Dani ❤️ Perspective of a Writer's Reviews > A Winter's Promise

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Long ago, a cataclysm shattered the world into many floating celestial islands. These Arks, have each developed in distinct ways, possessing its own unique relationship to time. Beneath her worn scarf and thick glasses, Ophelia hides the ability to read and communicate with the souls of objects, and the power to travel through mirrors. Her peaceful existence on the Ark of Anima is disrupted when she is promised in marriage to Thorn, from the powerful Dragon clan. Ophelia must follow her fiancée to the floating capital on the distant Ark of the Pole. Why has she been chosen? Why must she hide her true identity? Though she doesn’t know it yet, she’s become a pawn in a deadly plot.

The short review...

Some readers would probably fight me on the fact that I wasn't loving this at 24% and yet I still gave A Winter's Promise 5 stars... Well that is because it was the perfect setup for a story I didn't expect and which in hindsight needed that 24% to give us a feel for Ophelia.

Ophelia is NOT an adventurer. She is NOT badass. She is not cool, neat and no one can claim she is a special snowflake!!! Ophelia is a museum curator. She is responsible in the same way an absent minded professor is, that is dedicated to their work and otherwise floating through life, not worrying much about material possessions, lovers or appearances.

Then she is thrust into the most incredible of worlds!!!! Can you imagine?! Well that world doesn't appear until 25%! But we HAD to see what kind of person Ophelia is and what her circumstances are and the horrible situation she is thrust into... that took 24%. This is actually quite a tight setup, some books take upwards of 40 to 50% (and I could name quite a few hyped books that do...) so really A Winter's Promise gets underway and once it does I'm drawn right into Thorn's world... The world that Ophelia must navigate otherwise she won't survive to see herself married.

So what is this world like?! Well... it seems like a rather old-fashioned world at first... Ophelia is forced by her family to marry this man who for all intents and purposes lives on the moon! She has no idea what to expect and her fiancee does NOT enlighten her. We get the sense right off that Thorn is not going to be a man who makes you swoon because he knows how to treat a woman... No in fact Ophelia realizes quickly that she will have to rely on herself. It is quite a modern treatment for what starts out with an old-fashioned idea. I came to really appreciate how he relied on Ophelia being a capable young woman who is no slouch in his politically pitfalled world.

I won't say much more because as the book opens up, like Ophelia, you come to understand how life at the Pole works. It's political, about illusion and appearances (being the opposite of what you expect) and no one is safe! In fact, every single person she meets is morally grey, thank goodness her godmother came with her! There are no easy fixes (no one has answers for her) and yet Ophelia does come to find some allies...

This is the first book of a series... so it ends at a pivotal point, but it is clearly just the beginning. We've gotten the best start, a well thought out solid one, that will serve us well through the entire series... and the slow burn on this romance is so realistic and raw that I can't help rooting for Thorn and Ophelia even though he is more a real man with all the flaws than most book boyfriends. This is a world that I want to get even more deliciously complex and strange... And I want to see Ophelia continue to grow and come into her own as a woman of action!


Cover & Title grade -> A+

I LOVE the cover... That is what attracted me to it at the first, it sold the premise and it didn't disappoint as I read. I loved that I got an idea of what the setting looked like from the cover. And I love that the other covers in the series follow the same solid color with ink drawing of a location pattern that is established with A Winter's Promise. I NEED this series on my book shelf!


What are a couple of the many highlights in A Winter's Promise?

-Mega Politics!
This is the dirty, underhanded, morally grey way politics should be done! There is social rivalry, warring clans and romantic scandals, oh my! It makes for a rather treacherous world to maneuver through and its NOT terribly action oriented though there are plenty of backstabby events and horrid situations instead...

-An Incredible World!
First off Archibald's castle, changing spaces, masterpiece of architecture is literally a place I WANT to visit! It is an embassy where the different rivals can come and not be killed off... only is it as safe as they say?! Well there are some magical things like taking rooms to their own spaces, that do a good job at maintaining safety but there are always ways to get around those features...

-All the Magic!
Thorn and his aunt Berenilde can flay Ophelia with their minds... And Archibald, the ambassador, is mentally connected to his family! There is another clan all about illusions, and Ophelia gets up close and personal with one magical outfit! It's all deliciously dangerous...


As a Writer...

One of the things I really appreciate about A Winter's Promise as a writer as well as a reader is her characters!

I've shared my loving adoration of Ophelia, but I'll say again that I love how she jumped into this world that is everything she is not and is dealing with it. She is not in her natural habitat and that is what made her so great...

I adore the cold and hard Thorn and his very subtle softening toward Ophelia. It doesn't happen swiftly and it isn't evident very much. He is a hard worker though and comes to respect Ophelia and that I really admire! The harder they are the more gooey they are inside...

Berenilde, hahahhahha, you won't know if she's you alley or your enemy! I did wonder at her incredible crush on their patriarch... It's a hard world that Thorn has lived in if this is his only ally...

I come to appreciate Ophelia's godmother as much as she does, when she continually is outraged for her nieces sake!

And there are so many more characters that will take you by surprise... Archibald, the architect, the mechanic, the servant that shows Ophelia the ropes, the Knight, Thorn's sister! GAHHHH! It's a lush, lush world with complex characters... Oh and I can't forget to mention Ophelia's scarf that is animated and lively like a squirmy pet!!

If you're looking for a heroine who decidedly DOES NOT want to fall for her fiancee, then you need Ophelia! If you want a heroine who is not gorgeous, scintillating and super talented then you need Ophelia, who has a couple gifts but with only rather limited uses... Yet she persists none-the-less! If you want a world that is an intriguing mix of politics, magic and back stabbers then you need A Winter's Promise!!


⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Authenticity
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Writing Style
⋆ ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Plot & Pacing
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ World Building

Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review. It has not influenced my opinions.

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