When Among Crows is a short 176-page/4h37m novella. It's a dark urban fantasy with Slavic/Polish folklore. Based in a dystopian Chicago, we dive into a world with monsters, knights, and witches.

This was an ok read. I truly feel like this story deserved more pages to deliver a deeper understanding of the lore and characters. There wasn’t a lot of explanation on different names for the various creatures within the story, so having a general idea of Slavic folklore helps. I loved the darker, grittier vibes. Even in a short time, the atmosphere was rich and interesting. I like the characters and their individual stories, but I wished we’d get more from them to cultivate a better connection with them. At times, the story was a little confusing on which character was doing what action, which typically isn’t something I have issues with when reading via audiobook. The three narrations were a nice edition, and they were all enjoyable.

Overall, if you are looking for a quick read with Slavic mythology based in Chicago, give this a try!

I knew nothing about this book going in. I’ve been trying to get back to reading fantasy and this novella was a great dive into some urban fantasy. It was so interesting and filled with Slavic folklore based in the city of Chicago.

There were definitely some deeper commentary taking place throughout this short read following three characters that are each dealing with their own struggles. We get multiple POV from these characters on their journey that is layered with found family elements as well as the a story of identify and redemption.

This novella completely surprised me, but I do wish it was longer because I wanted more of a backstory of the “monsters” and this world that Roth created. We got snippets throughout the story, but it is just so complex and so many things happening that I was left craving more!

I listened to this on audio and I enjoyed the audio a ton! I usually struggle with fantasy audiobooks but this was so easy to follow along with. The narrators were fantastic and I loved the accents! I highly recommend listening to this one as an audiobook!

I love Veronica Roth, so when I first started this book and wasn't drawn into it I was a little disappointed. However. BECAUSE I love Veronica Roth I kept reading it anyway and ended up falling in love with the world and the characters so much that I really wished this was going to be a series.

I read it on audio and the narrators absolutely did justice to the characters and world. Sometimes when there are multiple narrators the story doesn't feel as cohesive, not so here! I don't know if they interacted or collaborated in person but they definitely had great chemistry!

Fairytales reimagined and mystical characters reimagined are kind of my favorite things in books and there's a little of both of that in here. The magic system is very interesting, sort of a take on vampires but not exactly? I don't want to spoil it because truly if you like any of these things (Veronica Roth, Fairytales, supernatural beings) you should give it a shot. If it starts out a little iffy I promise you it's worth pushing through. The characters have depth and the plot is interesting, and an old fairytale favorite makes a story shattering appearance and it wraps up pretty nicely; though I am still holding out hope for a series...

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for a review copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you so much @macmillian.audio for the early listening copy of When Among Crows!
This is out today and if you like fantasy and folklore, this is right up your alley!
I have always loved Veronica Roth’s books. The Divergent Series is one of my favorites so when I saw this was coming out I really wanted to give it a whirl.

Slavic mythology and folklore is a bit over my head so it took me a little while to understand what was happening but I really found myself looking forward to listening.

This is a multicast narrated novella so it's a shorter audio at a little under 5 hours. I don’t know about you but I am constantly on the go so I loved that I could listen to this one in two days. I also really loved the chicago setting and the characters. Roth beautifully describes their feelings and thoughts and I found myself feeling like I was right there with them. There are themes of found family, identity and redemption.

An amazing book and amazing audiobook!!
The narrators were fantastic and have great accents.
I love the plot and story of this novella and want a whole book or series with the characters. Loved ever second of it!!

⭐⭐⭐.5
🌶️

Dymitr is a monster hunter and needs Ala's help finding the elusive Baba Jaga. Ala is cursed and Dymitr may have the only cure to finally rid her of that curse.

So, both needing something from another, they set off on their unlikely adventure.

In this Eastern European inspired novella, the voice acting was great and I really enjoyed it.

✨ Magic 💫
✨ Monsters
✨ LGBTQ+ rep 🌈
✨ Shifters
✨ Multiple POVs

There was a little bit of a romance in the story, but I felt as though it was a bit of an afterthought. The stakes of the story could have been upped if it was involved a little more.

* Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my eARC in exchange for my honest review *

"When among crows, you must caw as they do."

Wow! There was so much I liked about When Among Crows. The gritty Chicago noir setting. The engrossing Slavic folklore. The fascinating characters. The politics and themes. Oh, the themes!!! The thing is, I don't want to give too much away, not even a synopsis. I think going blind is an absolute must.

What Roth manages to do in just 176 pages is astounding. From page one, she builds an incredibly atmospheric world - filled with magic, lore, and characters I care about. That is no easy feat in a novella. Yet, like with many novellas, I wanted more. Imagining what Roth could have done with these characters, including the budding romance and the found family, makes me long for more pages.

