Book Review
Dec. 15th, 2022 11:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariThe Girl in the Tower
by Katherine Arden
The Girl in the Tower is the sequel to The Bear and the Nightingale. After the defeat of Medved and the death of her father and stepmother, Vasilisa disguises herself as a boy and travels to Moscow to reunite with her elder siblings Sasha and Olga, each of whom has found a home and made a life in the city. Unwilling to give up the freedom and adventure she has found in her travels, Vasilisa must navigate the politics of the Russian court, avoid the discovery of her gender, and balance her own desires with her family's safety. However, she uncovers an even greater danger that threatens not only her own precarious position but all of Moscow.
This book was a lot more eventful than its predecessor, with a faster paced plot and much larger stakes. Vasilisa faces the challenges of pursuing the life she wants without abandoning her family or her people. She continues to be brave and brash and large-hearted, and I love how much she is willing to risk to do the right things. I like how she grows into a more complex and balanced approach to and understanding of what she wants and what it means to go after it. I also liked how her relationship with Morozko shifts and grows. Arden does a great job of building an emotional bond between them that does not gloss over the fact that she is a mortal human and he is not.
by Katherine Arden
The Girl in the Tower is the sequel to The Bear and the Nightingale. After the defeat of Medved and the death of her father and stepmother, Vasilisa disguises herself as a boy and travels to Moscow to reunite with her elder siblings Sasha and Olga, each of whom has found a home and made a life in the city. Unwilling to give up the freedom and adventure she has found in her travels, Vasilisa must navigate the politics of the Russian court, avoid the discovery of her gender, and balance her own desires with her family's safety. However, she uncovers an even greater danger that threatens not only her own precarious position but all of Moscow.
This book was a lot more eventful than its predecessor, with a faster paced plot and much larger stakes. Vasilisa faces the challenges of pursuing the life she wants without abandoning her family or her people. She continues to be brave and brash and large-hearted, and I love how much she is willing to risk to do the right things. I like how she grows into a more complex and balanced approach to and understanding of what she wants and what it means to go after it. I also liked how her relationship with Morozko shifts and grows. Arden does a great job of building an emotional bond between them that does not gloss over the fact that she is a mortal human and he is not.
