Title: The Girl in the Tower (Winternight Trilogy #2)
Author: Katherine Arden
Publication Date: December 5, 2017
Pages: 363
Publisher: Del Rey
Date Started: November 25, 2018
Date Finished: November 27, 2018
Format: Hardcover

I was so excited to be able to finally sit down and read the second installment of the Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden, so I found a perfect excuse to squeeze it into the N.E.W.T.s read-a-thon I participated in last month. I used this book to count for my Acceptable score in Arithmancy, which required me to read a book with 300 or more pages. At 363 pages, this book worked perfect!

For those who haven’t read the first book in this series, not only will I not spoil anything, but I will strongly encourage you to go read the first one, The Bear and the Nightingale. Arden’s writing is unlike anything I have ever seen before. It is enchanting beyond all belief and lulls one into a mesmerized trance throughout the pages.

In short, this trilogy takes place in fourteenth century Russia and follows the life of a peculiar girl named Vasya. Vasya possesses the ability to see spirits, which are fading from the world due to the growth of other religions in the region. The whole atmosphere of the book leads to the overwhelming ambiance of an old fashion fairy tale. While the first book took place in the isolated wilds of Russia, this book provided a new perspective to the burgeoning country. Most of this book took place in Moscow, and introduced a level of political intrigue to the story. While I found the city to be an interesting setting, I did find myself missing the mystique that the rural setting provided, particularly the role that the spirits played (like in the first book).

On one final note, I should probably admit to having a literary crush on Morozko, the Russian frost demon of lore. Every scene he was in was breathtaking and I was left wanting more. I seriously hope there are plenty of scenes with him in the third installment (which I managed to snag an ARC of, so look forward to that!)

Overall, 4/5 moose