Time for another round of Yvo’s Shorties! This time around a YA edition… The Boy On The Bridge is a dystopian prequel of an all time favorite The Girl With All The Gifts, and it was entertaining but not as good as the other story. And I still can’t believe it took me this long to pick up The Bear And The Nightingale, but I definitely understand the love for this series now!
Title: The Boy On The Bridge
(The Girl With All The Gifts #2)
Author: M.R. Carey
Genre: YA, Dystopia, Science Fiction
First published: May 2nd 2017
Publisher: Orbit
Finished reading: October 3rd 2020
Pages: 456
“He had already learned to read, but now he learned the pleasure of stories which is like no other pleasure—the experience of slipping sideways into another world and living there for as long as you want to.”
I LOVED The Girl With All The Gifts back when I read it four years ago, and I’m still not sure why it took me this long to pick up this sequel set in the same world… The bright orange cover called my name once again the other day, and I finally gave in. And even though I didn’t love The Boy On The Bridge as much as the first book, it most definitely satisfied my dystopian cravings! This story can be easily read as a stand-alone, as I have to be honest here and say I had forgotten about the details of the first book beyond Melanie and I didn’t encounter any issues along the way. The Boy On The Bridge is more focused on the science and quite a bit slower, but the dystopian world makes for an interesting setting and Stephen is without doubt the star of the show. It was really easy to warm up and love his character, and I loved the dynamics between him and Rina too. They are definitely the main reason I enjoyed this story, together with Stephen’s observations and discoveries along the way. If you enjoy a good dystopian story and don’t mind a sometimes slowish pace and a lot of science talk, The Boy On The Bridge is probably a good match.
Title: The Bear And The Nightingale
(Winternight Trilogy #1)
Author: Katherine Arden
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Historical Fiction
First published: January 7th 2017
Publisher: Del Rey
Finished reading: October 8th 2020
Pages: 336
“I would rather die tomorrow in the forest than live a hundred years of the life appointed to me.”
I still can’t believe it took me this long to finally pick up this trilogy… I’ve been meaning to ever since it was first published since I kept seeing raving reviews, and I’m definitely kicking myself for waiting this long now. I can understand the love for this trilogy after reading The Bear And The Nightingale, because I ended up having a fantastic time with this story. The historical setting in Russia, the Russian folklore, the magic, the characters, the writing, the plot… There is so much to love in this first book of what I already know will be a favorite trilogy, and it was everything I could have hoped for and more. Especially the Russian folklore references were fantastic, and I loved how they were incorporated into the story. Vasilisa makes for a brilliant main character, and I loved learning more about both her and the rest of her family. The magical elements were very well incorporated as well, and I loved how the historical and fantasical were balanced. On to book number two it is as soon as I have time!
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Excellent reviews, Yvo💜 I really need to start that Winternight Trilogy as I’ve all three books on audio.
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The first book was SO good! I’m really looking forward to read the next two some time soon as well… The hype around this series is definitely worth it. xx
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Excellent reviews, lovely! xx
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Thanks! ❤
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I’m so glad you loved The Bear and the Nightingale! It is an amazing series and Vasya is certainly one of my favourite fictional characters. The next book is even better! Lovely post 😊
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I can see why! I loved her too and I’m looking forward to dive into the sequels very soon.
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I am SO happy you loved The Bear and the Nightingale! I love that trilogy so much.
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I can understand why now! I loved the first book and I can definitely see the trilogy hanging out on my list of favorites once I finish it. xx
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The Winternight Trilogy is amazing and I hope you enjoy the next two books as well. I also read The Girl with all the Gifts years ago, but not this one. I will have to see if my library has it. Both great reviews Yvonne.
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I can’t wait to continue the Winternight trilogy after such a fantastic start! The Boy On The Bridge was a great read, although I did prefer The Girl With All The Gifts.
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You have reminded me that I must read The Bear and the Nightingale! I have seen lots of similar reviews to your with readers loving the Russian folklore elements and the book generally sounds like a delight. Glad to hear that you loved it!
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I definitely understand the hype for this trilogy now… It’s absolutely worth the read. I hope you will enjoy it too! xx
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