''The Russian Stories'', also known as the ''Russian Series'', the ''Russian Trilogy'' and the ''Rusalka Trilogy'', are a series of

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

novels by

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh. The stories are set in medieval Russia along the

Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and ...

river, in a fictional alternate history of

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rusʹ, also known as Kyivan Rusʹ ( orv, , Rusĭ, or , , ; Old Norse: ''Garðaríki''), was a state in Eastern and Northern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical Atlas of ...

, a

predecessor state Succession of states is a concept in international relations regarding a successor state that has become a sovereign state over a territory (and populace) that was previously under the sovereignty of another state. The theory has its roots in 19th- ...

of modern-day Russia,

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

and

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. The three books in the series are '' Rusalka'' (1989), ''

Chernevog ''Chernevog'' is a fantasy novel by American science fiction and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh. It was first published in September 1990 in the United States in a hardcover edition by Ballantine Books under its Del Rey Books imprint. ''Chernevo ...

'' (1990), and ''

Yvgenie ''Yvgenie'' is a fantasy novel by American science fiction and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh. It was first published in October 1991 in the United States in a hardcover edition by Ballantine Books under its Del Rey Books imprint. ''Yvgenie'' is ...

'' (1991). ''Rusalka'' was nominated for a Locus Award in 1990. The stories draw heavily from

Slavic mythology Slavic mythology or Slavic religion is the religious beliefs, myths, and ritual practices of the Slavs before Christianisation, which occurred at various stages between the 8th and the 13th century. The South Slavs, who likely settled in the Balk ...

and concerns the fate of a girl who has drowned and become a rusalka. For example, a "Rusalka" is a type of life-draining Slavic fairy that haunts a river or lake. And "Chernevog" is an alternate spelling of

Chernobog Chernobog ( "Black God") and Belobog ( "White God") are an alleged pair of Polabian deities. Chernobog appears in the Helmold's '' Chronicle'' as a god of misfortune worshipped by the Wagri and Obodrites, while Belobog is not mentioned – he wa ...

, a mysterious Slavic deity. Other creatures in the books derived from Slavic folklore include

Bannik The Bannik () is a bathhouse ('' banya'') spirit in Slavic mythology.Alexinsky, G. ''Slavonic Mythology'' in ''New Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology''. Prometheus Press, 1973, p. 287-88 He is usually described as a small, naked old man with a l ...

, Leshy and a

Vodyanoy In Slavic mythology, vodyanoy or vodyanoi ( rus, водяно́й, p=vədʲɪˈnoj; lit. ' efrom the water' or 'watery') is a water spirit. In Czech and Slovak fairy tales, it is called ''vodník'' (or in Germanized form: ), and it is conside ...

. How

magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

operates in these books sets them apart from other Cherryh works of fantasy. Wizards are presented as especially dangerous in these novels because even their most casual desires, if expressed, may set into action a course of events with unpredictable outcomes. Wizards in the series therefore must carefully attend to what they think lest they accidentally set loose magical forces that could result in negative outcomes. The books can therefore be read as a cautionary tale regarding the incompatibility of magic and human society, and also as a criticism of the cavalier treatment of magical power in many works of fantasy, especially

high fantasy High fantasy, or epic fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy defined by the epic nature of its setting or by the epic stature of its characters, themes, or plot.Brian Stableford, ''The A to Z of Fantasy Literature'', (p. 198), Scarecrow Press, ...

. They are best described as

historical fantasy Historical fantasy is a category of fantasy and genre of historical fiction that incorporates fantastic elements (such as magic) into a more "realistic" narrative. There is much crossover with other subgenres of fantasy; those classed as Arthu ...

, although they also borrow elements from the

horror fiction Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian ...

genre.

Magic in the series

In an essay entitled "Shifting Ground: Subjectivities in Cherryh's Slavic Fantasy Trilogy", academic Janice M. Bogstad says the ''Russian Series'' describe three levels of magic: #Folkloric magic performed by local creatures, including bannicks, leshys and vodyanois, which is often misinterpreted as peasant superstition; #Wish magic performed by wizards, an imprecise art because of the way wishes interact with other wizards' wishes; #Power magic, the "most destruction of magics" that draws its power from "dark forces" in a "parallel realm", practised by some wizards, but considered sorcery by others. Franco-Bulgarian philosopher

Tzvetan Todorov Tzvetan Todorov (; ; bg, Цветан Тодоров; 1 March 1939 – 7 February 2017) was a Bulgarian-French historian, philosopher, structuralist literary critic, sociologist and essayist. He was the author of many books and essays, whi ...

called this second level of magic "pan-determinism" where "the limit between the physical and the mental, between matter and spirit, between word and thing, ceases to be imperious". Bogstad says that besides the books being a story about a girl-turned-rusalka, it is about "humaniz ngthe experience of magic". Each characters' experience with magic is subjective as they never get to see the complete picture, and can only speculate as to what they think the "presence of magic" is causing. Bogstad calls the story "a kind of science of magics" because of the way in which the characters explore of this phenomenon.

Reception

Academic Janice M. Bogstad described this series as an "unusual fantasy trilogy" that "deserves attention" because Cherryh has departed from traditional fantasy based on

Celtic folklore Celtic folklore may refer to: The Folklore in the modern Celtic nations: * Hebridean mythology and folklore * Irish folklore * Scottish folklore * Welsh folklore Or the mythologies of ancient and modern Celtic peoples: * Celtic mythology * Irish ...

and introduced Western readers to the lesser known

. Science fiction and fantasy writer Roland J. Green described Cherryh's Russian series as her "most significant work of fantasy". Latin language literature scholar, Mildred Leake Day called the Russian Stories "the very best of the books of sorcery".

Publication information

* * * * * * Cherryh

self-published Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to written media, such as books and magazines, either as an ebook or as a physical copy using POD (pri ...

revised editions of ''Rusalka'', ''Chernevog'' and ''Yvgenie'' in e-book format at Closed Circle Publications between 2010 and 2012. Authorship of the e-book edition of ''Chernevog'' is credited to C. J. Cherryh and

Jane Fancher Jane Suzanne Fancher (born 1952) is a science fiction and fantasy author and artist. Work In the early 1980s, she worked for Warp Graphics as an art assistant on '' Elfquest'', providing inking assistance on the black and white comics and colori ...

because of Fancher's contributions to the revisions. Cherryh said that in these e-book editions, "there's been a little change in ''Rusalka'', a greater change in ''Chernevog'', and a massive change in ''Yvgenie''—in the latter, I've rewritten it line by line: nothing’s left untouched."

Explanatory notes

Citations

Works cited

* * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Russian Stories 1980s fantasy novels 1990s fantasy novels Book series introduced in 1989 Del Rey books Fantasy novel series Fictional Slavic people Kievan Rus in fiction Novels about fairies and sprites Series of fantasy books by C. J. Cherryh Slavic mythology in popular culture