I don't typically read gothic romance, so this was new for me. I thought the romance was interesting and I thought the author did a good job of interweaving historical fiction and paranormal romance.

Settle in for Winterly. It's a long, slow burn. But overall, it's worth it. This book is filled with beautiful prose and interesting characters. Vampires, werewolves, and angels... Violence, vengeance, and love... Winterly has it all. I'm definitely looking forward to the next installment.

Very different from what I’ve read read before. The plot was original and the story thrilling enough to keep you turning page after page. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who’s looking for a fantasy romance book with a unique spin.

Looooved the writing! It brought me back in time. Everything flowed very beautifully and I enjoyed all of the mystery. Vampire books have a special spot in my heart and this one was very good! Just didn’t enjoy a couple incest aspects thrown into the book.

Ok against popular belief I know, but I couldn’t get into the book. I admit winterly had me intrigued a bit and Emma protecting her sister was strong, but I couldn’t get into the dialogue or keep myself involved in the plot. Maybe it’s cause of the historical setting but I thought the supernatural component would override that for me. I just couldn’t pick it up to want it.

~ARC received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
As a fan of gothic suspense, I wanted to like this novel. Sadly that was not the case. This was a book in need of a genre it could stick to--it started as a regency romance, turned into a vampire romance and ended somewhere else somewhat more metaphorical. It was also way, way too long and badly in need of an edit. There are moments the author tells her story well and catches her readers' attention--but all too often, an awkward word or phrase will stop the read dead. (Seldom have I seen the word "vittles" used so frequently and so poorly.) I felt the author was most coherent and comfortable in her regency stage and had she stuck with it--I think it would have made a better, more cohesive book. Paranormal books are currently in vogue, but this mishmash of a story fails to meet the mark of a good one.

A beautifully gothic paranormal romance. I liked the feel of the story more than the actual story. My issue was mainly with the main character who I didn't like all that much. Other than that it's pretty good.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the copy of this book. All opinions expressed in my review are my own.

I LOVED the cover. It’s absolutely gorgeous. But... that’s about it. I couldn’t really get into the story itself. I didn’t really like the writing style of the author.

I was a huge Twilight fan back in that day and I love the supernatural stories in present day... but this just didn’t do anything for me.

This is one of my favorite PNR reads. It’s got the classic beauty and lyricism of historical fiction, but all the steam and magic of PNR. I read Winterly when it was on Wattpad and jumped at the chance for an ARC when I heard it was publishing!!

I COULDN’T GET ENOUGH. Reading Jeanine Croft is like transporting into another world, it’s impossible not to get sucked into Markus’ oh-so-yummy seduction. My PNR of choice is usually shifter/werewolf books, but Markus is the epitome of delicious vampire. 🤤🤤🖤🖤

This is a THICCC book and it’s a slow burn, but that intensity just keeps building between Emma and Markus. Plot on plot on plot. You won’t expect what’s coming. You just need to take the dive with Emma!!

2.5 Stars

While London is abuzz with the gruesome murders happening around town, Emmaline Rose is thrown deep into a strange and otherworldly encounter with the mysterious Viscount Markus Winterly. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Winterly was a vastly interesting historical paranormal romance. Emma's foray into the darker things that have been lurking in London is about to change everything she thought she knew about life itself, including how to navigate the attention of the intense and mystifying, Viscount Markus Winterly.

Emma enjoys reading and other scholarly endeavors and has accepted the fact that she will never be the marrying type. But when strange things start to happen in her life, Emma embarks on a new exploration into the world of vampires and other dark forces.

I enjoyed the plot of this book immensely, and the story itself was brimming with potential. Emma and Markus' attraction was sexy and intense... and I just wanted MORE of it! The writing itself felt a little superfluous, and as a result made the story difficult to follow at times. I would have loved more of a focus on character development and less of the flowery words, which I tended to skim right over to get to what was happening at the core of the scene.

In the end, I loved the characters and the premise of this story, and the sexy connection and historical setting were engaging and fresh. Emma and Markus' story is just the beginning of the Dark Creatures series, and this book leaves us with a HFN (happy for now), and a journey into book two.

I received a complimentary copy of this book for my honest and unbiased review.

I received this book, from NetGalley, for an honest review.
I would have given this book a one-star rating. Instead, I reconsidered it. Especially after I saw how many people loved this book. I just didn`t feel like being the all-time hater.

However, this book was not great.

This is a passage plucked from the dense book description:
"Whether demon, vampire, or monster, Emma discovers that these names are just facets to an ancient being who defies mortal comprehension."

All right, but <b>was I supposed to have forgotten reading [book:Twilight|41865] or [book:Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone|3]?</b>. I am saying this because even if the description seems tantalizing and fitting for a fantasy YA of 2020, the content of it is more on the verge of an ante-2010s when we had this girl that was still <u>amazed out of her wits</u> when she was being told that her lover boy was a vampire/shifter/<i>pre natural something</i>. When she would respond with “I need some time to digest this” and we readers would have to wait painfully more pages of derailing conversation to find out the entire “deal”.

I can still not warp my mind around the fact that there are so many positive reviews for this.
<quoteblock>“Growling carpets?” said Emma. “How peculiar"</quoteblock>
No, book, you are (peculiar).

