Read the damn prologue.

Not often I say that but for The Wolf of Winter it actually is good advice. For one, it is really short. a single page short. And it appears to be a simple piece of random world building that gives the history of a simple title used throughout the book; Ulor, the leader of the people of Rhazaulle. But it matters people! It has implications to the larger story! Without, and this is important, giving anything away until the author is ready for everything to come together.

And then leaves you feeling stupid for not catching some of the little details.

Anyway…

The Wolf of Winter is a story that appears to have some influence from Russian culture, or at least an American’s understanding of what fantasy influenced by Russian culture should look . I will be honest, not my area of history. The story, despite what the back cover says, is about a man named Varis who is the brother of current Ulor and far back in the succession line. Weak in stature and with watery eyes he begs off to live in seclusion where he discovers a path to the art of necromancy. The rest, as they say, is history.

The first half of this book is something of a mind twist. It isn’t that Varis path is trippy or random or hard to follow, it is actually pretty strait forward. The problem is Varis isn’t a complex character but we were given an opportunity to think he is. As he starts a single minded campaign to eliminate the entire line of succession that lays in front of him (with the aid of the trapped spirits his new magic allows him to control) and it is impossible to turn away. This is the bullied young man we thought we would be rooting for? Oh god, he wouldn’t….oh shit he just did. What is he going to do next!?

And scene.

Time for part two, which if you read the back cover you know will involve young Shalindra, niece to Varis. If you have not read the back cover then don’t, the events it suggests make up the main portion of the plot don’t occur until the last forty pages of the book (we could revisit back cover blurbs here but that is a conversation for another day). Shalindra gives us a protagonist to actually root for and a completely new direction in plot. It keeps the same strength of plotting and wonderful use of language from the first half; never racing yet avoiding being dull by skipping the tedious details that just don’t matter.

As an overall experience this as a very quality read. Great imagery and quick moving, it also had a very unique take on necromancy. But taken in pieces it was at times jarring in its transitions. Time jumps are hit and miss, but very distinct changes in tone are a little rougher. As well Shalindra never really captured me quite the same way Varis did, despite having the more admirable path and being much more likable. This, for me at least, meant the book climaxed about half way through with only the final pages finally bringing my interest all the way back around.

4 Starsauthor-female high-fantasy rated-4-star ...more12 s JessicaAuthor 26 books5,764

This book has stayed with me. But every time I think about it, I wonder if I would it if I read it today. I remember so much of it, though. I checked it out of the BYU library twice, just because there was something fascinating and comforting about it. It felt very Russian-influenced, in a time when most fantasy was so blatantly Celtic. And I loved the descriptions of the clothes: I could feel the furs, and I remember how she made herself some clothes out of old olive-colored fabric she found, which made me think of The Sound of Music.

I sort of wanted, but didn't want a sequel. It was the first time I remember rooting for the bad guy, and mostly wanted him to be okay. fantasy library7 s lady h639 176

There are two problems with THE WOLF OF WINTER. The first problem has to do with the marketing/summary of the book. This is how the summary reads:

But his greatest challenge comes in the person of his beautiful niece Shalindra, grown to womanhood in the shadow of exile and dedicated to the cause of bringing her brother Cerrov—the rightful heir—to the throne. Seized and brought to her uncle’s mountain stronghold, Shalindra is both repelled and fascinated by Varis, dark master of the dead, ruler of lost souls. As winter looms ahead, their encounter threatens to shape for both of them a destiny far different—and far more dangerous—than either could ever have imagined.

Makes it seem the Varis/Shalindra relationship is going to make up the crux of the book, right? Certainly, that's what I thought, and that's why I picked up this book. Unfortunately, Shalindra and Varis have their first scene together at around the last sixty pages of the book. They then have exactly three scenes together before the book ends. The rest of the book consists of an interminably long and generally useless Part I that very slowly shows us how Varis becomes a necromancer, and then a lengthy period of time with Shalindra and Cerrov as children.

