#thewolfandthewoodsman

[its-suanneschafer-author]

BOOK REVIEW: #TheWolfAndTheWoodsman by #AvaReid. A look at genocide and ethnic cleansing through Hungarian and Jewish folklore.

[libraryinthecountry]

★ Tell me about your favorite debuts that have released so far this year! My favorite debut is, hands down, The Wolf and the Woodsman by @avasreid. It’s a lyrical, beautifully realized adult fantasy, inspired by Hungarian history and Jewish folklore, set against a dark, woodsy fantasy backdrop. Within its pages you’ll find a wild girl and a lost prince whose lives crash into each other and become irrevocably bound. It’s harsh and romantic and one to savor as you read. As the granddaughter of Hungarian immigrants, this book called to me when I first came across it and I was lucky to read an early copy last winter from @harpervoyagerus. Reid’s atmospheric storytelling enfolded me into a world where nothing is given without first taking, where even the trees themselves feel on the cusp of giving chase, and where the worst monsters live behind city walls and whisper prayers with reverent fervor. You’ve probably seen me rave a lot about it over the past few months, and it undoubtedly deserves endless praise. I look forward to reading more from Ava in the future! ★ CHALLENGES //   #tumblesoverbooks / made you cry #allthebooksjune21 / want to reread ★ HASHTAGS //    #avareid #thewolfandthewoodsman #harpervoyager #bookcart #newrelease #fantasybooks #bookaesthetic #homelibrary #bookshelf #bookstack #bookbabe #readfantasy #bookstagram #bookworm #bookphotography #bibliophile #booklover #bookaddict #bookobsessed #readersofinstagram #bookish #booksbooksbooks #beautifulbooks #booktag #prettybooks #bookdragon #bookhoarder https://www.instagram.com/p/CQHw0jyr6_1/?utm_medium=tumblr

[lisa-lostinlit]

💬 What was your last book purchase? . I’m so happy to have this gorgeous copy of The Wolf and the Woodsman in my hands! This is a must-read for me! Did you grab a copy of this beauty when it released this week? . Thank you to @harpervoyagerus for gifting me this copy! . . . s u m m a r y ⇣ 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. . . . h a s h t a g s ⇣ #thewolfandthewoodsman #avareid #fantasybooks #historicalfiction #retelling #bookstagram #booklover #currentlyreading #bibliophile #mybookfeatures #jamestrevinorepost #biblio_feature #bookish #bookphotography #weekendreads #weekendfun #deskdecor #workfromhome #bookishphotography #readersofig #readingtime #ireadfantasy #mythology #hyggeaesthetic #hyggelifestyle #bookishlifestyle (at My Desk) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQBbKKGtQcC/?utm_medium=tumblr

[booklalaland]

My June book haul. I need to buy some new shelves 🙈😩😬 #bookhaul #bookstagram #mitopeja #thetenthousanddoorsofjanuary #thewitchesheart #klaraandthesun #sophieanderson #neilgaiman #chrisriddell #nimona #homegoing #piranesi #matthewmcconaughey #jelenahrvoj #aceofspades #faridahàbíkéíyímídé #binti #chainofiron #forthewolf #aliceoseman #rinchupeco #thebonewitch #thevanishinghalf #songofachilles #thewolfandthewoodsman #noughtsandcrosses #abladesoblack #offtherecord #athousandsplendidsuns #houseofsaltandsorrows (at Croatia) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ6ucjtrPqM/?utm_medium=tumblr

[stars-shine-above]

The Wolf and The Woodsman

Summary: This story follows Evike, a half Jewish, half pagan girl who grows up in a pagan village which thrives due to the magical abilities the girls in the village are able to wield, given to them by their gods. This village exists deep in the forest within a nation that appears radically monotheistic (this monotheistic faith called the Patrifaith seems to resemble Christianity and the rigor with which it is enforced draws strongly from historical events such as the inquisition). Every year the woodsmen, members of a holy order which worships the Prinkepatrios and serves the King, arrive at the village to take one girl with strong magical abilities away to the king for slaughter. This year, they have come for a seer but instead the matriarch of the village gives them Evike, despite the fact that she has never displayed magical abilities of any kind. Evike soon finds that the woodsman who took her isn't what he seems to be and that there is far more going on than she was led to believe.

Review: I'm not sure I can find the right words to explain how I felt while reading this book. I guess I'll start with the simplest ones. I felt seen. I've been reading young adult literature for about 10 years now and I've never come across a single book that has depicted my culture in any meaningful way. This book does that and more. Ava Reid describes the historic oppression of Jewish people but she also spends a great deal of time talking about their resiliency and beauty. Even in the face of imminent harm, the Jews of the city celebrate their holidays and tell the story of Esther's bravery.

Although the society in which Evike lives is one in which people who claim to represent Christianity use their religion to oppress those of the Jewish and pagan faiths, each ideology is given proper respect. There is no one magic system or one set of gods that grant true power. Every god grants power in their own right to those who believe and hold fast to their culture. When she leaves her village, Evike finds that each faith draws on the other. The stories she grew up on are not so different from those told to the children of the Patrifaith. Each one may have many interpretations but that doesn't have to mean one is more correct than another. Evike finds that she does not have to choose between her mother's gods or her fathers. By trusting in the stories of her village she finds her way to her pagan magic and by learning the language of her father and the power words hold she finds her way to Jewish magic as well. It is both parts of herself that help her save the kingdom and the people she loves.

