ARC Review: Crown of Ice by Vicki L.Weavil

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling

Publisher: Month9Books

Publication:  September 9th, 2014
Formats: Kindle Edition, Paperback

Pages: 300 (Paperback)
       239 (Kidle Edition)

Rating:
   

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Thyra Winther's seventeen, the Snow Queen, and immortal, but if she can't reassemble a shattered enchanted mirror by her eighteenth birthday she's doomed to spend eternity as a wraith. Armed with magic granted by a ruthless wizard, Thyra schemes to survive with her mind and body intact. Unencumbered by kindness, she kidnaps local boy Kai Thorsen, whose mathematical skills rival her own. Two logical minds, Thyra calculates, are better than one. With time rapidly melting away she needs all the help she can steal. A cruel lie ensnares Kai in her plan, but three missing mirror shards and Kai's childhood friend, Gerda, present more formidable obstacles. Thyra's willing to do anything – venture into uncharted lands, outwit sorcerers, or battle enchanted beasts -- to reconstruct the mirror, yet her most dangerous adversary lies within her breast. Touched by the warmth of a wolf pup's devotion and the fire of a young man's desire, the thawing of Thyra's frozen heart could be her ultimate undoing. CROWN OF ICE is a YA Fantasy that reinvents Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen" from the perspective of a young woman who discovers that the greatest threat to her survival may be her own humanity.

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange of an honest review. Thank you!

Crown of Ice was a spectacular retelling of The Snow Queen. Although, the basics were similar, it contained much original ideas that I utterly enjoyed.

My favorite thing in the book was definitely Thyra Winther. When she is young, she and her parents get into a blizzard. She survives, however, her mother and father are buried in the snow. Hence, she becomes an orphan and is adopted by a woman who's not treating her so very kindly. In a couple of years a mage takes her away from the village to his secluded ice castle and makes her his new Snow Queen, bestowing eternal life on her under the conditions of completing a powerful mirror. All of these tragic events shape Thyra into the cold, I could say icy, self-confident, logical girl whose every step is calculated. She's also quite brave, but in a different way than most protagonists. She had to learn to fend for herself. This is what she's been doing ever since her parents died. It's not like she had a choice. However, when she brings Kai to the palace, she starts to change. Not just because of their attraction, but because after so many years of solitary, she gets to know something else and gets to see things from a different perspective. Her character arc is vast, but she's a likable character at the beginning as well as in the end. 

As for the magic and world building, I have mixed feelings. I can't say it's not maximally elaborated and initially I was a huge fan of it. The wraiths, the mutated animals, the places were all very interesting. But later on, it just went overboard. Thyra had new, not fitting abilities out of nowhere in tight situations and at the end, things happened that clearly were only implemented for the suspens and happy ending. 

When I was looking at Crown of Ice's Goodread's page, I was surprised to see romance is not listed as one of the genres. In my view, it was one of the main threads of the story. On the other hand, I understand why it's this way. Kai and Thyra are a fair match, but their romance is somehow lacking. I didn't swoon at any point of the story, not even a little. Maybe, it's because I wasn't particularly crazy about Kai. He wasn't such a deep character, for the most part he's just working or grieving.

On the whole, I did very much enjoy Crown of Ice. It was a peculiar read and I definitely recommend it to everybody.

Cover: 4.5/5

Characters: 4/5

Predictability: 4.5/5

Plot: 5/5

Pacing: 5/5

Romance: 3/5
Style/Writing: 5/5

Vicki L. Weavil is represented by Jennifer Mishler of The Literary Counsel. Her Young Adult Fantasy, CROWN OF ICE -- a dark retelling of H.C. Andersen's "The Snow Queen" -- will be published by Month9Books on Sept. 9, 2014.
She also writes YA and adult SciFi.

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