Review: Read it for "The Witch of Duva"
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 03 10, 2013
The only short story that really tempted me in this anthology was "The Witch of Duva" by Leigh Bardugo.  This is set in the Russia-like fantasy world of Arras, which is also the setting for her debut novel, Shadow and Bone.  However, you need not have read the novel to enjoy "The Witch of Duva."Shadow and Bone was a great read for me, but The Witch of Duva truly showcases Bardugo's talent.  It's layered, surprising, haunting.  I can't stop thinking about it.  Bardugo took some familiar fairy tale tropes - the wicked stepmother, the bewitched father in mourning, the evil witch in the woods - which altogether seem to add up to a faint Russian retelling of Hansel and Gretel but Bardugo stirs things up.  She mixes these ingredients to form a captivating, dark, dark story that left me stunned.  While, I do want to read more of the Shadow and Bone trilogy, I am clamoring for more of Bardugo's short stories like these one.