Review: Vassa In The Night

This book can be described in one word: bizarre. I was originally drawn to it because it was a retelling of a Russian fairytale.  Thankfully it is not a long book and a quick read. The setting in Brooklyn was a bit weird to adjust too and there and I have mixed feelings about magical realism.

Most of the way through the book it confused me about what was going on exactly. There were scenes that were so strange they reminded me of Alice in Wonderland. There were other themes that were moving through. Vassa's relationship with her dead mother was complicated and the concept of grief. There was a scene that made me cry. I often cry when it comes to mother and child relationships. In a short despite the confusion and bizarreness of the story, I enjoyed it. I certainly wish there was more explained about the relationship between the character of Babs and the other witch. Much was left a mystery that it would have been helpful to understand better. I could see a sequel to the book to expand on this.

I would also like to note. that I ordered this copy of the book used online and was incredibly surprised to discover that it was a signed copy! I don't know why anyone would sell their signed copy of a book.