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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is a hard one to rate. On one hand I did enjoy the sleeping beauty meets Minatour labyrinth in a rich Arabian settings.. on the other hand I didnt like any of the characters. It fluctuated a lot between me being awed by the world building and then being frustrated with the FMC and her so called destiny. South wind also turned out to be my least favourite of the brothers. He was a bit boring and too much pinning... The only character i found really interesting was the visiting prince.... maybe i was just in that kinda mood. I do love the darker tones that this author writes with spins on well known fairytales and mytholgies but this one just didnt work as well for me as her other ones.
Thanks to Harpercollins for an ARC, all opnions are my own.
Thanks to Harpercollins for an ARC, all opnions are my own.
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.0⭐️
3.0 🌶️
Greek mythology x Sleeping Beauty
The South Wind by Alexandria Warwick is a lush fantasy filled with nods to Greek Mythology and Sleeping Beauty. Sarai is thrust into an arranged engagement to Prince Bailor to try to help save her homeland of Ammara. Enter in The South Wind, Notus (swoon). The past relationship with Sarai and his handsomely good looks would make anyone question their next steps. Music plays a large role in this book as Sarai, beyond the struggle of her past relationship, struggles to find the courage to embrace the music of the violin and of her heart once again.
.
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It was a fun read with some moments of “Hold on! What!?” The tension between Sarai and Notus was immaculate. I loved every moment of it. I wish that it didn’t feel so repetitive in some places, but overall The South Wind was filled with the things I crave: strong FMC and MMC, a protective MMC, and a dangerous situation where they have to figure things out.
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Thank you to NetGalley and @sagapress for this eARC. The South Wind by Alexandria Warwick comes out May 22, 2025!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Suicide, Death of parent
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
It’s been a least a year since I read The North Wind and where we first learned of the dark walkers so it was hard for me to remember what exactly they did/do. The North Wind is where we also learn of the 4 gods that are brothers - north, south, east, west wind.
I felt that this story seemed weak and didn’t flow well. There were sooooo many secrets and it got really frustrating the more you read.
The FMC was hard to like. On one hand, I feel bad for her, and on the other hand, she could learn to trust and communicate a bit better. Omg if they just had a conversation!!! I got so sick of the back and forth. Be honest with each other people. It’s not hard. I would say this is a disastrous amount of miscommunication between all character. FMC and MMC were in love but her brother told him to go away because of some stuff. He goes away and she falls into depression. The brother who told him to go away kills himself after not even passing on the letter the MMC wrote to FMC and seeing his sister so depressed.
5 years later MMC is back and doesn’t tell her about any of this until her dad died. Oh and not to mention she is not telling ANYONE she is cursed to die on her 25th birthday which is days away.
And then there was a labyrinth? *screams in cliches*
“What letter?” --> I love this trope.
“You came”
It probably only got good in part 2. And also when we met the East Wind.
I wanted to like this more than I did but there were some questions left unanswered. Which of her brothers was jealous of her? It sounded like both or maybe one was lying about it and blamed the other. I'm not entirely sure.
Also, the one who cursed her ended up being the East Wind? And the curse to break was just removing the darkness from her heart. Except she was cursed when she was a baby and obviously had no darkness until she grew up and was thrust into the life of a princess putting duty before everything.
The villain was dumb too. Why release the beast and the dark walkers? They will destroy the world. The villain wants to expand his empire but there will be nothing left. Idiots. Then he just disappears with the beast and dark walkers? What the heck??
I'd like to see all the brothers back together at some point. Hopefully that happens in The East Wind.
"Because it is my voice when I cannot speak myself."
"For that is the power of music, to reach into our hearts to touch those pieces of ourselves that we are too afraid to acknowledge."
Scent: only salt and black iris mentioned
Songs: anything with violins. I pictured Vivaldi's Four Seasons.
I still think The North Wind was my favourite so far.
I felt that this story seemed weak and didn’t flow well. There were sooooo many secrets and it got really frustrating the more you read.
5 years later MMC is back and doesn’t tell her about any of this until her dad died. Oh and not to mention she is not telling ANYONE she is cursed to die on her 25th birthday which is days away.
And then there was a labyrinth? *screams in cliches*
“What letter?” --> I love this trope.
“You came”
It probably only got good in part 2. And also when we met the East Wind.
