A review by justkarlah
The Frost Soldier and the Gilded Duty by Maham Fatemi

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

▫️3rd person POV▫️

This is the second book in The Heartless and the Wicked series.

I wanted to love this book. I think I went into it expecting it would be just as exciting and intense as the first one, so I had high expectations for the second book in the series. 

A huge chunk of the book is Kolfinna feeling insecure and lonely. She's trying her best to fit in as a Royal Guard but still feels ostracized from the humans around her. The few friends that she does have aren't really there for her the way friends would be normally, mostly because she doesn't allow them to be.
I don't really understand why neither of her friends helped her train with a sword if they both knew she wasn't getting the proper training? Like they saw her being constantly made to fight but never bothered to offer to help her train with a sword.


Most of the conversations/interactions between Blár and Kolfinna were so awkward, to the point where it made me uncomfortable to keep reading. It didn't feel natural, or normal for their age range to be speaking the way they did, especially Blár (some of the things he'd say were just embarrassing, and didn't feel like things his character would say). They did have some advancement in their closeness, and some of their interactions were great, so I hope it becomes more natural in the next book. 

She recognized the look marring Blár's beautiful face.
The scene this quote is from is perfectly frustrating and heartbreaking all at once, and definitely one of my favorite little moments between them!

A large part of the first half of the book felt like it dragged a little, and then the last couple of chapters completely knock you off your feet with the way the plot advances so quickly. 

Don't get me wrong though, I loved the action and the secrets revealed toward the end. It's setting up the plot for the third book in the series, and I'm looking forward to reading it when it comes out! 

That last chapter though? Felt like she was repeating the same mistake in jumping into things too quickly without putting any thought into it. It's the second time (that I can remember) where Blár says he'll help her but she just goes and completely forgets this and throws her trust onto someone who's basically a stranger. Had me so frustrated. I can't get past Kolfinna complaining and pushing her friends away while signging her life away to someone she's wary of. I know it's to advance the plot, but it still makes little sense.


There's also the diary that she read, and the soldier she criticized for complaining too much, all while she herself complains about her life and the hardships she goes through. Of course she has the right to complain when all she's faced are hardships, but this book was FULL of her insecurities and complaints. And when she was presented with help from her friends and Blár, she would decline or make up excuses why it wouldn't work. She was sabotaging herself and still complaining about it. Like come on girl, complain all you want but do something about it!


I'm definitely rambling at this point. Even though this book wasn't as entertaining/gripping as the first one, I still enjoyed parts of it, and I'll definitely be reading the third one once it comes out.
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