FrostFire was one of the best books I’ve read all year, and it was such an unexpected treat. I was trawling through my daughter’s bookshelf and spotted this lovely looking cover. I picked it up on impulse and didn’t put it down until I had closed it the next morning.
Instead of finding the temple, she meets
Luca and Arian, the leaders of a band of soldiers responsible for flushing out the
bandits who have occupied the shrine. Luca offers to help Frost control what he
calls her ‘battle rage’. He appoints Arian to train her as a soldier. What
unfolds is a beautiful adventure filled with love, loyalty, betrayal, and
despair - with the ultimate prize of hope and honour at the end.
Frost is a fascinating mix of courage and
fear. She can take on any danger without flinching, but the constant threat of
the wolf keeps her cautious, almost submissive and naïve. That changes utterly
by the end of the book.
Luca is an enchanting man whom one cannot
help but love – as Frost very quickly discovers. Little does she know, he loves
her to. But it is Arian, Luca’s friend, a man as tortured and wounded as Frost,
who publically seems to win her affection. So yes, this book does have a bit of
a love triangle, but it’s solved in the most unexpected (and tragic) way.
Although romance plays a part, this book
offers so much more. The plot is clever and the characters are vivid. And the all-important
world building? Ruan, where the action takes place, is so real I could taste
the spiced chickpeas, hear the singing around the campfire and see the Goddess
in the flames.
The day I finished reading it, I bought my
own copy, which now has a place of honour on my bookshelf. I know I will be
reading it again and again. I give this book a galaxy of stars.
Cheers
Gwynneth
PS. Luca is good competition for Perry (Under the Never Sky) as
my book boyfriend!
