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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
Sometime, presumably around the turn of the 19th century, the earth was smashed into pieces, creating floating islands called Arks. Each Ark is vastly different in culture and climate, but especially in the powers that the inhabitants wield. Ophelia is a very powerful Anima (meaning she can read the past of the objects that she touches, and is so good at this that she can travel through mirrors) and has been assigned an arranged marriage to a man she has never met from another Ark. The book kicks off with her and her aunt traveling to his Ark, Pole, to stay until the wedding. This book is fantasy but heavily relies on politics with magic as a backdrop.
So I read this for my bookopoly prompt to read a book recommended by Regan of PeruseProject. I have gotten tons of recommendations from her over the years, but this one really let me down. I do not think that this book is terrible, I've read worse, but like, where is all this hype coming from? The things that are BY FAR most compelling about this book are the history of this world and the spiritual stuff that is pointed at several times, and occasionally the magic (like the glass balls, what's up with those? what's up with Hildegarde's spacial powers?). However, the book rarely addresses these things; I was hoping this book would go up a star at the very end by doing so, but alas, they remained brutally underutilized. The book is solely based on the politics of this world, which Ophelia, our window into this world, has no knowledge of. I felt like I was experiencing all of this with the wool over my head. I can't care about political machinations if I don't understand what's behind them! Then there's the whole hiding Ophelia plot, which went on for half the book and became cumbersome and boring, and kind of misleading in my opinion? It's nearly big enough that it should have been established in the synopsis.
My other problems with this book stem from the characters. First off, the way the female characters were described bugged me, like everyone was either ugly and evil or beautiful and vain and evil or the mc, who gave me a huge "not like other girls" vibe. Speaking of our main character, Ophelia must be seeing things way differently than I am because she was always surprised when things happened that were obvious and she read from Thorn that he was falling in love with her when I read it as him being angry at her as always??? Like nothing changed with him, and she's like, "you're not allowed to love me!!" What's up with that??? The only saving grace for our mc for me is that she came off as aro/ace, but I'm not sure if she is or if this is just an extremely slow burn romance straight out of a liberal arts degree - NO CHEMISTRY.
This book had potential. I kept imagining it being animated like ATLA! Unfortunately, it just didn't deliver in the areas I needed it to.
So I read this for my bookopoly prompt to read a book recommended by Regan of PeruseProject. I have gotten tons of recommendations from her over the years, but this one really let me down. I do not think that this book is terrible, I've read worse, but like, where is all this hype coming from? The things that are BY FAR most compelling about this book are the history of this world and the spiritual stuff that is pointed at several times, and occasionally the magic (like the glass balls, what's up with those? what's up with Hildegarde's spacial powers?). However, the book rarely addresses these things; I was hoping this book would go up a star at the very end by doing so, but alas, they remained brutally underutilized. The book is solely based on the politics of this world, which Ophelia, our window into this world, has no knowledge of. I felt like I was experiencing all of this with the wool over my head. I can't care about political machinations if I don't understand what's behind them! Then there's the whole hiding Ophelia plot, which went on for half the book and became cumbersome and boring, and kind of misleading in my opinion? It's nearly big enough that it should have been established in the synopsis.
My other problems with this book stem from the characters. First off, the way the female characters were described bugged me, like everyone was either ugly and evil or beautiful and vain and evil or the mc, who gave me a huge "not like other girls" vibe. Speaking of our main character, Ophelia must be seeing things way differently than I am because she was always surprised when things happened that were obvious and she read from Thorn that he was falling in love with her when I read it as him being angry at her as always??? Like nothing changed with him, and she's like, "you're not allowed to love me!!" What's up with that??? The only saving grace for our mc for me is that she came off as aro/ace, but I'm not sure if she is or if this is just an extremely slow burn romance straight out of a liberal arts degree - NO CHEMISTRY.
This book had potential. I kept imagining it being animated like ATLA! Unfortunately, it just didn't deliver in the areas I needed it to.
