This book grips you right away – not so much like a runaway rollercoaster, but more like a grandfather who has worked his whole life in the field might grip the hand of a grandchild as they cross a road, firmly but not unkindly, if a little too tight.

I am largely unfamiliar with Russian/Eastern European fairy tales and folklore. What little I've encountered has been filtered through English (or other Western European) writers, and a lesser amount from general cultural osmosis. There are many recognizable elements from the Germanic, French and English folk tales I am grew up with and have studied – customary ingredients from Tolkien's "soup," as it were – but they are combined with other components and assembled in different ways so as to be fresh and interesting. Arden does a great job of weaving those elements around a compelling narrative, creating a story that moves at an even (almost inexorable, but in a good way) pace.

I will definitely pick up the sequel.