Major points for a book that doesn’t suffer from the Curse of the Second Book in a series! I think The West Wind is readable as a standalone also since I truly remembered absolutely nothing from the first book and was absolutely fine.

So, pros and cons…

Pros:
1) Warwick tells a good story. This is a complex quest tale that builds through multiple high tension points and keeps you reading.
2) I appreciated that Brielle was written as compassionate, feminine and a brave, talented fighter.
3) The characters all grow and mature throughout the story.
4) The mix of a fae world and mythology is so interesting and vivid. I think this aspect is the biggest draw for me.

Cons:
1) SUCH purple prose! There is just so much overwritten description of both the setting and the characters’ angst.
2) Did we need this much commentary on Brielle’s size? I thought there were entirely too many comments on how much bigger, how much curvier, how much heavier, how much softer, etc Brielle was. A lot of this came from her so I can understand her feeling self conscious and very aware after having been taunted and bullied for so long but it was a little over the top. We get it. She’s not a willowly size 2 heroine. Move on.
3) The plot needs to be tightened up. The book is too long and could have been pulled together sooner and more cohesively.
4) The religious aspect kind of weirded me out. I don’t know that I can explain it, honestly. I think maybe it was a little much to combine folklore, mythology and a form of Christianity-like religion.

All in all, I did enjoy this and would recommend, especially if you are a fan of both mythology and folklore.

First of all, I read the first book the North wind. I got a copy from once upon a book club and I never expected to like the story so much! I inhaled that book in less than 3 days 😂 so when I saw the author had a second book coming I couldn’t stop myself from reading it. Was it tired? Yes! Was I sleepy? Yes. Was it worth it to stay up late and read? yes yes yes!
The story, the setting, the plot is just 💕.
This book has some interesting tropes that suck me in right away
-forbitten love
-close proximity
-heroine who is a blade smith and a swordswoman
-super smart main characters
-dark magic
-quest to find a relic



I also like the authors writing style. There’s other books that I’m okay to skip a page or two because of never ending descriptions but Alexandra Warwick is a wonderful author and her writing style is a pleasure to read. Not too much, not too little, just right.

The story starts out with Brielle (a faithful servant of God) saving a man’s life and goes into describing how her daily life is and what she deals with. She wants to be an acyte and also what I really adore about her is that she is average built and not your typical skinny bones. The heroine is definitely level headed and smart. She doesn’t speak to cause distress but is rather patient and strategically thinking which is so different to read about nowadays.
I particularly liked harpers character. From the beginning I didn’t think there was going to be a growth development to her but I was gladly surprised. The author handled it so well that I’m just left in awe ❤️
Zephyrus is also a character very well written. He was always very mysterious and you could never know what is actually going on in his mind and Thoughts all the way until the end. Definitely kept you guessing throughout the whole book.

All in all the book is definitely a five star book for me and I cannot wait to read the next one that the author comes out with 💕

Thanks to Andromeda Press, Netgalley and the author for an ARC of this book. I am leaving this unbiased review voluntarily.

After reading the first book in this series, I was eagerly awaiting the next instalment of the Four Winds series. This time it's Zephyrus' story. In the previous book he was somewhat of a bad guy, and nearly thwarted the relationship between his brother, the North Wind, and the woman the North Wind had fallen in love with.

This story starts with Brielle, who is training to be an acolyte and is also an extremely skilled blacksmith. She's big, brawny and faithful but never seems to fit in. However, she never ever breaks the rules ... until a man needs her help and begins her journey of discovery. She discovers the Under, a magical and dangerous place, she discovers her own power and she discovers the kind of unconditional love she thought she would never have.

Though slow to start, I really liked this book. There were times when I wasn't sure where it was headed because there were so many characters and quite a bit of lore to remember, but I trusted that the author would get me to the HEA in an exciting and swoony way.

I loved the strength of Brielle and her inherent softness. I absolutely adored the evolution of Zephyrus.

All in all, this was an enjoyable continuance of the first book, and I am looking forward to reading what comes next.