A review by sashahc
When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb

adventurous hopeful lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I love that the current renaissance of queer Jewish fantasy is delving into the rich history of Yiddish folklore. It's full of supernatural beings who are themselves Jewish and who have their own hierarchies and quirks.

“When the Angels Left the Old Country” by Sacha Mankins (writing as Sacha Lamb) is about Uriel and Little Ash, an angel and a demon, who are Torah study partners, bickering cheerfully in the corner of the shul of their tiny shtetl in the Pale of Settlement for hundreds of years.  Unfortunately, the shtetl is collapsing in the wake of pogroms and mass migration to the New World. When one of their young emigrants goes missing, they decide to travel to New York, specifically the Lower East Side, where they get caught up with human traffickers, striking garment workers, and vengeful dybbuks.  There are rebbes and bubbes and plucky gay girls making their own way.  It’s funny and sweet and very queer and very very Jewish.  I also love how there is other rep shown in ways that deepen the story.  Little Ash has chronic pain from his rooster feet.  Uriel's pronoun is "it."  And the romance between them is deep and also ace.  

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