Book Beginning #4: Crown of Ice

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader, where we share the first sentence (or so) of the books we are reading, along with initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires.

Currently Reading #26

Name: Crown of Ice
Author: Vicki L. Weavil
Number of Pages: 300 in Paperback
Published: September 9th 2014
by Month9Books
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fairytale, Retelling, Romance

“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.”

I’ve decided to have Book Beginnings and Currently Reading in a post ’cause it’s more likely the same. There.. I immediately fell in love with this book when I’ve stumbled upon it on Goodreads. I love the gorgeous cover! I’ve even featured this on a Waiting on Wednesday post back in August. For my friend’s benefit, this is a YA fantasy retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen“. If you’re not familiar with that, I’m sure you’re familiar with Disney’s Frozen. It’s pretty much the same fairytale adaptation. I’m a sucker for fairytale so there’s no chance I’m letting this slip.

Here’s the book’s beginning:

“My parents lie somewhere beneath the snow, buried with my mortal life. I spend endless days searching for their remains. Tucking a piece of the mirror inside my fur-lined cloak, I harness one of my milk-white ponies to a sledge. Flying over ice and snow, I hold up the shard to catch the rays of the sun. ”

This is so freaking sad for a book’s beginning. Looking for your parents’ remains to start a story is such a downer. I immediately felt blue. Knowing your parents died and you don’t have bodies to mourn for is so heartbreaking. This somehow shows how lonely Thyra is, but then again, flying on milk-white ponies on a sledge over ice and snow is kind of cool. Like I want to sing Let it Go on top of my lungs. LOL. I’m sorry. I got so excited about that 😀

Anyway, I’ve checked reviews and found out that readers do have torn feelings about it. Here’s a few of what they have to say:

Crown of Ice was definitely a book that was worth the read for me. I was over the moon about getting to know a protagonist who was so unique and compelling. Thyra Winter is a character I won’t soon forget! I thought the idea of a Snow Queen was fascinating, her powers were cool (no pun intended!) and her wolf-sidekick was adorable ♥ As far as I know, this book is a standalone – another rarity, so I would definitely recommend this one to fairytale-retelling fans and readers who like a very different kind of heroine, one who’s both twisted and compelling.
— Micheline of Lunar Rainbows

Let’s have a not so good review too:

No disrespect, but this book was so boring I actually lost my temper reading it. Why? Well mainly because it was filled with all talk, talk, talk, talk.
She meets a powerful foe, and they end up yap-yap-a-yapping. She meets bandits who has a piece of the puzzle that she must take from them; they go chat-chat-a-chatting. Oh no the evil mage has returned to the palace, and God forbid! he subjects us to another blah-blah-a-blabbing.
Basically, this entire book was not only that cartoon villain with his hands on his hips, telling our hero he is going to kill her; it was also the hero talking back at him and giving him a list of reasons why he should not and can not do so..
— Amanda of Elfswood

I’ve always liked to know the good and the bad, especially if this is something I waited for. Let’s see. I’m almost done reading it and so far, there are things that I like and torn with. I’ll save my thoughts for my review though. 🙂

You could share book beginnings on your current read too. Comment the link of your own Book Beginnings on Fridays so I can check it out and have an idea of amazing books that I would want to read. Come on! Join us! 😀