I wanted to like this more than I did but there were some questions left unanswered. Which of her brothers was jealous of her? It sounded like both or maybe one was lying about it and blamed the other. I'm not entirely sure.
Also, the one who cursed her ended up being the East Wind? And the curse to break was just removing the darkness from her heart. Except she was cursed when she was a baby and obviously had no darkness until she grew up and was thrust into the life of a princess putting duty before everything.
The villain was dumb too. Why release the beast and the dark walkers? They will destroy the world. The villain wants to expand his empire but there will be nothing left. Idiots. Then he just disappears with the beast and dark walkers? What the heck??
I'd like to see all the brothers back together at some point. Hopefully that happens in The East Wind.
"Because it is my voice when I cannot speak myself."
"For that is the power of music, to reach into our hearts to touch those pieces of ourselves that we are too afraid to acknowledge."
Scent: only salt and black iris mentioned
Songs: anything with violins. I pictured Vivaldi's Four Seasons.
I still think The North Wind was my favourite so far.
I thought this was a good read and enjoyed it more than the second book in the series. This book is a standalone that follows the fmc Sarai and the mmc the south wind. It starts off with the fmc being born and that’s important since it’s a Daphne/Apollo and sleeping beauty reimagining. Fast forward to present day and we see that the fmc had grown into her own and has to get into an arranged marriage. The relationship is technically a second chance since they have history and the fmc has had her heart broken by the mmc. I liked the plot, the political intrigue and seeing the importance of music and the violin. The arranged marriage part, the partnership, the secrets were triguing and I liked how the author wrote it. I thought the fmc character was so strong and opinionated especially when dealing with her father the king and I liked how passionate the mmc was but I wanted more of him. Overall both the romance and plot was interesting and cute especially the epilogue. Thanks to Saga Press for this earc!
"You have absolutely stolen my heart. There's no way around it. I love you then, and I love you now."
South Wind is a tender, aching story of healing. Sarai is withdrawn and hurting, haunted by past trauma, and Notus—gentle, steady, and full of quiet devotion—meets her where she is. Their love grows slowly, built on silence, safety, and soft persistence. That line? It wrecked me.
This story doesn’t demand attention—it earns it. And I’m so glad I gave it mine.
South Wind is a tender, aching story of healing. Sarai is withdrawn and hurting, haunted by past trauma, and Notus—gentle, steady, and full of quiet devotion—meets her where she is. Their love grows slowly, built on silence, safety, and soft persistence. That line? It wrecked me.
This story doesn’t demand attention—it earns it. And I’m so glad I gave it mine.
medium-paced
The South Wind is an inspired retelling of Sleeping Beauty and Thesus and the Minotaur and was such a captivating read from the start. I loved how easy it was to imagine the setting with such vivid and detailed descriptions of the kingdom and easy to understand world building.
Told from the POV of Princess Sarai a musical prodigy who hasn't played in years The South Wind is a story of the constant shadowing of grief, unspoken feelings and the complicated relationships between not only her first love Notus who suddenly reappears in Sarai's life after deserting her but also with her family as she tries to secure her realms future by marrying a prince she doesn't trust and with her time running out she works with Notus to escape the marriage and secure her kingdom. I really loved how even though there were a lot of feelings to work through everything was resolved in such a satisfying way. I also really enjoyed how music was an integral and powerful component to the story and especially for Sarai's character growth throughout.
This is my favourite so far in this series of interconnected standalones, with the perfect vibes, a slow burn romantasy with a little spice and a great plot with twists and turns.
Thank you so much to the publisher for gifting me a proof. These are my honest thoughts and opinions.
Told from the POV of Princess Sarai a musical prodigy who hasn't played in years The South Wind is a story of the constant shadowing of grief, unspoken feelings and the complicated relationships between not only her first love Notus who suddenly reappears in Sarai's life after deserting her but also with her family as she tries to secure her realms future by marrying a prince she doesn't trust and with her time running out she works with Notus to escape the marriage and secure her kingdom. I really loved how even though there were a lot of feelings to work through everything was resolved in such a satisfying way. I also really enjoyed how music was an integral and powerful component to the story and especially for Sarai's character growth throughout.
This is my favourite so far in this series of interconnected standalones, with the perfect vibes, a slow burn romantasy with a little spice and a great plot with twists and turns.
Thank you so much to the publisher for gifting me a proof. These are my honest thoughts and opinions.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced