The Wolf and the Woodsman
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- Create Date：2021-08-16 04:41:11
- Update Date：2025-09-24
- Status：finish
- Author：Ava Reid
- ISBN：0062973126
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Summary
In the vein of Naomi Novik’s New York Times bestseller Spinning Silver and Katherine Arden’s national bestseller The Bear and the Nightingale， this unforgettable debut— inspired by Hungarian history and Jewish mythology—follows a young pagan woman with hidden powers and a one-eyed captain of the Woodsmen as they form an unlikely alliance to thwart a tyrant。
In her forest-veiled pagan village， Évike is the only woman without power， making her an outcast clearly abandoned by the gods。 The villagers blame her corrupted bloodline—her father was a Yehuli man， one of the much-loathed servants of the fanatical king。 When soldiers arrive from the Holy Order of Woodsmen to claim a pagan girl for the king’s blood sacrifice， Évike is betrayed by her fellow villagers and surrendered。
But when monsters attack the Woodsmen and their captive en route， slaughtering everyone but Évike and the cold， one-eyed captain， they have no choice but to rely on each other。 Except he’s no ordinary Woodsman—he’s the disgraced prince， Gáspár Bárány， whose father needs pagan magic to consolidate his power。 Gáspár fears that his cruelly zealous brother plans to seize the throne and instigate a violent reign that would damn the pagans and the Yehuli alike。 As the son of a reviled foreign queen， Gáspár understands what it’s like to be an outcast， and he and Évike make a tenuous pact to stop his brother。
As their mission takes them from the bitter northern tundra to the smog-choked capital， their mutual loathing slowly turns to affection， bound by a shared history of alienation and oppression。 However， trust can easily turn to betrayal， and as Évike reconnects with her estranged father and discovers her own hidden magic， she and Gáspár need to decide whose side they’re on， and what they’re willing to give up for a nation that never cared for them at all。
In her forest-veiled pagan village， Évike is the only woman without power， making her an outcast clearly abandoned by the gods。 The villagers blame her corrupted bloodline—her father was a Yehuli man， one of the much-loathed servants of the fanatical king。 When soldiers arrive from the Holy Order of Woodsmen to claim a pagan girl for the king’s blood sacrifice， Évike is betrayed by her fellow villagers and surrendered。
But when monsters attack the Woodsmen and their captive en route， slaughtering everyone but Évike and the cold， one-eyed captain， they have no choice but to rely on each other。 Except he’s no ordinary Woodsman—he’s the disgraced prince， Gáspár Bárány， whose father needs pagan magic to consolidate his power。 Gáspár fears that his cruelly zealous brother plans to seize the throne and instigate a violent reign that would damn the pagans and the Yehuli alike。 As the son of a reviled foreign queen， Gáspár understands what it’s like to be an outcast， and he and Évike make a tenuous pact to stop his brother。
As their mission takes them from the bitter northern tundra to the smog-choked capital， their mutual loathing slowly turns to affection， bound by a shared history of alienation and oppression。 However， trust can easily turn to betrayal， and as Évike reconnects with her estranged father and discovers her own hidden magic， she and Gáspár need to decide whose side they’re on， and what they’re willing to give up for a nation that never cared for them at all。
Reviews
delano
，
i adored itttt but it was so hard for me to read because of the writing style— otherwise AMAZING
Heather
，
DNF
Angie
，
Hmmm。 I liked Ava Reid's writing; there were some gorgeous similes and metaphors。 I also loved the influences of Hungarian history and Jewish folklore。 However， the self-mutilation/self-harm was a little too much for me。 Hmmm。 I liked Ava Reid's writing; there were some gorgeous similes and metaphors。 I also loved the influences of Hungarian history and Jewish folklore。 However， the self-mutilation/self-harm was a little too much for me。 。。。more
Sophie
，
This book was absolutely amazing！ Thank you Ava Reid for the experience！I was pretty exicited for this book as a Hungarian reader。 The Wolf and the Woodsman sumed up beautifully what legends， myths and superstitions we， Hungarians had before our first king， King István who brougth christianity into the country， and banned every act of paganism。 Other than that， I loved that I couldn't find any spelling errors， or words out of context。 Ava placed every Hungarian word in the right place， and there This book was absolutely amazing！ Thank you Ava Reid for the experience！I was pretty exicited for this book as a Hungarian reader。 The Wolf and the Woodsman sumed up beautifully what legends， myths and superstitions we， Hungarians had before our first king， King István who brougth christianity into the country， and banned every act of paganism。 Other than that， I loved that I couldn't find any spelling errors， or words out of context。 Ava placed every Hungarian word in the right place， and there wasn't any punctuation mark left out。This was the best fantasy book i've read in a long time and I immediately fell in love with the main character， her whole personality， her actions and her out-of-the-placeness。 She didn't belong to anyone at the begining， but she remained strong， and independent， while her personality and her way of thinking developed throughout the story。 Other characters such as the Woodsman， the bastard Prince and the king were build perfectly。 No more words can describe this wholesome book: The worldbuilding is astonishing， the characters are diverse which does not let the reader bore， historical events and figures were brought from Hungarian history which are recognizable， and it made me really proud of my roots。 So go read it if you didn't already， It really diserves the 5 star 。。。more
Lorena （Stained Edges）
，
