Questo libro si è rivelato una scoperta inaspettata. L’ho iniziato a scatola chiusa, non sapendo esattamente cosa mi sarei trovata davanti. Non immaginavo certo di trovarmi a leggere uno dei migliori fantasy che abbia letto in un bel po’ di tempo. In a certain princedom—” began Dunya. She paused and fixed a quelling eye upon Alyosha, who was squealing like a bat and bouncing in his mother’s arms. Anna comes to Konstantin to tell him that she’s seeing the demons again. She thought they were gone and is anguished to see them again. He realizes it must be from Vasya. Konstantin is proud that he’s converted so many of the villagers but knows their only hope of survival is if he converts Vasya as well. The spring comes, and it is a wet one in which nothing indoors or outdoors can stay dry.

Vasya felt cold despite the steam. “Why would I choose to die?” “It is easy to die,” replied the bannik. “Harder to live.” Vasya Petrovna: a young girl who is able to see the spirits that lurk within her home and village. She possesses the powers to battle the evil bear, Medved, and ensure that her home remains safe from his grasp. BP: You weave in so many creatures from Russian folklore—­a few of which are unique to the culture (I’d never heard of a domovoi!). How did you research these legends?

Ivan proposes two marriages to Pyotr: his daughter Anna as Pyotr’s wife and his teenage son Vladimir as Olga’s husband. Pyotr accepts both proposals. He remains in the city six more weeks and then begins his journey home with his new wife, his family, and their entourage. A monk arrives with news from Sasha, who he now calls Brother Alexander. He’s renowned for his wisdom and charity. But the Russian leader is continually being replaced, and he thinks now is the time to put the cousin he’s protected for all these years on the throne. Pyotr feels far removed from these troubles and does not want to help. He thinks a war to put Dimitrii on the throne will only bring heartache. Kolya wants to help. Pyotr tells him he’s free to go to the war if he feels the need, but he will not send him with his blessing or any provisions. After Vasilisa's mother dies, her father goes to Moscow and brings home a new wife. Fiercely devout, city-bred, Vasilisa's new stepmother forbids her family from honoring the household spirits. The family acquiesces, but Vasilisa is frightened, sensing that more hinges upon their rituals than anyone knows.

Arden also weaves a mix of Russian folklore and Slavic mythology into the narrative. She tells the tale of the intertwining but conflicting beliefs of tradition and religion by incorporating characters such as the ambitious priest, Konstantin Nikonovich and enchanting fairy-tale creatures. Vasya is used as a medium to explore the interactions between these opposing philosophies. These creatures include: Pyotr tells Sasha he’ll disown him if he goes to the monastery in Moscow. But Sasha tells his father he must. He wants to live his life as a monk and wants to protect his cousin Dimitrii if need be. Vasya finds Sasha in the stable and begs him to let her go with him to Moscow. She’s desperate to leave the stepmother who hates her behind and live in the city. Sasha also tells her she must stay with her family. Nel complesso Konstantin è, insieme a Vasya, uno dei personaggi che ha più spazio e quindi risulta meglio costruito e approfondito rispetto a molti altri. È un personaggio che ha il suo fascino, ma non si pensi nemmeno per un momento che sia una bellezza positiva. È un personaggio malato, che ha chiaramente un’ossessione malsana, ma è talmente ben costruito che a un’analisi oggettiva risulta inevitabilmente un buon personaggio proprio per quei suoi difetti che non te lo fanno perdonare soggettivamente. I am not a huge fantasy fan. So take that into consideration when I say I loved this book. I loved the setting in old Rus', a time when paganism had not yet been driven out by Christianity. I loved the Russian fairy tales that inform the novel. Vasilisa, with her wide mouth and large green eyes, is a manifestation of a traditional Russian folk tale of a frog who turns into a princess. Katherine Arden’s enchanting first novel introduced readers to an irresistible heroine. 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.There is a guardian spirit for everything in Russian folklore. The domovoi guards the house; the dvorovoi guards the dooryard. The bannik guards the bathhouse, the ovinnik, the threshing-­house. Their areas of influence are almost absurdly specific. And each creature has a certain appearance and personality, and people must do certain things to placate them.

Throughout the novel, Vasya meets many strange creatures from Dunya’s fairy tales—­from the domovoi to the rusalka to upyry. Which of the demons that Vasya encounters is your favorite? Which ones would you never want to meet? Dixon-Kennedy, Mike (1998). Encyclopedia of Russian & Slavic myth and legend. Oxford: ABC-CLIO. p.78. ISBN 978-1576070635. There you go! That’s what happened in The Bear and the Nightingale, the first book in The Winternight Trilogy!The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "Vodyanoy Slavic religion". Encyclopaedia Britannica. {{ cite web}}: |last1= has generic name ( help) Vasya [is] a clever, stalwart girl determined to forge her own path in a time when women had few choices.” —The Christian Science Monitor 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. The hearth spirits begin to starve, so Vasya begins to secretly feed them (especially the one in the stable) so they can survive. The winter is a very harsh one, and Vasya thinks it’s because they’re neglecting the hearth spirits. They freeze every night, and a village boy even dies. Vasya makes offerings in the forest to the demons there to try to get them to relent with the winter weather. They do what they can, but they still can’t reduce very much. Something is awakening. For a moment, Vasya thinks she sees a familiar tree in the shadows and thinks she hears a voice asking her if she is cold in the wind. In a village at the edge of the wilderness of northern Russia, where the winds blow cold and the snow falls many months of the year, an elderly servant tells stories of sorcery, folklore and the Winter King to the children of the family, tales of old magic frowned upon by the church.