Information
Goodreads: When Among Crows
Series: None
Age Category: Adult
Source: Tor giveaway
Publication Date: May 14, 2024
Official Summary
Step into a city where monsters feast on human emotions, knights split their souls to make their weapons, and witches always take more than they give.
Pain is Dymitr's calling. To slay the monsters he's been raised to kill, he had to split his soul in half to make a sword from his own spine. Every time he draws it, he gets blood on his hands.
Pain is Ala's inheritance. When her mother died, a family curse to witness horrors committed by the Holy Order was passed onto her. The curse will claim her life, as it did her mother's, unless she can find a cure.
One fateful night in Chicago, Dymitr comes to Ala with a bargain: her help in finding the legendary witch Baba Jaga in exchange for an enchanted flower that just might cure her. Desperate, and unaware of what Dymitr really is, Ala agrees.
But they only have one day before the flower dies . . . and Ala's hopes of breaking the curse along with it.
Review
I haven't read a book by Veronica Roth since the second Divergent book (I DNF'ed the third), so it was nice to return to her as an author with When Among Crows, an adult fantasy novella set it in modern-day Chicago. It draws on Polish folklore and has an interesting vibe, half urban fantasy and half legend, as protagonist Dymitr seems to be a once in a lifetime hero willing and worthy of doing great things. However, while I was intrigued by parts of the story, I lacked a sense of connection to the characters, and I think ultimately this may be once of those books that fade from my memory within a few months' time.
The novella format may explain some of my lack of connection to the characters. There is, of course, limited page space for the reader to get to know them and become invested in their strugglers and their triumphs. However, I think the timeframe of the plot itself also plays a role. While the idea that the characters have just a couple days to complete their mission could add a sense of urgency to the narrative, the downside is it makes it unrealistic that the characters might form friendships or even strong bonds. I kept thinking, "These people barely know each other!" which isn't the reaction I want to have from a book.
Still, Roth manages to make things intriguing in the short space she has. There's lots of background about different magical creatures, and Roth explores the idea of the monstrous -- who is seen as monstrous by whom, and why, whether it's true, how that can change. There's a little religion woven in, though not much. Readers must take at face value the idea Catholicism and mythical creatures exist, and some of those creatures are themself Catholic (or other religions).
And Roth builds upon this to give readers a fascinating protagonist, someone who is not quite like anyone that anyone in the book has seen before, even in world of magic and mythical creatures. He knows things. He's not afraid. He's capable and strong. And yet he's kind. Characters gravitate toward him to figure him out and see what he'll do next, and Roth uses that interest to create interest in her readers, as well.
Dymitr is truly the strongest part of the novella, and the main reason I kept reading. Roth also uses his character to explore more themes, especially the idea of atonement. This tracks with some of the themes she seemed interested in exploring in the Divergent series, and she gives a thoughtful look here. And I can't name a book I've personally read recently that looks closely at atonement, so enjoyed that aspect here.
Objectively, I want to say the book is strong. I have few issues with it. It explores interesting themes, to the point college students could probably write some fascinating essays about the book. But it it's just missing a little something extra that would make me connect to it. When I think about the books that will come to my mind when I have to write my "best of 2024" list at the end of the year, I'm not sure this one will even occur to me.
No comments:
Post a Comment