Kiers Cass Selection series meets fantasy

"Frost" is the first book of the Frost and Nectar series by C.N Crawford and tells the story of the half-fae Ava and the king of the Seelie Torin.

I really like the idea of the story. It had something of Kier's Cass Selection series, which I thought was very cool. Ava was very likeable to me and especially at the beginning of the story, I found her very vivid. To me, Torin was very mysterious. I enjoyed seeing behind the facade of this exciting character.

The story itself was exciting. But unfortunately, some aspects did not develop properly. The contests were also unfortunately handled too quickly for me.

Overall, "Frost" gets 3.5 out of 5 stars from me.


Thank you to the author and pr company for providing me with an ARC.

I really enjoyed this book. I feel that it was very well written with only minor editing errors. The plot seemed to be very thought out and I loved the Bachelor meets Fae vibes. Overall, I think Frost is a great start to a new Fantasy Series and I can't wait to read the rest of the series when they're finished!

When The Bachelor meets The Hunger Games, you get this book! I really enjoyed this read. The book was a great length with enough action, intrigue, and romance to keep me hooked. I loved all the relationships in this book - the love with our main characters, the sisterly vibe with our main character and her best friend, even the motherly relationship that our main character recall with her adoptive mother.

While the ending was pretty predictable given how many clues we were given throughout the story, I am still so looking forward to the sequel to see where the author takes the story!

I would definitely recommend picking this one up if you're in the mood for a lighter fantasy!

The bachelor meets hunger games is cursed Fae king romance. The slow burn tension might just eat you alive and you’ll thank it while you read it. There’s a baby cliffhanger but it didn’t end how I thought it would. Great read!

Can I just start by saying that the cover is absolutely gorgeous?
Now onto the plot of the book: the selection meets the hunger games in this one. I loved the competition to find a wife trope, alhough I would have loved to see more challenges. It was really slow burn, enemies to lovers. I absolutely adored Ava. Her wit and the banter between her and Torin was just spot on.
The book ends on a cliffhanger and I am looking forward to read the second book in the series.

4.5 ⭐

<i>"We are wild creatures, and that is precisely why you belong here."</i>

Ambrosia is now my most anticipated read for 2023. I know there are so many sequels and amazing books coming out, but this is it for me. I knew where the ending could take me. I saw the breadcrumbs leading us to all the hints and twists, yet I gobbled them up. But when that ending came and I blew through the last 10% of the book in mere minutes? I am reeling from the conclusion still.

When I first heard Bachelor but make it fae, I was intrigued (obviously), but the reasoning behind it made sense instead of just being silly. The humans are obsessed with these godly beings and view them more as celebrities than the monsters they can be. C.N. Crawford does not shy away and give us only the beautiful fae that we readers, and the humans in Frost, fawn over. We get their true nature, their malicious behavior, their cruelty and brutality. The Seelie might be among the most beautiful people to exist, but there was nothing held back during the tournament.

The first task alone had me shocked. How could you possibly escalate to more unhinged and violent after what the common fae had to experience in a simple track race challenge? Ava didn't back down and rose to the occasion both in helping others not get murdered and in fighting fire with fire. I loved that we see her grow into her fae nature.

The tension between Ava and Torin was high and beautifully written. So many pages had me screaming at them to kiss, but also shouting "wait! Slow down! The curse!" As the pieces start falling into play and Ava begins to figure out Torin's motives and reasoning, it began to escalate into that one final explosive scene.

Also can I just say I have never read a more beautiful ballroom scene? Their dance was poetic and hot all at once. I was desperate for one more dance, but the sparring training between the two of them was equally as perfect to me.

This was not just The Bachelor but make it fae. Frost was a gripping, captivating book with intrigue, tension, and true fae nature.

This book was SO good! I can't wait for book 2 to be released, I need it ASAP! The cliff-hanger that we were left on was just mean!
This is a slow burn romance with minimal spice, but enough that the book didn't feel too YA. There is a lot of tension which I feel could be building up to something in the next book!
I found this book really easy to read and binged it in 1 sitting.
This was such a fun read and I liked the new take on the Fae/World building.

I wasn't sure what I was expecting from this book, but it was everything I needed in a fun, funny, dark and entertaining read!

