The first story in this series was pitched as Frozen meets Prison Break. It was fast-paced and atmospheric and really huge into platonic friendships and family. I feel this second book lost a lot of the atmospheric feel to it. I am bummed. There were a lot of action scenes that it was a little overwhelming at times. I feel there was too much going on. The plot was very predictable to me too and that took out a lot of enjoyment. I believe this was supposed to be a trilogy but there has been no news of a 3rd book since this one came out in 2018 and that's really disappointing too.

Enjoyable, vaguely Nordic inspired middle grade fantasy. Somewhat reminiscent of the first in terms of story and plot; strong on action, light on characterization, light on worldbuilding. A fast fantasy read but not a favorite.

This was a solid second book. It had plenty of action, adventure and intrigue to keep the reader going. I liked how the sisters came full circle and realized they could’ve separate entities and that they could keep secrets from each other sometimes. I loved that after the full story arc room was left for another book. The villain isn’t gone yet just experiencing a setback.

Seeker of the Crown (Prisoner of Ice and Snow #2) by Ruth Lauren, 288 pages.  Bloomsbury, 2018.  $17.  

Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (some fighting)

EL, MS – ADVISABLE

Valor may have saved her sister Sasha from the unbreakable prison, but Princess Anastasia is on the loose and determined to take the kingdom of Demidova as her own.  When the queen is kidnapped, the new regent doesn’t seem to be any better than having Anastasia on the throne.  Valor, Prince Anatol, and few others are the only ones standing between the throne and complete disaster.

Fans of the first will still enjoy the further adventures of Valor et al.  There is no resolution at the end – only more problems, so brace yourself for the next in the series.

Cindy, Middle School Librarian

This is the sequel to Prisoner of Ice and Snow.  I recommend reading the first book to get the full picture as this story continues with many references to the previous book. It was enjoyable and fast paced.  I plowed through it.

Valor managed to free her sister Sasha from an unjust jail sentence, but the person who put Sasha in jail is still out there. Princess Anastasia was captured only for a short while and she's now hiding somewhere. Valor knows Anastasia hasn't stopped planning to take her mother's throne. The queen of Demidova asks Valor to find her daughter, but Valor can't properly start her search because the queen disappears. Valor knows someone's captured her and is now determined to find the queen as well as Anastasia. In order to do so she needs to release prince Anatol. Will she be able to pull this off?

Valor's mission is too hard to handle without her friends and sister. A new queen has taken the throne, but can they trust her? Together with Sasha and Anatol she keeps searching. Which mission is more important and what will they find when they finally have a lead? Can Valor prevent a terrible war from breaking out and can she save her country or is it already doomed because she couldn't discover Anastasia's whereabouts quickly enough?

Seeker of the Crown is a fantastic gripping story. I love Valor, she's strong, smart and resilient. She manages to find a way out of every tricky situation. Valor is a skilled strategist with a good heart. She's such a wonderful admirable main character and that makes her story an absolute joy to read. She has a difficult road ahead of her, but Valor isn't afraid. She does what she has to do to succeed and I find her sense of duty endearing. She's truly fabulous and I can't praise Ruth Lauren enough for coming up with such a great heroine.

Ruth Lauren has written another terrific suspenseful story. Seeker of the Crown is a real page-turner, I couldn't put it down and read this amazing action-packed story in one sitting. Valor and her friends are having the most surprising adventures and I loved every single one of them. The world-building is impressive, which makes the story come to life incredibly well. I like it when a book enchants me in many different ways. Seeker of the Crown has plenty of intriguing layers and is a worthy successor of Prisoner of Ice and Snow. I can't recommend this series enough.

I enjoyed this one so much! Even better than the first, I loved seeing the sisters again, and joining them on this exciting adventure! I really enjoy this world, and the characters are well written and the action keeps the story interesting.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2297754234?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1