I absolutely loved this short urban fantasy novel (or long novella). Roth does a great job incorporating creatures from Slavic mythology into her modern Chicago setting, and I hope she will write more stories in this setting.

Considering the brevity of this novel, I was surprised at the complexity of the three main characters, all of whom I liked very much. I enjoyed how their stories were interwoven and slowly revealed, and I found their character arcs very satisfying. For an often-violent story about “monsters” who consume fear, sorrow, and anger and the scary magic-wielding knights who hunt them, this was surprisingly touching.

The audiobook production was excellent, and I enjoyed the narration by Helen Laser, James Fouhey, and Tim Campbell. The narrators are all pleasant to listen to, with good pacing, clear pronunciation (at least of the English; I don’t know Polish, but it sounded cool), distinctive voices to suit each character, and the ability to convey mood and emotion effectively. The story works very well as an audiobook.

This is a story I will want to listen to again, and I recommend this book for fans of urban fantasy and Slavic folklore.

I received a free advanced review copy of the audiobook through NetGalley. I volunteered to provide an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced audiobook.

Book: 4/5
Audio: 3/5

This novella was a pleasant surprise! I'm not one usually to pick up urban fantasies, but this one really intrigued me. I loved the unique take on Slavic folklore amongst the Chicago backdrop. Although the novella is short, I found it hard to keep up in several places. I had to repeat sections several times in order to understand what was going on. Perhaps reading a print version of this one may be better for me.

I was very much not a fan of the narration of this. The accents made me cringe a little, honestly. I also found myself having to increase the volume at parts in the beginning to try to understand what the male narrator was saying.

The story gripped me enough that I'm planning to read the print version of the book now. I'm hoping it'll make this a 5/5 for me then.

Dear When Among Crows,
Generally when I go into a story blind, it gives me the opportunity to be pleasantly surprised by the story. Unfortunately, I didn't feel that way about you. You just left me wanting more. I wanted to know more about your world, your characters, and how your whole story develops. You had the potential for so much more, and you were just too short for me. It felt like you were a tiny corner of a much deeper and complex universe. I hope that there are plans to expand your story, because I would love to read it!

Unfortunately this was a miss for me. I generally love Veronica's writing but I genuinely did not understand what was going on. It was part mythology, slightly fantastical, and a little gothic horror?

The accents were really hard to understand so I kept slowing down the speed and repeating chapters. I still found myself a bit slogged down in the plot. Novellas are tough because you have to sacrifice either plot or character development. I didn't connect with the story. Maybe if I read it on paper it would have been easier to follow.

Cool concept, but the execution didn't work for me on audio.

A masterfully done short story. Roth ties together some of my most favorite elements of fantasy - folkloric beings, demon hunters, an unlikely alliance, casual queerness, literally all morally gray characters, and a succinct, smoothly-executed plot. I loved reading about Baba Yaga in modern day Chicago and how ancient tales were combined with an urban fantasy setting. The 3 narrators further transformed the story, conveying the urgency of the quick timeline within the novel while delivering emotional performances for each character. The 3 voices were well suited to their unique characters while also fitting together within the whole novel. Loved this, and would love more like this from Roth!

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the arc in exchange for review!

I thought this was really interesting. The story was compelling and the narrators were engaging. I found it a little bit hard to follow toward the end, but overall this was great.

Before listening to When Among Crows I did not know anything about Polish folklore and fables. This story did a great job of introducing me. With that being said…

What I didn’t like about audiobook:

- the narration is multi POV but still in the 3rd person so it was a challenge to stay engaged with the story

- The attempt at polish accents was terrible

- the tempo of each of the narrators is so different I was constantly having to change the speed i was listening at

What I didn’t like about the writing/ book itself:

- was very challenging remembering all the monster names, what they’re abilities are and why they’re important

- None of the characters are very likable which I guess is kinda the point in the story BUT as a reader, it was a struggle to continue reading

- I’m typically a romance/romantasy reader so maybe it’s just me but I think this book would have been WAY better with a thicker romance subplot


Overall:

A really great concept that unfortunately, fell flat. Luckily it was a short read so it didn’t feel like a complete waste of time.

