Here, Baba Yaga is a woman, half-goddess, who’s been burned by gods and mortals alike, so she’s retreated and is simply doing what she does well in the dark of the forest. Soon though, she must answer the call for help from a dear friend, and she spends the rest of the novel trying to fulfill the ultimate goal of this particular quest, as Russia comes more and more under the grip of the increasingly mad Ivan the Terrible. No, she’s not the supposed hag, which familiar tale we’ve accepted from the mouths of men for far, too long. And she’s not embraced her power, hasn’t even had the chance to learn to do so, due to events beyond her control. But this story is where her powerlessness ends, and the crux of the novel finds its way into our hearts. Afierce, historically rich reimagining of the story of Baba Yaga.. full of complicated, three-dimensional women.” –Paste Magazine A delicate weaving of myth and history, The Witch and the Tsar breathes new life into stories you think you know.”

A delicate weaving of myth and history, The Witch and the Tsar breathes new life into stories you think you know’ Hannah Whitten, New York Times bestselling author of For the Wolf When I started the book in the fall of 2018, I wasn’t specifically writing to current events. Rather, I was focused on the time period and my portrayal of Ivan and his rule as I saw them. After all, Russian history is peppered with autocratic rulers who frequently oppressed their people–with a realpolitik way of ruling that some historians believe was a result of centuries of Mongol occupation. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Ivan’s character and rule has taken on a deeper meaning, and a new kind of relevancy. It is more important than ever to tell these stories from the past and to reveal parts of Russian history the Western world may not know to illuminate the present, to help understand and give context to the tragedy unfolding in the region today, even in some small way. Let’s talk about magic for a moment. It’s an important ingredient in any fantasy novel, but is usually more ethereal in myths. How have you approached magic in The Witch and the Tsar ? Russia’s fascinating myths and violent history swirl like ingredients in a magic potion in The Witch and the Tsar, with enchanting results. A vivid, immersive dream of a story.” Regular people are used to be afraid of anything unusual and different. But different doesn’t mean something horrifying, vicious, scary when you learn to be open minded.The Witch and the Tsar delivers high stakes, memorable characters, and a sixteenth-century Russia you can almost reach out and touch. Yaga’s tale is a story I never knew I needed” - Genevieve Gornichec, author of THE WITCH'S HEART I wanted to set my novel in a specific historical time period because Yaga felt more real to me this way, if I could envision her living in the real world–our world. Medieval times came quite naturally to my story. I’ve always been obsessed with this time period, starting with my mania for the Tudors of England, the Valois of France, the Ruriks of Russia. And I chose Ivan as my antagonist because he was the first true Russian tsar. He is also a very famous tsar in Russia, arguably as part of the popular culture as Baba Yaga herself. He was an autocratic ruler, was paranoid and constantly felt his power threatened, and was incredibly superstitious. It wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility that he would invite a witch and healer like Yaga to his royal court. So, the sixteenth century it was. Women in these sorts of stories—legends, fairytales, and myths—are often relegated to secondary roles: Princesses that need rescuing or witches that need vanquishing, and neither of them is truly capable of making many choices of their own. The Witch and the Tsar is full of complicated, three-dimensional women well beyond its titular heroine, and although they are not all necessary likable or sympathetic or even what we would traditionally define as good, there’s no doubt that they are in charge of their own destinies at last. Tsar Ivan is not exactly the best administrator, and it is not long before he is laying waste to large swaths of the country, under the guidance of a dark force. Whether getting there because of his genetic inheritance, or because his mind had been poisoned by a demonic sort, (The actual Ivan was quite superstitious, taking an interest in witchcraft and the occult.) Ivan, who seems at least somewhat rational when we meet him, is soon barking mad, seeing enemies everywhere, even among friends, and showing no hesitation about slaughtering anyone who displeases him. Yaga loves her Mother Russia and considers it her patriotic duty to defend her against enemies foreign and domestic. Ivan definitely counts among the latter. So, superhero vs supervillain. So, the crux of her argument is that it was men (of course, it's always the evil males, even though Gilmore herself says in the previous line that Baba Yaga is complex, "both benefactor and villain, a mother and an old maid, a witch and a woman.") who made Baba Yaga be a witch instead of, I don't know, a powerful goddess as she supposedly was before, so the aim of this novel is to "restore" Baba Yaga to her old self. The implication here is that Baba Yaga was defamed and needs restoration to be properly understood and feminist. Instead of powerful and vulnerable, though, this novel made Baba Yaga, the multilayered witch of the Slavs that is one of the extremely few women in folktales that is neither an evil hag nor a simpering damsel, into a naïve, easily impressionable, judgmental, profoundly self-unaware, politically inept, defanged and declawed, wimpy, and, horror of horrors, too-stupid-to-live young woman.

