Where the Dark Stands Still
Ratings19
Average rating3.9
15
Ratings19
Average rating3.9
Liska knows that magic is monstrous, and its practitioners monsters. When her efforts to suppress her own magic end in disaster, she has no choice but to flee her small village and delve into the demon-infested spirit-wood. Her goal: steal the mythical fern flower, and use its one wish to banish her powers. Everyone who has sought the flower has fallen prey to unknown horrors, so when Liska is caught by the wood’s warden, a demon called the Leszy, his brgain seems better then death: one year of servitude in exchange for the flower’s wish.
Whisked away to the Leszy’s crumbling manor, Liska soon makes an unsettling discovery: she is not the first person to strike this bargain, and all her predecessors have mysteriously vanished. If Liska wants to survive the year and return home, she must unravel her host’s spool of secrets and face the ghosts of his past. Because something wakes in the woods, something deadly and without mercy. Something that frightens even the leszy. And it cannot be defeated unless Liska embraces the monster she has always feared becoming.
Reviews with the most likes.
I hate making comparisons like this, but I feel it to be true in this case, it felt like Naomi Novick's Uprooted and Diana Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle had a baby, with a bit of Jim Henson's Storyteller series thrown in for good measure. Since I happen to really love all of those, this book was right up my alley. There was a strange balance between cozy cottage fantasy and something a little bit darker. There was an edge to it, that didn't devolve into horror by any stretch of the imagination but gave it a grim feel in places. I think that Poranek does a really good job of paying tribute to old folktales in that aspect. Poranek's descriptions are sumptuous and plunge you into the Driada forest world dripping with magic and mystery and ancient things, and that of its strange denizens and the delightful sentient house at the center. I liked that the main character had some pluck and growth and wasn't just going along for the ride. I've gotten tired of YA with waif main characters, and was happy to see the main female lead step up and use resourcefulness, kindness, grit, and bravery. Overall, the story just had a dark charm to it that I enjoyed. I certainly feel like getting lost in my own magical forest now! If you like old folktales, Grimm fairytales (original) with a dash of romance, then it will be right up your alley.
I love the magical creatures and the dark and scary forest. The romance is sweet and gentle. There isn't a lot that happens, but I like a good vibes book every so often. The ending makes sense. I liked it, but it isn't for everyone.
