內容簡介
在俄羅斯的曠野邊境，冬夜佔盡了大部分的時光。在漫長的夜晚裡，瓦西莉莎和她的兄弟姊妹喜歡圍坐在火爐旁，聽保母說故事。其中，她最喜歡「霜之精靈」的傳說—一位藍眼冬之惡魔。睿智的俄羅斯人對他心懷敬畏，因為他會奪走粗心知人的魂魄，而人們也會供奉守護家園、抵禦邪惡的精靈。
後來，瓦西莉莎喪偶的父親從莫斯科再娶了一位女子，她成了瓦西莉莎的繼母。這位繼母虔誠而嚴苛，禁止家人供奉家中的守護靈，但瓦西麗莎對此深感不安，預感將會帶來災禍。而如她預料，不幸開始在村莊中蔓延。
然而，她的繼母變得愈發嚴厲，決心按照自己的意志改造整個村莊，並將叛逆的繼女培養成適合出嫁或進入修道院的女子。隨著村莊的防護逐漸削弱，來自森林的邪惡一步步逼近，瓦西莉莎不得不喚醒她長久隱藏的危險能力—為了保護家人，對抗那從保母最駭人的故事中化為現實的威脅。
Katherine Ardenˊs bestselling debut novel spins an irresistible spell as it announces the arrival of a singular talent with a gorgeous voice.
"A beautiful deep-winter story, full of magic and monsters and the sharp edges of growing up."--Naomi Novik, bestselling author of Uprooted Winter lasts most of the year at the edge of the Russian wilderness, and in the long nights, Vasilisa and her siblings love to gather by the fire to listen to their nurseˊs fairy tales. Above all, Vasya loves the story of Frost, the blue-eyed winter demon. Wise Russians fear him, for he claims unwary souls, and they honor the spirits that protect their homes from evil. Then Vasyaˊs widowed father brings home a new wife from Moscow. Fiercely devout, Vasyaˊs stepmother forbids her family from honoring their household spirits, but Vasya fears what this may bring. And indeed, misfortune begins to stalk the village. But Vasyaˊs stepmother only grows harsher, determined to remake the village to her liking and to groom her rebellious stepdaughter for marriage or a convent. As the villageˊs defenses weaken and evil from the forest creeps nearer, Vasilisa must call upon dangerous gifts she has long concealed--to protect her family from a threat sprung to life from her nurseˊs most frightening tales. Praise for The Bear and the Nightingale "Ardenˊs debut novel has the cadence of a beautiful fairy tale but is darker and more lyrical."--The Washington Post "Vasya [is] a clever, stalwart girl determined to forge her own path in a time when women had few choices."--The Christian Science Monitor "Stunning . . . will enchant readers from the first page. . . . with an irresistible heroine who wants only to be free of the bonds placed on her gender and claim her own fate."--Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Utterly bewitching . . . a lush narrative . . . an immersive, earthy story of folk magic, faith, and hubris, peopled with vivid, dynamic characters, particularly clever, brave Vasya, who outsmarts men and demons alike to save her family."--Booklist (starred review) "An extraordinary retelling of a very old tale . . . The Bear and the Nightingale is a wonderfully layered novel of family and the harsh wonders of deep winter magic."--Robin Hobb
