Review – The Girl in the Tower (Winternight, Book 2) by Katherine Arden (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 384 pages
Publisher: Del Rey
Release Date: December 5, 2017
ISBN-13: 978-1101885963
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Winternight series
Source: Borrowed from eLibrary
Rating: 5/5 stars

“Vasilisa has grown up at the edge of a Russian wilderness, where snowdrifts reach the eaves of her family’s wooden house and there is truth in the fairy tales told around the fire. Vasilisa’s gift for seeing what others do not won her the attention of Morozko—Frost, the winter demon from the stories—and together they saved her people from destruction. But Frost’s aid comes at a cost, and her people have condemned her as a witch.

Now Vasilisa faces an impossible choice. Driven from her home by frightened villagers, the only options left for her are marriage or the convent. She cannot bring herself to accept either fate and instead chooses adventure, dressing herself as a boy and setting off astride her magnificent stallion Solovey.

But after Vasilisa prevails in a skirmish with bandits, everything changes. The Grand Prince of Moscow anoints her a hero for her exploits, and she is reunited with her beloved sister and brother, who are now part of the Grand Prince’s inner circle. She dares not reveal to the court that she is a girl, for if her deception were discovered it would have terrible consequences for herself and her family. Before she can untangle herself from Moscow’s intrigues—and as Frost provides counsel that may or may not be trustworthy—she will also confront an even graver threat lying in wait for all of Moscow itself.”

This is the second book in the Winternight series and I enjoyed it even more than the first book. This book had a bit of a rough start, the first couple chapters were a bit confusing and hard to get into. I think it was weird that we start the story from Olga’s POV. As the story went on I understood a bit more why this was done. The rest of the book however was absolutely fantastic and I just loved it!

In this book Vasilisa ends up journeying to Moscow after she discovers villages are being attacked by a mysterious force. The attackers are difficult to find and seem to blend in with the forest around them. Vasilisa has to disguise herself as a boy to journey safely.

I love the winter Russian setting in this book and how elements of Russian folklore are woven into the story. I also really enjoyed the frost demon and his relationship with Vasilisa. This was a somewhat heartbreaking story and I hope that Vasilisa has an easier time of things in the final book!

Overall I really loved this book. Aside from the somewhat awkward start, the story ended up being amazing. I love the beautiful writing style, the setting, the characters, and the plot full of magic and wonder. I will definitely be continuing with this series and would recommend to those who enjoy cozy winter fantasies full of magic.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Goodreads Reading Challenge