Captivating and boldly imaginative, with a tale of sisterhood at its heart, Rena Rossner’s debut fantasy THE SISTERS OF THE WINTER WOOD (US | UK | ANZ)  invites you to enter a world filled with magic, folklore, and the dangers of the woods. It’s perfect for fans of The Bear and the Nightingale and Uprooted and is out in September 2018.

We’re delighted to reveal the cover with art by Rebecca Yanovskaya and designed by Lauren Panepinto.

Every family has a secret. Behind every secret, there is a story.

Raised in a remote village surrounded by vast forests on the border of Moldova and Ukraine, sisters Liba and Laya live a peaceful, sheltered life.

But when a troupe of mysterious men arrives, Laya falls under their spell—despite their mother’s warning to be wary of strangers. And this is not the only danger lurking in the woods….

As dark forces close in on their small village, Liba and Laya discover a family secret passed down through generations. Faced with a magical heritage they never knew existed, the sisters realize the old fairy tales are true…and could save them all. 

Rena Rossner lives in Israel where she works as a literary agent. She is a graduate of the Johns Hopkins University’s Writing Seminars program and McGill University where she studied history. All eight of her great-grandparents immigrated to America to escape the pogroms from towns like Dubossary, Kupel, Riga and Bender. It is their story, together with her love of Jewish mythology and fantasy that inspired her to write The Sisters of the Winter Wood.

Early praise for The Sisters of the Winter Wood:

“Mixes fairy tale, poetry, history, and heart to create an enchanting and mesmerizing tale of sisterly love. I adored this book!” — Sarah Beth Durst, award-winning author of The Queens of Renthia series

“A graceful, poetic, deeply moving novel. Its characters are fantastical and yet essentially human, bound by ambition and desire, fear and prejudice, but above all, love in all its forms. Simply gorgeous book in every sense.”– Louisa Morgan, author of A Secret History of Witches

“This dark fairy tale about sisterly love and Jewish strength and courage, set against the backdrop of a deep and deadly winter forest, will haunt me for a long time. A powerful, emotional debut.” — Julie C. Dao, author of Forest of a Thousand Lanterns

“Rossner weaves an elegant tapestry of the love between sisters, the value of faith and family, and knowing one’s true friends in times of peril.” — J. Kathleen Cheney, author of The Golden City