Real Rating: 1。5Plot/story: 2Setting/worldbuilding: 2。5Characters: 1Writing/ prose: 1。5Unputdownable: 0Short review: This book suffered from too much flowery writing， forced worldbuilding， excessive myth-telling and useless religious debates。And lack of plot， little character development， repetitive dialogue， and the blandest romance ever， each conversation ending with someone flushing and the other person scowling。As a debut novel， I think the author has potential; I can tell she did lots， LO Real Rating: 1。5Plot/story: 2Setting/worldbuilding: 2。5Characters: 1Writing/ prose: 1。5Unputdownable: 0Short review: This book suffered from too much flowery writing， forced worldbuilding， excessive myth-telling and useless religious debates。And lack of plot， little character development， repetitive dialogue， and the blandest romance ever， each conversation ending with someone flushing and the other person scowling。As a debut novel， I think the author has potential; I can tell she did lots， LOTS of research。 But as someone very cleverly said， authors must keep 90% of their research to themselves and let 10% pepper the story。 Otherwise， we would just read the research ourselves。 My advice: Do not be deceived， my friends， this is a sheep in wolf’s clothing。 It’s YA masquerading as adult。 The only 2 reasons marketing is shoving this down adults’ throats is because of copious amounts of gratuitous gore and one half -page sex scene which was fairly vague and easily removed。These are elements that define YA in my opinion:1。tThe main character/s are the centre of the world， interacting mainly with same-age individuals who share similar interests。2。tAdults are to be avoided， vilified， killed off， are an annoyance。3。tTypically， first person and （more frequently nowadays） present tense POV。4。tDealing with teenage-related issues such as bullying， self-image issues， finding their role in society， their first love， leaving home for the first time。5。tImmature， repetitive， childish dialogue。 6。 A simplistic plot。This book has most of the above。The things I liked in this book were the atmosphere （that chicken thing was wicked cool， more of that please！）， the incorporation of Hungarian and Jewish inspired mythology and the themes of religious oppression， generational conflict， ethnic cleansing， and belonging。 Although even these were very heavy handed， having elaborate descriptions and mythology on every single page。 Long review， no spoilers: Plot: This had a promising start and went downhill soon after。 I kept picking it up and putting it down， the pace was painfully slow and the scenes and inner monologue so repetitive that this book could have been cut down to 200 pages。 There’s an overwhelming amount of navel-gazing happening， the main characters absolutely do not read as adults。 I had to go back and check that they were indeed 25。The initial quest-adventure is absolutely pointless and utilised only as “alone time” for our main duo， which wasn’t even well done。 There was no enemies-to-lovers slow burn， no real conflict， nothing to bond over or push their relationship to blossom。 One day Evike wakes up and notices his bronzed bicep and BANG that’s all she can think of。 All。 The。 Time。 How handsome he is and his eye and his skin bla blaaa。Everyone is flushing on every page， the woodsman is scowling every second。The encounters with "monsters" last one page each time and do nothing much to the story。The politicking in the Capital was very limited and had mostly just shock value。The ending felt rushed and the Epilogue was a mockery of the decades of struggle， oppression and conflict between people。 Characters: Evike is one of the most unlikeable and idiotic characters I’ve read and I can’t really tell if this is intentional。She is a dumb brat， I am surprised she didn't die 50 times。 Evike acts like a brainless teenager， always provoking more powerful people and acting rashly。 It was infuriating and flabbergasting to see someone who was bullied and put down all her life behave aggravating on purpose and speak without thinking。 If anything， her experience should have taught to be wary and selective of words and actions， instead of becoming a bully herself， mocking and berating Gaspar on every page。Her obsession with Virag and Katalin and heir cruel treatment is grating。 It serves little purpose except to fluff out the book。 Evike isn't healing from the trauma or being haunted by ghosts， she keeps thinking of them every single page。 For 2 characters we barely know and seen， the appear more often than real people around Evike。 Virag and Katalin's names appear approx。 200 times each。 Gaspar's name appears 500-ish times and he is one of the main characters that appears in every chapter！Maybe this obsessive reliving of memories is a part of the human psyche， but not a good storytelling technique。 I came here to read interesting things not to be reminded every page that Virag was cruel and kind and Katalin was cruel and beautiful。 Can we concentrate on the new surroundings of the Capital and its curious inhabitants maybe？Reading again and again about these women’s bad treatments of Evike （not even that bad considering one was disciplining and the other a bully， not some master torturer）， has taken the edge out those actions， not having the same impact as if it was only mentioned a few times and strongly reverberating through Evike's mind and body。 I have a small spoilery rant at the end of this review about Evike forgiving her abusers， read it if you don’t mind spoilers / don’t plan on reading this book。Gaspar the Ball-less didn’t even have a true chance to shine。 While an interesting introduction reminiscent of Mathias （SoC）， he spent the majority of the book behaving as a blushing maid and giant scaredy cat cowering in his father’s and brother’s and order’s and religion’s shadow。 His big moment at the end felt out of character。The only other character worthy of mention is Zsigmond。 His introduction and the exploration of Yehuli culture， tradition and religion was ultimately the reason I pushed to finish this。 It was however featured very little， the narrative choosing instead to venture yet again on another pointless quest which was futile at the end of the day （trust me）。 Writing style / prose: I’ve mentioned it already， but it is not great。 Excessive use of similes， surprisingly used by Evike， an illiterate village girl who would have no knowledge of such refined language。 Repetitive， the sheer mention of people blushing and flushing and scowling is ridiculous。 Unstructured storytelling， unrelated scenes back-to-back， time jumps， slow pace。 