Veronica Roth’s novella When Among Crows is an imaginative and entertaining mix of folklore and modern Chicago.
Library Journal wrote of the book:
“Roth’s novella is filled with Polish folklore, imaginative storytelling, and depictions of how family forms people but doesn’t have to define them. Fans of contemporary fairy tales and fantastical stories should pick this one up.”
In her own words, here is Veronica Roth’s Book Notes music playlist for her novella When Among Crows:
Last year I was in the top 1% of Hans Zimmer listeners on Spotify, and not for the reason you’d think. It was because of a single track, “Holy War”, from the Dune soundtrack…which I listened to over and over again as I brainstormed, outlined, and drafted a new book. Music is a part of my writing process; actually, sometimes it comes first, the playlist for a project taking shape before I even know what the project is (see also: my “Post Apocalyptic Road Trip” playlist, which has existed for over a year despite me not knowing what that story is about yet). I put on the playlist as I take walks to brainstorm scene ideas, as I assemble a long list of those scenes into an outline, and then for months as I write my rough drafts. You can see how the whole Hans Zimmer thing happened, right?
Despite how important music is to my process, I’m absolutely not picky–for me, music is functional, and if a song helps me visualize, I will play that song, period. As a result, each playlist I construct is tonally different depending on the book I’m writing. My last novel, Poster Girl, was a melancholy, dystopian mystery set during a misty Seattle winter; its playlist is quiet and contemplative. By contrast, the playlist for my upcoming release, When Among Crows– which I’m about to share with you all– is upbeat and energetic and occasionally nostalgic. It helps me remember both the contemporary fantasy I loved to read when I was younger, and that hot summer in Chicago when this story idea came over me like a fever.
When Among Crows is about a mysterious man, Dymitr, who comes to a mysterious woman, Ala, with a deal: he’ll help her break the bloodline curse that’s slowly killing her if she helps him find legendary witch Baba Jaga, who now resides somewhere in Chicago. The catch? Dymitr is part of a holy order of monster hunters…and Ala is a monster. Specifically, she’s a zmora, a nightmare creature of Polish folklore who feasts on fear. And she doesn’t know what Dymitr really is…or what he really wants. The book is an all-in-one-night adventure through a Chicago underworld populated by creatures of Slavic folklore that touches on complicity, inherited burdens, and a dash of Polish diaspora. Here are some of the songs I listened to while working on it:
Seafarer – Lindy-Fay Hella
When Among Crows begins with a man from the old country on a dangerous mission to pick the mythical fern flower from where it grows, impossibly, in a Polish church in West Town. In order to do that, he has to face a terrible trial. Seafarer was the song I listened to while writing it– a song about a journey, and one that felt as old, ominous, and epic as Dymitr’s quest. I mostly know Lindy-Fay Hella from her work with dark folk band Wardruna, but this song is from her solo album, and the crisp, echoing vocals are perfect.
No One Dies From Love – Tove Lo
I listened to a lot of the album Dirt Femme by Tove Lo while writing this book, mostly because I loved it, but also because it settled me into the feeling of a messy, modern city night life that is the improbable backdrop of this story populated by ageless folklore creatures. Dymitr survives the first stop on his dangerous mission– no surprises there– and his next stop is a horror-themed movie theater run by fear-eating zmory. No One Dies From Love is pulsing and fun, but melancholy– its refrain is “no one dies from love/guess I’ll be the first” if that gives you an idea– which is the perfect match for this story.
Drive – R.E.M.
The first time I heard this song, I was driving through the Mojave desert in a rented RV with my husband at the wheel, so I associate it with dusty heat and a kind of determined fatigue. While there’s no heat or dust in When Among Crows–it’s set in Chicago in the springtime, after all– that weary sense of progress is the right tone for Dymitr’s mysterious mission. At various points, he’s just putting one foot in front of the other, headed to a place he dreads…and Drive, with its solemn repetitions, is just the right vibe.