A surprising new favorite that was unputdownable! A whimsical but dark story that gripped me from the beginning and delivered twist after twist. The writing was sharp and witty, the characters were lovable and quirky (& some detestable), the plot was genius with a great flow and story structure, these people felt so real and tangible I felt like I knew them so well. There was little romance, but what we got mirrored pride and prejudice (Mr. Darcy has entered the chat). Highly recommend if you're looking for a different but incredible read!! I loved Ophelia, Great uncle, Thorn, Fox, and Aunt Rosaline with my whole heart.
Including some of my favorite quotes below:
"Ophelia looked closely at her great-uncle. The strong sunlight seemed to accentuate the features on his face and deepen every wrinkle. With a twinge of sorrow, she suddenly realized that this man, who she had always thought to be as solid as a rock and impervious to the passing of time, was today a tired old man. "
"The thought of being deprived of her freedom of movement terrified her. First they put her in a cage to protect her, then one day that cage would turn into a prison. A woman confined at home with the sole purpose of producing children for her husband, that's what they'd turn her into if she didn't take control of her future, as of now. "
"Didn't I tell you that I would take my revenge on all who went for you? Ophelia quickly took refuge behind her coffee cup. Suddenly, she had a big lump in her throat. She'd just grasped that she really was important to him. It was neither an act nor just empty words. He expressed his feelings rather crudely, certainly, but he was terribly sincere."
Including some of my favorite quotes below:
"Ophelia looked closely at her great-uncle. The strong sunlight seemed to accentuate the features on his face and deepen every wrinkle. With a twinge of sorrow, she suddenly realized that this man, who she had always thought to be as solid as a rock and impervious to the passing of time, was today a tired old man. "
"The thought of being deprived of her freedom of movement terrified her. First they put her in a cage to protect her, then one day that cage would turn into a prison. A woman confined at home with the sole purpose of producing children for her husband, that's what they'd turn her into if she didn't take control of her future, as of now. "
"Didn't I tell you that I would take my revenge on all who went for you? Ophelia quickly took refuge behind her coffee cup. Suddenly, she had a big lump in her throat. She'd just grasped that she really was important to him. It was neither an act nor just empty words. He expressed his feelings rather crudely, certainly, but he was terribly sincere."
A Winter’s Promise was not what I expected it to be, but with that being said, it flew past my expectations. The world was incredibly original and the characters were very fleshed out. I really liked Ophelia’s journey throughout the story of her finding her voice. The supporting characters were strong and I genuinely cared about them. I’m glad I picked this book up and I’m excited to see where the series will go from here!
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dropped after the first few chapter
no comments on the plot or writing, i just wasn't feeling it (i also unfortunately let the reviews get to me)
no comments on the plot or writing, i just wasn't feeling it (i also unfortunately let the reviews get to me)
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Although it has a slow start, this book is worth the read. There is a lot of world building in the first half of this that might make it difficult to read if you read it over several days like I did, but near the halfway point it becomes a lot more plot driven. Not all the characters are loveable but they certainly are interesting. Looking forward to the next book which I'm promised is even better!
this book was Boring with a capital B. If someone asked me to say the plot of this book I would only be able to give a short and not very detailed description. this has to be apart of a series because it ended on a cliffhanger but that DONT MATTER TO ME because i will not be reading the next one <3
I think my favorite part of this book was the worldbuilding and i guess that was the authors favorite part too because that’s the main thing she focused on. i cant tell you anything about the plot but by golly i can give you a detailed description on how the magic system works. this whole book could’ve been told in like 100 pages in a prologue. this entire book seems like it would be a really good short story but with over 400 pages of like nothing it got a little boring not even gonna lie to you.
I think my favorite part of this book was the worldbuilding and i guess that was the authors favorite part too because that’s the main thing she focused on. i cant tell you anything about the plot but by golly i can give you a detailed description on how the magic system works. this whole book could’ve been told in like 100 pages in a prologue. this entire book seems like it would be a really good short story but with over 400 pages of like nothing it got a little boring not even gonna lie to you.
inspiring
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes