Book Review: The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
Mogsy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction
Series: Stand Alone/Book 1
Publisher: Del Rey (January 10, 2017)
Length: 336 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Talk about starting the New Year on the right foot. Yes, I know it’s still super-early January, but I’m going to call it now: The Bear and the Nightingale will end up being one of the biggest standouts of 2017. Katherine Arden’s glorious debut is beautiful and everything I expected—vivid, magical, and haunting. The writing is rich and evocative, and if the atmosphere doesn’t immediately sweep you off your feet, I would be very surprised.
At the center of this tale is a spirited young woman named Vasya, though the book begins before her birth. In the forests of northern Russia lives the family of an honorable lord named Pyotr whose wife tells him one night that she is pregnant. Marina Ivanova comes from magical lineage, her own mother having been known to be a powerful witch, and she tells her husband that the baby will be the same. Sadly though, Marina dies in childbirth, leaving the infant, Vasya, to be raised by the nurse and older siblings. Years pass before the pain of losing Marina becomes easier to bear, and Pyotr decides to travel to the court of Moscow to arrange a new marriage for himself.
However, Anna, the imperious and haughty woman he ends up bringing home to his family is unsuited to life in the north, where the people still revere the spirits of nature whom they believe will ward them from evil. Raised to be extremely devout, Anna immediately tries to put a stop to these practices, leading to a clash between her and her new stepdaughter Vasya, whom everyone affectionately says is more wood sprite than young lady. Like her mother predicted, Vasya has a gift which grants her a special connection with the wilderness and the spirits that dwell within. Anna’s arrival has thrown off the delicate balance, and indeed, misfortunes begin to fall upon the village and malicious creatures of the forest are starting to grow bolder. The situation becomes even more unstable as a zealous priest takes up residence in Pyotr’s household, making it his mission to “save” Vasya from herself by undermining her powers and turning the villagers against her.
I truly fell in love with The Bear and the Nightingale from the moment I picked it up. The prose is gorgeous, bringing the world to life, with the people and places described in exquisite detail. The northern winters in this book are those characterized by ten-foot high snowdrifts and near perpetual twilight, yet it amazes me how Arden can still turn such a dark, harsh and cold setting into a thing of beauty. Those who survive here are also strong, compassionate and hardworking people, and you just can’t help but be drawn to them and care about their plights. These characters grabbed and held my attention from the very first page, which featured a scene of children sitting around a hearth listening to fairy tales while the snow and ice raged on outside. Even before our protagonist could arrive on the scene, I was already half enchanted by her family.
And then Vasya came along. I loved her character, and her portrayal was one of the strongest points of the book. There’s something very earnest and down-the-earth in the way she is written—a wild but dutiful daughter, headstrong but not obnoxiously so, and brave without being foolish about it. It was a joy to read about the various relationships between Vasya and the people in her household, whatever tone they might take. Family is such a huge part of this story, and we get to see the different dynamics that come with it.
There are also plenty of allusions to folk legends and mythology. And while The Bear and the Nightingale is a book about changing times, I would say that it’s more than just another story about a clash between religion and “the old ways”. What we have instead is a combination of elements drawn from many sources, including Russian history and folklore, as well as themes from other fairy tales and literary classics. Through this process of combining and transforming, the author has created magic rooted in realism, something that feels different but also familiar. While reading this book, you might start to think you know where the story is going, but don’t be surprised if you get it wrong.
That said, this is not a “gripping read” in the traditional sense. The pacing, which is already quite unhurried, slows to a crawl in some sections, and if it weren’t for the strength of the characterizations I might have found myself struggling. For better or worse, Arden clearly likes to paint the full picture, which I gathered from the excessive insertion of random POVs and minor subplots, even in places where they don’t flow too well. As far as criticisms go though, that’s a very minor complaint on my part, especially since everything else was damn near perfect.
It probably won’t come as a surprise then, that I highly recommend this novel. I think I’ve already said everything I needed to say about this wonderful, enchanting debut by Katherine Arden, and I positively hope that many others will also get the opportunity to discover the magic and joy of The Bear and the Nightingale this year.
The BiblioSanctum 
What a great way to start the year.
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My feelings exactly!
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I’ve heard so many great things about this book!
Gorgeous prose, “more wood sprite than young lady”, enchanting family? I’M IN!!