Ava was left out of the Faerie world when she was a child and adopted by a human woman who raised her. On the night of her 20 something birthday she comes home to find her bf of 10 years in bed with another women.

Best way to block out the painful images is with alcohol. All of Ava's future has been shattered so when she receives an unexpected proposal from an unlikely source she takes it.

And it leads down a winding round of mystery and danger and romance!

Cannot wait to read the follow up to this one!

Many thanks to Victory Editing and C.N. Crawford for the advanced copy of Frost via NetGalley, in return for my honest and unbiased review. Quick note: I don’t recap plots in my reviews, as it’s easy enough to read the book’s synopsis and blurbs, I purely focus on my feelings & opinions of how the books makes me feel.

Frost is the first book of Crawford’s new Frost and Nectar duology. This story mixes contemporary life with classic ‘medieval’ style Fae tropes. One trope which Crawford does not follow, however, is referring to Fae as males/females rather than men/women. This isn’t something I’d actually ever sat down to think about but, as ‘Fae’ are definitely one of my main wheelhouse topics, I’ve realised this is one of my big bugbears. Fae aren’t human, therefore shouldn’t be, to my mind, women or men, but females and males.

This book is a quick, fun read, with a bit of teasing, slow-burn spice which puts it in the ‘new adult’ category which continues to sit awkwardly between the ‘no sex please’ young adult and ‘sex is boring now’ full-on grown-up books. There’s swearing, there’s sass and there’s humour, but there’s also a good dash of blood, violence, and death.

Whilst nothing spectacular happens in the book, and the ending is pretty predictable, the conundrum posed at the beginning of the book is a clever one and overall, it’s a good read which draws you in, and it can easily be read over a weekend for someone who has the time and inclination!

I’ll definitely be reading the second book, Ambrosia, when it comes out (currently due January 2023).

Moods: adventurous, dark, funny, mysterious
Tropes: forbidden love, marriage pact, unknown identity
Pace: medium
Character development: medium
Plot or character driven: 50/50
Diversity: low
Spice: 2/5
Trigger warnings: Alcohol, Blood/Gore, Cheating, Death, Death of a family member, Guns/weapons, Violence

Rating 4/5

Utterly captivating! Ugh, why did this book have to end, and on a cliffhanger!?!? Luckily book two will be out in a couple months.

Ava is such a relatable character, she's been hurt, humiliated and didn't know what she was going to do. On top of that she's a common fae living with humans. When she insults the Seelie King Torin in a human bar one night, her life changes in a huge way. I don't want to give anything away but if you love fast paced reads that will grip you, pick this one up now!!

Huge thanks to #netgalley and C.N. Crawford for my gifted copy!

For fans of The Selection who wanted the story to be deadlier and filled with magic... this might be the book for you.
I enjoyed the book from start to finish. It's easy to like Ava and to follow her journey. Love Torin too (because why not?) and Shalini is a dream best friend (love to see her with Aeron!). The world building was good and easy to follow, and I love how the chemistry slowly built in Ava and Torin's relationship.

Looking forward the next book!

Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨(3.75/5)
I received the eARC through NetGalley a few days before the release earlier this month, but I was already working on a few ARCs so I wasn’t able to read it right away.

I liked the premise of the story (a Hunger Games meets The Selection meets The Cruel Prince). The banter was a little off in the beginning, but later throughout the story, it got better and not as cheesy.

There were a few things that just didn’t make sense and were unrealistic.

However, I fell in love with Torin and hope they eventually are able to get together so I’m looking forward to the next book.

I saw the major twist coming well in advance.

There were multiple errors/typos. I read the advanced copy so I’m not sure if those errors were corrected prior to print.

Ultimately the writing wasn’t the best, but it was still an entertaining story and I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

Okay, I didn’t NOT enjoy this book, but it wasn’t my favorite read either. It started off really slow and was a lot of info at first. But once it picked up it was good!

Unfortunately, not the book for me, though I’m sure it has its audience. It is rather base and I couldn’t get past that. The gratuitous sexual descriptions around 35% in ended the book for me and it was a DNF, unfortunately. Just not at all my cup of tea.

Frost is the first book in C.N. Crawford’s NA Urban fantasy series, Frost and Nectar, and between the beautiful cover and the blurb I was sold on it.