Roth's Pinterest Board has an incredible board for this book. The vibes are everything. I highly recommend checking it out.

I did this via audio, and the narrators did an incredible job.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

There was a lot packed into this novella! I included the synopsis on the next slide, but I recommend going into this one without reading it for maximum impact. I did not know much about Slavic folklore before reading this, but the author does such a fantastic job of immersive world building which is honestly impressive within the confines of a novella. I loved the juxtaposition of modern day Chicago with the old magic lurking in the shadows. A note on the audio: the audiobook was very entertaining with multicast narration. Definitely a fantastic way to experience this novella.

Read this if you like:
🐦‍⬛ urban fantasy
🐦‍⬛ Slavic folklore
🐦‍⬛ action packed
🐦‍⬛ character development

*Thank you to Tor and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review and to Macmillan Audio for a gifted ALC*

An urban fantasy based on eastern European folktales? Yum. I was really enjoying this book until the midpoint - a nuanced monster society? A freaking FIGHT CLUB? Yeah, super fun! Then things started to drag a bit when we really began our hunt for Baba Yaga (despite my excitement over Baba Yaga being in a book). More than that, the audiobook played chapter 10 twice for no discernible reason. It was super weird and really detracted from the tension. And maybe it's because I'm not used to reading novellas, but all of a sudden it was OVER. Like the ending hit and that was it!? AGH. I really loved half of it, kinda meh about the other half, but it averaged out.

I was provided and ALC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

This is told from three different perspectives, by three different narrators. That was a nice touch from the audio perspective as each of the characters is very different and plays a unique role in this fantasy novella. I always appreciate a multicast narration when there are multiple perspectives. I enjoyed each of the narrators and how they brought this little book alive.

This book isn't very long, the audiobook was about 4 and a half hours long, but it kept me engaged the entire time and told a full story. We follow along with three characters Dymitr, Ala, and Niko as they try to find the Baba Jaga to break a curse. This is filled with Slavic/Polish myths, lore, and magic, while being set a modern Chicago. Each one of our characters has secrets and trauma they have to sort through before the curse can be broken. They face monsters and creatures from the mythology that are well described so that the reader or listener can picture them. Our trio must quickly come to terms with their individual pain, fear, guilt, and mistrust of one another before the curse can be broken. They have to work together to unravel the puzzles placed before them before the Baba Jaga will grant them an audience and solve the riddles of the curse as well and find their own salvation

This is a fast paced, quick read. I didn't want to put it down, I always wanted to know what came next. I love anything steeped in myth and lore and this is no exception. I'm not well versed in Slavic lore, but Roth does a great job using the lore as allegory for other topics.

The novella, When Among Crows by Veronica Roth, combines Slavic folk tales with a modern day Chicago hiding a war between monsters and monster hunters and in a fairly small space, Roth has created a well realized world, one that grabbed my attention from the beginning and kept it until the end. The characters are mostly likeable and with enough backstory and diverse personalities to make the reader care about them. If I have any criticism of this tale, it would be that I wished there was more so that I could spend more time in this world with these characters but, overall, I can say I enjoyed this novella very much. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Helen Lazur, James Fouhey, and James Campbell who all did an excellent job of bringing the world and its occupants to life.

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review

I did enjoyed this audiobook. Not as much as some of Veronica Roth's other work. This was a shorter story and the different narration was okay to me. Thank you netgalley!

If the stunning cover art wasn't enough to pull me in, the combo of Slavic folklore and urban Chicago sealed the deal. Veronica Roth blends the two worlds beautifully in When Among Crows, allowing the reader to believe that there are fear feeding demons and the hunters sent to slay them walking amongst us.

Being novella length, the author runs the risk of losing the emotion connection the reader has to the characters or skimming over details too quickly. This was surprisingly not an issue for When Among Crows. I cared about the characters while reading. I could empathize with the pain of when your personal values conflict with the job you have to do. Roth also was detailed enough to help the reader understand the folklore they may not be familiar with.

I was excited to read When Among Crows as an audio-ARC, as it's become my favorite & most efficient way of reading lately. The novella is written in multiple POVs and has a separate voice actor portray each. For the majority of the novella, this was great. Our main character, Dymitr, had a Polish accent as he arrived in Chicago from Poland. Ala is an American born young woman, and her voice matched. During Dymitr and Ala's POVs, when Nico would speak, both voice actors gave him a Polish accent. The problem is that during Nico's POV chapters, the voice actor spoke with an American accent. It actually threw me while reading, completely removing me from my suspension of disbelief. I actually rewound the audio to confirm Nico had a Polish accent in Ala's chapters. This was a major miss for me and I wish it could be changed.

Thank you NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for giving me the opportunity to read/listen and review this ARC!

