Name: Deathless
ISBN: 9780765326300

Catherynne M. Valente

Set in an alternate version of St. Petersburg in the first half of the twentieth century, Marya Morevna, a clever child of the revolution, is transformed into the beautiful bride of Koschei the Deathless, a menacing overlord.

Deathless

Koschei the Deathless is to Russian folklore what giants or wicked witches are to European culture: the villain of countless stories which have been passed on through story and text for generations. Valente's take on the legend brings the action to modern times, spanning many of the great developments of Russian history in the twentieth century. Deathless, however, is no dry, historical tome: it lights up like fire as the young Marya Morevna transforms from a clever peasant girl to Koschei's beautiful bride, to his eventual undoing. Along the way there are Stalinist house elves, magical quests, secrecy and bureaucracy, and games of lust and power. All told, Deathless is a collision of magical history and actual history, of revolution and mythology, of love and death, that will bring Russian myth to life in a stunning new incarnation.

Shawn

The only way I can think of to rate this book is to do so in two parts.<br /><br />5 stars for Valente's writing! She has such a powerful touch with written language. She can conjure imagery and emotion so warmly that you're helpless to absorb it. A very brave, bold, and tender author.<br /><br />3 stars for the story itself. Not unlike every folktale, it winds on in parts and has moments of absurdity sprinkled around. All said though, it's a beautiful story in a powerful setting. 

arwen

why was my review of this book deleted ? 😭 anyways..read this book like 3 times and first time i read was early 2020

Some of the most evocative writing I've experienced. I was transported right back to the atmosphere of my childhood's fairytales. There was so much life, so much love, so much sorrow in this book.

Lorelei Petcu

My heart torn into million pieces. Deathless is a poignant story about love, war, and loss. A story for a lifetime. It's definitely a modern retelling that you could not miss.

Also here I present my favorite quotes.

Be selfish and cruel and think nothing of them. I am selfish. I am cruel. My mate cannot be less than I. I will have you in my hoard, Marya Morevna, my black mirror. 

No one is now what they were before the war.

After love, no one is what they were before.

Those are just some of them. Therapy is needed.

nina 

Yeah I have no words for this, when I thought I was going to really enjoy this. Especially since everyone else I know loved it. What did you guys read that I didn’t?

I don’t think this was the book or the prose for me… 

What started out as a fairytale, slowly turned into a bunch of words that either I had low reading comprehension of or a hidden plot because I can not tell you one thing that happened in this book.

I thought this was going to be a book that stayed with me forever, but instead I am left haunted and feel as if I missed the whole point.

A glorious retelling of the Russian folktale Marya Morevna and Koschei the Deathless, set in a mysterious version of St. Petersburg during the first half of the 20th century.

Betty

Oh i have no words to describe the experience of reading this book.

It was so good and majestic and beautiful, i was left breathless and speechless by it. How the author showed the bad and the good side of a thing together and made it so beautiful. A literal masterpiece.

This is the most amazing and beautiful read of my year so far!!

deathless is playing with fairytale and myths; playing with the childhood attachment and what lies within the fantasy (which is crazy because i am unfamiliar with everything that the book offered) and; playing with love and death and life. it's dark. it's beautiful

tina

update: changing the rating to 5 stars bec right now i am reading my highlights and I CANNOT BREATHE I AM SHAKING I AM LOSING MY MIND I AM GOING TO COLLAPSE 

this was captivating and haunting all at the same time. i can’t pretend to understand everything that was happening but it was so so beautifully written it felt like i was in a fairytale dream and i was utterly enchanted by everything about this book.

Arianna M

This book was like a magical experience - captivating and strange and beautiful. Marya Morevna is a great character, and like her you will feel pulled between Koschei and Ivan, and like her you will be starving in Leningrad, or running around in the Country of Life, or with your nose deep in a Pushkin book and red scarf at your neck. Every image in this book will stay with you, and some bits will stick to your memory, because you liked them so you read them twice, and thrice, until you knew them by heart. If you want a journey in a dark, strange, magical world, this book is for you. Read it, the prose is marvelous, the characters so true. This book felt like an extension to the myths and legends I read as a child. It was beautiful, and I'm glad I bought this book so I can read it again and again.

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.

Aditi

Trigger Warnings: domestic abuse, war, toxic relationships

I had such high hopes for this one but it didn't live up to my expectations at all. The prose just didn't work for me. I usually love the pretentious over the top writing style but here I felt like every trait of these characters was overexaggerated to the point they end up feeling cartoonish. There were a couple of good scenes but overall I mostly found myself rolling my eyes at almost everything.
There's a lot going on and I still don't even know what the central plot of the story was. The narration keeps the characters at a distance. I felt sort of removed from the characters and that made me care even less about the plot. I skimmed the last chapter just to be done with it because I've been reading this for over a week and I'm so over it.

