Maria Turtschaninoff

Only women and girls are allowed in the Red Abbey, a haven from abuse and oppression. Maresi, a thirteen-year-old novice there, arrived in the hunger winter and now lives a happy life in the Abbey, protected by the Mother and reveling in the vast library in the House of Knowledge, her favorite place. Into this idyllic existence comes Jai, a girl with a dark past. She has escaped her home after witnessing the killing of her beloved sister. Soon the dangers of the outside world follow Jai into the sacred space of the Abbey, and Maresi can no longer hide in books and words but must become one who acts. Bound for international success, Maresi will be published in 15 territories around the world!

Maresi

krönikor från röda klostret

Maria

Трилогия об Красном Аббатстве финской шведскоязычной писательницы Марии Турчанинофф – это такое практически радикализированное феминистское фэнтэзи. Далеко в море на острове Менос стоит Красное Аббатство, где живут только женщины. Когда-то давно первые Сёстры прибыли сюда, спасаясь от тиранов-мужчин (об этом – вторая книга серии, «Наондель», но в «Мареси» история упоминается), построили на острове храмы Богини, единой в трех лицах (Девы, Матери и Старухи), завели хозяйство, стали писать книги и добывать пурпур. Мужчинам на остров ступать нельзя, даже торговлю Сестры ведут с причала. А еще здесь принимают послушниц – девочек разных возрастов. Кого-то присылают родители для получения образования или – как нашу героиню Мареси – чтобы уберечь от голодной смерти. Кого-то, как новенькую девочку Джай, доставляют тайком, всю в следах от побоев. 

«Мареси» – книга короткая, всего страниц 200, и первая половина почти полностью посвящена быту Аббатства. Мареси рассказывает о ритуалах, еде, работе, свох любимых занятиях и других послушницах, и всё это благоденствие играет на контрасте со второй половиной, когда на острове появляются мужчины.

Мужских персонажей – в смысле личностей – в книге, по сути нет. Есть «масса» мужчин, представляющая собой такое абсолютное зло. Те, кто бьют, насилуют, издеваются, кто живут только ради власти и выгоды. Даже те мужчины, которые действуют в истории, не описаны и не воспринимаются как люди, мы и имен-то почти никого не узнаем. Просто какие-то темные фигуры (весьма удачно одетые в черное). Сгустки жестокости, предметы ненависти. Заслуженной ли? О да. Но от черно-белости этого мира всё-таки немного неуютно – я люблю персонажей в «серой зоне», мятущихся и вызывающих бурю эмоций, а здесь, в принципе, всё предельно ясно с самого начала. Женщины – умные, добрые, любящие, красивые. Мужчины – жестокие, злые, ненавидящие, пусть все сдохнут.

Написано, впрочем, хорошо – не знаю, заслуга ли автора или переводчика. Очень красивая сцена с заплетанием и расчесыванием волос, такая кульминация женской магической силы.

Annie Prime

A world where girls live in fear. A safe haven far away. But is it far enough? Maresi came to the Red Abbey when she was thirteen, in the Hunger Winter. She felt safe. Then one day Jai arrived fleeing terrible danger. And the men who hurt Jai will stop at nothing to find her. The first book in the three-part series is a story of friendship and survival, magic and wonder, beauty and terror, that will grip you and hold you spellbound.

The Red Abbey Chronicles: Maresi

Becky

3.5/4 stars. I can't decide which yet I need to think some more

"Originally published in 2014 in Finland under the title Maresi by Schildts & Socerstrom"--Title page verso.

Charlotte Rayfield

Seriously want to cry right now so beautiful 😍 Seemed fitting that I read it all in one sitting curled up in my bed 💗

Moray Lyle McIntosh

The Red Abbey is a haven for women and provides shelter and learning on an island watched over by the Mother and where men are forbidden to set foot but the Sisters who protect their charges know that they won't be able to keep the world out forever. Maresi is fantastic. It champions the rights and strengths of women for a new generation. 

The world-building, and the story itself, is simple but there's a wonderful mythological depth provided by the traditions of the Triple Goddess inspired by the ancient and modern concept of female triads (maiden/mother/crone, the Fates, the Muses, the Celtic Brigit). The Red Abbey is a beautifully realised community that encourages curiosity and learning and friendship in its charges, represented mainly in the form of Maresi herself. Maresi is loyal and brave but she's not perfect, she's an excellent hero for young adults.

Turtschninoff's feminism isn't just a gloss on the story, it goes right to its heart so there are some dark themes that might be too much for very young readers but they are dealt with bravely and sensitively and are well justified. Real girls, real dangers, real strength in a fantastic, mythological setting. This is the fantasy fiction our daughters need (in the absence of a daughter I'll be passing this onto my niece as soon, as she's old enough to read!)

P Mik

Marasi is not your everyday bildungsroman, yet that is what I choose to call it. The Red Abbey lies on an island populated by women only, a sanctuary for the curious, the gifted, the suffering and the hunted. A colony of women celebrating the many aspects of womanhood, of the shared experiences of the feminine. 

The snippets of worldbuilding hinted at in "Marasi" shows potential for the upcoming books, and I will most likely read them. This one took me less than 5 hours to complete, and it was a rewarding, interesting and cosy afternoon. The interesting part consisted of me trying to view their matriarchal society without scepticism, and attempting to put away my cynicism. That is not to say that I found the internal structure of their colony to be farfetched; on the contrary, I thought it wonderful and earthy, an egalitarian (in so far as a single-sex society can be) paradise connected to the ur-magics of the world. A neat little escape from other "feminist fantasies" that still manage to construe Woman as sexualized other. 

I would recommend this to those of you want a low-key borderline fantastic (genre, not the adjective) read, a short delve into a alternative reality.

Maresi

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