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I think you’ll really enjoy the character of Vasya 🙂
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Woohoo!! I’m glad you gave it such a positive review. I’m so eager to read it, I hope I don’t do as I did with Truthwitch last year and get too excited and somehow end the year without reading it.
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I hope you’ll get a chance to read it!
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I have to make time for this one. It sounds like a beautiful read just perfect for winter reading. Great review.
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Yep, perfect book to curl up to by the fire and be glad not to be stuck in woods in the middle of a northern Russian winter 🙂
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I’m so excited to read this. This is one non review book that I’m going to make a real effort to get to:-)
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Definitely try to fit it in, I think you’ll really enjoy this one 🙂
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You sold me on the opening paragraph. The rest of the review was wonderful, too, and so detailed about why you enjoyed The Bear & The Nightingale. But that first paragraph was all I needed to know this might be my kind of book. 🙂
Just curious, though don’t feel compelled to give away spoilers… but is the title a reference to two of the characters? Or to something else important in the story?
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Yes…and no. It’s hard to explain since a lot of it has to do with lore and fairy tale, and there is one character that one of the animals in the title refers to that’s not your typical human character…and I guess that’s all I’ll reveal 🙂
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Gorgeous writing, a captivating setting, AND it’s inspired by folktales? Heck yes, I’m so in. When you were describing the fact that this isn’t a traditionally gripping kind of read but still keeps you turning the pages, it made me think of Juliet Marillier’s books…so clearly I’m sold.
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It definitely has that Juliet Marillier vibe in that it is historical, fantastical, mythological…and it’s heavily influenced by folklore and fairy tale. I also think Golem and the Jinni 🙂
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Wonderful review.
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Thanks!
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A book Mogsy says she falls in love with is so often one I also fall in love with. But I was already planning on reading this one; how could I not?
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I look forward to your thoughts!
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This book sounds different. I’m not sure if I’d like it or not. I’m a bit worried about the turning the villagers against her part. I’m glad that you enjoyed it though.
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That’s always hard to read about, but I would say it’s actually not too bad. I think the “evil” stepmother pissed me off a lot more 🙂
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I was curious about this one when I heard about it. It’s different and it’s quite intriguing. I’m glad you had a nice time with it!
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I had a lovely time with it, it’s such a beautiful book 🙂
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The more I hear about this book the more intrigued I am: the cover caught my eye since I saw it in “coming soon” lists, and it spoke of magic – not so much as in sorcery, but as something wonderful and awe-inspiring. Your review just confirmed those first impressions, and this is indeed one book I will add to my reading list – and soon.
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
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I’m so glad that it’s caught your attention! I do have a weakness for books like this. Magical and haunting, historical and mythological.
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Ohhh sounds good to me
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I think you’ll enjoy this!
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Oh, yay! Glad I have a copy of this coming my way 🙂
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Sweet, that’s so exciting!
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It was on my list of books I was hoping to read, but now I’m going to have to make sure that I do!
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That’s awesome! I look forward to your thoughts!
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I think I fell in love with this book even before I opened it – I was under a spell or something! I loved the writing, it certainly isn’t plot focused or fast paced but it’s just beautifully told and I thought the author did a brilliant job of lowering the temperature as the read progresses. Really great start to the year.
Lynn 😀
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There was definitely something hauntingly beautiful about the cover. I was half in love just looking at it. And it matched the story so well too in its loveliness and magic 🙂
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Ooooh this is WONDERFUL!! 😀 YAY! I had moderately high hopes for this one but I couldn’t help but get excited about the premise and the setting but not adding in the beautiful writing, magic and atmosphere?! Well this is now a wishlist item!
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I’m so glad! I think you’ll really like this one 🙂
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I had some problems with this book, but there’s really a lot to like. The fairy tale aspects are perfect. So glad to hear that you enjoyed it so much 😀
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I also received a copy of this from the publisher, so I’m excited to read it! They must be putting a big push behind it, which is usually a sign of a good book 🙂
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I’m glad you enjoyed this one so much. I agree, family is a huge part of this story and I like family sagas when they’re done right.
I like what you pointed out about Vasya – she was headstrong, but not obnoxious, that’s a great description! 🙂 Here’s hoping the sequel will be as good.
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