This brings me to the second problem: Part I could have and should have been completely excised. The book should have begun with Part II right away, and then some finagling and shifting things around could have sufficed to fill in necessary background information. There was so much potential here; the few scenes with Varis and Shalindra were the most compelling part of the book, and yet we spent so much time on...everything else that was bland by comparison. If we had started with Part II, we could have gotten an entire arc featuring Varis and Shalindra, especially considering that Shalindra has necromantic tendencies too. There is so much that could have been explored in this relationship, and we only got scraps!

I may not have been so disappointed if the marketing of the book hadn't made it seem this would be the main thrust of the plot, rather than just a very brief and negligible aspect of it. The rest of the book was decent enough; Volsky's writing is still solid, Shalindra is a likable if somewhat boring character to follow, and Varis is...a bit of a mystery in terms of his motivations, and not a particularly strong character, imo, because it's unclear what's driving him. The take on necromancy here was pretty interesting, though; I'd say that's definitely one of the book's strengths.

Another strength is that despite this book being kind of quiet and slow, it did keep me reading! Never was I bored or compelled to put it down, but perhaps that's because I was desperate to get to the part the summary promised: the relationship between Shalindra and Varis. As it is, the book feels very uneven and incomplete, its ending somewhat abrupt and unsatisfactory (though I did appreciate how bittersweet it was).read-in-20215 s Anna91 10

This is a very neat story, I think. The ending is nicely tied to the very beginning. It's also very neat how the main antagonist and the main protagonists parallel and have a lot of similarities.

I do wish that the author had put more time into developing the rather fascinating and strange interaction between them, as that is some of the most interesting parts of the novel. There was also a strange sense of lack of reflection on the protagonist's side which was only touched upon at the very end. As a result of the antagonist's actions, her life was completely changed, yet she rarely, if ever, reflected on the positive and negative effects of this, which felt strange and rather counter intuitive. In this case, character development took a back seat to just tying the story off neatly, which I think is a bit of a waste. The characters were certainly interesting enough to be given a bit more space, even if it would have slowed down the last third of the novel somewhat.

Still, the pacing of the last third or so was very swift, and I had zero wish to put the novel down. In the end, it certainly did not disappoint.fantasy3 s Alcieta377 17

In her mind's eye, she saw again, for the thousandth time, the flash of sunlight on flying diamonds, the locket arcing through the air, and the tall figure poised at the far edge of the clearing.

Necromancy and a villain protagonist. I have never read a book quite this, and I doubt I will again (though I will search in vain). What a misleading cover! And synopsis, for that matter. Shalindra is most certainly not the main character, here, and this is no cheesy, sappy story of a captive maiden.

To say this was amazing falls somewhat short. This book was stunning in nearly every regard. First, the meticulous crafting of the world and its various settings, surging with colour and life through clear, pristine and rich description. Volsky holds nothing back, here, she immerses us fully. Normally, I find long descriptions tiring and boring to read and skip over paragraphs outlining the gilding on some palace door, but here, perhaps thanks to the subject matter, the descriptions were fascinating.

Another thought occurs to me: this book must have been utterly exhausting to write. To outline, sort, carry out. It’s too rich, too cleverly thought-out, and too meticulous. Cripes, it must have been exhausting to write.

I found this book recommended because Varis was described as someone's "favourite villain of all time." I went in expecting a clever guy. I got… someone who was completely out of his mind. In the best way.

The sketching of Varis’ character, from beginning to end, blew me away. He is introduced as a sympathetic character with a weakness—his eyes water unbearably in light. He wears shaded glasses and rimmed hats to combat this. His brothers tease him. Well, more accurately, bully him, especially Breziot. Varis’ deep-rooted hatred for Breziot is old, and illustrated to us in the disturbing scene when Breziot takes him to a prison full of mad sorcerers, and Varis sickens, only to be locked up by Breziot and abandoned there.

Varis’ feelings for his brother, and his family in general, come into play when he encounters necromancy for the first time. We’re allotted the journey from beginning to end, the vast majority of the novel centered on Varis, and Volsky’s take on necromancy was utterly enthralling. Any story I’ve read employing necromancy before this one merely scratched the surface; Volsky plumes the magic to its depths through events and emotional reactions until we not only fully believe in sorcery, we understand it, too, to a degree.

