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.

This book was just okay for me. I didn’t love the FMC and I found the world building a bit lacking but the writing was beautiful. I give this a solid 2.5. I don’t think I’ll be reading the second book.

Not my cup of tea. Ended up DNF-ing because it didn't keep interest. I found the main character a bit frustrating as well.

I was really excited for this book, after seeing it all over book tok, but it's just a hype of it all. It took a while for me to get into the book, and having said that, I love retellings of Hades and Persephone, but this one took a bit to click. I honestly won't be moving forward to read the rest of the series, as I didn't care by the end of the book what really happened.

This book didn’t know if it wanted to be a Beauty and the Beast or a Hades and Persephone retelling or some sort of mix, but it definitely blended different mythos and stories together in an entertaining manner.

I enjoyed this story very much. Watching Wren grow and learn that she is worthy of love was wonderful, even if it persisted to the very end. It was surprisingly spicy and the author did not shy away from the tension.

If you like spicy slow-burn romance retellings with one bed, forced proximity, enemies-to-lovers tropes then this is no one to miss!

It is book 1 in what I will assume is a series focusing on each brother, but this book read like a standalone with a conclusive ending.

Swoon-worthy quote:

“There is nothing I would not do for you. I would conquer cities in your name. I would lay waste to the world and place its greatest treasures at your feet. I would cross realms and topple empires and alter time, all for the promise of an eternity spend by your side.”

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review*

Unfortunately this book was not for me.

The North Wind follows a main character named Wren who is unfortunately, completely insufferable and annoying. We are in her head the entire time and she is so indecisive and contradictory it becomes a chore to read about. She will say in one breath “I must be nice to him to gain information” and two seconds later she’ll open her mouth and be a complete bitch. I don’t know if this was something the author did on purpose but it came across sloppy and unedited.

This book has a lot of similar vibes to beauty and the beast, so if you like that story you might like this one as well. I thought the premise as promising but it really lacked in execution for me. The main character is so unlikeable I felt like pulling teeth to get myself to keep reading.

The dialogue is also very stiff and inorganic. It feels like I’m reading someone writing down how they think medieval speaking sounds but it doesn’t feel like we’re actually like. Like corny Ren fair actors doing a caricature of the language.

Also the side characters didn’t have a single personality between them, they were just cardboard cutouts of each other with different names. And there was one side character who was completely useless except for in one scene and as soon as that scene was over she was never mentioned again. The continuity and believability of these people existing in the world outside the main character was null.

The way this story was written barely gave any useful world building, and any and all characters stopped existing as soon as the main character couldn’t see them any more. It didn’t feel like a fleshed out world or place whatsoever. There were some cool aspects that we got such small glimpses of and that was a shame. There’s a magical river with certain properties I wish we got more on and the gods of this world could have been so interesting if we had more back story and better motives for their actions. It just felt like a surface level draft. Didn’t feel polished or finished at all.

I think that I would check out more from this author in the future, in a different series if she ever writes something outside of this universe. Like I said there were some small glimpses of potential but it fell really flat in execution.

Mmph. I’ve seen this promoted around a bit and I was a bit wary— I keep telling myself I’m full up on retellings and New Adult fantasy. I wish I had listened to myself.

This reads a lot like a YA fantasy novel like Ice, etc., and probably would have performed better in this category. This is instead shoe-horned into an “adult” novel by aging the heroine up (to 23) and making her a sex-positive alcoholic. The romance, which could have been fine for melodramatic YA readers, lacked depth. The sexual elements (both the sex scenes and the character’s thoughts) were really strange— very specific about male anatomy, but vague about female.

The heroine always acts rashly, and it’s a source of constant frustration. She resolves to be quiet for her disguise. She immediately speaks. She decides to be silent. She talks again. She cannot make a plan and stick to it for more than five minutes at a time.

The theme of this book could be “hurt people hurt people,” and both characters do make some personal realizations that could lead to growth. It’s all hand-waved away, though, with a love-conquers-all bandaid. So what if he’s killed thousands of people and forced you to grow up in starvation? Doesn’t matter in the face of lOvE, right?

The heroine’s alcoholism seems a strange addition. Her sobriety does seem to be handled with respect, but it hardly seems necessary to add even more difficulties to her life— I don’t see the purpose this is supposed to serve. (Also, in a country that has been starving for 300 years of winter, how does this peasant manage to get that quantity of wine that consistently?)

Give this one a miss. eARC from NetGalley.

The North Wind by Alexandria Warwick is a fantasy stand-alone inspired by Acotar, Beauty and the Beast and the myth of Hades and Persephone.
 
The concept of this book sounded absolutely amazing, and it started off very strong. The protagonist Wren cares for her two sisters after her parents passed away and she is no stranger to hunting. They live in a very rough world that is very close to the fae world. This was very promising even though it’s almost the same as the start of A Court of Thorns and Roses.
 
One day the North Wind who is a fae king comes into the town in order to search for a mortal wife and this tradition is required every 300 years in order for this kingdom to survive. He sets his eyes on Wren’s sisters and Wren does everything to spare her sister including tricking the North Wind. The North Wind is very grumpy, unappealing, and self-centered and I disliked him from the beginning. He is completely entitled and until he spends more and more time with Wren and at some point, has the same development as the Beast. But this happened from one day to the other and was very unrealistic to me. Pretty much from the moment they arrived at his castle, the story went downhill for me, and it was too predictable and therefore became uninteresting.
 
Overall, I expected more from this book, and I wish it would have been a bit more unique and it weren’t as similar to other fantasy stories. 2 stars.
 
(ARC kindly provided in exchange for a review.)

This was a true Beauty and the Beast retelling. If Belle was sassy, stubborn, and strong willed and Beast actually showed his annoyance more often.

This book had its tension and steam in the first half, and once we got to the second half, noticing how Wren was accepting of the change she was making in her heart and defending him to everyone including her sister. Boras had his moments of doubt and it took him a long time to understand what he really wanted out of their relationship.

I loved every minute of it. Also can we get that cake recipe? You know which one.

A wonderfully creative mashup of Beauty and the Beast with the myth of Hades & Persephone. There were plenty of unique twists on the tale that kept me invested in the story. I found the initial world building & the story's ending to feel a bit rushed, but the majority of the story was well paced and intriguing.