Immersed in Finnish folklore this is the story of two strong women, Aina and Siiri . They have grown up together and are connected by a love that is deeper than friendship. Aina is kidnapped and taken to the Finnish underworld, Tuonela by a death God. Siiri cannot save her but vows to travel there to rescue her. She embarks on a journey to find a legendary shaman that exposes her to dangers and unknown forces that are of legend. The story alternates between the characters stories as they desperately try to fight their way back to each other.

I really liked this story. It was full of action, drama and an unexpected romance that I felt was very compelling but left me a little confused to be honest. It didn't ruin the story but it did leave me questioning where the story was headed. Maybe I will get a better understanding in the next book. The Finnish folklore was so interesting, I loved it. The narration lacked emotion at times and felt a little off. This is probably a better read although I love knowing how to pronounce the Finnish words!!

Overall a solid story with some great characters. I am looking forward to the next book!!

3.5 ⭐️

This was so disappointing to me. It's advertised as sapphic, you don't get a glimpse of that until 65%. And as a feminist story, but it's really not. At all

This was a dual POV take on a Finnish fairy tale about two women who leave home with degrees of unwillingness, both to save the other.

Great audio narration.

I was so excited when I heard this book was based on Finnish folklore, and really enjoyed the different gods and goddesses. However the story itself fell flat for me. The audio was done well and it was easy to distinguish between the two narrators but I still found myself losing interest.

I was extremely excited to receive this audiobook. I love Emily Rath's hockey romance series, and I also love complex fantasy books. She's *multifaceted*. So I was pumped for a sapphic Fennish fantasy romance. Unfortunately I didn't feel like I got the romance I was looking for. I did get complex world building and good narrators (honestly, very glad I was listening to this, because I would have had no idea how to pronounce some of these character names). I felt the plot was a little chaotic, and I didn't feel like Aina and Siiri were long lost lovers, just best friends who were separated. Mid-story I was actually a bit excited for the relationship between Aina and the death god, but that was abrupt and not as emotionally developed as I would have liked. Maybe because they won't be end game? But even at the end of book 1 I wasn't feeling the romantic connection between Aina and Siiri, either. I'm not quite sure where this one is going to go. I really liked certain aspects of the book (Aina, the death god, the evil witches and their games, etc.), and I found myself bored with others (Siiri's story, the hasty ending, and the "romances"). I feel like many people that the marketing of this book as a sapphic romance is a little off. Overall I'd say this was a fine story with a good audiobook. I'm interested to see where book 2 goes.

Thank you Emily Rath, NetGalley, and RBMedia for this advanced listening copy.

I enjoyed this audiobook and following the gripping journey of Siiri and Aina, childhood best friends whose bond is tested when Aina is kidnapped. Determined to save her, Siiri embarks on a perilous adventure that takes her deep into the Finnish underworld. The world building is richly detailed, though the intricate mythology can occasionally feel overwhelming. Despite this, Siiri and Aina are relatable and compelling characters. The narrators, Khaya Fraites and Emily Lawrence, deliver outstanding performances, bringing every moment of emotion and tension to life. If you're a fan of mythology and strong, fearless heroines, definitely give this one a listen.

While some aspects of the story were interesting for me, like the lore surrounding the gods and the settings overall. Something that didn't sit well with me was the way women were depicted in the book while it seems to also want to be feminist in nature. Having the antagonists be women seems a little counterintuitive for a book like this, but also those antagonists were felt like reading villain stereotypes. I am curious how Rath plans to move forward with the relationship between our main characters in the next book, and I think this book would appeal to some readers. I especially think the narrator of the audiobook made the experience more enjoyable.

Thank you netgalley for the ARC audiobook.

I found this book super intriguing. Loved the Finnish mythology. The audiobook was well done and had great pacing, but I struggled to stay engaged. There were parts I liked a lot, and other parts I felt bored.

I really liked the characters overall, but I felt like it jumped around a little too much to truly hold my focus. I didn’t feel it had the sapphic aspects I was expecting, and I felt like I wasn’t rooting for Aina to be saved.

Otherwise I think I had potential, but needs a little more focus.

If you came here for the sapphic romance you will get a big dose of fantasy first. But this is book one in a fantasy series, so we all know that good things come to those who wait. I trust Emily to deliver for me.

There is no doubt that Siiri and Aina care deeply about each other. Their journey back to each other totally kept me so invested. I love the forest and the world the author weaves. I am looking forward to more in this series. It’s a thick book but the audiobook flew by, there is so much happening.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author Emily Rath for the advanced listening copy, all my opinions are my own.

