Book: The Song of the Sirin - Raven Son - Book One by Nicholas Kotar

categories: Book, Fantasy World, High Fantasy, Fairytale, Russian Fairytale, Fantasy for Adults, Fantasy Architecture, Fairy Tale Retellings, Clean Fantasy, Epic Fantasy

Nicholas Kotar

about this book: Russian fairy tales are a fascinating blend of the beautiful, the macabre, and the bizarre. If you read them, you'll encounter fantastical creatures like firebirds, dragons with many heads, shape-shifters, paradise birds with the heads of beautiful women and the bodies of eagles, hags with dubious loyalties, and nature spirits that sometimes help the hero, but sometimes want to eat them alive.

But underneath all the arresting strangeness, there's a well of profound and even spiritual meaning that makes these stories worth returning to again and again. In fact, they are indispensable for those of us who have lost our ability to see and appreciate the beautiful and transcendent in life.

I take these fairy tale settings and tropes as inspiration for new explorations of both epic and intimate battles of good against evil. The authors that inspire me the most are J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, George MacDonald, Gene Wolfe, N. K. Jemisin, and Catherynne M. Valente.

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Here are some things my readers have said about me on Amazon and Goodreads:

• "Nicholas Kotar's writing has the elegance, lyricism, and attention to detail that all fantasy readers eagerly hope for."

• "... a delightful mix of song and myth that keeps the reader spellbound. With all the vivid descriptions, a reader can't help but wonder what Vasyllia truly looks like."

• "Nicholas Kotar's debut novel has the enviable quality of becoming increasingly difficult to put down as one reaches all the way to the last page."

• "For those who enjoy fantasy and the richness of Russian fable, this is a well-written gem. Three cheers for a brilliant debut novel."