The Girl in The Tower

Setting out to defeat the raiders, the Prince and his trusted companion come across a young man riding a magnificent horse.

Only Sasha, a priest with a warrior's training, recognises this 'boy' as his younger sister, thought to be dead or a witch by her village.

With its beautiful storytelling and fiercely independent heroine fighting to be in charge of her own story, Katherine Arden's series finally fills a gap long left empty by Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials . Full of snowy Russian legends come to life, the lights and political intrigue of medieval Moscow, beautiful princes and monks with swords, Arden's writing is striking in its loveliness and impressive in its storytelling instincts.

A captivating folktale-inspired adventure laden in mystery, magic and myth, it's the story of Vasya, one of the punchiest heroines I've encountered this year

This is a sumptuous and beautiful literary fairytale taking inspiration from Russian myths and fairytales, about a woman challenging expected gender norms in her world.

A stunning sequel to the darkly magical The Bear and the Nightingale . The fierce, free-spirited heroine of this fabulous fable , Vasya, rejects the usual choices of marriage or the convent and, following accusations of witchcraft, flees her small village of Lesnaya Zemlya in northernmost Russia with the intention of seeing the world. Entirely enthralling

An enthralling sequel...this twist on a classic fairytale overflows with rich language. The perfect wintry read. 5 Stars

Katherine Arden's Winternight Trilogy isn't just good - it's hug-to-your-chest, straight-to-the-favourites-shelf, reread-immediately good, and each book just gets better

A historical fantasy perfect for those who love ancient stories and tradition

Born in Austin, Texas, Katherine Arden has long had a taste for wandering. She spent her junior year of high school in Rennes, France before attending Middlebury College in Vermont where she specialized in French and Russian literature, and her studies included sojourns at the Sorbonne in Paris and the Russian State University for the Humanities in Moscow. After receiving her BA, Katherine moved to Maui, Hawaii and worked every kind of odd job imaginable while writing her debut novel. She is the author of The Bear and the Nightingale, The Girl in the Tower and The Winter of the Witch which make up her Winternight Trilogy, as well as The Warm Hands of Ghosts, which was a Sunday Times bestseller.