NetGalley 🎧

♡ 𝙰𝚞𝚍𝚒𝚘𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠 ♡
3 ⭐️
𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚜 :
•fantasy
•shapeshifter
•paranormal
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I don't know. I think this story wasn't for me. I really didn't understand or know what was going on. The narrators did an ok job, bringing the story alive. But i feel like this is the type of book you have to physically read to understand what's going on. -
Let me say the cover art is beautiful, and once you understand the cover art, it's just breathtaking. Pain is Dymitr’s calling. To slay the monsters he’s been raised to kill, he had to split his soul in half to make a sword from his own spine. Every time he draws it, he gets blood on his hands.
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♤ 𝚁𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎 May.14 ♤
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Thank you, Netgalley, and MacmillanAudio for the (ALC)-Audiobook for my honest review.

This was very well-written and the audio was exceptional with several actors voicing characters. It was also short enough to hold my attention as I'm not so into dystopian fiction.
However, the story is interesting. Dymityr is a holy knight who has split his soul to make his weapon. His orders are to hunt and kill "monsters" that roam the streets of Chicago.
Ala is under a family curse. Pain is her inheritance. Dymityr offers her a cure with the magical fern flower in his possession, if she will help him find the legendary witch, Baba Jaga. Ala agrees, unaware of what Dymityr actually is.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this audio e-arc.*

When Among Crows is an urban-fantasy novella from Veronica Roth.

"Dymitr is a hunter. His mission is to find the legendary witch, Baba Jaga. He must join with his enemies and navigate the underworld of Chicago to find her."

For a small novella, there is a lot of world building. Luckily, there are only a few characters and the events take place over a couple of days. Dymitr has secrets. Nico has secrets. There's a wild scene where they fight off some crows. And a twist about Ala and her curse. You don't really expect Baba Jaga to live in an apartment in Chcago, but there it is.

The full cast does a great job with the audio. There are some wild moments.

Fans of Roth and Urban Fantasy should enjoy this one.

I received a complimentary ALC of WHEN AMONG CROWS by Veronica Roth thanks to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley.

WHEN AMONG CROWS is a fantasy novella based in Slavic folklore, but set in Chicago. Dymitr is from a family of hunters, called upon to sacrifice their souls to take monsters down. His current mission is a dangerous one, tasked with finding and killing the witch Baba Jaga. Ala is a fire-eating zmora, a young woman living under a curse. Dymitr tempts her with a cure in order to gain her help on his quest and she can only say yes.

I had a good time with this quick novella read. I thought that the mythology and the blending in with a world we'd somewhat recognize was really well done. I liked the dynamic that built between Dymitr and Ala as they worked together while still not having an ability to trust each other. I thought the enemies to potentially something different worked well in this setup also.

The atmosphere in this book was great and I definitely felt the darkness of this underworld version of Chicago that Roth is putting forward. While many novellas leave me wanting a bit more, I think this was a good length to fully deliver this story.

Genre: urban fantasy + Slavic mythology
Chicago, present day

Set in contemporary Chicago, the short arc of this story follows Ala, a zmora, Dymitr, a leszy, and Nikodem, a strzygi, Slavic creatures of dreams and nightmares living off of pain and other emotions. They carry their own curses, though Ala’s is the most traditional. Dymitr is in search of Baba Jaga, and for Ala’s help, he may be able to offer her a cure.

This is a very Meg-coded book. Polish mythology blended with gritty contemporary aesthetics wrapped up in a tight novella arc was the perfect change of pace for me after some of the longer books I’ve been reading. It’s a skillful novella, with just enough character development and plot movement and mythological exploration to keep the book moving but not overwhelm the reader. I always love a good Baba Jaga story, and loved Roth’s interpretation of her house (obviously), but also of her myth generally. There is also a queer romantic story line, with just enough to keep any romance reader engaged.

I listened to parts of the audiobook but found myself more drawn to the written prose. While it’s lovely to hear the Polish spoken to me with really wonderful narration, it was easier for me to get my bearings as a reader seeing some of the words on the page. I found that Roth made some really great choices with how much to explain versus reference in the mythologies to keep the novella shorter. A reader unfamiliar with Slavic lore (this includes me!) will want to have a search engine on hand to look up images and stories of the demons and witches that stalk pages.

I have loved Veronica Roth’s transition from YA Fantasy (Divergent) to sharp, smart novellas and short stories. When Among Crows and Arch-Conspirator have a more mature approach to storytelling and craft than her early works, and I am here for it.

I knew two things about this book:

1. It was written by Veronica Roth and I remember enjoying Divergent in my youth.
2. I had seen the cover for this book a few weeks ago though I had not read the synopsis.

