Scan barcode
avid_reader_96's review
4.0
It was amazing! I loved Miranda and Archer's HEA but Winston and Poppy's take the cake. Winterblaze is my favorite novel in this series and I can't wait to see what's in store for Jack and Mary.
book_worm_1319's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
jackiehorne's review
2.0
Each book in this series gets a little bit worse -- rushed out with not enough editing, perhaps? A great premise, but the plot and romance arc are both riddled with gaps in logic that make for frustrating reading.
romancejunkie1025's review
4.0
wow that was heartbreaking and love reaffirming. lots of drama and plot twists and come heat and sexiness too. not what i was expecting from a couple that has been married for 14 years. VERY WELL written story.
kate_and_books's review against another edition
3.0
Warning rant ahead. 2.5-3ish Stars
What can I say about Poppy Ann Lane?
She is infuriating, pig headed, stubborn, and self-righteous and quite frankly a pain in the fucking arse.
I haven't liked her since Firelight and I was hoping that there would be something likeable about her. That she could redeem herself but no.
Poppy gets jack shite in stars.
Winston Lane a former Lord turned Inspector gave everything up for love. He made a deal with the devil. 14 years later he has come to get what is his due. Win gets 3 *
Poppy has lied to everyone for 14 years and all secrets are revealed at some point. After Winston was attacked in Moonglow he found out the truth.
A bitter pill to swallow. Half of the book consisted of them arguing. Which is bloody irksome. But for all their problems there are four souls hanging in the balance between good and evil. Let us not forget that Ms. Callihan still creates a fantastic, interesting, spell bounding and utterly unique Victorian London.
With an overall entertaining, suck you in story plot. With appearances of characters of previous books as well as seeing more of Jack Talent & Mary Chase. I reckon their book will be marvelous. We also meet the characters for future books.
Jumping between the past & present was bloody awful as we always got to the interesting parts in the present and then then we jumped to the past.
At some point I started skipping them. Sorry. The overall plot gets 3*.
Fingers crossed this was just a onetime event.
But I'm off to a different genre now.
What can I say about Poppy Ann Lane?
She is infuriating, pig headed, stubborn, and self-righteous and quite frankly a pain in the fucking arse.
I haven't liked her since Firelight and I was hoping that there would be something likeable about her. That she could redeem herself but no.
Poppy gets jack shite in stars.
Winston Lane a former Lord turned Inspector gave everything up for love. He made a deal with the devil. 14 years later he has come to get what is his due. Win gets 3 *
Poppy has lied to everyone for 14 years and all secrets are revealed at some point. After Winston was attacked in Moonglow he found out the truth.
A bitter pill to swallow. Half of the book consisted of them arguing. Which is bloody irksome. But for all their problems there are four souls hanging in the balance between good and evil. Let us not forget that Ms. Callihan still creates a fantastic, interesting, spell bounding and utterly unique Victorian London.
With an overall entertaining, suck you in story plot. With appearances of characters of previous books as well as seeing more of Jack Talent & Mary Chase. I reckon their book will be marvelous. We also meet the characters for future books.
Jumping between the past & present was bloody awful as we always got to the interesting parts in the present and then then we jumped to the past.
At some point I started skipping them. Sorry. The overall plot gets 3*.
Fingers crossed this was just a onetime event.
But I'm off to a different genre now.
fishgirl182's review
5.0
Kristen Callihan has quickly become one of my favorite romance authors. With compelling characters, intricate plots, passionate romance, and the backdrop of a London full of mystery and dangerous creatures, each book in her Darkest London series only seems to get better. Winterblaze is no exception and Win and Poppy are my favorite couple yet.
Winterblaze is the story of Poppy, the eldest Ellis sister, and her husband Winston, who have been married for fourteen years. At the end of the last book, Win was brutally attacked by a werewolf and discovers that Poppy is Mother, a paranormal and also the head of a clandestine organization dedicated to keeping supernatural creatures a secret from humans. Feeling betrayed and confused, Win has leaves Poppy to sort out his feelings. While Win is on holiday in Paris, a new threat arises and Poppy must find Win and defeat this threat before it destroys them both.