There is potential there， but a stricter editor and clearer purpose was needed。 Was this intended to be religious commentary？ An visceral romance？ Exploration of cultures？ Finding ones’ purpose/calling/place？ It was too messy and tried to have too much of everything。I really struggled with every name in this book， they were difficult to remember （forget about pronouncing！）， and since this is an English book， not a Hungarian book translated to English， I found it pointlessly challenging。 I don't need to be spoon fed， but also unless the world has a very specific naming convention （see Stormlight Archive）， bogging down the story with impossible to remember names brings nothing to the table。 Worldbuilding/ magic system: This felt very convoluted and stuffy。 There were 4 different religions/magic systems， vaguely explained and underdeveloped:-tPatrifaith （Christian based religion） – God grants you magic if you pray and / or chop off body parts。-tYehuli （Jewish based religion） magic using written words which is extremely powerful （ at odds with the fact that these people were the most oppressed and abused in the kingdom）。-tPagan （I guess based on Hungarian myths - correct me if wrong） magic， which is forest magic with random creatures and also the wolf-girls magic which is inherited at birth。-tJuvvi （I’m not sure of its real-world inspiratio） magic that controls/ connects to animals。 Overall， I think this author should have kept this a clear YA， without trying so hard to mature several scenes but not the characters themselves。 It's very uneven and goes from uncensured gore and brutal torture to silly little interactions and people making stupid choices （the villain mortally injuring someone and then leaving the room， saying they will come back later once they are dead？ Ooook。 Evike mortally injured and making jokes with Gaspar， come on woman。） Below is the tiny spoilery rant about Evike’s “selfless” decision to save her tormentors – the villagers who were cruel to her and one person in particular。 It’s a bit spoilery so feel free to skip it。。。。。。。。 The logic behind Evike's decision to help Katalin plainly does not make sense。 She says （twice） that if she doesn't， Virag will have been right to cast her out of the village， that wolf-girls are only warm bodies。 This makes no sense。 She could have felt a misplaced sense of loyalty or responsibility， she could have been trying to be the bigger person。 She could have just been feeling generous and grown more mature。 She could have left Katalin to die， it would have been a more authentic decision based on her mean， vengeful personality and history。 But no， she saves Katalin because god forbid Virag is right。 Excuse me nobody saved you when you were cast out of the village to go DIE。Also absolving the 2 main people that caused Evike hell growing up is such a YA move， cmon people。 It took 2 lines of dialogue from Katalin， saying she was jealous that Virag was kind on occasion to Evike despite LASHING HER。 That’s the big ol’ reason why Katalin was always cruel and threw fire in Evike’s face。 Forgiving the abusers easy peasy lemon squeezy， excellent lesson。 Thank you and goodnight。BTW， if I read about another surprise royalty one more time， I'm just gonna burn down all my fantasy books in a glorious bonfire that will force Ordog to gift me the power to foresee which books to avoid in the future。 。。。more
Zoey
，
An interesting magical world with clear allusions to Christian， Jewish， and pagan religions， but a bit too dark for me to fully enjoy right now。 I read more than half and then skipped to the end so I wouldn’t have to watch the heroine struggle with bitterness and feeling like an outsider anymore。 The ending is satisfying， but at no point is the MC truly happy。
Allison
，
4。5 ⭐️ rounded upReally liked this one。 I agree with all the comparisons of Bear & the Nightingale （aka weaves in and out of hungarian lore super well） + Uprooted （similar storyline and characters）。 I actually liked this the best out of all three。 I know that’s a tall order so let me qualify by saying I mostly listened to all of these on audio with a bit of kindle sync in between。 Narrators make a big difference and I enjoyed this one。 Wonderfully built enemies to lovers， beautiful dark fairytal 4。5 ⭐️ rounded upReally liked this one。 I agree with all the comparisons of Bear & the Nightingale （aka weaves in and out of hungarian lore super well） + Uprooted （similar storyline and characters）。 I actually liked this the best out of all three。 I know that’s a tall order so let me qualify by saying I mostly listened to all of these on audio with a bit of kindle sync in between。 Narrators make a big difference and I enjoyed this one。 Wonderfully built enemies to lovers， beautiful dark fairytale magic and escapism。 Just the book I needed to read at this time。 。。。more
Sero
，
dnf@29%couldn't get into itif you like Uprooted + The Wolf in the Whale give it a try dnf@29%couldn't get into itif you like Uprooted + The Wolf in the Whale give it a try 。。。more
Stacey
，
What I remember of this was OK， but to be completely honest， I read it two weeks ago and can't even recall whether I finished it！ Did it have a totally forgettable plot， or did I bail out halfway through？I'll never know， because clearly there's no point in returning。Two stars because the beginning， which I vaguely recall， was fine。 What I remember of this was OK， but to be completely honest， I read it two weeks ago and can't even recall whether I finished it！ Did it have a totally forgettable plot， or did I bail out halfway through？I'll never know， because clearly there's no point in returning。Two stars because the beginning， which I vaguely recall， was fine。 。。。more
Laura
，
This took me a while to get into， but I'm glad I gave it plenty of time to stick。 It's pretty brooding and atmospheric， very dark and creepy。 It's a fun fairy tale！ This took me a while to get into， but I'm glad I gave it plenty of time to stick。 It's pretty brooding and atmospheric， very dark and creepy。 It's a fun fairy tale！ 。。。more
Elyana
，
Loved this book with its beautiful writing and all its little flaws。
Selene Wang
，
