“The Midnight Court” by Jane Kindred

I was extremely excited to be offered a review copy of Jane Kindred’s newest novel, “The Midnight Court.”  I reviewed “The Fallen Queen” back in January and enjoyed it tremendously, and ever since then I’d been looking forward to the next book in the series.

“The Fallen Queen” was about an angel named Anazakia who falls from Heaven into modern-day Russia after her family was murdered Romanov-style.  Anazakia’s story is an imaginative parallel to the familiar legend that Anastasia Romanov might have escaped when her family was murdered, and I appreciated the level of detail that Kindred put into the setting.  Reading “The Fallen Queen” made me miss Russia, and I was glad that “The Midnight Court” was able to evoke the same sense of nostalgia.

“The Midnight Court” begins as Anazakia’s baby is kidnapped.  She fears that Aevil, the witch who killed her family, might be involved, but the trail seems to be cold.  Anazakia seeks help from the syla, fairies who appear with the changing of the season.  The first book seemed to parallel the story of the Romanovs.  This one goes a bit further, and the events in Heaven are reminiscent of the Bolshevik Revolution.

As with “The Fallen Queen,” I appreciated that the author did her research when it came to Russian culture.  The magic is in the little details, like the food, the geography, going to a dacha, or even the fact that people wear slippers called tapochki whenever they go into a home or apartment.  Most books that I’ve read that are set in Russia don’t take the time to mention something like tapochki, but even though it seems insignificant, it’s little cultural things like that that make this book stand out so much.

One of the other things that I love about this series is the love triangle.  Yes, you heard that right.  It’s adorable.  There’s Belphagor and Vassily, who are a gay demon couple.  Vassily is also bi, and he and Anazakia have a thing.  Everybody gets along for the most part.  It’s so unconventional, and it makes me happy.  I get tired of reading about triangles where there are two guys, one girl, and one of the guys ends up having his heart broken in the end.  It’s refreshing to read something that allows for other possibilities instead of playing into the same tired tropes.

The only thing that really bothered me about this book was the cover, because it makes the book look like a romance novel rather than epic fantasy.

Jane Kindred’s writing reminds me a lot of Jacqueline Carey.  It’s epic fantasy, but there are elements of romance and sexuality throughout the book that one wouldn’t typically expect to find.  There’s also a lot of sexual violence, so if that bothers you, then you might want to steer clear.  However, if the idea of a parallel supernatural world that incorporates Russian history and culture sounds appealing, then this one’s definitely for you!

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I’m including this book in the Readers Imbibing Peril Challenge, as it contains elements of the paranormal/supernatural.

A New Look, and Some New Books

Last night I completely re-did my blog’s theme/background to make it look nicer.  It’s something that was long overdue, and I’m liking the result so far.  I even have drop-down menus!  And my Twitter background matches my blog’s.  Yay!

During my month-in-review post, I’d mentioned that I hadn’t gone out and bought any books lately.  It’s been one of those vaguely hellish weeks for no  particular reason at all, so I went to the bookstore to cheer myself up and bought a copy of N. K. Jemisin’s “The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms.”  My boyfriend saw the book and pointed out that 100,000 is indeed a very large number of kingdoms, and asked how they all fit within the world.  Of course I don’t know that yet, as I haven’t read the book, but I’ll be back to everyone with answers when I do.

I received a review copy of Jasper Kent’s “The Twelve” earlier this week, and it sounds fantastic.  Vampires in Napoleonic Russia?  Hell yes.

And, last but not least, I also have a review copy of Jane Kindred’s “The Midnight Court.”  I read the first book in the series earlier last winter and loved it, so I’m excited to see how the story continues.  It’s about fallen angels who descend into Russia, and there’s a strong parallel between the protagonist and Anastasia Romanov.

Happy Friday!

“The Fallen Queen” by Jane Kindred

I received an electronic copy of “The Fallen Queen” by Jane Kindred from the publisher through NetGalley.

The novel tells the story of Grand Duchess Anazakia Helisovna, an angel whose life story parallels that of Anastasia Romanov.  Anazakia never really understood the politics of Heaven until her entire family was murdered and overthrown at the hands of Aeval, a really bitchy queen.  Anazakia alone escaped with the aid of the demons Belphagor and Vasily, who fall with her from Heaven to Russia, where she cross-dresses to keep herself hidden.  At first, the demons and Anazakia mutually distrust each other, but as the story progresses they come to an understanding, and Anazakia starts to realize just how sheltered her life was as a Grand Duchess.

This is one of the most fun books that I’ve read in a long time.  It does have its flaws, such as the fact that Aeval isn’t very complex as a villain, but I was able to overlook that because I was so caught up in the story.  I couldn’t put the book down, and I can’t wait for the next one to be released!

The author has really done her homework as far as Russia goes.  When I read the book, I felt like I was back in St. Petersburg.  She gets everything right, from the landmarks to the culture to the tapochki.

I also enjoyed the way that the characters fall outside of traditional gender roles.  Belphagor and Vasily are an adorable gay couple, and Anazakia makes an interesting addition to their love triangle.  The characters are unapologetically themselves, which is quite refreshing in fantasy.  It bothered me that in Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire that Dany could have frickin’ dragons, but poor Renly had to stay in the closet.  Part of the fun of fantasy is being able to escape traditional social structures and play with reality.  The author clearly had a lot of fun doing that, and it was a delight to read!

“The Fallen Queen” is a great escapist read, and the Russian setting makes it even more awesome.  I would highly recommend it.  Kindred’s writing reminded me of what would happen if one were to cross Jacqueline Carey with Mikhail Bulgakov.

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This book counts toward the Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge hosted by Baffled Books.