Incredible. I am a fan of making magic into a science in my own work; it seems contradictory, but even magic needs rhyme and reason to it in order, for me at least, to find it fully believable. Magic, when channelled through humans, needs limitations, stimulus, risk, repercussion. The way Volsky plays out this narrative of necromancy does just that, to an immensely effective degree.

Anyway, Varis’ character is truly dastardly, but detached in his drive as he summons ghosts to pick off his family members one by one. It’s especially chilling that he uses his dead brother’s ghost to kill their other brother—but amazing. I’ll admit discomfort when he then compelled his oldest brother, the Ulor (a sort of king), to murder his children in their beds. But the long process of these murders is so involved and fascinating, and knowing what occurred and how made the story, on the whole, all the richer. That’s the type of writing Volsky employs here.

Varis is chilling and apparently emotionless; though we understand him through his perspective, reading him through Shalindra’s too was a new experience. What if he actually can read minds? We don’t have any sustained conversation through his PoV, so perhaps we will never know. This element of mystery was potent, despite the fact we know what’s going on. I was torn; Varis is definitely evil. I wanted him to go down. But I didn’t, at all, want him to die. I fiercely wanted him to be redeemed. The ending was I suppose more realistic in that regard, but I was torn again—is it better for him to be spifflicated and alive or dead? Still, his sanity wasn’t fully gone, and that was satisfying. He remembered. Still, he had a rough time of it, this guy, and his unexpressed affection for Shalindra at the end was just a spark revealing what he’s needed all along. People. Someone, other than ghosts. His letting Shalindra go—to his own doom—was a really potent image, handled really nicely. He’s manipulated a controlled all his life, and despite his desire to contain her—he goes after her, we think she’ll be captured—but then we get her PoV, and he lets her go.

Okay, seriously, DANG IT. VARIS. I WANT YOU TO BE HAPPY FOREVER AND HAVE LOVE AND AFFECTION SHOWERED ON YOU.

Ahem, anyway. I could go on. This book was spectacular, not at all what I was expecting, and it needs to become its own genre. Of a genre you need to qualify to get into, no bad books allowed. If it existed, it would probably be called “Only I understand,” and there’d be three books in it. And this would be one of them.

fantasy fantasy-favourites favourites ...more2 s Kathi909 62

Necromancy and politics--engrossing at times, tedious at other times.

I almost gave up on this story after the first part. Varis was interesting but increasingly unlikable as a main character. Shalinda's story was better and I ended up enjoying the second half of the book. I will give the author credit for allowing the ending to be unsettling rather than neatly tied up into "happily ever after." This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full reviewfantasy2 s Jonathan601 15

Necromancy can be addictive.1 Lauren9 1 follower

If I could rate it higher, I would. Seriously, her writing has fucked up the scale for all other books I've rated five stars.1 Nina65 2

Spoiler! I'm going to talk about a place where a main character goes for a long period of time. You'll know she survives and grows up. That's all the spoilers there. The rest is talking about world building.

I d this book quite a bit. The characters were interesting, there were neat ideas, and I d the setting. I'm going to go into some nerdy world-building nitpicking here, though. Why? Because it's fun! I d the world, and may try to use it for some role-playing games, but I want to fix this hole first.

My problem is with the great library at Fruce. One of the main characters, the woman on the cover, is a political refugee, and as a child she's hidden away in a library on a remote island, called Fruce. Fruce is a solid granite island within a very large lake, completely bare, and it houses a large population of visiting scholars and librarians.

Fruce is a big granite island where nothing grows. The book talks about an effort to bring dirt and plants over, and how the plants failed and the soil blew away after only a few years. It's barren, and the only thing there is the Library.

The author describes the main character growing up in the library a rebellious and bored young lady, mostly learning to translate obscure languages.

I'd say that a library, in a medieval setting this book, would teach a lot more than academics.

