There's something I find very comforting about a Hades x Persephone or Beauty and the Beast retelling. They typically aren't anything revolutionary, but the story always has great bones, and I generally have a pretty good time. This book was absolutely no exception. It did what I wanted a good Hades x Persephone retelling to do, to have a true enemies to lovers storyline. It bothers me a lot when the "enemies" portion is done halfway, and this book doesn't have this problem! They genuinely dislike each other, and it's a slow burn. So when the payoff happens, it's really satisfying. The characters were diverse and well fleshed out, and really seemed 3 dimensional, and the worldbuilding was really lush and atmospheric.

The only reason I'm not giving this 5 stars is it didn't do anything I haven't seen before, however the things it did it did well.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the ARC of this book! I'm very glad I was able to read it.

~ Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review ~

I loved the premise of this book, and I feel like it mostly delivered. It was hard for me to get into it initially, but once I did it got a lot better. It’s a sort of Beauty and the Beast retelling with some Hades and Persephone in there as well. I think that I did get those vibes, but it felt very isolated and kind of lost the plot for a minute towards the middle. There was nowhere near as much romance as I was expecting, however it is an enemies to lovers with the story only spanning the one book since the rest are focused on the other brothers, so there is only so much time to be spent on it. I was still a little disappointed at how little of the book had Wren and Boreas on like the same team, but hopefully we will see more of them in future books.

I’m still a little confused how the big bad villain was able to control the darkwalkers and the reveal wasn’t a huge surprise, but I am looking forward to seeing this person in later books and how they will come back from being such a bad person.

There were a lot of good things about this book that I liked. Wren is a pretty solid character, and I loved seeing her grow as a person. Boreas had his funny moments, and I enjoyed getting to see some of the other mystical beings that are in existence. The doors in the castle sound so cool! I wish I could have endless hallways of these doors myself, it would be so so so so fun to have those.

Before I mention the ending and some spoilers, let me say that this book is totally worth reading. It is a good book and perfect if you like strong female leads and frustrating male romantic partners (he gets better), and it would be an especially good book for fall given the whole underworld theme. I’m excited to read future books in the series and see how the writing and plot improves!

The ending! Oh, how I hated it. Be aware of * SPOILERS* , but I can’t not talk about the ending. I don’t entirely hate the whole ending- they end up together and have kids and it’s cute, he bakes her a cake, I love that stuff. But him giving up his powers?? Is that going to be the ending for every one of these books? Because how are the other three seasons supposed to have their guy in charge but not winter? Do we really need these guys if winter is going to happen anyways? I feel like this gave me more questions than answers, and overall I’m just never a fan of when main characters lose their powers. Also what is going to happen to their children? Lots of questions, and they may be answered in future books with the other brothers as the focus!

I LOVE retellings and this one did not disappoint! To be honest, I forgot it was a retelling and just fell in love with the characters and world based on their own merit! The spice was great if you like enemies to lovers, forced proximity, knife to throat… you know, the basics 🥵

I was really intrigued by this premise. I continued to be intrigued by Wren and her past and struggle, however, about a quarter of the way in my interest began to wane. There was a lot separating the MC's and a lot of unexplained lore. Not having a lot of context on the God's existence made it hard to stay in the story. I also felt the epilogue was unnecessary and did not fit the characters. I wanted to love this one but unfortunately did not.

Wow. What a great read. At first I thought it was identical to A Court of Thorns and Roses and didn’t even really want to keep reading but I’m so glad I did. The enemies to lovers was done so well and the slow burn. I loved Wren and Borias together so much. I was so glad her sister came around as well and apologized for how she acted. Wren was a mess at the beginning of the book and I loved watching her grow into herself and find a purpose other than caring for her sister. The way she just stepped right into battle was amazing. I also loved that Borias got his happy ending and got to be human again. I hope there is another book after this one.

A slow start romantasy however Boreas and Wren are far from the typical Hades and Persephone retelling. Wren is witty and suffers with alcoholism and both characters gain each others trust by learning and growing from past trauma together. Spoiler warning:


Love that there's an epilogue with a glimpse into their real life. My least favorite part is when the main characters find their "forever" and you don't get to see the mundane life baking a cake. :)

What a disappointment…

I was provided eARC by publisher through NetGalley and this review is purely my own opinion.

It started pretty strong and I was so intrigued by the storyline, the world was so different and descriptive. Even it bothered me how Wren is Feyre wanna be (acotar) the story was way similar to acotar in the beginning maybe that’s why it was good in first 25% of the book. Characters and their backstory would be interesting but author couldn’t execute it properly. it was totally waste of time and energy.