My first impressions of Win and Poppy from the previous books were not necessarily positive. Poppy always seemed a bit stern and humorless to me while Win came off as a serious, straight-laced police detective. But I was so wrong about the both of them. In Winterblaze, we really get to see their true personalities and there is much more to them than I thought. Poppy is definitely still an overprotective older sister but it’s born out of a deep love for her family. Though she doesn’t always make the right decisions concerning them, she does what she believes is in their best interests. She is also a fighter and extremely intelligent. Win is also extremely smart and not as proper as he seems. He has a love of danger and a dark side to him that we haven’t seen before.
While I loved these two individually, they are even better as a couple. Winterblaze is a different type or romance novel because it’s about two people who have already been married for fourteen years. Win and Poppy have grown apart and this book is also rediscovering each other and falling in love again. Each of them has been hiding something from the other and, as they slowly learn to trust each other again, their bond grows even deeper. I loved that, to the outside world, they are seen a certain way but with each other, they could be their true selves. Only Win is allowed to see Poppy’s soft, sensual side and is privy to her most vulnerable moments. And only with Poppy can Win divulge his darkest secrets and let out his more playful side. They don’t stifle each other and it’s together that they are at their best.
But their journey isn’t an easy one. There is a lot of anger at first and they both know how to hurt each other. They are two people deeply in love who have grown apart and it’s heartbreaking at times.
And if you think being a married couple would be boring in the bedroom, think again. This may be Kristen Callihan’s hottest book yet! Win and Poppy are estranged at the beginning of the book and the sexual tension between the two is intense. I was dying for them to get together and when they finally do – wow. I never thought that calling someone “wife” would be sexy but Win makes it sound deliciously sweet and debauched at the same time. Be prepared to swoon.
This is definitely my favorite book of the series so far. Poppy and Win are fantastic characters and I could not help falling in love with them. I can’t think of a better matched pair. This may be Callihan’s most personal and emotional story yet. If you enjoyed the previous books in the series, I think you’ll love this one. There’s also a small teaser for Jack and Mary’s book included. These two have been circling each other for a while now and I can’t wait to read their story!
*I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.
Winterblaze is the story of Poppy, the eldest Ellis sister, and her husband Winston, who have been married for fourteen years. At the end of the last book, Win was brutally attacked by a werewolf and discovers that Poppy is Mother, a paranormal and also the head of a clandestine organization dedicated to keeping supernatural creatures a secret from humans. Feeling betrayed and confused, Win has leaves Poppy to sort out his feelings. While Win is on holiday in Paris, a new threat arises and Poppy must find Win and defeat this threat before it destroys them both.
My first impressions of Win and Poppy from the previous books were not necessarily positive. Poppy always seemed a bit stern and humorless to me while Win came off as a serious, straight-laced police detective. But I was so wrong about the both of them. In Winterblaze, we really get to see their true personalities and there is much more to them than I thought. Poppy is definitely still an overprotective older sister but it’s born out of a deep love for her family. Though she doesn’t always make the right decisions concerning them, she does what she believes is in their best interests. She is also a fighter and extremely intelligent. Win is also extremely smart and not as proper as he seems. He has a love of danger and a dark side to him that we haven’t seen before.
While I loved these two individually, they are even better as a couple. Winterblaze is a different type or romance novel because it’s about two people who have already been married for fourteen years. Win and Poppy have grown apart and this book is also rediscovering each other and falling in love again. Each of them has been hiding something from the other and, as they slowly learn to trust each other again, their bond grows even deeper. I loved that, to the outside world, they are seen a certain way but with each other, they could be their true selves. Only Win is allowed to see Poppy’s soft, sensual side and is privy to her most vulnerable moments. And only with Poppy can Win divulge his darkest secrets and let out his more playful side. They don’t stifle each other and it’s together that they are at their best.
But their journey isn’t an easy one. There is a lot of anger at first and they both know how to hurt each other. They are two people deeply in love who have grown apart and it’s heartbreaking at times.
And if you think being a married couple would be boring in the bedroom, think again. This may be Kristen Callihan’s hottest book yet! Win and Poppy are estranged at the beginning of the book and the sexual tension between the two is intense. I was dying for them to get together and when they finally do – wow. I never thought that calling someone “wife” would be sexy but Win makes it sound deliciously sweet and debauched at the same time. Be prepared to swoon.