Books must be made. They could make them out of paper, or vellum, so they would need some paper-fiber-making plant or sheep. Shepherding would make a lot of sense for the society described. A lot of the book takes place in a cold, high latitude area. They could use the wool for clothes, and eat the sheep in the brutal winters when crops didn't grow. The kingdom where the main character spends her childhood is portrayed as warmer and more active in trading, so they could say they'd found papyrus or abaca, and even (since we're worldbuilding here) claim that the southern latitudes are suitable for growing the plants.

That would give the raw materials for making paper and vellum, the writing surfaces. They would have to be processed. The library would be a massive hub of paper making and skin curing. Making book materials would take up a massive amount of their time. They'd also have to make book bindings, although those are varied and could be anything from thicker leather, to wood slats wrapped in cloth. Book bindings seem to be a lot more varied in the world - it seems easier to make a protective wrapping than a writing surface.

They would need ink, too. The librarians could make black ink from oak galls, so we can put an oak woodland on the shores of the lake. I'll guess that oak gall black is their main writing ink, and they trade for other colors or produce them in very small quantities. Indigo is a plant, but I don't know exactly what goes into refining it, and it seems to require plantations. Red and purple can come from some shells, and Fruce is in a freshwater island. Books are valuable objects and the most important would be worthy of the expense of colored ink, but it would be rare.

Most of the librarians would probably not make books. They would refine the raw materials, and also handle the by-products, making wool and mutton from flocks of sheep.

The book also talks about candles, with strict rations, in the library. Either they traded for tallow candles, or they could have an apiary and make beeswax candles. I don't think the book ever mentioned the type of candle.

One other thing that bothered me was the description of a librarian's experiment in bringing over dirt and plants. The author says the experiment was a failure, with the soil failing to support the plants in a few short years. They could amend the soil, though, with compost! A huge library with an army of librarians must eat, and it would make most sense for them to compost their food waste on the island. The book stated that food was brought in by boat, and that the boats continued to other stops after leaving Fruce Island. Surely they didn't load up the boat with stinky garbage every day. I could imagine some amount of waste getting chucked in the lake. Compost is a valuable commodity, though. The librarians would be smart to compost all the waste they could - food scraps, and a lot of other materials, since this is a pre-industrial society and there's no plastic and less metal. Then they'd have nutrient rich compost. They're capable of bringing over soil, and they could amend it with the compost. Then Fruce Island could be a little less bare.

A bare granite island may seem an inhospitable place. There's a lot of places full of granite where lots of plants grow, though. Yosemite Valley in California, for example, is a granite valley carved by glacial activity.

Let's say Fruce hasn't had glaciers and rivers laying down soil since the Ice Ages. The soil there is being laid down entirely by people. So, no trees yet. But they could have kitchen gardens in raised beds. They'd probably have those bees I mentioned earlier, for candles and honey, and because otherwise the island wouldn't have many pollinators. I'll say they're growing onions, potatoes, clover, carrots, tomatoes, beans, herbs, flowers - a lot of food! The clover and beans could fix nitrogen and keep the soil more productive. The more they can produce, the better off they are - these librarians are frugal people and bringing things in by boat is expensive. They'd ly have chickens on the island, too, and maybe some pigs. They could keep fish pens in the lake.

Sheep need pasture, so let's put those sheep on the shores in the oak woodland, and put herds of acorn-eating pigs there too. Fruce also didn't seem the right environment for paper-fiber plants. So let's put raw hides and bales of fiber on the boats, and have Fruce as a place where they're processed, and let's have them exporting some paper, vellum, and ink, too.

They couldn't produce enough food or candles to export, and the society doesn't seem to sell books much - they're too valuable. The Library is a big item of value, too, so let's say they generate income from all the scholars coming to visit, and noble patrons.

With all this book-related activity going on, I say that the main character would have left Fruce with much more knowledge than obscure languages. In fact, I'd say if she wasn't inclined to study, she could have spent her entire time there scraping hides for vellum or working in the kitchens, gardens, and henhouses. She's noble, and politically valuable, so for story purposes it makes sense that she'd be forced to study instead of learning all the skills of the servants. I'd imagine the Frucians as being a much heartier, less idle group than they're depicted in the story, though. Or if they really are able to spend *all* their time with books, they must have a horde of servants and support staff.