Savannah Winchell

Merve A. 

3.5

i absolutely loved marya and koschei and the russian inspired folklore, but the focus on the early 20th century russia didn't really keep my interest. unfortunately the ending was a bit underwhelming for me, but that might be due to my expectations regarding marya and koschei.

still one of the finest books i have read in my life. *chefs kiss*

(i will import my comments from twitter one day, i promise)

elif sinem

4.5

The flaws first: the communism metaphor near the end of the book (it's pretty obvious when you get to read it) is horrendous. Like... thanks for... uhhh... not getting it? At all?

Then the other flaw is more technical. Now I read my Sontag and about how we aren't supposed to separate plot from form (it's pretty hard with this book let me tell you), but there are two points, both near the end, where the book goes on and there's nothing that backs it up. I don't necessarily mean "content". But if you set up your entire book to the growth and transformation of your protagonist, you want to keep that momentum for as long as you can and not set her back. This happens here twice and in both times the only reason why it's even readable or not frustrating is because the prose is just so stunning and always evocative. 

Which takes me right to the praises of the book. Dude. It's like this book is sentient. Even though it's "just" 300 pages, it feels FULL and SO DENSE. Whatever you feel about the book at any given moment, it's like the book (and maybe even Valente herself at the time) feels it with you. I feel like that's not something a lot of people can pull off in a book this long? It's always so engaging. The book is pretty shifty in tone thorughout too, which I think adds to its density. For instance, the start is very fairytale-esque, but then it evolves to like Russian Novel, then there's a section of so much purple prose (not a bad thing in her case, which is *also* not something a lot of people can say!!!) in the dialogue it borders on theater, and by the end it feels like a literary novel? (Okay, by the end, it's kind of more of a dead thing trying to get to the finish line. I told you the ending is a bit rough to me.) It's a sprawling thing and I think that's why it won't work for everyone? But luckily this is my page and it worked for ME.

And nothing to mention of THE HOTNESS OF MARYA MOREVNA and slutty, probably bisexual Koschei. Goddddd. Even Ivanushka was cute and adorable. All the characters were full of life and so eccentric and I absolutely adore that in a novel. But MARYA especially, whew whew whew. What a woman!!! My woman for life!

All in all what a ride, what a beautiful book, how daring. Don't miss out on it imo!!

vins

Gun to my head and I won't be able to tell you what the plot of this book exactly is (I know the plot thread, but it's kinda uneven I lost it by the end) -- but that sure was a Vibe™ 

Definitely a haunting and stunning read, I only wish I didn't have to slough through some parts (i.e when it lays the metaphors too thick it's basically impenetrable). Crazy how Valente could write with this much purple proses without getting too obnoxious tho; it was gorgeous from beginning to finish, pathetic slutty koschei included. All in all I quite loved it.

Sarah Escorsa

💀 DNF at 25%.

Boredom Fest + 92 pages that feel like 2,458 (at least) + simplistic, cliche-ified (yes, that is a word) and Westernized as shrimp take on Russian history + unlikable as fish characters + Valente making it her mission to throw every single Russian folklore character she ever heard about into her narrative, for no other reason than because she can + I don't give a bloody squid about anything = bye bye, Marya Morevna!



That's the spirit!

P.S. For very insightful, enlightening reviews of this book by readers who know what the fish they're talking about when it comes to all things Russian and Slavic (unlike some retired breeders of murderous crustaceans of my acquaintance), click here and here and here and here and here. You're welcome and stuff.

Note to self: next time you want to read about Russian folklore, read an actual Russian tale, not ridiculously over-hyped, Americanized Westernized crap stuff.

Kwan Ann Tan

Deathless is a gorgeous book. Everything about it is beautiful- the storyline, the language, and the plot. It's really amazing how Valente has turned such a simple, plain fairytale into a breathtaking tapestry of gritty, historical background and whimsical fairytale. It really is a lot to take in, at first, and I will definately need to read and reread this stunning tale many times over to let the words just flow over my skin. This book was definately the best I've read this year, and is definately recommended to anyone who loves fairytales!

Sheila

Heart-wrenchingly beautiful. ;~; This book could not be more Russian if it tried.

Autumn 

This has to be the best book that I have read this year (so far but also most probably will hold not just as the best book I read this year but one of the best books I have ever read)
Based on history and folk tales of Russia, this book is a magical, poetic, dark and twisted journey. 
It's not the kind of book you only read once but the kind that needs to be read over and over again. 
There's so much to be said about this book. Maybe it was because the stories were so familiar but also not the stories I grew up with, maybe it's the gripping writing, whatever it is, this book was a heavy, hard yet wonderful read for me and I think I'm going to carry it with me for years to come.