"If there is anyone I would damn my soul for， it would be you。"A standalone fantasy based on Hungarian and Jewish lore that follows a pagan woman， Évike when she is surrendered to the Woodsmen as a sacrifice by her village。 However， when attacked by monsters on the way to the Woodsmen's kingdom， Évike and the one eyed captain， are the only two in the party left alive。 The captain， Gáspár， is not what he seems though， and reveals himself to the be the true heir of the kingdom， cast out years ago "If there is anyone I would damn my soul for， it would be you。"A standalone fantasy based on Hungarian and Jewish lore that follows a pagan woman， Évike when she is surrendered to the Woodsmen as a sacrifice by her village。 However， when attacked by monsters on the way to the Woodsmen's kingdom， Évike and the one eyed captain， are the only two in the party left alive。 The captain， Gáspár， is not what he seems though， and reveals himself to the be the true heir of the kingdom， cast out years ago by his own father。 The two make a pact to save the kingdom from Gáspár's wicked brother and spare Évike's village。 As the story goes on， they're forced to ask themselves what they're willing to do for homes that never cared for them before。This was just really good I don't know what else to say。 I think the characterization was done really well and the dynamic between Évike and Gáspár was super fun， mostly consisting of Évike just saying whatever she can to make Gáspár get riled up and the gradual buildup to their romantic relationship was done really well。 The mythology aspects were also really cool to read about and the antagonists in this story？ The antagonists。 They were written so well like I don't think I've genuinely hated a main antagonist so much until this book。 Nándor， the brother， is such a terrifying villain especially with all the political and religious tie ins。 He legitimately made me on edge during the book and the ending was satisfying。 The thing is I just got confused a lot since the prose in this story was so lyrical at times it was hard to understand what was actually happening or if it was just another metaphor。 Anyways it was good。 Sort of gory and twisty even as an adult fantasy though so definitely look up content warnings。 。。。more
Gretal
，
3。5 starsThis is a good book; it's just unfortunately not one for me。 I'm really not a huge fan of first person， especially in secondary world fantasy novels， and that just worked against this book。 3。5 starsThis is a good book; it's just unfortunately not one for me。 I'm really not a huge fan of first person， especially in secondary world fantasy novels， and that just worked against this book。 。。。more
Jai
，
The story is told from the first person POV of Évike， a young woman who grew up as an outsider in her pagan village。 Her mother was taken away when she was young， her father， a Yehuli man from the capital， has no idea that Évike is still alive。 One day， the Woodsmen come and take Évike as they did her mother。 The king is eager for pagan magic， even as he embraces a new religion that condemns the old ways。 Évike's village is only too eager to sacrifice her to spare their other wolf-girls: she has The story is told from the first person POV of Évike， a young woman who grew up as an outsider in her pagan village。 Her mother was taken away when she was young， her father， a Yehuli man from the capital， has no idea that Évike is still alive。 One day， the Woodsmen come and take Évike as they did her mother。 The king is eager for pagan magic， even as he embraces a new religion that condemns the old ways。 Évike's village is only too eager to sacrifice her to spare their other wolf-girls: she has no magic and is barely tolerated。 On the way to the king， the Woodsmen are attacked by dark creatures， leaving just Évike and the Woodsman captain to rely on each other to carry on。This story has an interesting mix of Hungarian folklore and Jewish fable， representing Évike's dual heritage of pagan wolf-girl and Yehuli。 It was easy to sympathize with Évike as both her cultures are threatened with extinction by those who want to further their own religion and rule。There is plenty of blood and violence。 Évike is bullied and abused by her village， then there's amputation， killing of animals， self-harm， gore， and all kinds of nasty things going on throughout。 This makes it not really YA I suppose， but there's something here that still feels a bit YA。 The pacing is at times slow， yet with quick changes in scenes and cliffhanger chapter endings。 Évike calls herself a girl （wolf-girl） despite being 25， and is impulsive and argumentative for two thirds of the book， rushing towards danger without a plan or thought。 The romance， a promising enemies to lovers affair， involves a lot of repetitive descriptions of Gáspár the Woodsman's jaw， dark eyes， and good looks， Évike's evisceration of his character， Gáspár's contempt and stoicism， and a lot of forced proximity。 In the end I appreciated the comfort these two had in each other but it wasn't the romance I was hoping for。 Theirs felt like a young love rather than an adult one。In the end I liked the premise and the lyrical writing， but I had issues with the repetitive feel and pacing， along with how emotion was conveyed in sometimes awkward ways。 I give this 3 stars: liked but didn't love。 。。。more
Nichole
，
This felt like a book that couldn't decide if it wanted to be a saga/series full of 100 small adventures and cultures and stories of people prepping for a big battle for survival with different gods and magic weaving them together with strong and numerous characters that develop throughout。。。 OR。。。 a single story of one girl's journey from proverbial ugly duckling， cast out and sacrificed， who found her voice and inner magic， and fought to save her village。 With greater development and stronger This felt like a book that couldn't decide if it wanted to be a saga/series full of 100 small adventures and cultures and stories of people prepping for a big battle for survival with different gods and magic weaving them together with strong and numerous characters that develop throughout。。。 OR。。。 a single story of one girl's journey from proverbial ugly duckling， cast out and sacrificed， who found her voice and inner magic， and fought to save her village。 With greater development and stronger sub-plot， it could've succeeded as a epic tale。 Or with some heavy editing， it would've been a nice fantasy tale。 There were a lot of unremarkable characters that could've been compelling。 There were a lot of gods I couldn't keep straight with the different people who worshipped them。 I couldn't keep the pagans straight。 I would've liked more backstory or less drama from the past because the hard love and mixed messages from the parental figures， or downright cruelty。 Give me more or give me less， not an amount that leaves me feeling so very ambiguous。 13 hours is a LONG audiobook that felt shorter but the payoff wasn't enough。 。。。more