Okay, that's my two cents on the world of The Wolf of Winter! It was a good book, I d it a lot. Thinking of expanding the world was a lot of fun, too. I'd to revisit Fruce Island in future stories.This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full review2 comments Kanea118

Not many authors have the courage to follow through or open the door to explore what many would consider a taboo relationship, and combined with this books particular brand of magic, this book though not scary actually has many elements that could be considered horrific, making it end a peculiar atmosphere of mystifying, predictable, but upsetting in short this book has presence! And whether I d it or not, ill remember it. If you've seen that rare film, "In the company of wolves" from the 80s this book feels that film or a stephen King adapted movie. °??gg??° (????)?™765

Wow Varis is truly a villain. even better than jude x cardan. somehow this barely had even a word of romance written into it but i was utterly engrossed by it. and not to mention, the romance itself was utterly taboo and incestuous. the antihero utterly despicable and described as physically repulsive. but, still such a charming guy with a way with words. can't believe i just wrote that about a guy who killed his family. but the author does such a good job of making the reader sympathize with him. wish he and the heroine had a happy ending--minus the incestuous aspect of it.favorites Victoria Lightning Reads40

I loved the character development in this book. I felt repulsed by the main character and yet sympathetic to him at the same time... By the end of the story I couldn't figure out which side I was on! I thought the ending was both perfect and disappointing... A brilliant book throughout. Joanne RixonAuthor 9 books5

Volsky is a seriously under-rated writer! This isn't my favorite of hers, but it's an interesting read. The plot structure is definitely non-traditional, and the focus on characterization and atmosphere kept hooked. Matt Littrell153 1 follower

2.5, rounded up. I d the story well enough, which is why I rounded this one up. But good lord was this hard to read. I felt the author thought "let's replace every word we can with a bigger fancier one!" It was a slog. I can't recommend this, even if the underlying story wasn't too bad. David Leemon301 2

A little bit depressing, but wonderfully written novel set in a society similar to Russia, featuring a necromancer who wants to be the king, so he kills off all of his relatives, one by one.necromancy Maureen Berry34

Lots of political intrigue with sorcery added in. Susan483 5

Oh, SO good, but I had hoped for a different outcome. Shalli should have put her trust in Varis and continued her studies... What a power couple they would have been!This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full review Lottie Love120 9 Read

What in the game of thrones is this????
No review or I will end up in hell ir jail LOLvillaingetsthegirl Derek1,288 8

The thing that captured me was the characterization of the art of necromancy, which I haven't seen done quite this way before: an esoteric magic requiring dangerous mind-expanding drugs that have unpredictable side effects, and which has an addictive, corruptive effect on the practitioner. The entire portrayal of the manipulated spirits as metaphysical lackeys and infinitely mutable ectoplasm was a unique take on the subject.

I'm not sure where Volsky was going with this theme. Varis succumbs to the corrosion, yet his necromantic practice and his dark ambition to usurp rulership are not connected except by the catch-all of insanity. In fact, as a character he is at the center of paradox: a man twisted by dark magic yet ruling justly and progressively (by his own statement, so perhaps not a reliable statement), and who has improved the lives of the populace, yet does not have its loyalty or love.

The population clinging to the rightful heirs, despite the implication that it would mean returning to the line of hard rule, is something that feels very Russian, and perhaps is the connection to real-world history and culture.

I'm not liking Volsky's construction of made-up names and words, and would to know if there was a linguistic strategy. In particular I kept tripping on the word "spifflication", used to describe the permanent mental breakdown of a necromancer by overuse or overexposure to his/her power. The word sounded inappropriately goofy. Kristi Thompson249 1 follower

Um. Fantasy Russia, with necromancy.