I cannot recommend this book enough. Thank you so much to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for giving me this arc in exchange for an honest review!

[its-suanneschafer-author]

ICYMI BOOK REVIEW: #TheWolfAndTheWoodsman by #AvaReid. A look at genocide and ethnic cleansing through Hungarian and Jewish folklore.

[its-suanneschafer-author]

My November 2023 books read. The best of these: #TheWolfAndTheWoodsman by #AvaReid, #PlayOfShadows by #BarbaraNickless, #OdysseysEnd by #MattCoyle, #FaceOfGreed by #JamesLetoile, and #FiveDaysInBogota by #LindaMoore.

[naoadays]

Q: What's the last special edition book you got?. I received my June @illumicrate box recently and adore this copy of The Wolf and the Woodsman by @avasreid! Yes, I know we're in mid-August and this was the June box but honestly, what even is time anymore anyway? Summer is going too fast and its getting dark out early and I DON'T LIKE IT. Ahem. Ok. What was in this box? #IllumicrateJun2021 🐺 Monthly Book: #TheWolfandTheWoodsman by #AvaReid 🌿Monthly Pin inspired by The Wolf and the Woodsman. Designed by @stacey.mcevoy.caunt 🐺Lord of the Rings Puzzle Story. Artwork by @afterblossom_art & designed by @chattynora 🌿The Darkest Part of the Forest Banner. Artwork by @superstarfighter 🐺The Woods are Lovely Water Bottle with a poetry snippet by Robert Frost. Designed by @rosdottir 🌿The Woods Make Monsters Woodmark - inspired by Among the Beasts and Briars. Artwork by @no0nedesigns 🐺The Huntress Wood Pin - inspired by We Hunt The Flame. Designed by @hannahhitchmanart I always love useable items so the glass water bottle is hands down my favorite item! 💧 This was such a good box. I did a reel unboxing of this a few posts back if you'd like to see these items in action. Swipe to see the inside dust jacket artwork by @warickaart & these sprayed edges! Gorgeous. #Illumicrate #BookLovers #Unboxing #LordoftheRings #JRRTolkien #WeHunttheFlame #HafsahFaizal #AmongtheBeastsandBriars #AshleyPoston #TheDarkestPartoftheForest #HollyBlack #illumicratephotochallenge #booksubscriptionbox #specialeditionbooks #boostingya #booksandflowers https://www.instagram.com/p/CSvLh9JLBYV/?utm_medium=tumblr

[libraryinthecountry]

★ Did you receive any books from a book box this year? Do you have a favorite? I’m featuring a year of Illumicrate books today! From January to December, @illumicrate provided us with so many incredible and *beautiful* books! My favorite was The Wolf and the Woodsman by @avasreid 🖤 Here’s a list of each of the 2021 Illumicrate books; swipe to see the beautiful stained and stenciled edges, and to see a stack of them in chronological order! January: Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell February: A Dark and Hollow Star by Ashley Shuttleworth March: The Unbroken by CL Clark April: In the Ravenous Dark by AM Strickland May: The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri June: The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid July: She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan August: The Devil Makes Three by Tori Bovalino September: Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff October: Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao November: Little Thieves by Margaret Owen December: A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske ★ HASHTAGS // #illumicrate #bookstagram #fantasybooks #bookseverywhere #booknerd #bookishlife #bookaholic #bookhoarder #bookworm #booklover #bookstagrammer #booklove #bookcommunity #bookobsessed #bookaddict #booksbooksbooks #bookstack #stencilededges #bookphotography #bibliophile #empireofthevampire #littlethieves #ironwidow #thewolfandthewoodsman https://www.instagram.com/p/CYIJdmGPxpZ/?utm_medium=tumblr

[libraryinthecountry]

★ What is the last 2022 release you read? For me, it was @avasreid’s Juniper & Thorn, which just came out TODAY! I don’t have a physical copy yet, but I’m sending out a happy book birthday and wishes for a successful release Ava’s way with The Wolf and the Woodsman, Ava’s debut and one of my favorite 2021 releases! Juniper & Thorn resonated deeply with me and is one of those stories that I know will last with me forever, just as The Wolf and the Woodsman has. I hope everyone loves Juniper as much as did! Featured are @illumicrate’s edition of The Wolf and the Woodsman from the June 2021 box, and their @afterblossom_art Deathless inspired pillowcase from the March 2022 box! ★ HASHTAGS //    #bookstagram #bookworm #booknerd #bookphotography #livelifebeautifully #aquietmoment #momentofmine #aestheticpost #stillography #flashesofdelight #ilovebooks #culturetripbooks #cosy #hygge #bibliophile #bookish #booksbooksbooks #bookphoto #ofquietmoments #hyggehome #ofsimplethings #illumicrate #thewolfandthewoodsman #juniperandthorn #fivestarreads #avareid #fantasybooks https://www.instagram.com/p/CfFlTokp-z_/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=