Vassa in the Night

By: Sarah Porter

Narrated by: Madeleine Maby

In the enchanted kingdom of Brooklyn, the fashionable people put on cute shoes, go to parties in warehouses, drink on rooftops at sunset, and tell themselves they've arrived. A whole lot of Brooklyn is like that now - but not Vassa's working-class neighborhood. In Vassa's neighborhood, where she lives with her stepmother and bickering stepsisters, one might stumble onto magic, but stumbling out again could become an issue.

Babs Yagg, the owner of the local convenience store, has a policy of beheading shoplifters - and sometimes innocent shoppers as well. So when Vassa's stepsister sends her out for light bulbs in the middle of night, she knows it could easily become a suicide mission. But Vassa has a bit of luck hidden in her pocket, a gift from her dead mother. Erg is a tough-talking wooden doll with sticky fingers, a bottomless stomach, and a ferocious cunning. With Erg's help, Vassa just might be able to break the witch's curse and free her Brooklyn neighborhood. But Babs won't be playing fair.

Inspired by the Russian folktale Vassilissa the Beautiful and Sarah Porter's years of experience teaching creative writing to New York City students, Vassa in the Night weaves a dark yet hopeful tale about a young girl's search for home, love, and belonging.

©2016 Sarah Porter (P)2016 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"A dark, thoroughly modern fairy tale crackling with wit and magical mayhem." (Leigh Bardugo, New York Times best-selling author of the Grisha Trilogy)

"Narrator Madeleine Maby's performance never waivers throughout this audiobook for teens.... Maby maintains credibility and consistency throughout the many characters that populate the story, clearly distinguishing who or what creature is speaking. Especially well done are the two "lawyers," Picnic and Pangolin. Maby's renditions of these two make them pop to life so that listeners believe in their vitality. Despite the gore and horror of parts of the tale, one hears an underlying sadness steeped in hope that somehow Vassa, the heroine, can make it all right again. Maby's presentation succeeds in fueling that hope." ( AudioFile)

A Weird Whimsical Story

Before you decide to dive in this book I would strongly suggest that you read the original story first ( Vasilisa The Beautiful ) it will make much more sense if you know where the origin of the story comes from
This book was the weirdest book I've ever read in my life and it was so enjoyable story wise .. I was so hooked in the world of BY and Vassa and all the madness, the narrator did a decent job narrating the book but I wish if there was more energy in her performance .. overall it was a nice read and I recommend it to people who are into something weird .. don't miss this book :)

Vassa in the night

At some points the fantasy aspects of this book seemed too much, but when I got to almost the end, it all came together quite nicely. This book had good meaning and deep plot line. The theme was dark, but relevant. Overall, good read!

I loved this book

I read a lot of reviews about how weird this book is before I read it. I was prepared for it to be super weird, and it was! But once my suspended disbelief was in place, I loved the story and all its weirdness

not a favorite

Honestly the strangest story I have ever read. Hopefully my daughter will enjoy it where I didn't.

Blast of a modern retelling!

What did you like best about this story?

This was an absolute blast of a book! It had a very surreal American Gods sort of vibe, and I was surprised by just how well the Russian folk story Vasalisa the Beautiful translated into modern Brooklyn and creepy corner stores. Just really stunning, if pretty dark & gory in spots. Trigger warning for beheadings, I guess? I've already recced it to half a dozen people at this point. I will rec it to more, too ;) Definitely looking forward to more of Sarah Porter's books!

Would you listen to another book narrated by Madeleine Maby?

Sadly this very much had the "soprano trying to do guys' voices" issue I sometimes have - all of her male characters sounded like she was forcing them out & they were just harsh on the ear.

Better than a Dream+

I loved each part and line in this book. I would love to see a sequel. the characters and plot line are very captivating and almost immerse you into each world building scene.

The narrator is amazing to simply say.