What a wonderfully concocted fantasy world, where everything is so vividly described, that I felt I was living in that world. I was continuously astounded by how well told this story was, and followed along on Askia's quest to save her people. I was on the edge of my seat through so many of the action scenes, holding my breath to see what would happen. From princesses and empires, to witches and betrayals, I highly recommend this fast paced and thoroughly thought out fantasy.

A Frozen Crown for a Frozen Princess
All of the books I have reviewed lately have had an overarching political or gritty real-world centered message, so it was a nice break to dive into a fantasy novel. The Frozen Crown is the perfect exemplar of its genre, featuring a vividly built world of magic and royal intrigue, romance, and characters that are so flawed you can’t help but root for them. Naturally, it ends with a nail-biting cliff hanger, as so many fantasies do, with a trail of (presumably) dead bodies, and separated love interests.

I find fantasies hard to give 5-star ratings to, but this was an exception to the rule, due to it’s originality and fast moving plot. The witches of Greta Kelly’s world can practice only one type of magic a piece, for example some can discern truths from lies, some can heal…and only one can see and commune with the dead, Princess Askia of Seravesh. An additional layer of intrigue is added to the story when it is revealed that how witches are seen varies from empire to empire, and person to person, making it difficult for Princess Askia to know who she can trust. Some support and revere the witches, while others would like to wipe them out, viewing them as unnatural abominations to religious beliefs. Enter the villain of the story, who much to the dismay of the religious sect seeking to destroy witches, has found a way to create more witches. These witches are beholden to him, as part of his quest for world domination. Naturally, as part of that quest, he would like to gain control of Askia and her powers, since commanding an army of the dead would make him unstoppable. And just as naturally, Askia is not amenable to this desire, leading her to run into the arms of the rival empire, in an attempt to save herself, and her kingdom. This sets up several love arcs, putting Askia’s somewhat frozen heart on display, as she makes clear that she will do what she must to save her people, even if it means ignoring her own desires and making a politically advantageous marriage instead. The plot moves quickly as she maneuvers her way through a foreign court, attempting to win allies to her cause, and to hone her magic into a weapon that she can use to save Seravesh.

The action in The Frozen Crown is almost non-stop, making it hard to put down once you get started. There is sword fighting, battles of wit, and magical sparring, interspersed with a few searing kisses and emotionally charged exchanges, making it a truly riveting read. At the end, Askia is left in true peril, with her prospects for survival looking bleak…leaving me to wait with baited breath for the conclusion to this duology.

Askia is the princess and rightful queen of Seravesh, a kingdom that is under threat from the evil emperor of the Roven Empire. As the emperor slowly takes over Seravesh, Askia meets with the neighboring kingdom to garner support and, hopefully, use their army to defeat the emperor. Political intrigue, dangerous trainings, and a murderous plot threaten to end Askia before the emperor can.

Askia is a fierce protagonist willing to sacrifice her life and freedom for her people. She continually casts her feelings and desires aside because she knows they’re not in the best interest of her country. An admirable and courageous woman, Askia’s abilities are rare, and she learns to use them throughout the novel. I loved this part of the story and can’t wait to see how she further utilizes her abilities in the next book.

Askia’s strength, intelligence, and beauty gain the attention of several suitors, most of whom are not of interest to Askia. She loves someone that she can’t have, and this forbidden romance is so good. The longing and desire Askia and her love interest feel are palpable, and I found myself rooting for the pair. The political maneuvering and the unrequited love are the highlights of this novel, as are the strong and determined women.

Askia is out of her element in court. Political maneuvering is not one of her strengths, and she struggles to find her place in this new situation. With guidance, she learns the customs and roles in court while also learning who she can and cannot trust. She also trains while in court and learns to control her power. I found the scenes where Askia works with other women to learn about her ability fascinating. Not only are her powers unique, but the strong, fierce, and smart women working together to learn and grow is also fantastic. Everything Askia does, from training to flirting with men, she does to benefit her kingdom.

The Frozen Crown is a gripping story filled with political intrigue, dynamic characters, and a jaw-dropping cliffhanger ending. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series! Thanks so much to Netgalley and for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ll cut straight to the chase in case you just want the bottom line: I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Fair warning though, it may start to consume you with the urge to read continuously to the detriment of all other things in your life. In a way, the main character Askia reminded me of all the strong female characters Tamora Pierce has created over the years and first sparked my love of reading fantasy.

Askia is determined to do what she must to protect her people, but being strong doesn’t mean she’s without flaws or doubts. She has just enough of those to feel real as she struggles against the odds to take back her kingdom. There are many layers to her life even though she’s only in her early 20s and it’s fascinating to learn more as the story progresses. It has classic hallmarks of a fantasy novel (magic that comes at a cost, a diabolical villain, forbidden love interest, and a high stakes journey) that Kelly manages to put together in a way that the story still feels fresh, fascinating, and engrossing. It ticked all the boxes for me and I’m definitely excited for the next installment.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
The Frozen Crown.
This story centers around Askia. A princess and rightful queen of Seravesh. Her cousin murders her grandfather the king and steals her kingdom. He is a puppet for another, The mad emperor of the Roven Empire. He is steadily burning and pillaging his way to Seravesh in order to take over it and all of the neighboring kingdoms. At the beginning of the book, we find Askia meeting with a neighboring kingdom begging for am army so she can take back her land and crown.
I’m not exactly sure how to explain my qualms with this book so please bear with me through this analogy. Have you ever tried to edit a video clip on your phone? You can slide the bars on either end making the clip shorter from both the beginning and the end of the clip. That’s how I feel about this book... Someone shortened the begging and the ending and I was only left with the middle of the story. I was dropped into the beginning with no back story or world-building. I was mostly lost until around 30% of the book. After 30% The story did pick up and I enjoyed watching Askia find her way through court politics and intrigues. I felt compassion for the choices she needed to make and the dreams she also needed to surrender.
Then I was hit with a huge cliff hanger. I’ve read a lot of reviews lately and cliff hangers seem to be the central point hate in most of them. I am not normally in the “hate” camp on this subject but this ending was especially hard for me since I felt like the beginning of the book was lacking history. It was a double whammy if you will. I probably would have forgiven one or the other but both were too much. I think this story really had a lot of potentials to be great but lacked world-building and back story.

I particularly enjoyed the magic system in this book. It does seem to have clearly defined rules and limits but the characters’ don’t fully know everything about all the different types of magic. This creates interesting situations and problems as they try to discover more information. They also have to contend with people within the court who are distrustful of magic users and even outright hate them compounding the need for secrecy.

The court intrigue is also such a great part of this book. There is some culture clash as Askia learns to navigate the rules and social norms of the court. It is wonderful to see how she not only finds ways to overcome this but also uses her outsider status to her advantage. Figuring out who will really help or harm her and her kingdom is a fascinating game with the highest stakes for both herself and her country. The characters in this intrigue are well done and all around I found the book to be well written and captivating. The ending left me wanting more and I am excited for the next book.