In the 18th century, Russia entered the grand stage of European history. It threw aside its "primitive Easternness", and did …
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Uprooted by Naomi Novik
Uprooted by Naomi Novik My rating: 4 of 5 stars When I finished this book, I was sure it would get no more than a 3 star …
The Suffering Innocents
It is easy to become jaded, seeing all the horrors of war on our Facebook wall. It is easy to lose empathy with the suffering …
Bright Week
The Bright Seven Days The first week of Easter is like an extended single day of feasting. Joyful and bright. …
How Iconographers Draw the Soul
In my second novel (tentatively titled The Garden in the Heart of the World), one of the characters is given a …
Seven Ways Russians Used to Celebrate the Coming of Spring
As I’ve begun to delve deeply into my second novel, I’m considering using the time of the year as a contrast to the characters’ …
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The Book of the New Sun
The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe My rating: 5 of 5 stars In the fantasy genre, coming of age tales abound. "Commoner …
Things you never knew about the Russian cradle
A criticism of an early version of my first novel was that it was not grounded enough, too “out there,” too interested in the …
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Speaker for the Dead
Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card My rating: 5 of 5 stars Lots of people have jumped on the Orson Scott Card hate-wagon …
Heroes from Slavic Mythology: Ilya Muromets
Although it might seem a bit strange at first, I take inspiration for my novels equally from Slavic mythology, sacred literature …
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Arsenic with Austen: a Mystery
Arsenic with Austen: A Mystery by Katherine Bolger Hyde My rating: 4 of 5 stars Arsenic with Austen is the first mystery in a …
Everything You Need to Know about the Russian Kaftan
Something a little lighter this week. I generally like to have a vivid mental picture of events and places and people before I …
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Leviathan Wakes
Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey My rating: 3 of 5 stars How often do people say--with justified anger--that "the movie …
The Honor Code of a Russian Officer
Too often in modern fantasy fiction, the invented societies and characters are reflections of the failings of our world. There are …
The Gunslinger
The Gunslinger by Stephen King My rating: 4 of 5 stars I have never really wanted to read Stephen King. I'm not into …
How the Legend of Prester John Influenced Slavic Mythology
Did you know that Columbus was looking for a mysterious Christian king of India when he stumbled upon the New World? Most people …
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The Golem and the Jinni
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker My rating: 2 of 5 stars I should have loved this book. Everything about it seems …
Cossack Family Values
As I was doing research for my first series of novels, I came across a Russian article about the Cossacks and how much they …