This is definitely my favorite book of the series so far. Poppy and Win are fantastic characters and I could not help falling in love with them. I can’t think of a better matched pair. This may be Callihan’s most personal and emotional story yet. If you enjoyed the previous books in the series, I think you’ll love this one. There’s also a small teaser for Jack and Mary’s book included. These two have been circling each other for a while now and I can’t wait to read their story!
*I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.
the_tilly0405's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
jonkerkat's review
4.0
I definitely went into this book kind of dreading it. I felt like we already knew the story line and the reconciliation that would happen. I am happy to say that it was much better than I expected!! Poppy and Win are very different and I enjoyed seeing them fall in love all over again. I enjoy the different supernatural beings and exploring the world more. Overall enjoyed it!
writeralicia's review against another edition
4.0
First of all, thanks to Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a review copy through NetGalley.
Winterblaze is the third book in the Darkest London series. It features Poppy and her guy Winston. Poppy is the oldest of three sisters, and the prior two books focused on the love lives of her little sisters Miranda and Daisy.
In the prior two novels of this series, Poppy and Winston made minor appearances, but I wasn't particularly fond of either of them. Poppy seemed a little frigid, making decisions and keeping secrets that affected her sisters, who were the POV characters. Also, Poppy and her husband Winston were basically an old married couple, and Winston was an investigator--not a fighter.
Basically, what I'm saying is that I did not have high hopes for this book. I was not expecting a kick-ass story out of a stiff older sister and her boring husband. Boy, was I wrong!
Having recently recovered from a supernatural attack, Winston's been recuperating in the home of the werewolf Ian Ranulf. Ian and Archer (the mates of Poppy's sisters) have nursed him to health and taught him how to kick some butt. If he wasn't that sexy alpha male before, he sure is now.
And it turns out that Poppy is deeply involved with a society for policing supernatural activity. Unlike Miranda and Daisy, Poppy has spent her whole life kicking butt. Of all the sisters, she is the most bad ass.
When the lies of their past are uncovered at the beginning of Winterblaze, Poppy and Winston's marriage comes apart at the seams. As a result, we do get the sexual tension and angst and indecision that comes with good romance novels. On top of that, we have a history of lies to unravel, many of which are revealed in a series of flashbacks. Usually, flashbacks annoy me when used a lot. In this case, however, since the memory of their past had been altered by supernatural circumstances, I thought it worked well. I was interested in both their past and their present.
I enjoyed Winterblaze much more than I thought I would. For me, it was better than Moonglow and just as good as Firelight.
Winterblaze is the third book in the Darkest London series. It features Poppy and her guy Winston. Poppy is the oldest of three sisters, and the prior two books focused on the love lives of her little sisters Miranda and Daisy.
In the prior two novels of this series, Poppy and Winston made minor appearances, but I wasn't particularly fond of either of them. Poppy seemed a little frigid, making decisions and keeping secrets that affected her sisters, who were the POV characters. Also, Poppy and her husband Winston were basically an old married couple, and Winston was an investigator--not a fighter.
Basically, what I'm saying is that I did not have high hopes for this book. I was not expecting a kick-ass story out of a stiff older sister and her boring husband. Boy, was I wrong!
Having recently recovered from a supernatural attack, Winston's been recuperating in the home of the werewolf Ian Ranulf. Ian and Archer (the mates of Poppy's sisters) have nursed him to health and taught him how to kick some butt. If he wasn't that sexy alpha male before, he sure is now.
And it turns out that Poppy is deeply involved with a society for policing supernatural activity. Unlike Miranda and Daisy, Poppy has spent her whole life kicking butt. Of all the sisters, she is the most bad ass.
When the lies of their past are uncovered at the beginning of Winterblaze, Poppy and Winston's marriage comes apart at the seams. As a result, we do get the sexual tension and angst and indecision that comes with good romance novels. On top of that, we have a history of lies to unravel, many of which are revealed in a series of flashbacks. Usually, flashbacks annoy me when used a lot. In this case, however, since the memory of their past had been altered by supernatural circumstances, I thought it worked well. I was interested in both their past and their present.
I enjoyed Winterblaze much more than I thought I would. For me, it was better than Moonglow and just as good as Firelight.