Ava was instantly likeable; her reaction to finding her cheating boyfriend and her refusal to bow to the fae king, before drunkenly slinging insults at him, made her very relatable. I enjoyed the banter and tension in Torin and Ava’s dialogue. Shalini and Aeron were a great secondary pairing, and I hope the next book continues their story (or that they get their own book in the series).

The novel covers the competition to find a Seelie queen, a competition that turns out to be deadly, with the princesses using ruthless methods to win the crown. The field was narrowed from over a hundred to single digits after the first trial. As far as the romance goes, this was a slow-burn, with both parties gradually falling for each other and fighting the attraction, as they were determined to keep to their arrangement.
No spice in this first book, but plenty of tension. I’ll be watching out for the second instalment…

“Just one kiss, Ava. I want more, of course. I want to take my time with you, to explore all of you. But, I can’t have that, because none of this can be real. So, just one kiss.”

✨NA Urban Fae Fantasy
✨Enemies to Lovers
✨Slow Burn
✨Marriage of Convenience
✨Fae reality tv “dating show”
✨Deadly Competition
✨Cursed King
✨Cheating TW
✨Cliffhanger

This book was labeled as The Bachelor meets Hunger Games meets Throne of Glass and it didn’t disappoint!

My highlights from the book:
🗡Ava and Torin: I knew when Ava drunkenly insulted King Torin at a bar when the first met that I would be invested in their enemies to lovers story! They have a delicious tension that I’m just waiting to see explode! Hoping for more spice in book 2!
🗡The bride tournament: the Princesses are so cutthroat and I’m all for it! Loved reading about the different princesses from the different clans.
🗡Ava and Shalini: they have the ultimate friendship and I love how supportive they are of each other. I also love their taste in books (especially all the smut books).
🗡 Andrew is the worst and I wouldn’t be upset if he steps on a beehive full of bees.

Thank you @netgalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for the copy of this fantastic new novel! Frost is out now and available on Kindle Unlimited!

I thought that this book was brilliant!

It had a really good and well developed storyline, it was packed with adventure and I loved the characterisation – the characters were brilliant and the author did a fantastic job with them

I was a little disappointed to find that this was only book one and book two is not yet available and I really do need to read book two now!!

It was a fantastic read, highly addictive and I couldn’t put it down. The ending was great but it has left me with a cliff hanger and I tend to only read the first books in these kind of series if I have the second as I don’t like the long waits!

It is 5 stars from me for this one, very highly and 100% recommended!

Fantastic, a gripping read that sucks you in straight away. The chemistry between Ava and the Fae King is sizzling, steamy perfection. Wonderful character development, brilliant.

I really enjoyed this romantic fantasy from C.N. Crawford! This book was fast paced and kept my attention from start to finish! I really enjoyed the main character Ava and Torin the fae King. Their chemistry was steamy and exciting, even though they pretended to hate each other! I have read a few books with female contestants vying for the chance to become queen.. but not like this one! It was a deadly competition full of brutal and blood thirsty fae! There were a couple surprises and twists.. and after that ending, I can’t wait to read the next book!

Frost by C.N. Crawford is a fantasy romance novel about Ava, a fae who was exiled to the human world as a child and remembers nothing of Faerie, and Torin, the Seelie king who is cursed to kill any he falls in love with but must marry to save his realm. When a disasterous meltdown puts Ava face to face with Torin, he invites her to enter a tournament to win his hand because they both believe they will could fall in love. Ava agrees in exchange for a chance to see Faerie, learn about the family she can't remember, and earn 50 million dollars if she wins. All she has to lose is her life.

Frost is the first book in a new series, Frost and Nectar. I love that the book was dual POV and we got insight into both Ava and Torin as the story progressed. Ava starts the story heartbroken but it doesn't dim her fierce, determined and outspoken nature. Torin is an intriguing love interest who has his own secrets and problems he needs to work through. This story includes enemies to lovers, competition trials, and a main character that needs to adjust not only to court life but the world of the fae. The fast paced plot made it hard to put down and I was fully invested in the story after only a few pages. I will now be waiting anxiously until there is any news for book two!

Thanks to Victory Editing and Netgalley for the arc!