Frostfire by Amanda Hocking

Frostfire by Amanda Hocking

Release Date: January 6, 2015
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Series: The Kanin Chronicles, Book 1
Rated: YA 14+
Format: Paperback
Source: Pansing
Buy: Amazon ● The Book Depository
Goodreads ● Website

Hidden deep in the heart of a snow-covered wilderness lies the secret kingdom of the Kanin–a magical realm as beautiful as it is treacherous...

Byn Aven has never fit into Kanin society. Her blond hair and blue eyes set her apart as an outside–a half-blood unable to hold a respectable rank. But she’s determined to prove herself as a loyal protector of the kingdom she loves. Her dream is to become a member of the King’s elite guard, and she’s not going to let anything stand in her way...not even her growing feelings for her boss, Ridley Dresden. A relationship between them is strictly forbidden, but Bryn can’t fight her attraction to him. And she’s beginning to think he feels it, too.

Meanwhile, there’s an attack on the kingdom–one that will test Bryn’s strength like never before. Finally, she has the chance to confront Konstantin Black, the traitor who tried to kill her father years ago. It’s up to Bryn to put a stop to him before he strikes again. But is she willing to risk everything to protect a kingdom that doesn’t accept her for who she really is? And when her mission brings her closer to Ridley, will she be able to deny her heart?

First things first, when I found out that the bad guy’s name was Konstantine, this was the first thing I immediately thought of:

Different spelling, but same idea. So half of the time I was picturing the bad guy with a mole right above his lips that kind of resembled Constantine, the Kermit lookalike.

ANYWAY.

I had no idea that Frostfire was part of a spin-off series of the Trylle trilogy, which I have not yet read. Now thinking about it, this book maybe would have made more sense if I had read the original trilogy first. I was completely lost with the world-building. I mean, there’s a huge kingdom somewhere in North America (Canada?) and it sounds kind of archaic-ish, but it ISN’T. They listen to ELLIE GOULDING for crying out loud. They drive cars and have technological appliances. This was just a confusing clash of two completely opposite ideas that didn’t seem to work. I like having a clear idea of the world I’m entering when I read a book and because this one was all over the place, I was left annoyed at the world and just decided to focus on the story and characters.

Holy moly was Bryn’s character annoying and, like the world building, all over the place. I mean okay, I’m all for a kick-ass female character, YES, PLEASE YES. But when she screams and pushes people away for the wrong reasons, it’s just a little tedious reading her story. Also, there’s one thing I don’t get: the back of the book says that she is considered an outsider, doesn’t fit in, etc. etc. Um... did I miss something? There was possibly only one or two minor instances in the book, and even then the Queen backed her up and the King apologised. So much for being the “outsider” because she was more like the one everyone wanted to be or be with. Ugh.
Ridley’s character was the reason I thought this book was more new adult than young adult. He’s twenty-four and she’s nineteen. It’s a little borderline, but eh, the writing seemed like it was aimed at a young adult audience and didn’t have anything that YA hasn’t seen before (nothing overly sexual, etc.). But the romance was so childish. Honestly, he keeps putting his hand on her thigh (constantly) and she STILL doesn’t think that he’s into her. And she has to be seriously mean to his super nice girlfriend. So much for wanting a platonic relationship.

Speaking of hands on thighs and that phrase being repeated constantly in the book, what’s with all the smirking? Half of the time I was trying to see when the next time the word “smirk” would appear. SO MANY TIMES AUGHHHHH. By the end I was seriously thinking about going back and trying to frickin count how many times it appeared in the book. So hands on thighs and smirking... this is what you have to prepare yourself for when you read this book.

Maybe it was because I didn’t read the Trylle trilogy, or I was completely right with all my problems, but Frostfire wasn’t the book for me. I seriously hate writing negative reviews because I tend to get ranty, but in this case I could see no other way. But, I will give the book this – the plot was somewhat interesting. If you can get past the writing with a ton of brand/song/actor name dropping and the attention to detail that NOBODY cares about, it’s actually got an intriguing storyline with a somewhat shocking twist at the end. Needless to say, despite my problems with the book, the end does leave me slightly curious, but just curious enough for me to read the next book. Here’s to Ice Kissed. Hooray.

▪ ▪ ▪ Thank you so much to Sasha from Pansing for sending me a copy for review! ▪ ▪ ▪

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