Carola
，
3，5*
scarlettraces
，
DNFed due to the author's wilful negligence of the English language， specifically adjectives。 Also noting that it's YA masquerading as adult - some great smart commentry in the reviews （thanks other goodreaders！） takes this apart。 Extra gore and fucking does not a grown-up book make。 （I didn't get as far as the fucking， I got bored before that。） DNFed due to the author's wilful negligence of the English language， specifically adjectives。 Also noting that it's YA masquerading as adult - some great smart commentry in the reviews （thanks other goodreaders！） takes this apart。 Extra gore and fucking does not a grown-up book make。 （I didn't get as far as the fucking， I got bored before that。） 。。。more
Emma MacDonald
，
This started off kind of slow but picked up。 I really enjoyed the storyline and appreciated the pronunciation guide at the end！
Madison
，
The Wolf and the Woodsman was a book that hooked me with its premise， but ultimately let me down。 Although it's marketed as adult， this definitely felt like a YA， as the main character （who is 25 years old） is very immature and acts much younger than her age， and the tropes it followed felt very YA-ish。 I felt as though the book slogged along， as the characters sort of just wandered around and had horny thoughts for one another。 Also， they had to stop their conversations every few minutes to tel The Wolf and the Woodsman was a book that hooked me with its premise， but ultimately let me down。 Although it's marketed as adult， this definitely felt like a YA， as the main character （who is 25 years old） is very immature and acts much younger than her age， and the tropes it followed felt very YA-ish。 I felt as though the book slogged along， as the characters sort of just wandered around and had horny thoughts for one another。 Also， they had to stop their conversations every few minutes to tell another myth or story， and while it was clever the first time， it became repetitive。 Also， I noticed the author definitely pulled from a lot of other sources。 The main characters gave me dollar-store Nina and Matthias from Six of Crow vibes。 And even though I've never seen Game of Thrones， I know a bit about it， and I thought to myself "this reminds of Jon Snow and that redheaded woman"， so。。。yeah。 I think it's fine to be inspired by other characters， but in some instances it definitely felt copy-paste。 I have a lot of thoughts about this book， and I'm not sure how to articulate them all， so I'll leave it be。 This was by no means the worst book I've ever read， but it was a frustrating and disappointing experience。 。。。more
Brigi
，
I kept putting off writing this review， because how do you review a book that doesn't take your culture seriously？ :/The Wolf and the Woodsman is marketed as "inspired by Hungarian history"， so I feel like once you mention some famous historical figures， you should expect readers to place this story in that historical context。 And so， even though the succession of kings in the book is incorrect， this book tells you that the first king was Szent István， aka St Stephen （and also mentions Géza， but I kept putting off writing this review， because how do you review a book that doesn't take your culture seriously？ :/The Wolf and the Woodsman is marketed as "inspired by Hungarian history"， so I feel like once you mention some famous historical figures， you should expect readers to place this story in that historical context。 And so， even though the succession of kings in the book is incorrect， this book tells you that the first king was Szent István， aka St Stephen （and also mentions Géza， but he's less known）。 He is considered the first Hungarian king， and it's easy to remember because he was crowned in 1000。 Now， the current king in the book is only the 5th one， so if you google the kings quickly， it's easy to deduce that this story is placed around late 1000s， maybe mid 1100s。 So 11th-12th century。The reason why I insist on the importance of placing this in a historical context is because of the amount of historical inaccuracies。 I'm not even a history buff， and I noticed so many inaccuracies。。。 starting with the currency， the forint， which is present but which was only introduced in the early 14th century。 Then you have the very anachronistic goddamn PAPRIKA mentioned， which 1） comes from Latin America so has absolutely nothing to do in 11th century and 2） only became popular in Hungarian cuisine in 18th century。 Moreover， the fact that people judge the main character， Évike， a peasant girl for not being able to read？ I'm sorry， but since when is reading/writing an everyday skill in medieval Hungary？？？There's also the manifold linguistic issues。。。 starting with the random Hungarian peppered throughout the text。 While this was no issue for me， I think it can be very confusing for non-speakers。 Even more so because only some names are in Hungarian （like Ezer Szem forest）， but not others （Black lake。。。 which ironically would also be an easy name but whatever）。 Perhaps even more annoying is the linguistic-geographic relationships in this text。 The book uses code names， like Merzani for Turkish and Juuvi for Finnish。 And so medieval Hungary is somehow bordered by Turkey on the South and Finland in the North？？？ Not only that， but the main character understands both languages？ How？ I would like that superpower please！ Like yes， Hungarian is a Finno-ugric language， but 1） I do not understand Finnish AT ALL。 A friend who studied it says the grammar has some similarities and basta。 and 2） Turkish again， I would not be able to understand at all。 If you google it， you will find out that there are only about 400-500 Turkish words/word roots left in Hungarian。 So how？ And even if you might counter "but this is old Hungarian！"， I still doubt they could understand those languages then。 The oldest text in Hungarian is from 12th century （only Latin beforehand） and I understand about 70% it！