Some of the many things you will find tucked between the pages of this rich and evocative tale: an excellent lesson on jam making, a treatise on the usefulness of giant mechanical spiders, and a reassurance of the impact of a person's existence. The characters in this tale love and fight and exist with a heartwarming intensity, grounding themselves in truth even when the world around them takes a turn for the surreal. Intricate, meaningful, and loving. Please do yourself a favor and adventure with Valentina — you might even learn a secret or two.
(Though please also note that the book's advice on jam making is not complete; it is always safest to consult an established recipe when making jam or other fruit preserves.
... not really a response to the review, admittedly, so much as an important general PSA on jam.)
Jenna Moran has perfected the subtle trick of interweaving the delightfully fantastic with profound issues of family, identity, suffering and becoming. This is a book that deeply resonates without getting bogged down, a perfect balance of punchy fun and razor wit dialogue keeps the pages turning as fantasy collides with emotional reality.
Jenna Moran weaves a marvelous tale, formatted along the lines of a classic collection of fairytales but with recurring characters and thematic throughlines that build it into a satisfying book greater than the sum of its parts. Along the way, it wrestles with ideas of identity, perception, and being a person, presenting throught-provoking points that are all the more compelling for their supernatural trappings. It’s got vampires, and jam, and a mechanical spider, and wrestling with despair. Along the way, it'll make you rethink how we tell stories and maybe make you think differently about yourself. If you want a book which will draw you into another world and engage your curiosity that you can read episodically but will keep you coming back, check out the Night-Bird's Feather!
Dr. Moran's work is as haunting and hilarious as ever, but moreover:
I can promise you that there is a secret of the universe contained within the waters of this book, inviting your hands and eyes. It wants so badly for you to know it and commit it to your heart.
In the meantime, why not familiarize yourself with the story of Valentina Sosunova, who bested a heron-witch, vampiric nobility, and at least halfway tied with Death himself? I think you'll like her a lot.
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Just impulse bought. I'm a page in and know it was a good choice.
Some of the many things you will find tucked between the pages of this rich and evocative tale: an excellent lesson on jam making, a treatise on the usefulness of giant mechanical spiders, and a reassurance of the impact of a person's existence. The characters in this tale love and fight and exist with a heartwarming intensity, grounding themselves in truth even when the world around them takes a turn for the surreal. Intricate, meaningful, and loving. Please do yourself a favor and adventure with Valentina — you might even learn a secret or two.
Thank you for your kind words!
(Though please also note that the book's advice on jam making is not complete; it is always safest to consult an established recipe when making jam or other fruit preserves.
... not really a response to the review, admittedly, so much as an important general PSA on jam.)
Jenna Moran has perfected the subtle trick of interweaving the delightfully fantastic with profound issues of family, identity, suffering and becoming. This is a book that deeply resonates without getting bogged down, a perfect balance of punchy fun and razor wit dialogue keeps the pages turning as fantasy collides with emotional reality.
A masterpiece hidden gem.
Jenna Moran weaves a marvelous tale, formatted along the lines of a classic collection of fairytales but with recurring characters and thematic throughlines that build it into a satisfying book greater than the sum of its parts. Along the way, it wrestles with ideas of identity, perception, and being a person, presenting throught-provoking points that are all the more compelling for their supernatural trappings. It’s got vampires, and jam, and a mechanical spider, and wrestling with despair. Along the way, it'll make you rethink how we tell stories and maybe make you think differently about yourself. If you want a book which will draw you into another world and engage your curiosity that you can read episodically but will keep you coming back, check out the Night-Bird's Feather!
Dr. Moran's work is as haunting and hilarious as ever, but moreover:
I can promise you that there is a secret of the universe contained within the waters of this book, inviting your hands and eyes. It wants so badly for you to know it and commit it to your heart.
In the meantime, why not familiarize yourself with the story of Valentina Sosunova, who bested a heron-witch, vampiric nobility, and at least halfway tied with Death himself? I think you'll like her a lot.