Aerials – System of a Down
In high school, which is when I first discovered urban fantasy and contemporary fantasy in my reading, I was dating the lead singer of a metal band, and I found myself dipping a toe into heavier music for a time. System of a Down is the lightest of what I listened to then, but I did love it, and Aerials takes me right back to that time of my life, making necklaces out of safety pins and standing at the edges of mosh pits. Plus, it’s a good song for the moments when sweet, sad Dymitr reveals that he’s actually a deadly killer, and his quest is a destructive one– dark, simmering with frustration, with all the sharp urgency I’ve come to expect from Serj Tankian (thank you for the memories, Serj).
Bad Energy – Lilyisthatyou
This song was presented to me by the algorithm, and I loved its mildly deranged, cheeky energy (pun intended). Really, it was the line “Vampires in the city sucked the life from me/but call me Buffy, baby, all I do is slay” that did it for me. Bad Energy is the theme song for Niko Kostka, a rare male strzyga (a “strzygon”), which is perhaps my favorite creature from Polish folklore. As with any figure from folklore, the specifics vary: strzygi have two souls and two sets of teeth; they can fly; they’re demons; they’re owl-like; they’re vampires; they herald someone’s death. My strzygi in When Among Crows can take on the face, wings, and claws of an owl, and they’re the fiercest of the creatures in my story, vicious and feasting on anger. Niko is the one that all the others fear, tasked with exacting vengeance for his people. He’s also confident, brisk, and darkly amusing– just like this song.
All Along the Watchtower – Jimi Hendrix
There’s a scene in When Among Crows when my three heroes, Dymitr, Ala, and Niko, are driving down Lake Shore Drive on their way to the climactic moments of the story, and they put on Electric Ladyland and listen to this song. They find themselves all singing together in a sweet and unlikely moment of connection. The tricky thing is, they’re all lying to each other about one thing or another. So the lyrics “let us stop talking falsely now/the hour is getting late” is a kind of warning: everything is about to go to hell, and this is the last peaceful moment they get before that happens.
Flagpole Sitta – Harvey Danger
How long has it been since you heard this song? Did you, like me, forget how fucking weird and great it is? It came up on a ’90s playlist while I was working on When Among Crows, and I lit up like a Christmas tree and immediately added it to my music rotation. Like so many of the songs on this list, I associate it with a particular scene: Dymitr finally reveals the unhinged fighter simmering just beneath the surface, and kicks some ass, to the tune of “I’m not sick, but I’m not well/and I’m so hot ‘cause I’m in Hell.”
The Devil – BANKS
Pretty sure it’s a rule that if you’re writing about creatures who were associated with demons after the proliferation of Christianity in Poland, you have to have at least one song on your playlist about the Devil. I listened to this one to get into the right mood for Ala, who, as a zmora, is one of the more “harmless” creatures in this story– but she herself is far from harmless, as she proves time and time again. So it doesn’t hurt to have Banks whispering “I’m the devil, did they tell you I’m the devil” into my ears while I’m tapping into that character.
Schism – TOOL
Somewhat at odds with its tense, ominous sound, Schism is about the disintegration of connection and the desire to rebuild it, and that’s a huge part of the emotional climax of When Among Crows. The secrets our three heroes have kept from each other are enough to threaten the tentative bonds they’ve formed– is there a way for them to piece themselves together again? Unclear. I guess you’ll find out when you read.
Toll – So Below
I don’t think it’s really a spoiler to tell you that Dymitr does eventually come face to face with Baba Jaga. Of all the dangerous, ferocious creatures you encounter in this fantastical version of Chicago, Baba Jaga is by far the most dangerous and the most ferocious. And this song has a kind of slow motion, epic entrance feeling that just seemed right for everyone’s favorite mythical witch.
If You Were Here – Cary Brothers
The original version of this song is by the Thompson Twins, and you know it from the final scenes of Sixteen Candles. I can’t help but associate it with the end of a long journey. This cover is a little gentler and slower than the original, which makes it well-suited for the end of When Among Crows, when all the dust has settled and everyone has found their places again, even if their places are not where they expected to be.
Veronica Roth is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Divergent series (Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant, and Four: A Divergent Collection), the Carve the Mark duology (Carve the Mark, The Fates Divide), The End and Other Beginnings collection of short fiction, Chosen Ones, and many short stories and essays. She lives in Chicago.