Inaccuracies like this are to be found even regarding the story。。。 we know it's placed around St。 Stephen day （20th August）， and yet they're freezing in the nights？ Hungary has a temperate weather， so I think they were fine during the hottest month of the summer。 There's also the matter of spelling mistakes in the Hungarian， which tells you that no Hungarian had read this text before publication。。。 because yes， I can forgive Király Szek being spelled like that once， but it shows up repeatedly in the book。 Szek means nothing， while Szék means chair， or in this context， the King's Throne。 And I know it looks just like an accent， but it's different from French， it's a different sound and letter。 This was not the only mistake， but it's the most prominent one。And while one might set aside all these issues， there's also the plot and characters and all I can say is 。。。 no。 There are so many useless side quests， the middle part of the book really drags on。 What was the point of their first travel to the north？ Or the clay witch and the other forest being？ Absolutely nothing。 And the gore。。。 yikes。I initially wanted to give this 2 stars， because the last two chapters really picked up， but writing this review made me realise that the author basically spent 30 minutes on the wikipedia entry of Hungary， and that was all。 :/ So I don't think I can give a book that disregards and disrespects Hungarian history and culture even that。Rep: Hungarian-Jewish coded main character， Hungarian-Turkish coded love interest 。。。more
Erin Wilson
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I received an e-arc of this title courtesy of NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 I'm a little torn on what to rate this book。 I really enjoyed the interwoven mythology and folktales of cultures that I haven't seen written about often and the dark， poetic， atmospheric descriptions。 But there were a few things to do with plot/pacing and characters that read very much like a debut book。 Which I believe it is， so it shouldn't be faulted too much for that。 These just happen to be a few pet h I received an e-arc of this title courtesy of NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 I'm a little torn on what to rate this book。 I really enjoyed the interwoven mythology and folktales of cultures that I haven't seen written about often and the dark， poetic， atmospheric descriptions。 But there were a few things to do with plot/pacing and characters that read very much like a debut book。 Which I believe it is， so it shouldn't be faulted too much for that。 These just happen to be a few pet hates of mine when they come up。Pacing: This is definitely a slow burn book。 Which， depending on the reader， can be good or bad。 I generally don't mind a slower paced fantasy but I don't think I could connect with the characters in this book which made me feel the effects of the slower pace a lot more。 Over half-way in we were still going through the journey stage found in many fantasies。 While I did enjoy the inclusion of the myths of different witches and creatures， I feel like one was thrown in every now and then just to throw a spanner in the works for the main characters。 Only to be beaten/resolved a few paragraphs later。 After the 3rd time it unfortunately felt a little repetitive even though I was interested in the lore。 The pacing for me was also a little off with the romance threaded throughout the plotline。 Coupled with the fact that I couldn't really get on board with either main character （which I'll discuss later） it read like a bad attempt at hate to love trope。 The antagonism was short lived between them with Évike was mooning over Gáspár when it really wasn't realistic for her to。 I usually really enjoy hate-to-love tropes but felt like this one was a little rushed。 Especially when it came to random proclamations of love after we hadn't seen Gáspár's character for a sizeable chunk of the book。 At least it read that way to me。 Characters: Unfortunately I really didn't click with our main character， Évike。 While it's not necessary to like the main character to enjoy the book， some of Évike's choices/actions really grated on me。 I could see what the author was trying to do with her character arc but I think for too much of the story I just found Évike quite naive and gullible in her decision making。 The petty back and forth barbs with Gáspár also just got on my nerves， because it turned into being more about him rebuffing and regretting their kiss compared to him standing for everything she hated。 So many times I just wanted to shake her and shout， "Look at the bigger picture！ Rather than focusing on just getting a reaction out of him。 She's travelling to a city where she knows her kind is reviled and wanted dead， to be delivered to the king and a future that she's going blind into。 Not knowing the fate of the previous wolf-girls。 After reading the fantasy genre for so long， so many of her decisions weren't believable for me。 Such things as walking into the city where most people want her dead while wearing the wolf cloak which makes her instantly recognisable， and yet she sulks and spars with Gáspár about it when he rightly asks， is she crazy for riding in with it？Évike's character definitely felt the most fleshed out to me， but the rest of the characters were too forgettable。 Gáspár didn't seem to have more to his character than spouting his religious rules and a few back stories about his father。 I didn't see any chemistry between him and Évike， so the romance made very little sense to me。 Same for both of the villains， we seem to be told of the king's cruelty and brutality through Gáspár's stories and mystery of why he wants the wolf-girls and yet when we actually see him he's a weak coward barely holding onto his title and people。 This is just a pet hate of mine where we are told about a character and not shown。 Or shown something completely different。 The villains just seemed like the outline of the 'evil bad guy' that needs to be defeated without much substance to them。 The magic for me was one of the weakest points in the book。 While there was a unique power explored， through forging metal from nothing， there was no real explanation of how this worked or principles behind it。 