Where the Dark Stands Still

De: A. B. Poranek

Narrado por: Ola Forman

A New York Times bestseller

A girl with dangerous magic makes a risky bargain with a demon to be free of her monstrous power in this “dark, devastating, and gothic” (Kirkus Reviews) young adult fantasy perfect for fans of An Enchantment of Ravens and House of Salt and Sorrows.

Liska knows that magic is monstrous, and its practitioners are monsters. She has done everything possible to suppress her own magic, to disastrous consequences. Desperate to be free of it, Liska flees her small village and delves into the dangerous, demon-inhabited spirit-wood to steal a mythical fern flower. If she plucks it, she can use its one wish to banish her powers. Everyone who has sought the fern flower has fallen prey to unknown horrors, so when Liska is caught by the demon warden of the wood—called The Leszy—a bargain seems better than death: one year of servitude in exchange for the fern flower and its wish.

Whisked away to The Leszy’s crumbling manor, Liska soon makes an unsettling discovery: she is not the first person to strike this bargain, and all her predecessors have mysteriously vanished. If Liska wants to survive the year and return home, she must unravel her taciturn host’s spool of secrets and face the ghosts—figurative and literal—of his past. Because something wakes in the woods, something deadly and without mercy. It frightens even The Leszy…and cannot be defeated unless Liska embraces the monster she’s always feared becoming.

Beautiful and Heartbreaking

A. B. Poranek, when I catch you A. B. Poranek! Absolutely fantastic read, so many surprising twists to the plot. The ending left me DEVASTATED. 😭

What was that ending?!

This book was delightful. I enjoyed the magic system and world building. The ending was kind of a drag like how are you gonna end on that note leaving me with questions yet feeling like the story is complete.

My heart stood still at the end!!

This was a book I listened to while read in tandem. What a phenomenal story!

The narrator did an excellent job! The names (while reading) were hard for me to know how to pronounce quickly, and the narrator did an excellent job! She did good animating each of the characters. My favorite voice she did by far was the one for the character names Jaga.

This book had so many characters that I fell in love with. Each character had their own endearing personality. As I read, I kept trying to guess what would happen—what the outcome would be, but I was never able to actually guess.

My heart really did stand still near the end of this story. (I don’t want to reveal why or tell any spoilers)! I really really hope you read this book and enjoy it as much as I did. I’m left wanting more! I’m really hoping there will be a second book. The end wraps things up well, but I’m still dying to know more!

A wonderful hidden gem! Please give it a go!

Compelling

I really enjoyed this read. It dealt with heavy topics in a light and entertaining way. Beautifully written, and I loved the atmospheric vibes. I know some people didn’t like the ending, but I felt the ending made perfect sense. I appreciated that the author stayed authentic and true to the theme. It’s not your typical cutesy romantasy, but honestly, I found it compelling and very enjoyable.

A lovely dark and magical tale!

I’m a sucker for fae wild lore and this story didn’t disappoint. A beautiful tale about embracing oneself and overcoming repression. All while weaving magical imagery and piecing together a mystery. Would read again!