A well crafted and well thought out story. I read most of it without realizing it was a part of a series. While some of it was strange due to not reading the previous book, it was mostly enjoyable.

Elven Winter was beautifully crafted and so well thought out. I did not realize it was a series – and in another language- until I added it my Goodreads account. There was also a huge gap in-between the first two books and I am willing to bet that the story suffered due to the lack of motivation and changed POV of the author over so much time. Without reading the first one, I felt that I was missing some key elements, but I did not let that detract from my over all feel of the book. I treated it with the same courtesy as a new release that I had never heard of.
The world was totally original and highly developed. I could feel and smell the descriptions that were portrayed in the imagery. I felt ready to ride into battle and slay some Trolls, to defend my kingdom. Bravo on this aspect of the storyline.
The characters were a little rougher around the edges and were harder to love. Especially the Trolls. I know that they are the villains and every story has the need for a good villain to love/hate; that being said, I hated them a bit too much so that aspect was over dramatized.
I did have a connection with Alfadas. I appreciated that he put duty first and left to fight with the Elves even though his wife and village were left to their fates without him. That is true heroism and bravery. He could have easy took the coward way and said ‘No” when the Elves came to call. I believe that made him a key factor in the overall plotline.
The books ended in a huge cliff hanger which normally does not bother me but in this case I am not sure that I will find out what happens because the book might never be translated to English and I would be reading hieroglyphics in German. It left a bad taste in my mouth as I hate when stories are not continued, or the resolution is never found. If I had known about the length of time between books 1 and 2 or the fact that the other books have not been translated, I probably would not have requested the title because I don’t think I did it the justice that it deserves,
The author is a terrific wordsmith and I wish him well. I just hate that we live on different sides of the ocean and his work will not be as appreciated as it should be. Thank you for allowing me to read and review this title.