Escapes

«Decades will pass, and no one will remember the name, paths will overgrow and houses will crumble into dust. Only the garden will grow and multiply until it engulfs the entire village and the village disappears in an insatiable flowering embrace».

This book is about women who live in a small village on the edge of a marshy forest. Each heroine has her own strength, although they do not always know what to do with it: Polina controls fire, Alfiya captures the faintest sounds, Arina communicates with snakes, and Kira understands plants. It is her hands that created a garden in the village, destined to keep countless women’s secrets.

In Irina Kostareva's novel, the magical intertwines with the mundane, the euphoria of life is intertwined with the premonition of imminent death, and the seasons change each other imperceptibly, immersing the reader in timelessness.