Of Ice and Shadows

I truly loved this book. I devoured the first one, Of Fire and Stars, in a single day several years ago, and EAGERLY awaited this sequel. I even bought it in two formats just so I could have it anywhere and support the author doubly. There is a dearth of queer representation in fantasy, and this story is so dear to my heart because it gets the representation right. (It's hard to not get it right when you belong to the community, but it is possible.) As someone who aspires to write sweeping, lush fantasy novels that follow in the same footsteps being taken by Ms. Coulthurst and, thankfully, many more like her these days, it is so thrilling to me to find a world where princesses can take their fate in their own hands, where people have magical Affinities and dark secrets, and a world where the decisions made and actions taken have lasting consequences for the characters involved. Death is death, and can be fought, but never bargained with. This makes me respect and believe the rules the author has set forth for her world. I mean, we've all seen the TV shows where the characters escape consequences time after time, and doesn't the show just get so dreadfully boring? Yeah. That doesn't happen here. I had to put the book down and walk away from it for a time, through no fault of the writing, but now that I have finally come back to it (and soaked it up like the first rains after a drought) it's as dear to my heart as the first novel. And I DEARLY, DESPERATELY hope for a third book. Publishers, are you listening?? Take my money! We need to hear the rest of Denna and Mare's story. And please bring back the same narrators for the audiobook version! Saskia Maarleveld and Moira Quirk are AMAZING. They brought the books to life for me in new, emphatic ways. I am a very happy reader. Thank you, Ms. Coulthurst. I can't wait to see what you do next.

A fantastic sequel two both of the previous books set in this world. This book is a direct sequel to "Of Fire and Stars". But it is also,in many ways, a sequel to "Inkmistress", which takes place many years before the events of this story. While reading "Inkmistress" isn't required to understand the story, I w would recommend it, since it will increase your enjoyment of the story.The pacing, character development, and storytelling in this book are superb. The ending is very satisfying and feels 'complete', unlike the first volume, which was also fantastic, but seemed to obviously be only the beginning of the story. However, there were enough open plot threads left to tantalize the reader into hoping that we've not read the last of Mare, Denna, Tristan, Evie, young Faye, and the Dragon Queen.Highly recommended!

I bought the book and finished it out on the audio, mainly because I didn't want to put it down while I was working. I think that there are a few things that surprised me about the book. I was pretty much figuring it would be a middle book let down, where there is no clear resolution. There will be more in the series, or at least that door is left wide open, but I was at least satisfied with the ending. There are a lot of back story elements I am still left a bit curious about, but I actually enjoyed this a bit more than the first book. Some of the reason has to do with seeing the growth in the characters, both in their skills, but overall maturity. There is the over-arching element of doubt which makes the characters more human and relatable. At first I was bummed by the charters spending so much time apart in this story, but I do feel that it helps with creating their maturity and own identity. The only thing that I really could not get on board with was some fighting, from a distance, that did not really allow for a quick resolution, or any resolution with the characters kind of reflecting on how they treated each other. Meh, it's small, but overall, I enjoyed it.

Of Fire and Stars was definitely the better of these two books, and I found myself a little disappointed upon finishing Of Ice and Shadows that it didn't hold up to the quality of the first. I honestly can't tell if this is meant to be the final book of Denna and Mare's story, or if there's intention to create a third. I'm hoping for the latter, because this book left a LOT of threads loose. Maybe the prequel tied up some of those threads- I haven't read it yet, but I'd prefer if these two books worked as a standalone.My biggest disappointment with this book was in the climax. There was a lot of great buildup, and it kept me guessing for a while. Looking back, there were a few hints laid out for the big reveal, which I always appreciate. However, the climax itself was disappointing and burnt itself out quickly. The resolution was very unexciting and seemed unchallenging, and with the exception of one short moment, it rarely felt like anyone was in real danger. I expected the stakes to rise and the battle to get more intense, or something to go wrong (more catastrophically than it did) that the heroes would have to work against, and then it was just... over. They made an uncomplicated plan "offscreen", and that plan worked easily. The whole climax felt like an afterthought when held up to the rest of the book.There were also a few sequences that felt.. awkward and really could've used more editing before calling them complete. The apology scenes, especially, felt very stilted and unrealistic. I appreciate portrayals of healthy interactions and conflict resolution, but I think there are ways to make it feel less robotic. The scene with the cult, too. Why talk to the woman in the village at all if you're not going to use her information? Just so that we, the readers, know why Denna is able to save the day? A lot of the problem could've been avoided if anyone had exercised half a braincell in using the information the woman provided.Overall, still very fun, but it definitely felt like an unfinished book. Worth a read if you loved the first and have time to spare, but definitely not as solid.

I enjoyed this sequel to Of Fire and Stars. I did find it a little slow to start and felt like it took a good 80 pages or so to get back into its stride. However, once that happened it was an intiguigung page turner and I didn't even mind the separation of the 2 MCs so much. I spent one very last night unable to put the thing down. There were points where I really started to dislike Mare as she became a spoiled brat making everything about her needs and wants bemoaning the fact that nothing was ever about her needs and wants. But when I looked back on it, she was always that way. I also did not feel that Denna mastered her magic through self awareness and underatanding but rather was given a pretty decent assist by others. The wrap up in the last few pages felt hurried, still, it was an exciting read and I'd recommend the series to wlw fantasy lovers.

I thoroughly enjoyed this as much as the first. The plot was so engaging I couldn’t put it down!

Cant review bought as a present

Amazing book - loved that the world and the magic was expanded more on. I don’t usually write reviews but I couldn’t put the first book or the second one down one I started reading. Amazing- avidly await another instalment!

Mir hatte schon der erste Band "of fire and stars" sehr gut gefallen. Eine romantische und spannende Darstellung einer w/w Beziehung.Dieser Band ist die Fortsetzung.Es gibt noch den Band "Inkmistress", der sozusagen ein Prequell (Vorgeschichte) zu diesem hier ist. Er erzählt HIntergründe zur Königin und der Zauberei in dem Land. Spielt also deutlich vor der Geburt unserer beider Heldinnen. Ich fand den Band deutlich schlechter als den ersten. Man hat ein klein wenig mehr HIntergrundwissen und freut sich, wenn sich Verknüpfungen ergeben. Allzuviele waren das aber nicht. (also zu diesem Band "Of ice and shadows".Der zweite Band ist spannend und voller Kämpfe und Abenteuer. Ich empfinde ihn zugleich als Buch über das Erwachsenwerden und den eigenen Weg gehen wollen. Identitätsfindung.Romantisch ist der Band eigentlich nur zwischendrin sehr kurz. Die beiden Charaktere sind auch die meiste Zeit getrennt.Dabei entdeckt Denna die Hintergründe zu ihrer Magie, was wirklich der spannednste Teil war.Mare lernt kämpfen und ermittelt politische Verschwörungen. Das fand ich etwas zäher, aber gegen Ende dann auch wieder spannend.Die Auflösung ging mir dann viel zu schnell.Und man erfährt nicht wirklich, wie es mit den Cgarakteren weitergeht. Es ist ein Abschluss, aber mich würde ein dritter Band nicht wundern (bisher nicht angekündigt).Spannende und lebhafte Charaktere, viel Action, spannende Hintergund-Infos.Ich habe es gerne gelesen und kaum aus der Hand gelegt.