Pretty easy to say that I went into this book blind and was delighted to discover Roth's most recent project after many years. I am quite fond of the tale of Baba Yaga and was pleasantly surprised to see that included here. Also was very surprised to see how short this book was!

Roth created an interesting world of whimsy and intrigue all encapsulated in this short and sweet book!

I was so prepared to love and devour this book, instead it was a slog.
I think this one suffered for being an audiobook. Also something in the writing felt like I was wading through molasses to get a sentence finished, which made it hard to care about the character. Even ones that seemed so interesting. I could not be bothered

I have never read this author before, but the stunning cover and promise of Slavic/Eastern European mythology drew me in. This is an urban fantasy, where a hidden world of Polish magic and mythological creatures exists in contemporary Chicago, and we follow a trio of characters trying to find Baba Yaga. Themes include family, identity, and religious intolerance.

I was entertained overall, as the writing, pacing and author voice is good and ultimately very atmospheric for the most part. The audiobook included different narrators, which worked overall, but shifting voices jarred me everytime for a minute, and I’m not sure they nailed the accents.

A lot of mythological characters and creatures are name dropped but I didn’t feel the author always told me enough about each one: I was not overly familiar with all of them and didn’t want to stop and get taken out of the story to look them up. Since I wasn’t always sure who (or what) everyone was, I wasn’t quite sure what was going on all the time, but this worked in this short novella format. I was just interested enough to keep going, but might’ve abandoned a longer novel if the confusion continued. Saying that, the Slavic mythology was interesting enough that I would've enjoyed the story more if it was longer with more descriptive world building and deeper characterization. The ending was a bit confusing to me - or rather I thought it didn’t quite fit the tone of the rest of the story. I did listen to an Arc though, so maybe they'll swap the last two chapters before going to print, as in my mind that would fix the tone shift and make the ending more satisfying. Still, this was interesting and worth picking up.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Gorgeous.

This is the one-word review from someone who doesn't usually do urban fantasy. I know very little Slavic folklore, but that didn't matter. Veronica Roth introduced the character types so well that I'm encouraged to learn more. For the unaware, Chicago has a very large Polish population, so setting the story in Chicago was due to more than just the fact Veronica Roth lives there. Or, maybe it's the other way around: maybe she picked Polish folklore because of Chicago's large Polish population and she wanted something fresher than Celtic mythology. (I'm of Irish descent and I have absolutely no problem typing that line. Celtic mythology abounds in the United States. Heck, we've even got our own breakfast cereal!)

When Among Crows is a novella, almost too short. It could've easily been twice the length and I still would've craved more of Dymitr, Ala, and Niko. Veronica Roth accomplished exactly what she needed to, with not a word wasted. I didn't realize until the very end how the story would fold back upon itself. I'm left with an emptiness inside having left their world.

I would like to thank Macmillan Audio for allowing me to experience this NetGalley audiobook.

When i saw this was Veronica Roth i Jumped Both Feet in.... I loved the Divergent series....

There was a Lot of Russian/Slavic folklore without too much of an explanation to us newbies to the Lore Still the story was told in a clever way and was simple so it was Enjoyable for a short read.

The narrators was brilliant the cadences in the accent were superb.

Just couldn’t get into this disjointed, hard to follow mishmash of mythology.hiding as urban fantasy. I have loved other Veronica Roth books, but this one left me flat. Perhaps it was the audiobook versus actually reading it, but I found it difficult to follow and had to trudge through it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for sending me an early copy of this audiobook! All opinions are my own!

What an amazing study of the character and the things we do to grab hold of our humanity. I wasn't ready for so much depth and thinking, but this novella was a wonderful ride from start to finish. I absolutely adored the way that these characters developed and the twists that they endured. It was such a beautiful story of humanity, love, and the lengths we will go to just to feel.

If you're looking for a quick fairytale to have you thinking about life, look no further!

3.75 stars First off thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this audio ARC. I enjoyed the dual narrative and they kept me engaged in the story throughout. This was different from her other stories I've read and it was a short read which was nice. I enjoyed the plot and thought the characters involved were well developed and. This book has magic, different supernatural beings, a quest, curses. A few parts had my skin crawling because of the visual the narrator portrayed. I would recommend it if any of that is to your liking. Check it out when it becomes available.