Expertly drawing from Russian history and mythology, Olesya Salnikova Gilmore transforms Baba Yaga into a complex heroine, whose quest to save her country sparkles with folk magic and supernatural intrigue. Apowerful, original story.”—Mary McMyne, Author of The Book of Gothel And always, the males of whatever species ended up being the baddies. The problem? Not all women are good, not all men are evil and making it so is not only feminist revenge porn, it also makes the characters flat. Not to mention that Baba Yaga was unapologetic. She punished and she teased. She wasn't evil, not exactly, but she also didn't give out freebies. Why should she have?! Wishes or magical remedies ... they cost. As they should. And just because there IS a witch living in "your" woods doesn't mean she HAS to help you. As with everything in the book, I have tried to make the magic real, accessible, and most importantly, the kind that might exist–if one looks hard enough. To do this, I used as its foundation real Slavic pagan and folk magic, ritual, and superstitions, even some that my family has whispered about for years!Hold still, Little Hen,” I said and swept on. But I kept a close eye on the wood beyond the skulls. An utterly enchanting, wholly immersive debut that deftly reimagines the legend of Baba Yaga. This one is unmissable” - Alexis Henderson, author of THE YEAR OF THE WITCHING This book is powerful, thought provoking, captivating, mind bending journey, discussing our beliefs, our prejudices. What we scared of might be our best solution to bring us the redemption we desire. Begrudgingly, Yaga goes with her to the palace, meets the tsar, the courtiers - and the tsar's adviser who is none other than Koshei the Deathless.

This is a fantastic question I’ve never heard before! A fire-breathing dragon, or zmey in Russian folklore, would be pretty unbeatable, for who could beat a creature breathing flames? But an alkonost from Slavic mythology would also be cool. The alkonost is a fierce creature with the head of a woman and the body of a bird. They can fly and are known for their beguiling siren-like singing. We would just put everyone in battle under our spell!Me, I’m the reader frustrated by the aged-down Yaga! But before I get to that, let’s start with my general impression. Unlike Kate, everything about this book is directly up my alley, so it was a bit of a no-brainer that I was going to read it either way. But I was happy she suggested we joint review it, since I think that has left us in an interesting position now. Since…the very fact that this was up my alley might be why I wasn’t this book’s biggest fan? More precisely, I feel like I’ve read this book before and better versions of it. As a provider of potions for this and that, Yaga has a following. Among those is the tsar’s wife, the tsaritsa, whom she has known for a long time. She is suffering from an illness that the court physicians cannot seem to touch. Yaga helps her out, but suspects foul play. Although she would prefer to remain safely in her house in the woods, she must go to Moscow to find out who is doing this to Anastasia Romanovna, a kind, sweet young woman. It would appear that Yaga and crew are not the only immortals wandering about. The tsar has fallen under the influence of a dark-hearted ageless sort, someone Yaga knows. And the game is afoot. A perfect blend of fantasy and historical fiction, The Witch and the Tsar magnificently paints an old Russia full of vengeful gods, court intrigue and high adventure. In the center of it all is the half-goddess Yaga, isolated and proud, whose compassion for humanity drives her into a war with Ivan the Terrible and the mythical beings who use him for their own ends. Immersive and beautifully written, Yaga’s story reminds us that gods—like humans—can choose their own fates.” Baba Yaga, for example, is frequently portrayed as a figure of ridicule and laughter, not to mention a villainous old woman and cannibal. She is told what to do by the male characters in her own stories, has body parts made of iron, and is even said to take on male characteristics and various deformities. She never has a voice of her own. In Russian fairy tale film adaptations, Baba Yaga is even played by a man.