I am not even bothering to give you a summery of it all. You can just read [book:Pride and Prejudice|1885] and [book:Twilight|41865] and be all set. The first pages are filled with peppered <i>Twilight</i>-like events in a <i>Pride and Prejudice</i> setting, while everything is boring and slow and not resonating.

<quoteblock>“You are being dreadfully tedious"</quoteblock>

<b>Maybe I am, book, but look at you</b>. Look at what you have made me do: writing a rant review that does not want to be a rant review.

<quoteblock> But women were taught not to be clever and yet Milli was beginning to think that men were confusing beasts.</quoteblock>
So, let`s unpack that lovely assessment. Women <b>were taught not to be clever</b>.
So they were taught stupidity? But they were still taught something. But not to be “clever” and what was this “clever” supposed to entail? Maybe better ways to incriminate the patriarchal society whiteout underlaying her lack of training in making statements?

<quoteblock>“You question my competence? Rather dull of you.”</quoteblock>
<b>I know, book,</b> but I had to because that was the deal. I was going to read you and hopefully adore you into the heavens and back, instead you were dreadful.

Look at yourself:
<quoteblock>”He grew still of a sudden. Emma felt his lips at the hollow of her neck, his kisses gentling even as the sky raged and cracked with more jagged light."</quoteblock>
<u>By the time we (me and my strained nerves) reached this scene</u> WE were already more than halfway through the book.

I was so tired. I was so ready for it all to end. I did not even know what exactly had to end, but I was counting the pages with a passion akin to that of a zealot in prayer.

<b>Something endearing to be said</b>:
It had a cute air of a damsel in distress on her way to autonomity (but she had a long way ahead, still).

It definitely is a mix of North hanger Abbey and Penny dreadful with touches of other myths and legends thrown into the mix.

At times a bit slow and dull, however the descriptions and vocabulary bring the world of this novel to life. I throughly loved Emma she is, like me, a glasses wearing bookworm who can't see without her specticals. She is practical and quick witted.

The moments between her and her sister are fun and light and totally believable.

A wonderful dark romance.

~ARC received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review ~

A very interesting approach of vampire genre, with a combination of historical setting and a Twilight hint.

3 stars!

I definitely had some difficulty getting into Winterly initially with the time period it's set in, making the writing style completely appropriate, but challenging. I'm very glad I continued on as once the writing settled on me, I was engrossed fully into this lavish story! I adored the banter between Milli and Emma and the sometimes snarky remarks made by them to their Uncle.

Overall, this book was nothing like I was expecting and I was pleasantly surprised. As it's been said, this story is has a air of Dracula if it were written by Jane Austen. Highly recommend reading this beautiful novel!


Thank you Netgalley for the e-copy to read and review.

I was so excited to read this book. It sounded so intriguing. However, once I started, it didn’t really hold my interest.,I kept putting it down and coming back to it, but unfortunately, this book was just not for me.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Winterly is one of the BEST books I have read this year!!
This book has so much depth to it and atmosphere -its absolutely amazing!

Winterly is a gothic, historical fiction book which is dark, spooky and delicious at the same time. Fans of vampires, twilight and stalking Jack the Ripper, will absolutely love this new series!

The Rose sisters become cleverly embroidered in a game of cat and mouse between two different types of supernatural beings - Vampires and werewolves, and witches. But who should they trust and who should they fear?

This book has many dark subtle twists and kept me reading way past bedtime. I am so excited about this new series and can't wait to read book two.

“A rose is no less beautiful for keeping her petals tucked behind her thorns. There is beauty and mystery in restraint.” My favorite quote of the book.

This was a unique take on the standard witches, vampires, and other monsters. I enjoyed the sisters personalities and how easy they found trouble. I was surprised that the sisters were able to do so much on their own because during this time period, chaperones were always required. Yet they were able to trapeze through town, enter family estates alone, and even visit a Lords home in the country without guardians.

Although it was very detailed, I felt that adding in so many descriptive words was unnecessary and caused sentences to stretch on and on. When I was 75% done, I had difficulty with wanting to finish. The story just hit a slump, becoming bland and flat.

I, sadly, can not rate this book as I ended up not finishing it. I gave it a good try, but I found the writing difficult to get into. There seemed to be a lot of big words used that felt like they were found in a thesaurus. Punctuation was noticeably lacking, and there were so many run on sentences.

I read this ARC for an honest review
All thoughts and opinions are mine

Loved this
A new author to me and I'm not normally a goth kind reader but absolutely loved it

The writing style was different to the norm and all the better for it. Made me pay attention where sometimes it drifts if the storyline is a bit predictable.

Part of a series, can't wait for the next one !!

Winterly was a beautifully written piece. At first I was hesitant due to story line starting off a bit slow and dry. As I pushed past the first chapter or two I got pulled into the story and loved the character development. The authors ability to write characters in a way that almost seemed they were real, characters you got attached to and sat on the edge of your seat to see how they grew and what path they followed.

The book was a decent length but the chapters were short and the story flows beautifully. The story itself was a lovely surprise since how you think it would go was different then how it did. Which is always great since many books in this genre tend to hold similar ideas and paths.

This is a book I would highly recommend anyone to read who enjoys historic romance with a dash of supernatural and a sprinkle of spiritual things thrown in. Or even someone looking to get into this style of book. The authors writing style is great and totally made this longer book fly by. I am hoping for a second book with that ending tho!!