Back in 2015, I participated in a reread challenge hosted by Hannah @ So Obsessed With (blog no longer available but she’s still active on Goodreads). I’m reviving that format for my 2026 reread reviews.

WHEN I First Read

I read each book not too long after their original publication dates:

1. The Bear and the Nightingale: 18-19 February 2017
2. The Girl in the Tower: 6-8 January 2018
3. The Winter of the Witch: 1-3 February 2019

WHAT I Remember

Each book being stronger than the last. Konstantin being a nasty nuisance. A fire at night. Sasha playing a stellar role in the final book. A strong romance that played a smaller role than I expected. The intersection of folk religion and Christianity and Vasya’s ability to hold faith in both. That’s pretty much it! I could not recall much of the plot. I definitely could not remember how it all ended. While I didn’t consider the trilogy a favourite, I remembered having an enjoyable time reading it.

WHY I Wanted to Re-Read

My rereading has been thin in recent years. That, combined with dissatisfication in finding new fantasy books that embody what I like, motivated me to select Katherine Arden’s the Winternight trilogy as my first reads of 2026. Plus, I never reviewed the books on my original read, so I’m keen to share some thoughts on them here.

HOW I Felt After Re-Reading

Wow! Even better this time around! I think past me was way too harsh on these books lol. Apparently I originally wrote, “Ahhh 3 or 4 stars I don’t which?? I’ll be generous and go with four” about The Girl in the Tower. Now I write, “What the heck was past me thinking? This is basically a five star read!!” In the years since 2019, I have learnt how hard it is for me to find a fantsy I like. the Winternight trilogy hits many of the marks I search for.

I still think each book in the trilogy is an improvement on the one that came before, but less dramatically so. IE I found The Bear and the Nightingale a better read this time around, and The Winter of the Witch a little less so. I forgot Bear begins with different characters’ perspectives before moving to Vasya. I found that an engaging way to establish worldbuilding and build anticipation for Vasya’s story. For The Winter of the Witch, the first quarter to first third or so was a bit slow for me. I also overplayed Sasha’s role in book three. However, I still found The Winter of the Witch well-plotted and a great conclusion to the trilogy.

Some aspects came back to me quickly while reading, such as Marya’s role in The Girl in the Tower or Solovey’s experience in The Winter or the Witch. Konstantin still infuriated me, though I found both he and Anna a touch pitiable, broken and corrupted as they are by the limits of the society in which they’ve been raised. Other aspects I was surprised that I had no memory of, such as Kasyan and Pozhar. Another thing I recalled being lightly puzzled by on my first read was the time period and political context (mostly, the relationship between Vasya’s people, Dmitrii’s standing as a ruler, and the Tatars). I still wasn’t as clear on it this read around as I might have liked to be, but it seemed to matter less. I understood the context cues better this time.

One aspect of these books I think I undervalued on my first read is the prose. Tightly written overall, each book is filled with gems of descriptors that invoke vivid characters and settings.

A light came into the boy’s face. Pyotr’s mouth tightened. Marina was bone in the unyielding earth, but he had seen her look just that way, when her soul lit her face like firelight.

The Bear and the Nightingale, pg 39

The service wound on, the longest service that Vasya had ever stood through. Chanting replaced speech, which replaced prayer, and all the wile she stood in a half-dream, until the Grand Prince and his party left the cathedral. Vasya, surfeited with beauty, was glad to go. The night released them to violent freedom, after three hours of sober ritual.

The Girl in the Tower, pg 224

WOULD I Re-Read Again

Yes! I’m gently kicking myself now that I never purchased the books in hardcover. Luckily my sister has them all in softcover so I can borrow them any time from her. 😄

Have you reread any good books lately?
I feel like every SFF blogger I know has read this trilogy – have you?