Winternight Trilogy Readalong! discussion

Hope it's still going well for you! Read up until the end of Chapter 19 this time! For me, this ends on page 236 on the words "shut against the lonely night".

Have any of the characters gone on different journeys than what you expected?
Have your thoughts changed at all?
What has been your favourite moment and character so far?

Please no spoilers in this section for the end!

So far, the things are going the way I imagined. To be honest, (and I don't know why) in the previous book I imagined Morozko as old and/or timeless, so I really had to adjust my view of him, lol.
I was expecting to see more of Konstantin.

I really liked the scene where Vasya won the bet, but my favourite moment was Vasya spending time with Maria and their relationship.

I'd say that things are going in a way that I would have expected, though I was definitely surprised to see the leader of the bandits end up being someone so important and infuential. Also, while I realistically didn't expect a fully warm and happy family reunion between Vasya and her siblings, it's still hard to watch how hard they have been on her. Of course, their actions make sense considering when these novels take place, but I would still love to see them come around and be more supportive at some point.

I am terrible when it comes to choosing favorites, and I've honestly been so drawn into everything in this portion of the story that I'm finding it even harder. Overall I'm loving every scene where Vasya is snarky with the men and finding ways to fit in with them despite everyone's better judgment. I guess I just like her rebellious attitude and desire to do things her own way regardless of what those close to her think. I've also been enjoying Morozko even more in this book, and it's really fascinating to see how he's gradually changing the more time he spends with Vasya. I desperately want him to stop hiding information, partially because I think Vasya deserves to know more, and also because there's so many questions I have too that I'm sure he could easily answer lol.

I love how Vasya's gotten even bolder in this section since she's donned the disguise of Vasilii, and I wish Sasha and Olga would be more accepting of it. However, it makes perfect sense that they aren't considering the time period and all of the consequences that will come back on them if Vasya gets caught (which I'm assuming is going to happen in section 3). I just wish Alyosha (probably spelled wrong) was with her, because I feel like he would've been at least begrudgingly supportive of her.

I think my favorite part was when Vasya met her niece and taught her about the spirits and took her out riding. I think they are such kindred spirits and need each other, and it breaks my heart that Vasya is banned from seeing her again.

I'm hoping that Vasya and Konstantin have their reunion, as I'm very curious to see how that will play out. I am incredibly interested in Kasyan's character, especially after how this section ended, so I'm excited for us to get some answers about him. I wonder if he's working with the raiders somehow, especially since he's quite hesitant of having Vasya spill the beans about the truth behind their leader. I do have a quick prediction: I think that the ghost lady is Vasya's grandma. I remember there being some sort of mention that she died very unhappy in Moscow, so I'm guessing that she's still haunting the family. I'm also guessing that Midnight from section 1 was working for Kasyan. Did we get a third meeting with her? I only remember two interactions, so we should be getting another one.

This book had a bit of a slow start for me, however I do understand that there seems to be several pieces moving that we have very limited knowledge about right now, and the story has definitely picked up for me. So far, I do like The Bear and the Nightingale better, though.

Can I just say, I love Vasya! I didn't necessarily see her taking the path she is, but I'm loving it! I wish Olga and Sasha were most understanding; and quite frankly, I'm really surprised Olga isn't more on Vasya's side. I suppose that shows how much she has changed in this city that is very different from their own.

While I'm still enjoying this, the first part of this section dragged for me. I was having a hard time staying interested. But little miss Marya changed that for me! I freaking love her! I think it's so cool she can see the little spirits. She had been a lot of fun to read about. I also LOVE Solovey.

The link for the live discussion show is now up!

Set your reminders - it's happening at 8:30pm GMT on the 9th January (sorry for the delay!)

Can't wait to chat about this book with all of you! You've still got time to read it if you haven't gotten around to it yet!

https://youtu.be/g8Lj4IgEKGI