Other than there being 3 different types of magic that wolf girls could perform。 It just ended up muddying the waters when some of the Woosdmen could also use these powers or a variation of powers that didn't make sense with the 3 already mentioned。 When Évike received her powers it was a little washy for me how she came to the conclusion of obtaining them and also with the ease of which she could then use said powers。 With no previous knowledge or training about a gift that no one she knew had ever possessed before。 Again just something that took me out of the story because of it's unlikelihood。 There were a few things with plot convenience that also took me out of the story。 Such as the ease that Évike had in wandering around the palace and city with no escort or guard。 It's unrealistic for me to think that someone labelled 'evil' and 'a heathen' is let loose to do whatever she wants in the palace and city where people are encouraged to hate and exterminate her kind。 Also for Évike and her father's reunion。 It seemed way too convenient that she just show up to a city where she'd never been before， didn't know the layout of， with minimal knowledge of her father that's years old and the first thing she sees is her father surrounded by an audience due for court punishment。 Following this then she thinks she can find him by just knocking on ever door in a section of the city hoping to find him。 Multiple instances like this just pulled me out of the overarching story quite a bit。 Having said all that though， I think the language and writing used to describe the world-building and geography of the land was really good。 Especially when it came to the forest scenes。 I think if you're a fan of similar styles to Naomi Novik or Katherine Arden you should also give this a go and see what you think。 While there were still some kinks to work out， being a first book， I'll definitely keep an eye out for this writer's work in the future as I liked her writing style that much。 。。。more
Sherri
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I feel like this story could have been great， but mostly it left me asking myself why am I still reading this pretty much the entire time。Nothing happens in the first half of this book。 It's very "monster of the week" in which we get the same scenario over and over with very little impact to plot or character building。 The second half was a bit of a mess with a lot of interesting things happening， but all of it rushed。Also， why does the book jacket have so many spoilers？ Wth。I might give Reid an I feel like this story could have been great， but mostly it left me asking myself why am I still reading this pretty much the entire time。Nothing happens in the first half of this book。 It's very "monster of the week" in which we get the same scenario over and over with very little impact to plot or character building。 The second half was a bit of a mess with a lot of interesting things happening， but all of it rushed。Also， why does the book jacket have so many spoilers？ Wth。I might give Reid another try because I can see a lot of potential in this debut， but this novel was a definite miss。 。。。more
Amanda Deur
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I would've given this 5 stars if not for the epilogue。 I felt so cheated on by the ending。 I feel like slapping the author in the face with her own book， like， HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME？！ My poor feeble heart， it needed， no it deserved more than this。 I can understand why she choose this ending though and I have a tiny spark of hope for perhaps a sequel？ Who knows。。。。。Plot:We meet Evike， a Wolf girl and Gaspar， a Woodsman。 Their kind hates each other ever since the first Woodsmen came to take I would've given this 5 stars if not for the epilogue。 I felt so cheated on by the ending。 I feel like slapping the author in the face with her own book， like， HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME？！ My poor feeble heart， it needed， no it deserved more than this。 I can understand why she choose this ending though and I have a tiny spark of hope for perhaps a sequel？ Who knows。。。。。Plot:We meet Evike， a Wolf girl and Gaspar， a Woodsman。 Their kind hates each other ever since the first Woodsmen came to take the first Wolf girl to be a sacrifice for their king。 In a shocking betrayal Evike is offered up and taken by the Woodsmen。 But， not all is what is seems as Evike is no ordinary Wolf girl and Gaspar is much more than just a Woodsman。 Their smoldering hate slowly turns to bittersweet affection and as soon as they arrive in the capital， they find out that common enemies can bring enemies together and turn them into allies。 Writing style:This book reminded me so much of The Bear and Nightingale， I loved the culture， the folklore， the magic system。 It was written so well and detailed that it felt as if I was really there with Evike and Gaspar， in the woods and snow。 Very elegant writing， detailed， it was heartfelt and I loved all the little stories about the Gods and shaping of the world。 Characters:I enjoyed Evike and Gaspar so much and also their chemistry。 I loved how flawed they both were and how they were on this journey of discovering themselves， each other and the world。 I adored how they both evolved and learned from each other but also how imperfect they were。 There were also some side characters I enjoyed but Evike and Gaspar took my heart。Overall:I've grown so fond of this book and I reallllly hope the author will consider a sequel because I loved this magical world of monsters and heroes。 The ending was not how I wanted it to end but it wasn't horrible either。 So， four stars and Ava Reid is an author I'm going to keep my eye on。 。。。more
Zoe
