The Girl In The Tower

Title: The Girl In The Tower
Author: Katherine Arden
Genre: Fantasy, Folklore
Source: Library hardback
Rating: 4 out of 5 paws


The Bear has been defeated, but because of it Vasya has been cast out of her village labeled a witch.  Instead of living life in a convent or allowing herself to be married to some man, Vasya decides to travel the world, see all that she can see.  She disguises herself as a boy and ventures out into the woods atop her grand horse. She encounters some bandits and after a narrow escape she stumbles upon a monastery which happens to be Sasha's monastery.  She earns the admiration of the Grand Prince, but must keep up the pretenses of being a boy.  She begins to notice things in Moscow that don't seem to add up and begins to realize the Grand Prince's kingdom is under threat, a threat that feasts and drinks wine with him.  But is it too late for her to stop things that are already in motion?

The Girl In The Tower is the sequel to The Bear and The Nightengale which may just be one of my favorite fantasy/folklore books so far this year. Just like The Bear and The Nightengale, this book revolves around the Russian folk lore of the frost-demon.  It is filled with elements of folk-lore, religion, politics, culture and fantastical elements. 


Vasya wants nothing more than to be her own person and not be confined to what society says she needs to be and how to act.  While she may feel like she is still wild young girl she once was, she grow immensely in this novel and forms ideal beyond that of simply not wanting to marry or go to a convent.  Readers see her enjoy being an advisor to the Grand Prince and finally being able to stand up for herself and be taken seriously.  Her voice is finally heard even if it is as a boy.  To her, that is a freeing experience.  Her shift into maturity happens so naturally that by the end of the novel you think to yourself, wow she grew tremendously in this novel, and you can't wait to see her in the next one.


Kathrine Arden's writing is beautifully lyrical and poetic.  It was easy to get lost in her world and forget everything in the real world, I almost forgot to go back to work after lunch.  Every character introduced plays an important part, there are no "small roles" in this novel and I love that.  I love that readers can feel connected to every character even Katya in the beginning.  While Vasya isn't out right romantically involved with anyone she feels a love towards Morozko.  I think he can win everyone's heart, he won mine!  I almost want a story focused on him.

Every time you take one path, you must live with the memory of the other: of a life left unchosen. Decide as seems best, one course or the other; each way will have its bitter with its sweet.

This is probably my favorite quote from the book.  It says so much within these two sentences that define the series and life in general.  After reading it I paused and thought about what those words meant for me, for my life and the path I have chosen.  From start to finish you find yourself melting into the words of Katherine Arden.  There is no better way to describe it.


I highly recommend this novel, and will keep my eye out for the third book and feel like I need to buy all versions of this book.  Check it out.

5 Ingredient Recipes

I am always looking for a new cookbook to add to my collection of books.  I am an avid chef and sometimes wonder what I could make with a few ingredients.  This was the perfect book for that task, many of these recipes are quick and easy and taste like I slaved over the stove all day. 

I would like to say this cookbook has a wide variety of recipes, but it seems like chicken and smoothies predominated the book.  The recipes were easy to follow and have ingredients that are easy to find in your local grocery store rather than having to find the in a specialty store.  The instructions are even 3 steps or less so you are not spending a lot of time cooking a great meal.

I admit some are recipes I have seen and cook prior to owning the book and nothing really stood out a completely unique, but I think this would be a great book for a beginner or a parent teaching kids to cook.  It helps get the understanding of cooking basics down.  The front even includes a chart showing what everything equals like 3 teaspoons equal 1 tablespoon.  A lot of the recipes include already prepared items like cornbread mix when it is fairly simple to make a cornbread.

I would recommend this book for beginners and young chefs.  It has all the basics for growing the craft of cooking and baking.  As for a rating, I would give this a 3 out 5 stars  I expected a little more than chicken, and smoothies.