This one didn't really get my attention like I wanted it to.. I was a huge fan of the Divergent series in school. I didn't notice it was a novella until it ended.. I did like the story, i just wasn't SUPER interested. I might try a reread later.

Publisher's summary
We bear the sword, and we bear the pain of the sword.
Pain is Dymitr’s calling. His family is one in a long line of hunters who sacrifice their souls to slay monsters. Now, he’s tasked with a deadly mission: find the legendary witch Baba Jaga. To reach her, Dymitr must ally with the ones he’s sworn to kill.
Pain is Ala’s inheritance. A fear-eating zmora with little left to lose, Ala awaits death from the curse she carries. When Dymitr offers her a cure in exchange for her help, she has no choice but to agree.
Together they must fight against time and the wrath of the Chicago underworld. But Dymitr’s secrets—and his true motives—may be the thing that actually destroys them.

Thanks to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for the ARC of this book.

When Among Crows
By: Veronica Roth
Narrated by: Helen Laser, James Fouhey, Tim Campbell
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Release date: 05-14-24

I enjoyed this audiobook. Not as much as some of Veronica Roth's other work. But the short story set with characters we are familiar with, but in new light is an all around good listen. The narrators do a great job telling the story.

Thank you to Macmillan audio for providing me with an alc to honestly review.

I dnfed 16% in.

I couldn't get into the story and that plus me not connecting with the narrators and also the accents feeling inconsistent and distracting in how they were used in the story made me accept defeat. I think this would be better as an actual book/ebook for me as it was mainly a narrator issue that caused me to stop listening to this book.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the review copy, my opinions are my own.

This novella is a fantastic story about a monster hunter and a cursed “monster” on a quest to break a curse and find Baba Jaga in the streets of Chicago. The narration is amazing, with the three narrators bringing Ala, Dymitr, and Niko to life. The narration makes it easier to understand the various pronunciations for the Polish sprinkled in the book as well as the names of the mythological beings. I read along with the narration. I really enjoyed the narration but I can see that it may be hard to listen to if the reader is not all that familiar with eastern European myths.

Read it if you enjoy:
Old world magic
Enemies working together
Secrets
Curses
Mythological beings from all over the world
Queer characters

I loved this novella and was entranced by the story telling, reminded me of the Russian and Polish fairytales I read and heard growing up, a lot darker than the Disney tales that were so sanitized as to not even remotely resemble their origins. This story involves guilt, fear, sorrow, and regret.

Highly recommend!!!

I would like to thank NetGalley for giving me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review.

A trend I'm absolutely loving in books lately is the use of Polish folklore. When Among Crows takes Slavic folklore and creates something modern and wonderful that I couldn't put down.

We follow a trio of characters in Chicago as they search for a way to break a curse. At least, that's how it starts. It's fast paced, I breezed through it in a single morning, but as much as I loved it, there's not much action. We get more of the characters internal struggles vs action, however the action that's there is amazing.

The three narrators for the audiobook do a fantastic job bringing everyone to life. Fantastic performance.

I am extremely obsessed! This is an urban fantasy with Slavic mythology, set in Chicago. It's a novella, and I really wish it was longer because I want to be in this world forever! It's a story about an unlikely group on a quest to destroy a monster, but they all have their own paths and conflicts to overcome. The pacing of this story was done so well, and it packed a punch.

The worldbuilding was amazing. It was atmospheric, and you could feel the vibes. There were monsters among them. It's a world hidden in plain sight. We get lgbtq rep! It's dark, paranormal, and a magically beautiful story.

I had the pleasure of listening to this on audio, and it was perfection. It was a multicast narration. They did an amazing job making the characters believable and come to life. I will for sure be listening to this again!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this audiobook of When Among Crows by Veronica Roth and narrated by Helen Laser, James Fouhey, Tim Campbell. I think this novella is a wonderful blend of urban fantasy and of Slavic folklore!

This is such an engaging story, especially considering it's short length. I think it's a masterclass of pacing! My attention never wavered. It's a really good story with an enjoyable quest. I'm really impressed by how well developed the characters were for a novella. I had doubted there was enough time to make me care, but I was wrong to worry. When Among Crows absolutely delivered!

I appreciate that each of the three POVs has it's own narrator, and I appreciate even more how talented these narrators are! The novella is well-written for sure, but I love how well-performed this audiobook is! I felt very immersed in the story & the world, and I attribute that most strongly to how the narrators could bring the characters to life for me. What was almost 4 and a half hours of an audiobook absolutely flew by! I will say in the very beginning I had to take a second to get my bearings. I thought then that I'd prefer to read the text version of this book. That might have helped me follow along at first, however the audiobook is such brilliant performance that I think a reader only experiencing this story as the written word would be missing out!