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The language and imagery of this novel captivated me。 It was almost like a fable itself， written in the style of the stories it told。 The metaphors that the author uses are so clear， I can see everything she describes。 It was gorgeous。 I loved the story and all the hidden meaning within it。 I really enjoyed Gaspar and Evike’s journey。 The author fit so much story into this book， I thought that there would be a second book as I neared the ending but the story finished perfectly。 I was scrambling The language and imagery of this novel captivated me。 It was almost like a fable itself， written in the style of the stories it told。 The metaphors that the author uses are so clear， I can see everything she describes。 It was gorgeous。 I loved the story and all the hidden meaning within it。 I really enjoyed Gaspar and Evike’s journey。 The author fit so much story into this book， I thought that there would be a second book as I neared the ending but the story finished perfectly。 I was scrambling through the ending waiting to find out what would happen， unsure of where it would end up until the very last page。 I appreciated Evike’s personal journey。 At times I wished the characters were a little deeper， that you learned about them outside of the direct plot。 But otherwise I liked the way Evike grew。 A really pretty book。 。。。more
Serenity
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2。5stars While I can see why they tried to market this like “The Bear and The Nightenga” it unfortunately missed the mark。 While it did pick up pace in the second half I couldn’t understand the choices the MC was making。 The enemies to lovers plot fell flat and I had to wonder “…but why？” at too many points。
Dominique
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2，5☆
Marylon
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"No conversation should be easy between predator and prey。"••~ The Wolf and the Woodsman ~••This book was the featuring book of the june-box by Illumicrate。 First of all， look at the stunning edition they made！ Especially the inside of the dustcover is simply beautiful。 I went in on this book completely blindly。 This is a thing I have never done before， being a mood reader。 I didn't even read the synopsis and had no idea what I possibly was going to read。 I must say it was refreshing！About the "No conversation should be easy between predator and prey。"••~ The Wolf and the Woodsman ~••This book was the featuring book of the june-box by Illumicrate。 First of all， look at the stunning edition they made！ Especially the inside of the dustcover is simply beautiful。 I went in on this book completely blindly。 This is a thing I have never done before， being a mood reader。 I didn't even read the synopsis and had no idea what I possibly was going to read。 I must say it was refreshing！About the book: I liked the overall storyline。 The Hungarian folklore and Jewish influences gave it such a nice touch。 I really liked the stories which were woven into the story。 I didn't really like the protagonist， I thought she was a touch too bitter at multiple points。 Also I thought the character of Gáspár could toughen up a bit。There happens a lót in the first half of the book and it is a bit dragging， I thought it were a lot of loose threads and the story didn't really take shape。 Also I thought there was a lot of repetition， especially in the dialogue between the main characters。 It wasn't for the last 150 pages I thought it all came together and the book given body。 Here， the writing and character development was great， where it lacked a bit in the first part。 3，5 🌟#booksofinstagram#booksofig#book #booksaddict #booklover #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #fantasy#Illumicrate 。。。more
Julie
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Wow。 I had wondered about the hype of this book but it did not disappoint。 The commentary on religion， culture， politics - it was so intriguing。 The folklore and all of the stories woven throughout wete so well done。 And I loved the characters。 Reid's writing is so descriptive。 It's so easy to imagine the scenes from the page。 There are definitely some graphic descriptions for the more brutal and violent scenes。 But it added a darkness to the overall dark atmosphere of the book。I will say that t Wow。 I had wondered about the hype of this book but it did not disappoint。 The commentary on religion， culture， politics - it was so intriguing。 The folklore and all of the stories woven throughout wete so well done。 And I loved the characters。 Reid's writing is so descriptive。 It's so easy to imagine the scenes from the page。 There are definitely some graphic descriptions for the more brutal and violent scenes。 But it added a darkness to the overall dark atmosphere of the book。I will say that trigger warnings should DEFINITELY be checked。 And to note that ethnic cleansing/ getting rid of a religious group or group of people is a big plotline in this novel。Highly recommend though if you enjoy darker fantasy novels！TW: violence， self harm/mutilation， blood， emotional and physical abuse， kidnapping， antisemitism， religious bigotry， animal death， death， war， death of a parent 。。。more
Cassandra
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3。75。It is well written， though not as beautiful as 'The Bear and the Nightingale' which the marketing compares it to。 But I did enjoy the descriptions and felt that added beautifully to the atmosphere。 The amount of different stories is distracting as I felt like it didn't add much to the story aside from highlighting the differences between religions， which you get from the relationship between Gaspar and Evike。 The names were rather confusing too and I had difficulty keeping track of the diff 3。75。It is well written， though not as beautiful as 'The Bear and the Nightingale' which the marketing compares it to。 But I did enjoy the descriptions and felt that added beautifully to the atmosphere。 The amount of different stories is distracting as I felt like it didn't add much to the story aside from highlighting the differences between religions， which you get from the relationship between Gaspar and Evike。 The names were rather confusing too and I had difficulty keeping track of the different gods， though that may be because I wasn't paying enough attention。 I actually rolled my eyes by the last third of the book every time someone said 'Shall I tell you a story？'It also because a bit repetitive talking about the 'sin' and 'burning regret' and such when the main characters managed to have a make out session。 It just felt a bit much for something that seemed fairly minor in the story。 The ending （around 90%） felt like it came a bit out of nowhere。 There was no build up to it， it was all just a bit 'deus ex-machina'。 Over all， an enjoyable， if slightly slow read。 。。。more
Anna
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