It's not often that I select a book based primarily on the cover, but North Is the Night by Emily Rath has a cover that is beyond beautiful, it is truly stunning. I am finding that I enjoy fantasy novels more than I realized, and this one is no exception. Based on Finnish folklore, I found the story fascinating, and was completely under the spell of Tuonela as I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Khaya Fraites and Emily Lawrence. Though I enjoyed the audio version, I am looking forward to a reread of the print version, as I am certain I will enjoy and understand the story more with repetition.

The story is billed as a sapphic romantasy, and while the two female protaganists do share a close bond, the romance between them was not well developed and played out more as female best friends with a sisterly bond. With the exception of a somewhat vaguely described scene between the death god and one of the girls, the novel had a very YA feel to it, and I found myself checking whether it was categorized as YA. I did enjoy the strength and intelligence of both Siiri and Aina as they independently strove to survive and save their own and other young women's lives.

The audiobook is voiced by two women, with the story told in alternating perspectives of Siiri and Aina. The narrator's voices are quite similar, and the non-distinct characters was a little confusing at times. Fortunately, the characters frequently referenced their friend or others in their world which helped ground the reader.

I am looking forward to reading the next book in the Tuonela duology. Thank you to Netgalley and RB Media for the audio copy of North is the Night by Emily Rath. The opinions in this review are my own.

This book is, unfortunately, not for me. I really struggled with the audiobook due to, to me, a lack of differentiation in the narrators characters. I ended up reading the e-arc alongside the audiobook to try and help but I got to 40% and I’m just not invested in anything of the characters. Due to not finishing the book, I will not be publicly rating it as I think it is unfair to the author. A book not being for me personally doesn’t make it a bad book! Thank you for the arc and audio!

I was so excited to receive this as an audiobook ARC! I will say I did really enjoy the Finnish folklore aspects of the story and the adventure that Siiri and Aina embark on was also well told. My issue is that this was marketed as being sapphic and I'm not entirely sure why? Siiri and Aina seem like best friends or perhaps even sisters. At some points their personalities and traits merged together and I'd have to rewind to remember who's POV I was listening to. I felt like this book could have been SO much more, but just fell flat. I do not believe Rath has written fantasy/romantasy before this and it was relatively clear it was a first foray into this genre. Again, many parts of the story were gripping and had me on the edge of my seat, but overall the story and the sapphic elements were just lacking. I do hope to see more fantasy from Rath as I do think with more time and practice, she could produce some incredible romantasy books! All in all, it was a decent book. I'm on the fence about if I would recommend it to others or not. If I did, it would not be as a sapphic romantasy based in Finnish folklore, but just a fantasy story based in Finnish folklore.

An action packed fantasy adventure!

Overall: 5
Spice: 3
Narration: 5

Siiri & Aina are two young women in the Finnish wilderness, focused on their future, but also aware of the dangers facing their people and young women in particular. When Aina is taken by a death goddess while Siiri watches, Siiri vows to find Aina in Tuonela the mythical underworld. While Siiri goes on her quest, Aina is finding her own strengths by fighting to stay alive in Tuonela. Can these two find their way back to one another?

My catalog of fantasy I've read is not large, but I know I love Emily Rath, so was excited to jump into this story. After finding A Court of Thorns and Roses a bit dull, this one was definitely full of action. The story was interesting and had me pulled in immediately and I was able to follow along with the world building easily. I enjoyed knowing the story was based in Finnish folklore and wanted to learn more. The narrators were very well casted and added energy to the story. I was impressed with their easy handling of so many Finnish names. I'm looking forward to continuing to follow Siiri and Aina's adventure in book 2. Highly recommend for fantasy/mythical fans.

4.5⭐️ I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one as I’ve only read Emily’s Jacksonville Rays series, but this was a stellar sapphic romantic fantasy. I enjoyed the narration and assistance in pronunciations, as this book was heavy with Finnish lore and mythology and I loved it! Looking forward to what comes next. Thank you so much for this ALC opportunity, was a great listen!

I enjoyed the narrator of this book and i absolutely cannot wait to see where this series goes next!!

First of all, I want to thank Netgalley for getting this book as an Advanced Listening Copy.

So I really had to take some time to think about reviewing this book.
And it´s a really good thing I got to listen to the audiobook, because I can´t pronounce a lot of the names mentioned in this book. This book is about Finnish mythology, which I´ve never really looked into before, so this was a nice introduction to it. From what I understand, a part of the author´s roots are Finnish, and she wrote this story based on the tales told by her grandmother.
This book is a dual POV story of two girls named Siiri and Aina. They grew up together and are best friends. However, quite soon in the book I do get a hint of Siiri having more feelings towards Aina than just friendship. This made me believe that this would be a sapphic book, but fair warning, it isn´t. Later in the book there´s also a MF spicy scene, so you don´t like or want to read that, I´d not recommend this book. At the beginning of the book, you learn that young women are kidnapped from villages. And unfortunately also Aina is taken captive, Siiri of course wants to save her friend and the great adventure begins…

I think the way of writing of the story is just fine, but because of all the Finnish names and lore, it was a bit hard for me to really get into the book. I think the main character are written well, I find it easy to put myself in their shoes and understand their actions throughout the book. The world building is written very extensive, so I could visualize everything in my mind really good. I love how both girls are heroic, brave and will head first go on with their challenges. Next to Finnish mythology, I like how the book also mentions the hardships the Finnish people endure whilst the Swedes enter their country and trying to force Christianity upon the people. However that topic will probably be more active in the next book. As this book is really more about events happening in the Finnish underworld. Now I don´t want to spoil much, but a lot of events happen there that will change everything for both girls.

My rating: 3.25 stars

This book contains:
- Finnish mythology
- Prophecy
- Forced Proximity
- Found family
- Heroic FMC’s

Favourite quotes:
“You would be a queen worthy of a crown”
“My goddess, my queen, I am at your mercy”
“Who am I to doubt the word of a mortal girl who claims to see goddesses and thinks a magic bear is her guide on a quest to track down a dead shaman?”
“In all my years of undying, I have never felt the warmth of the sun on my face… until you looked at me”

This book was just not for me. I was hoping for a little more romance and excitement but I felt like the story took awhile to pick up. I was also excited for it to be based on a mythology I do not always see but I think the expectation ended up higher than the reality. The relationship was never flushed out and more telling of the feelings than experiencing them. Overall just not for me

I hesitated to read or listen to this story. If you read the Pucking Around series, you would understand. I really enjoyed the story. It was a fun fantasy adventure. The two narrators did well. I did not find myself bored or falling asleep. The strange part was that there was only one sex scene. I know, right?!? I don't understand the love triangle. I understand the author is pro why choose, but I don't get it. One MFC says she loves the MMC, but her soul belongs to the other MFC.

I received the audiobook for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was my first book by Emily Rath. I know she's more well known for her hockey romance series, but this book had an interesting premise so I wanted to give it a try. I'm so glad I did. It definitely leans more heavily into fantasy than romance, but that didn't bother me. I liked falling into a new world with unfamiliar folklore. Admittedly, I don't know much, if anything, about Finnish folklore, but I was curious and wanted to check it out an I'm so glad that I did. It reminds me a lot of other folklore and mythologies that I have read about before (primarily referring to Greek Mythology and Hades/ Persephone retellings), and I found that it made it easier for me to follow and get invested in the story.

I really enjoyed the lessons in this story, and the innate desire to stay true to yourself - whether it was Siiri and her quest to rekindle her and her people's connection to their old gods or Aina's journey to return to a place where she could reunite her soul with it's true home and be the woman she truly had become.

I think overall, I preferred Siiri's storyline, and I felt like her character developed more fully than Aina, but I liked Aina's actual character better. I flip flopped a lot while reading to this book. Both characters have flaws (as we all do),but despite their flaws, I enjoyed the story.

I'm definitely interested where this story is headed, and I will definitely be reading the next book when it comes out!

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC for early review.. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.

DNF @21%. I don't normally pick books like this up but it looked so pretty--- however, I should have gone with my instincts. This is not the type of title I enjoy reading as it is very heavy handed and in-your-face about the criticisms it is trying to lay and I was very bored. Christianity invading, bad. Religious zealots, bad. Sexist men, bad. Trusting the gods, bad. Colonizers, bad. I felt like there was basically no world building or magic system to actually support this as a fantasy story, instead relying on the folklore and culture of the Finnish people (and apparently doing so quite badly since I continued to hear people criticize the audiobook's pronunciation). I don't know anything about Rath as a person but I feel like this wasn't really the kind of slam dunk deep criticism that she wanted it to be. It's surface level morality and very black and white and I'm disappointed.