Arden Kowalski

A story inspired by Russian mythology with a compelling storyline, lush imagery, and incredibly poetic writing. Honestly, I felt like a lot of this was just geared towards what I like in a book. Even though this is an adult novel, it reminded me of Gregory Maguire's Egg and Spoon, although that could just be Baba Yaga. This story follows Marya Morevna as she becomes the bride of Koschei the Deathless - and eventually so much more than that.

PROS:
+ The writing was seriously beautiful. It felt like an extended fairytale, and so real I thought I could reach into the page and touch it. I especially loved the chapter where the domovoi narrates, because it was just so well thought out.
+ The parts of the story that are repeated (ex. when Marya and Ivan are meeting all of her sisters) were so idyllic and lovely to me. I also really adored the beginnings of the book, when Marya sees the birds and meets the people in the household.
+ Acknowledgement of the political climate in Russia at the time. Also, I'm pretty sure the tsar and OTMA were in the book? I might be reading too far into it, but I really loved that. As someone endlessly fascinated with the Romanovs, I liked the brief reimagining of their story. 
+ Wonderful side characters! I loved Marya's friends near the middle of the novel, and especially at the end. Kseniya was also a really wonderful addition to the story.
+ Baba Yaga and the Yelenas. That is all.

CONS:
- Ivan. Literally everything about Ivan and his injection into the storyline annoyed me to no end. I get that it's a fairytale, but it felt forced.
- The romance in general. Did not care. Could not be bothered. It's a literal tenet of the novel and somehow the worst part of it. I know you would have to restructure the whole book to get rid of it, but it was just so tiresome.
- Parts of the book really dragged on for me. I felt the story could have been condensed into 300 pages and it would've flowed better, especially with this specific style of narration.

On the whole, I liked this book a lot, but there were some issues that prevented it from being a five star read.

Maria

this one is not easy to review cause it's both so-great and not-so-great (so, 3 stars at the end)

so-great:
this is a fantasy book based not only on Russian fairytales but also on Russian history, and it's so awesome to recognize the elements familiar from childhood. the story starts in Leningrad after the revolution when they started to add poorer families into the bourgeois appartments, beginning the era of "kommunalki". and having seen these old houses with bathrooms in the kitchens and 4m ceilings, you do visualize everything very well

the part where they describe the Siege of Leningrad is powerful. though it's probably not the book but the subject - you simply can not NOT cry thinking about thousands of people dying of hunger in a blocked city

it's also great to meet the old fairytale heroes, from Baba Yaga to domovie, and think about stuff you've heard all your life but never really thought about

not-so-great:
the story is not done smoothly. there are really weak passages where you disengage from the story completely. the one where Lenin, Nikolay II and others appeared in the imaginary village - WTF WAS THAT? then, the relationships are very questionable thoughout the book - i was not rooting for any of them. and the ending is very weak. to tell the truth - i already forgot what happened in the end though i read the book a month ago

Jennifer

I've been meaning to read Deathless since forever and I finally got around with this yesterday! 

Long story short, I liked this: the storytelling, the supernatural elements from Russian folklores, and the way the alternate history of Russia was written. I found the prose pretty lush and vivid: it's as if the visual elements really pop out as I read them - the eggs, the red scarf, the food, and the wintry landscapes. And how these visual elements eventually clicked together to convey Russia at its turning point. Similarly the prose also fleshes out Marya's emotional headspace at great detail redeeming her a pretty compelling character in her own merit.

Though a few things didn't particularly stick to me. While I think the angst brings out Marya's characterisation I wasn't very invested in the romance. I personally felt that Marya's relationship with Koschei was borderlining abusive to me and I just struggled to emotionally connect to the way the two characters interact with each other: something felt slightly off to me and there's a bit too much graphical elements for my personal taste. So yeah, I think the writing is kind of a double edged sword: it's descriptive but I also had to put up with some info-dumping (and it happens that some of these are pretty graphical).

Another thing that kind of bothered me with Deathless is the pacing. Because of its emotionally intense style and the fact I read this within a few hours (couldn't put down because of solid storytelling), I find myself losing track of what's happening out there in this alternate magical Russia. It would have been better if the pacing is a bit faster and there's more apparent action taking place that connects the characters & what's happening out there in a more explicit and less meandering way.

Again, I want to reiterate that despite not being very sold into the graphical elements nor the actual romance I still believe that Deathless has numerous redeeming assets in its writing: the picturesque storytelling, the symbolic visual elements, and emotionally complex characters. If you're looking for something angsty and could put up with some horror, then Deathless is definitely something worth checking out.

N.B. Triggering content of this book could be found under this page: https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/e...

Rina

A story that reads like a fairytale. It was unique, strange, tragic, and enthralling. A book that had elements I didn’t know I would love (or needed). Reading this hadn’t really been the easiest for me, but I still found myself unable to put it down. There are many symbolisms here and everything could mean so much more.

Olivera Mitić

Let's just say this was too avantgarde for me and leave it at that.

Deathless

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