The Witch and the Tsar

By: Olesya Salnikova Gilmore

Narrated by: Katia Kapustin, Olesya Salnikova Gilmore

"A delicate weaving of myth and history, The Witch and the Tsar breathes new life into stories you think you know."–Hannah Whitten, New York Times bestselling author of For the Wolf

In this stunning debut novel, the maligned and immortal witch of legend known as Baba Yaga will risk all to save her country and her people from Tsar Ivan the Terrible—and the dangerous gods who seek to drive the twisted hearts of men.

As a half-goddess possessing magic, Yaga is used to living on her own, her prior entanglements with mortals having led to heartbreak. She mostly keeps to her hut in the woods, where those in need of healing seek her out, even as they spread rumors about her supposed cruelty and wicked spells. But when her old friend Anastasia—now the wife of the tsar, and suffering from a mysterious illness—arrives in her forest desperate for her protection, Yaga realizes the fate of all of Russia is tied to Anastasia’s. Yaga must step out of the shadows to protect the land she loves.

As she travels to Moscow, Yaga witnesses a sixteenth century Russia on the brink of chaos. Tsar Ivan—soon to become Ivan the Terrible—grows more volatile and tyrannical by the day, and Yaga believes the tsaritsa is being poisoned by an unknown enemy. But what Yaga cannot know is that Ivan is being manipulated by powers far older and more fearsome than anyone can imagine.

Olesya Salnikova Gilmore weaves a rich tapestry of mythology and Russian history, reclaiming and reinventing the infamous Baba Yaga, and bringing to life a vibrant and tumultuous Russia, where old gods and new tyrants vie for power. This fierce and compelling novel draws from the timeless lore to create a heroine for the modern day, fighting to save her country and those she loves from oppression while also finding her true purpose as a goddess, a witch, and a woman.

* This audiobook includes a downloadable PDF of the glossary and map from the book.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Olesya Salnikova Gilmore (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“An utterly enchanting, wholly immersive debut that deftly reimagines the legend of Baba Yaga. This one is unmissable.”—Alexis Henderson, Author of The Year of the Witching

“The Witch and the Tsar delivers high stakes, memorable characters, and a sixteenth-century Russia you can almost reach out and touch. Yaga’s tale is a story I never knew I needed.”–Genevieve Gornichec, National bestselling author of The Witch’s Heart

“A rich and vivid tapestry of old Russia in an age when Tsar Ivan the Terrible grappled not only with political foes but with the legendary witch Baba Yaga and her command of magic and pagan gods. An evocative journey into old Russian myth and history, and a poignant exploration of what it means to be both human and immortal.”–Margaret George, New York Times bestselling author of The Splendor Before the Dark

Beautiful ties between folklore and history

As someone wholly unfamiliar with both Russian history and Eastern folklore, I found the story to be a beautifully woven tale of both. I appreciated the balanced feminism in the development of characters, depicting the duality of both male and female characters. The narration was also really helpful in enunciation that would have been lost on me had I simply read this.

rRveting

This is my first audiobook ever and anything after this will have big shoes to fill! I love how fact and fiction, history and fantasy, were interwoven. The development and portrayal of the characters was expertly done; the political plots well layed out. I was so worried I would not be able to follow along and yet I was excited each day to pick up exactly where I left off! Well done in every aspect👍

No moment of excitement

Listening to the story it was difficult to keep track of who was who with so many complicated names, this would probably be easier for someone reading the book rather than listening though. A lot of the story focuses on a romantic journey which just had me cringing the whole time and didn’t interest me at all. I couldn’t really get invested in the lives of Yaga’s human friends either. Overall it just wasn’t for me

Great reimagining of a classic Slavic myth, Baba Yaga and the wild eastern gang!

Enjoyable first novel and interesting take on the old grandmother and her chicken hut. Solid mixing of real historical moments and myth. Amusingly hopeful. Definitely worth the read.

Very Good

My initial comment is about the narrator Katia Kapustin. Her speech is precise to the point of distraction. The diction should not feel so forced. It is unnerving and uncomfortable. I hope I can get past this feeling as it is taking away from my experience of the book rather than adding to it.

It did get better though it was still distracting.

I have a passable knowledge of Russian mythology and fairy tales. Even so the PDF was absolutely necessary. There were times I was still a bit lost and I might have benefit from reading the story along with the audiobook. Seeing the Russian names while hearing them would have helped. The story was rich and magnificent . I loved this aspect of Yaga.

Great story concept; narration jarring

Narraration went from soft and loving to sharp amd forceful very suddenly, often when it wasn'tcalled for in context. I couldn't finish it because of this but the story concept is lovely. I'm going to read the book.

A great mix of fantasy and history!

As someone who loves believing in the possibility of magic and also a person who enjoys history this book was wonderful. The Slavic gods brought to life along side actual historical events were so enjoyable. Yaga's character is a great story. Her strength and growth is so well written. Never did I feel like the characters acted unlike themselves. Bought the physical copy after listening to the autobook!

Delightfully Imaginative, powerful retelling twist

One can read The Witch and the Tsar for its delightfully imaginative powers in retelling Old Russia’s fabled mythology surrounding Baba Yaga, along with a slew of other well known larger-than-life’s deity types, and their beloved, interesting companions. One can read it for a simple tale of a woman finding her power and her own place in a man’s world. And that would be enjoyable enough, for it’s a fine tale and will keep you enraptured to the end.

But there’s far more to it. When reading the author’s note, you learn of what inspired the author and what she hoped to achieve. I think she did. This is one of those books that will only grow richer with rereading.

Besides the beautiful story and evocative world, there’s a rich additional layer of the only recently unleashed brewing power of the female goddess / half-goddess archetype (think Madeline Miller). What I love about The Witch and the Tsar is its evolution for these types of retellings.

Here, Baba Yaga is a woman, half-goddess, who’s been burned by gods and mortals alike, so she’s retreated and is simply doing what she does well in the dark of the forest. Soon though, she must answer the call for help from a dear friend, and she spends the rest of the novel trying to fulfill the ultimate goal of this particular quest, as Russia comes more and more under the grip of the increasingly mad Ivan the Terrible. No, she’s not the supposed hag, which familiar tale we’ve accepted from the mouths of men for far, too long. And she’s not embraced her power, hasn’t even had the chance to learn to do so, due to events beyond her control. But this story is where her powerlessness ends, and the crux of the novel finds its way into our hearts.

Gilmore managed to surprise and thrill me with her twist to Baba Yaga’s journey in fully finding her power. After all, we are quite used to the Disney type of heroine being without a mother and making her way. It’s not very often that we get to see a mythical heroine make a trip back to her own giver of life. And then, to also see that it’s her (our) humanity and femininity that saves her (and can save us) in the end. This twist caused me to sit up and look at this journey with different eyes.

I’m not very versed in Russian folklore and mythology, even while I count Russian authors among the greats who’ve influenced me and my reading/writing /thinking. At a time when the world seems very scary, I’m glad for my world to be enlarged with this greater understanding of old Russia and it’s colorful people, while my belief in the power of women (oh, if only we’d reach out and grab it!) is affirmed and delighted.

I read and listened. Loved the narration!

Well done.

Finally an authentic narrator!!

I loved this story, but what I loved even more was that this is the first book about/pertaining to Russia I’ve listened to where the narrator properly pronounced all the names and words!

Entertaining but I wish I had the hard copy

I loved it but I wish I had the hard copy so that I could flip back at the names and places. It can be hard to visualize all the places a bit.