In the beginning it started too strong and pacing was strong after 25% mark I was bored out of my mind, literally nothing happened I don’t know author tried to give us a story buildup but story structure wasn’t there, execution was so poorly done. Love story didn’t even start in 50% mark!? (That’s not how slow burn works) I thought this was romantasy!? I was reading different boring days, days after days with Boreas and Wren and build up was so poorly done. Despite of authors writing which is pretty good but the way she executed was very frustrating. I pushed myself to read literally every day and it took almost a month to finish it. I have never struggled to read any book like this before. I was going to dnf it but this is eARC so I pushed myself to finish it. (and I literally never dnf books) What a waste of time and energy. It was literally no plot and nothing to be excited or looking forward to. Romance was dry. Characters were boring. I couldn’t make any connection with the storyline and I was counting pages to finish so I can read a new book. I truly hated it. Even 2 star is generous.

FMC was unbearable and annoying. Her story could’ve been so deep and impactful which had a depth to it but as I said it was a waste of potential and the way it was written.

MMC was cool I guess. Romance was so weird no build up no banter no connection. I was in 70% in and still waiting something to happen other than food porn 😒 seriously it was so bad.

Book got excited and readable in last 85% and it’s literally sad that first 25% book and last 85% was only part worth reading for. It’s sad how much of a waste this book is.

I hated the day I requested this book on NetGalley and I am pretty sure I am not gonna read any ARC in a while because of this book! wheeww 🙄😒

The North Wind has been on my TBR for such a long time and I’m glad I received an eARC and was finally able to dive in!

This was a pretty good fantasy romance. The North Wind follows Wren of Edgewood who is struggling to survive and take care of her twin sister. For hundreds of years the land they reside in has been encased in ice and surrounded by a barrier known as the shade, which protects Edgewood from the Deadlands. The shade begins to weaken, and the only thing that can restrengthen it is for The Frost King to take a woman from Edgewood and sacrifice her to the shade.

The Frost King arrives and selects Wren’s twin sister Elora as his sacrifice. Wren, being a protector, drugs Elora with a sleep tonic and takes her place as the sacrifice only to find that things aren’t what she was brought up to believe once she arrives to The Frost Kings citadel in the Deadlands.

I thought this was a good book! This book has betrayal, secrets, magic, witty banter, and a slow burn romance to top it all off. I will say I rated it lower because it seemed to be long for what it was. There was a lot of filler and it took me a bit to get through because I was kind of bored at times.

One thing I loved was the banter between Boreas and Wren. I continuously found myself laughing out loud while reading their dialogue! Overall, a decent read and I think I may pick up book 2 when it’s out.

Thank you to NetGalley, Saga Press and Alexandria Warwick for the eARC of The North Wind, available now!

I liked Boreas, The North Wind. I felt that he had a lot of potential. I have mixed feelings about Wren. I liked her strength, snarkiness, and her compassion. Other times, she made bad decisions and trusted the wrong people. I also wanted a bit more history / world-building. Definitely a slow-burn.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Saga Press for the ARC.

The North Wind is an exemplary model for retellings at least on a narrative level.

The worldbuilding was interesting but I think certain aspects needed to be reminded and worked in throughout the text. Around the 75% mark I totally forgot about the word Anemoi which is a little unfortunate given the weight they have in the story.

While the tropes are all still present, the presentation of them is effective and makes the old feel new for the mostpart.

It's also really surprising that this novel handles the struggle of alcoholism as effectively as it does. It's rare to see a FMC as realistic as Wren in a romance dynamic like this one.

There were a few moments where the pacing felt a little off to me but that might just be a me-thing. I understand that there is some difference between the story beats in an enemies to lovers romance, it has to happen at an almost unnatural pace so the story doesn't drag.

I'll still be waiting for whatever Wind blows in next.

Also the Epilogue was the cutest thing ever what the heck

This Beauty and the Beast retelling features Wren, who has dedicated her life to take care of her sister. When the North Wind comes to their town looking for a woman to be sacrificed, Wren takes her sister’s place and finds herself married to this grumpy, cold god.

Wren’s relationship with her sister reminded me very strongly of Feyre and her elder sisters from ACOTAR. This is definitely a book for anyone who loves a good slow burn. Our hero is cold and superior, as you might expect from an immortal who has lived for millennia. I enjoyed seeing his story unfold almost more than our main character.

