A paint-by-numbers fantasy rendered in pretty winter colors.
A peasant girl in 11th-century Russia must learn to harness her power over ice.
Katya is ostracized in her village because of her ability to freeze, becoming ice—and when she loses her temper and her power kills someone she loves, she is arrested. Katya fears a death sentence at the hands of the notoriously cruel prince, but she soon learns that he wants to use her magic as a weapon in a coming war. Not only that, but the prince has a special elemental power too, an affinity with fire that provides a foil for Katya’s ice exactly as narrative convenience requires. Katya hits all the chosen-one marks that this genre demands—mysterious and magical parentage, the death of a beloved mentor, learning to accept the power within oneself—and no avid fantasy reader will be surprised by the plot’s turns. All characters are assumed white except for a brief reference to a brown-skinned spring goddess, and the narration conflates fairness with beauty. The writing style is confident and plot-focused, although it veers into a strangely stilted quality in much of the dialogue. Vivid descriptions, especially of luxurious tents and traditional dresses, offer a pleasantly rounded sense of detail.
A paint-by-numbers fantasy rendered in pretty winter colors. (author’s note, glossary) (Historical fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: April 9, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-266629-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A delicious winter romance that shimmers with classic fairy-tale magic.
An 18-year-old’s encounter with the pale, mysterious, golden-eyed Starmaker transforms her from hamlet girl to magical apprentice.
Aurora Finch discovers she possesses the rare ability to channel sunlight—magic essential to the survival of snow-covered Reverie, her mountain village, “with peaks so high the Sun [cannot] rise above them.” Now she faces a harsh choice: Leave everything behind to train at the Starmaker’s enchanted castle or die as the untapped magic destroys her from within. Griffin excels at worldbuilding; the story is filled with elements and characters that feel both whimsical and real, from Tilly, a living snow angel who’s searching for herself, to Constance, an immortal rabbit. As the antagonism between Aurora and the cold, centuries-old Starmaker melts, their love story, which forms the heart of this tale, crackles with tension. Aurora emerges as a compelling hero—stubborn and brave—who refuses to be diminished by the overwhelming responsibilities thrust upon her. The romantic storyline proves both strong and emotionally involving as the author brings fresh twists to familiar elements, exploring the power of stories and how they shape our understanding of the world. White-presenting Aurora faces a devastating truth that creates urgency and heightens the emotional stakes that drive the story to its conclusion. This satisfying, sparkling fantasy will capture hearts with its well-developed setting and captivating love story.
A delicious winter romance that shimmers with classic fairy-tale magic. (author’s note) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2026
ISBN: 9781728256184
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Oct. 10, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025
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