The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Using Russian fairytales, Arden tells the story of a girl with misunderstood powers who endeavours to protect her family and village from the animistic powers that surround them. In some ways it is a battle between Christianity and pagan beliefs, but the final battle sees the Christian priest duped into allowing darker forces to gain power making him seem misguided rather than a real champion of his beliefs.
This began as a an intriguing fantastical story and I enjoyed the first half. Ultimately however it seemed that the story failed to resolve satisfactorily elements of the narrative that had been emphasised, and I would have liked a ‘dramatis personae’ as character names alternated between Russian diminutives and the full versions confusingly for someone not used to these. Apparently it is the first of a planned set of three books, so hopefully subsequent volumes will maintain a stronger narrative line. Enjoyable read.