I really enjoyed our characters and their banter and felt that the slow burn was very well done. I do wish there had been more world building and I found the pacing to be inconsistent and especially slow in the middle. Overall, I really enjoyed this romantasy and think it would be a great palette cleanser if you’ve been reading heavier fantasy and need a break!

This book was a thrilling ride and I couldn't wait to get back to reading each evening. I absolutely loved Wren and her fierceness and loyalty. Wren is scarred, both emotionally and physically, and this immediately endeared her to me.

Boreas and Wren's relationship started off as enemies and I laughed and smiled often as Wren did everything she could to get a rise out of Boreas. Their banter and chemistry are some of the best I've read. Soon I was rooting for them to develop a deep friendship to more. I so loved the respect Boreas gave Wren and he never took advantage of her despite being a powerful god.

I also enjoyed the secondary characters and the setting. The world building was excellent and paced well through Wren's senses. The fierce battles and escapes created heart-pounding action scenes.

Hey Book fam! 📚✨ If you love "Beauty and the Beast" retellings, you need to add this one to your TBR right away! 🌹❄️ This romantasy standalone has a magical winter aesthetic and enchanting lore that draws you right in.

The real highlight, though, is the characters. They start off flawed but develop beautifully throughout the story. It has some very ACOTAR vibes in parts, which I totally loved! The ending was perfect, especially with that sweet epilogue—he made her a cake! 🎂💕

Romantasy standalones like this are such a joy to read. Big thanks to Alexandria Warwick, S&S/Saga Press, and NetGalley for the ARC copy. If you're looking for a heartwarming and magical read, this one is a must! 🌟 #TheNorthWind

The cover sucked me in from the beginning🦋. Im guilty of judging a book by the cover and lately it hasn't steered me wrong. This is a SLOW burn romance and despite being quite long, the world building and character development were lacking. There were many slow spots that could've been left out in order to give us more on the characters. It was too long to be so slow. I almost DNF'd it strictly because of how slow spots were. I think there was much potential however over 400 pages and it fell flat.

Oh boy was this fantastic! This was a great enemies to lovers romantasy! It is a slow burn, which I typically don't enjoy, but I actually loved the pacing of this book! The angst and suspense were done so well that I didn't mind and actually enjoyed that it was a slow burn. I absolutely loved the story and plot! I can't wait to see what else this author gives us!!

This was not great in my opinion. It's kind of a beauty and the beast, Hades and Persephone retelling, but the world building is really poor and despite being 448 pages, nothing really happens. It feels kind of like fan fiction, but not in a good way. The characters were all really unlikeable, but not in an interesting, compelling way, and their growth wasn't really believable. Maybe this has an audience, but it's not me.

Thanks to Saga Press | S&S/Saga Press and NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It had me at Beauty & the Beast with Hades and Persephone vibes, but lost me with how glacially slow the pacing is. It's beautifully written, but I found myself so bored.

This book didn't have much happening in it. There was the Beauty and the Beast meets Hades and Persephone plot, but that only got the book so far.

The book was well-written, but slow slow slow. For a romantasy, I expected more action and romance. I love a slow burn—in fact, it's my favorite kind of romance—but this one was too slow and boring. I was over rooting for them by the time things actually started to heat up. And the action scenes didn't feel like they lasted long enough. The end action scene was pretty good, but it felt too short which made the stakes seem lower.

Overall, there was a lot of promise for this book that didn't quite pan out. I like the fact that she's combining fairytales and legends with mythology. Book two might work out a little better, but I'm not sure I'll read it to find out.

"I too know what it's like to be alone...Maybe we can be alone together"

If you like: fairy-tail retellings, Greek mythology, enemies to lovers, grumpy x sunshine.

THEN THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU!
This is a standalone fantasy romance book!

The North wind is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast meets Hades and Persephone. To say I liked this book is an understatement. From the very first chapter of this book I was hooked to Wrens character. I like how she is strong and independent but also has human flaws. We get to see her challenge Boreas throughout the book which I really enjoyed. There are so many funny moments throughout this book and I flew through this novel in just a few days.

The romance in this book is top notch and the tension thought the book was KILLING me. This book was recently released on the 21st of May.

Definitely add his one to your 2024 reads!
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon& Schuster for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

* These opinions are my own and not associated with the author or publisher*

I really enjoyed the overall premise of the book! I look forward to reading the West Wind when it releases!
Some things I struggled with was some minor character issues, I felt they could’ve been fleshed out a little more. I’m sure those will be ironed out as the series progresses. I have high hopes for the next installment.