Published: 2014 (Balzer + Bray)
Pages: 450
Blurb: A striking fantasy tale of dark magic, dangerous politics, and discovering your true self—perfect for fans of Game of Thrones, An Ember in the Ashes and A Court of Thorns and Roses.
Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now the Winterians' only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter's magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since.
Orphaned as an infant during Winter's defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, Winter's future king—she would do anything to help Winter rise to power again.
So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter's magic, Meira decides to go after it herself—only to find herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics—and ultimately comes to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.
My opinion: I was expecting so much from this book, because I’ve been meaning to read this for a while and the covers of this series are so beautiful. But the book unfortunately didn’t make it up to my expectations. And no, despite what the blurb suggests, it didn't remind me of Game of Thrones, but at least of A Court of Thorns and Roses.
It wasn’t all bad, it just didn’t knock my socks off. There were just so many stereotypical tropes from the fantasy genre, nothing new under the sun.
Meira wasn’t annoying, which is a big plus. I’m just slightly afraid that she might get annoying over the next books. We’ll see. Fun fact: ‘meira’ means ‘more’ in Icelandic. I don’t know where the author got the idea for this name, but Meira is from a very cold country and it’s pretty cold in Iceland too. Coincidence? I think not.
There isn’t much to say about other characters, because the story really focuses on Meira. I just got a little confused with some of the side characters of Meiras refugee group.
What I absolutely didn’t like was that little love triangle. I hate love triangles. They’re unnecessary and just there to add some drama. No. Please don’t.
The idea of the worldbuilding was very interesting. I liked that some countries were named after seasons and the capitals after the middle month of every season. What was weird was just that the inhabitants of each country all look the same. I mean, were they never allowed to leave their countries? Is there no travel? No trade? Don’t people migrate to other countries? This can’t be the first war in history? Have there never been any refugees like Meira and her companions? I get that the seasons stay the same because of magic (or did I mix that up with A Court of Thorns and Roses?), so does that mean magic is the reason why their inhabitants all look the same? What happens if an Autumnian couple gives birth to a child in Winter? Will the kid look like a Winterian or like their parents? Those are very important questions.
That plot twist in the end (no spoilers, just that) wasn’t really surprising and is just one of those before mentioned typical fantasy tropes. I really hope Sara Raasch gets a little more creative in the next books.
My rating: 3/5 Buttons
Review of Book II
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