Reviews

Vee bir serinin daha sonuna geldim. İlk iki kitaptan sonra bir hayal kırıklığı yaşamadım desem yalan olur. Hem uzatılmıştı hem de nedenini bilmediğim şekilde hoşuma gitmeyen bir okumaydı. Vasya diğer kitaplarda sevdiğim bir karakterken bu kitapta birden tuhaf birine dönüştü ve onun değişimi pek hoşuma gitmedi. Kış kralını görmek her zamanki gibi güzeldi ancak aradaki yaş farkı sürekli göze batırıldığından ara ara rahatsız oldum doğrusu. Bir de enteresan şekilde okurken hep uykum geldi bu da aldığım keyfi azalttı. Seri orijinal fikirlere sahip, Rus folklorünü modern bir masal tadında vermek ve bunu tarihle birleştirmek enteresan bir düşünce ama final kitabı ne yazık ki hayal kırıklığıydı. Hikaye tamamlanmış olsa da yarım kalan çok fazla konu var gibiydi. Vasya’nın yeğenine ne olacağı, Vasya’nın köyü ve üvey kız kardeşiye abisi, bundan sonra neler olacağı gibi sorular biraz açıkta bırakıldı. Kötü bir roman değildi ama ilk iki kitaptan sonra beğenmediğim bir final oldu. Seriyi merak edenler kışın okusun derim çünkü kışı tamamen hissettiriyor.

nerdynatreads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Officially finished this series and I think it wrapped up decently, but also sort of confirmed for me that this isn’t a new favorite series. The highlights I’ve had throughout the series remained here— the writing is whimsical, the fantastical elements weave into the historical beautifully, Vasya is such a likable character I never wanted to leave. I genuinely think she’ll be the most memorable thing of this series for me.

However, I had a few negatives, I only started to become interested in the romance after they’ve become a couple, which bugs me, plus it’s another immortal being and teenage girl romance. I was really impressed at the pacing throughout this series and how seamlessly each book streams together, but I do wish Vasya had been a full-fledged adult by the end. She goes through SO much in this series and grows with each event to become an incredible heroine, but every time I’d remember how young she is, it messed with my perception of the story. I realize her age also makes sense historically, but I think some time jumps between books would have allowed the events to breathe a bit more and also mature Vasya apart from all of the trauma that forced her to grow up.

On top of that, this once again relied on lack of communication to further the plot, this time between Vasya and the chyerti. This just always bugs me when it’s used. She’s a witch, not a telepath. Then finally, I found it ironic when reading the author’s note, where Arden mentions her determination to include the Battle of Kulikovo into the story, as I was least invested in this element of the story. The fantastical war was of much more interest and it felt like it wrapped up shockingly easy, only for this new Battle to spring back up and remind me of its impending arrival. I think the two should have been more intertwined and I would have been really hooked.

I did, however, really like the exploration of Vasya’s history, even if one part seemed like a silly last minute insert for more power. I also loved seeing her brother Sasha and his growth as he learns more about their history and the chyerti, since it played on the mix of religious and cultural beliefs interplaying, something I’ve loved about this series.

Also, I’m a little annoyed at Konstantin’s martyrdom and Vasya’s reaction. I’ve found him a very interesting character to read about throughout the series because of his villain role whilst being a pious man. While this series hasn’t shied away from the brutal treatment women experienced at the time, with a heroine like Vasya, it’s also staunchly feminist. Medved may have manipulated him, but Konstantin’s misogyny was all his own. He blamed her for “bewitching” him, assaulted her with his own hands, and tried to have her murdered at the hands of others. I wasn’t expecting his death to be a redemption of his character and it really bugged me. Oh and I guess Medved was sort of obsessed with him in the same way? I’m not sure if that was supposed to garner sympathy from me because of the parallel, but it totally failed.

Overall, this was a good enough ending, but it also is probably the weakest book of the series.