I had trouble with the prison library. I mean, I'd quite to live there. Regular meals, routine, infinite quantities of books, tutors to help you study anything and everything, impassioned debates about footnoting. . . Not to mention benign necromancy in the cellar. Paradise! So it was hard to sympathise with Sharri's dis.

Did the practice of necromancy invariably destroy a person's moral sense? Volsky didn't seem to have made up her mind. Varis had the excuse of an unfortunate background, that Sharri thought had ruined him. . . But Sharri did not, and she felt the lure of necromancy, and tortured a spirit without caring. And even Varis thought that he would once have felt conscience-stricken by what he did, suggesting that the necromancy, or the drugs, had changed him. Yet the Librarian conclave didn't seem to have any such problem.

Oh well. Mike201 2

The strength of the book lies in its early characterizations. There is a lot of setup for what seems to be an interesting political drama in a fantasy setting. Unfortunately, every time a scene is set up, it's resolved very quickly with most of the characters disappearing from view. Then there will be a new setup, which might be interesting except you're still reeling from the disappointment of the previous abrupt conclusion and then that one wraps up. Volsky s to work in shades of gray where you don't really know who you are rooting for. You kind of wind up rooting for no one and for one last abrupt conclusion.

As an aside, I found it very strange that the scene alluded to by the publisher on the back cover doesn't take place until maybe the last fifth of the book. Usually, they'll pick something that sets up the story as a whole, but maybe they found it just as hard to find a consistent story arc. Deedee1,795 175

Stand-alone fantasy novel involving royal families and necromancers. Published 3 years before the original A Game of Thrones novel but still with that sentimentality of gritty realistic consequences for unwise behavior that A Game of Thrones is known for. Surprised that this novel didn't get any SF award nominations.challenge-2016-fall fantasy ghosts ...more Micha MeindertsAuthor 8 books30

Not as great as I remembered it was reading the Dutch translation years back, but still fun. Shalli is an okay protagonist for a woman, and Varis is cool anyway. The archaic language was unnecessary IMO, but it still fit the story. Even better if it was used more sparingly. No expiring nights and all that just because that "sounded" better.

The plot got a pretty long intro, without even a huge confrontation to make up for it, but I don't really care, really. I d how Shalli started to Varis in the end and vice versa.

Looking out for Volsky's other books now.This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full review Nadine31

This book gave me mix feelings.. I Varis, the main protagonist. He started out as a very sympathetic character who was always bullied by his older brothers. I his characterization and his gradual descent to addiction and necromancy. He was really well written. Some parts of the book was boring and dragging but over all, the writing was really good. The ending was not typical and makes the reader think. I wish there was a sequel. It sort of felt incomplete. fantasy-lovers Viridian5923 10

This is the book I refer people to as an object lesson in presenting a character who does terrible things yet still somehow manages to be sympathetic. The tragedy here left me feeling ill by the end at the waste of it all, and that's a compliment. Volsky also loves to craft dialogue that sparks. I've reread this book many times.fantasy favorites DavidAuthor 18 books370

Set in the same world as Illusion, which was a fantasy-version of the French Revolution, this book takes place in that parallel world's version of "Russia." I d the story quite a lot, especially the very interesting take on necromancy, but I didn't enjoy it quite as much as Illusion, largely because the characters were not nearly as able.alternate-history fantasy female-author ...more Sara148

I did not this book. I could not sympathize with the characters. There is only have one real character for the first third of the book and he's evil, simply. Then the second character you get after the first third of the book is is not amazing either & poorly integrated with the first. Also, the writing is often at times awkward. Emily SnyderAuthor 21 books44

I LOVE the beginning of this book, but always felt that the second half was still too rushed. I still believe that, and privately suspect that Ms. Volsky should have been given/taken more time to really delve into the heroine all grown up, but multiple rereadings have found quite a bit of satisfaction in the details we DO have. Well worth reading! Steve R1,055 51 Read

I read this work about twenty years ago when I just couldn't get enough fantasy. Volsky is definitely one of the best at world creating, and the battle in this book between the heroine and her uncle, who practises the arts of necromancy, is impressively told.

I only wish I could remember more of it now. Speed8ump27 3

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