Genoveva Dimova’s The Witch’s Compendium of Monsters continues in Monstrous Nights, the second book (second half?) of the story begun in Foul Days. Kosara, the whose bold actions in Foul Days must contend with the fallout from what she did. What is that, you may ask? In Foul Days Kosara found herself stripped of her shadows, the fuel for her magic. To remedy that, she took into herself the shadows of 12 witches to power her magic. She and her investigator “friend” Asen banished her ex-husband, the Tsar of Monsters, aka the Zmey into the wall that separates two magical lands, Chernograd and Belograd. It turns out there are ramifications, not the least of which is that the standard “12 nights of monsters” (a.k.a. the Foul Days) is continuing, as monsters roam the streets of Kosara’s Chernograd. Monstrous Nights picks up about a half a year after Foul Days with Asen back in Belograd and Kosar in Chernograd.
With her magic reclaimed and her role in the community of Chernograd restored, Kosara’s life should finally be back to normal―but, of course, things can’t possibly be that simple.
She is now in possession of twelve witch’s shadows. Holding them may grant her unprecedented power, but that doesn’t mean they’re always willing to do her bidding.
Across the wall in Belograd, Asen chases his only lead on the latest witch murder case. He follows the trail of smuggling kingpin Konstantin Karaivanov to an underground monster auction―which leads him right back to Chernograd.
There, sinister events follow one after another: snow falls in midsummer, a witch with two shadows is found dead, and monsters that should only appear during the Foul Days are sighted. The barrier between worlds thins… and Kosara is certain it’s her fault―and her job to fix.
Meanwhile on the other side of the wall in Belograd, Kosara’s one-time romantic interest Asen is looking into some horrific witch murders tied to a crime lord. These murders begin to happen on the Chernograd (Kosara’s) side of the wall, which leads to a rather uneasy reunion between the two.
Power comes with baggage and when the source of power are the shadowed remains of witches who were once the wife-victims of the Zmey. He wasn’t a particularly good being, while attractive and charismatic, he was abusive in many ways. Those evil reverberations are felt by Kosara in the shadowy remains that power her. The way in which Dimova portrays Kosara’s use of this shadow magic is fascinating and fairly inventive. Although the body of the Zmey may be lodged in the Wall separating Chernograd and Belograd, Kosara can’t fully escape the Tsar of Monsters. She hears his whispers, taunting her, teasing her…haunting her.
As Asen becomes a more integral character, and not just a supporting character, Dimova gives readers a peek into him, as some of the chapters are told from his point of view. It is an interesting widening of the scope and helps to build some more empathy for the downtrodden investigator. Asen has his own story-arc in the novel separate from Kosara while also intersecting with her story arc, particularly as the novel builds to a conclusion. The storyline that gets him into this story, investigating the grisly murders of witches, has personal connections. The killer is a crime boss who is also responsible for the death of Asen’s wife. So yeah, our investigator has a very, very personal stake in apprehending the killer.
Dimova also does a very nice job with the romance between Kosara and Asen. There’s enough of the “will-they-won’t-they” without wearing out that trope. The characters are definitely strong enough on their own, there are real hurdles they’ll need to overcome and whether or not they do is played out quite nicely.
Just as in its predecessor, Dimova injects an ample dose of Slavic mythology into this milieu, I appreciated the addition of a werewolves (a.k.a. Varkolak) as an integral element of the story. There’s a werewolf book club! The depth of the witches mythology is explored in more detail as well. Like the best writers plying their trade in the fantastical genres, Dimova weaves the backstory of her world seamlessly into the plot of the story, truly making the world a character unto itself.
The Witch’s Compendium of Monsters is a richly detailed, wonderfully plotted story, with very likeable and empathetic characters. The two books are short enough that you reading them back-to-back won’t set you back in time too much. While the first one does have a definite ending, what Genoveva Dimova is able to do is tell a story of what happens after the big bad is defeated, while also bringing some unique additions to what she laid out in the first novel.
A fun, enjoyable world whose story pulls you in quite tightly.
Recommended.
© 2024 Rob H. Bedford
Tor Books | Trade Paperback
October 2024 | 352 Pages
https://genovevadimova.com/ | Twitter: @gen_dimova
Excerpt: https://reactormag.com/excerpts-monstrous-nights-by-genoveva-dimova/
Review copy courtesy of the publisher
