'We bear the sword, and we bear the pain of the sword. Pain is Dymitr’s calling. His family is one in a long line of hunters who sacrifice their souls to slay monsters. Now he’s tasked with a deadly mission: find the legendary witch Baba Jaga. To reach her, Dymitr must ally with the ones he’s sworn to kill.
'Pain is Ala’s inheritance. A fear-eating zmora with little left to lose, Ala awaits death from the curse she carries. When Dymitr offers her a cure in exchange for her help, she has no choice but to agree. Together they must fight against time and the wrath of the Chicago underworld. But Dymitr’s secrets—and his true motives—may be the thing that actually destroys them.'
Having shot to fame and recognition for her dystopian future series, Divergent, Veronica Roth is not incorporating the stories and flavours of older times into the modern day as she combines the myths and monsters of Polish history with the city of Chicago; creating a wonderfully engaging and interesting new world for readers to explore.
When Among Crows tells the stories of three protagonists, Ala, Dymitr, and Niko, with the story cycling through each of them as narrators, giving the audience three unique yet interconnected perspectives on the story. Each of our three protagonists carries a burden, ones placed upon them by their families. These familial pressures force them into situations and lives that they don't really want to be living; and it's these burdens and the missions that they're sent on because of them, that bring the three of them together into an unlikely team.
The dynamic between the main characters is enjoyable, and the ways that they interact and come together are a genuine highlight of the story. I love how much heart Dymitr has, and how caring a person he is, especially with his past. And Niko and Ala have some fantastic chemistry with some of the best scenes involving the two of them. The characters play off each other so well, especially for such a short read, and any fear I had that character development would be sacrificed to make way for story was unfounded, as the character moments in this novella often put some very long novels to shame for how well done it was; showcasing Roth's writing skills.
But, this is not just a book about people, it's also got monsters. Roth combines the creatures of Slavic folklore, such as the leshy, banshee, stryga, and Baba Jaga with the realism of modern day Chicago. Urban Fantasy is a popular genre, and the wonder of finding out a world of the magical and horrific exists hidden just below the surface appeals to a lot of reader; after all, who wouldn't want to accidentally stumble upon magic themselves? Here, however, Roth manages to blend this world in in less showy ways, and makes for a more subtle and downplayed kind of world.
This isn't a story where a whole other society lives just out of eyeshot, where the most outrageous and over the top events pass regular folks by; instead, this is a world that feels a lot more possible, where the extraordinary really seems to have to go out of its way to remain hidden. I loved the old cinema that shows old horror films that allows the creature that owns it to feed on human fear. The way in which the other integrates with our world is fantastic, and it's the moments like this that showcase the fact that Roth has put a great deal of thought into the creation of this world.
There is a lot about this book that I'd love to dive into more, more that I can see myself talking about for hours (I haven't even touched upon the Holy Order that hunts monsters that's inspired by Christian imperialism and history) but with the book only being a short read I'm a little afraid of going too in depth and spoiling something. This is a book that you should definitely discover on your own, and the less you know about it going in the more delightful your discovery of things will be. If you're looking for an emotional and moving story, with an amazing world you'll want to get lost in, in a small and gorgeous package When Among Crows is the book for you.
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