developed than Ala. When going into the story, I definitely thought it would focus a bit more on her, but I feel like we get to a point where there's not much more development or lore with her story. I think that might've just been a description error; I think the blurb should be changed to reflect the book better, but I love Dymitr and Nico's story.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the story even if it was different than what I was expecting!

I haven't read any Veronica Roth since my DIVERGENT days, and I was really pleasantly surprised! This was a fast-paced, well-written, fun little novella that I got a kick out of. I enjoyed the worldbuilding and lore, I liked the relationships between the characters that were as developed as you'd expect in less than 200 pages. I enjoyed the twists and turns the story took, and I liked the ending. Not much to complain about!

My personal beef is that I didn't realize this was urban fantasy, and I'm much much more of a high fantasy girlie. I would have loved to see a novel-length version of this in its own developed world, but I'm not complaining about what we got! If you've been hesitating on post-DIVERGENT Roth, I think this is a great book to pick up.

There is a lot of running around looking for mythical creatures in modern cities and some fighting to go along with it. An ok read that will probably go over well with the new adult crowd.

*I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review* I have to say, I don't often read much Veronica Roth, but I am so glad I got an opportunity to read this one. Slavic myths, urban fantasy, and some really cool descriptions as to how these fantasy creatures can survive in a more modern world. I loved how willing Niko was to help Ala, and eventually Dymitr when needed, even though he didn't need to put himself on the line to help them. I do wish that this book had more explanations about certain elements as it felt like a whole world that I wanted to see but it felt like they were there and gone before we got any explanations. I wanted to know more about Niko and his past, or see more than just a snippet of Dymitr's sister. I wanted more, which was great because it meant that I kept reading, but I do hope there will eventually be more because otherwise it feels like a wasted opportunity to flesh out this fully built fantasy world.

☆☆☆☆

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I've only ever read one other book by Veronica Roth, that being Chosen Ones. And I had a
similar reaction to this as I did that; it takes a bit for me to really get into the story, but once I do, it's fantastic.

Urban fantasy is probably my favorite of the fantasy sub-genres; I love the mix of magic
and real world. When Among Crows is exactly that, but with a heavy emphasis on folklore
that is very new for me. Roth's writing feels very folktale, amd it took some time for me
to get used to it. And with this being a novella, that means even less time for the rest
of the story. But when I finally settle in, that's when it really opened up for me.

It's a tale of pain and love, of fighting against what we've been taught and conditioned
or "born" to be, and finding a different way. It's split between three points-of-view, and
I loved each character. So much so, that I wish we had more time with them. Each carry so
much pain and act from a very real place. History and culture seep into every page.

While I don't love everything about it (I still find some of the writing a bit confusing
at times), it's ultimately a beautiful, cultural, story. And by the end, I just wanted
more.

Although this was just a novella, the comprehensiveness of the world-building, characters, and storyline felt like a full-length novel.

This was my first Veronica Roth, and I loved it! This was a version of the Baba Yaga tale where a group of characters end up banding together to aid one another in achieving a quest, not unlike a LitRPG. None of the characters truly trust one another, for good reasons, but find themselves developing unexpected bonds. When I was finished, I couldn't believe this was actually just a novella.

Great audio narration.

I have mixed feelings about this book. While I do enjoy Veronica Roth, I wasn't sure about this series. And this is very rare, but I had a nightmare after reading this book....some of the creatures she created reminded me on zombies and I don't like zombies (hence the nightmare). The book was a very quick read (finished it in one day). I wouldn't say it's her best work.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.