Deathless by Catherynne M Valente

Deathless

by Catherynne M Valente

A handsome young man arrives in St Petersburg at the house of Marya Morevna. He is Koschei, the Tsar of Life, and he is Marya's fate. For years she follows him in love and in war, and bears the scars. But eventually Marya returns to her birthplace - only to discover a starveling city, haunted by death. Deathless is a fierce story of life and death, love and power, old memories, deep myth and dark magic, set against the history of Russia in the twentieth century. It is, quite simply, unforgettable.

Reviewed by nightingalereads on

3 of 5 stars

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2.75 - 3 stars

Hard for me to rate. Reading Deathless was a lot like admiring a beautiful piece of artwork that you appreciate, but don't quite connect with. It was fascinating. I do think a lot of the references in this story went over my head, but I enjoyed the beautiful writing, and how the author weaved together Russian folklore with actual history. Since I'm fairly unfamiliar with the original tales of Koschei the Deathless, I can't say how closely her version of the story follows them. But overall, though I was never fully immersed in the story, I did appreciate the uniqueness of the author's storytelling and writing style.

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  • 7 November, 2013: Reviewed