babbity_rabbity 's review for:

Winterwood by Shea Ernshaw

4.0

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"Because I am more darkness than girl. More winter shadows than August sunlight. We are the daughters of the wood, my grandmother would whisper."

Winterwood is definitely style over substance. How much that bothers you will depend on what you want from the book.

In a witchy reading mood? Looking for something a creepy and romantic and fresh to read on a frosty evening? Pick this one up, and let the reveals slowly wash over you as Nora Walker unravels the mystery of a boy found half-buried in snow.

If the atmosphere isn't enough for you, though, you might get hung up on the story problems. The mystery was pretty aggravating for me--the whole thing was based on Ershaw throwing up artificial obstacles to the reader learning what happened before the book opened. There's very little actual plot outside of slow parceling-out of exposition.

I would absolutely recommend Winterwood to the right reader. The imagery and immersiveness are top-notch. If you’re looking for a snowy, unsettling romance that feels like a campfire ghost story, this is exactly what you want.

And I’d never dream of spoiling the ending of a book, so just let me say… the ending. Was. Spectacular. The last half-dozen chapters bumped Winterwood up a whole star for me. Absolutely perfect.

Full review on my blog.

Thank you to Simon Pulse for providing an advance review copy of this title for an honest review. No money changed hands for this review and all opinions are my own.