By A.B. Poranek (author)
"Steeped in Slavic folklore, secrets and gothic romance, this spellbinding twist on Beauty and the Beast sees a girl make a deal with a demon in the deep, dark woods."
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March 2024 Debut of the Month
Inspired by the author’s love of Slavic mythology and childhood summers in the Polish countryside, Where the Dark Stands Still is an arresting feminist reimagining of Beauty and the Beast. The writing is beautiful — poetic and precise, delicate and mesmerising as a finely-spun web as it tells the story of a girl’s search for freedom from her past, and from her dangerous magic.
Amidst summer solstice celebrations, Liska leaves her village in search of the blooming fern flower that might just save her: “She knows what rumours the villagers whisper: that she is a witch, that she is as wicked as the magic harboured in the spirit wood”. If she finds the flower, she will ask it to grant her wish to be free from the magic that’s long cursed her, with the ultimate aim of proving to her villagers that “she is not dangerous”.
Moments into her quest, Liska encounters the Leszy demon and strikes up a bargain with him. She will spend a year in servitude in his crumbling gothic House Under the Rowan Tree before returning to her village, with her magic gone. But then comes unsettling knowledge — she’s not the first to have done this, and there are other demons to face, too.
Tingling with the tension of desire, secrets and a longing to feel at home, Where the Dark Stands Still possesses the power to make time stand still.
A sweeping gothic fairytale romance for fans of A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer and Gallant by V.E. Schwab.
Read the full description
Raised in a small village near the spirit-wood, Liska Radost knows that Magic is monstrous, and its practitioners, monsters. After Liska unleashes her own powers with devastating consequences, she is caught by the demon warden of the wood - the Leszy - who offers her a bargain: one year of servitude in exchange for a wish.
Whisked away to his crumbling manor, Liska makes an unsettling discovery. She is not the first person to strike this bargain. And if she wants to survive the year and return home, she must unravel her host's spool of secrets and face the ghosts of his past. Those who enter the wood do not always return . . .
Inspired by Polish folklore, slavic mythology and the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, comes a haunting and whimsical gothic romance that will enthral readers
'Where the Dark Stands Still is a triumph; a deeply romantic debut with spiralling, atmospheric prose that swept me up and away to the enchanted forests of Polish folklore. You'll never want to leave this beautiful, magical world'. Sarah Underwood, NYT Bestselling Author of Lies We Sing to the Sea
'An enchanting spell of a read, woven through with petal-soft romance and roots-deep self-acceptance. The dark, gothic fairytale of my dreams.' - Kika Hatzopoulou, Author of Sunday Times Bestseller Threads That Bind
'Prepare to be spellbound! This debut is such a beautifully crafted gothic romantic fantasy and one I’ll be remembering for a long time' - Early Reader Review
A. B. Poranek grew up in Canada but spent her summers in the Polish countryside, raiding her dziadek’s library and helping care for his chickens. Her love of animals led her to pursue a degree in veterinary medicine, though she never stopped writing along the way.
Her first novel, Where the Dark Stands Still , is an ode to Poland’s wild woodlands, wilder folktales, and the girls who were raised by them.
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The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Where the Dark Stands Still and determined it is suitable for children aged 13-18 years old
Where the Dark Stands Still features in the following genres: Debuts of the Month, Recommendations, Fantasy / Magical, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Featured Books for 13+ readers, Mystery / Mythology, Children’s / Teenage: General interest, Romance / Relationship Stories, Featured Books for Young Adults
Hardback. Not Available.
Where the Dark Stands Still was written by A.B. Poranek and published by Penguin Books Ltd an imprint of Penguin Random House Children's UK
Where the Dark Stands Still has 399 pages
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