***3.5 Stars***

Overall,
This book took me a while to get into, the beginning feels like many other romantasy genre books and has many similar plot lines, especially at the beginning, At its core this is a spin on Beauty and the Beast. For about the first 50% of this book I really didn't care for the heroine. By the time we get to more of the world building I did find my self getting more in to the book. It is an interesting world that Alexandria Warwick is putting together.

Recommendation,
For those who are fans of Beauty and the Beast retellings, ACOTAR, or really just the romantasy genre in general, this book is worth checking out. While it takes a little bit to get into I am looking forward to the next books in the series.

Pacing in this book is a bit slow but overall a pretty good romantasy. The romance doesn’t immediately take off in this book. The main characters start off as enemies, and the sparks ignite very slowly. It isn’t until maybe 75% through that they get together. There was great chemistry between the characters and the romance feels believable as their relationship evolved throughout the story.

Handful of tropes in this one - enemies to lovers, one bed, forced proximity, and slow burn.

Last, the representation of MFC’s alcohol abuse was done well. MFC is an alcoholic, and it’s shown how the addiction is justified by the MFC and how it impacts those around her. But she’s never shamed for it and the MMC helps her overcome the addiction. He acknowledged the problem and helps and supports her through the recovery.

If you're looking for a trope-heavy, cheesy book-this us the book for you! To be completely honest, the characters were wholly unappealing and so devisive that I couldn't find any empathy or enjoyment for any character. Additionally, the story is either too similar to Beauty and the Beast or just kinda men, that nothing really caught my attention.

I'm a sucker for Beauty and the Beast retellings, but it wasn't giving me that vibe and missed the mark for me.

Wren is giving older sister syndrome to the max. Her number one goal and focus in life is to make sure that her sister has everything she wants and needs after losing both their parents. She completely loses herself as a person and turns to drinking to cope. That all changes when The North Wind, Boreas, a brooding immortal God, picks her sister to be his next bride. Wren commits the ultimate sacrifice of taking her sister place…which The North King does not find out until it’s too late! ⁣
⁣
I absolutely loved the banter between Wren and Boreas. The enemies to lovers trope was VERY strong throughout this book. I cannot wait to read The West Wind next! ⁣

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
⁣

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲: ⁣
🌬️ enemies to lovers⁣
🌬️ arranged marriage⁣
🌬️ slow burn ⁣
🌬️ beauty and the beast retellings⁣
🌬️ hades and persephone retellings ⁣
🌬️ fantasy romance⁣
🌬️ one bed

Every few decades a woman is taken as a sacrifice, and this year, Wren is the sacrifice. She is determined to not disappear as the others do and the longer she's there and sees what's happening, the more her opinions about Boreas begin to change. This is a fun, romantic fantasy with an enemies to lovers trope. I loved that she stood up to Boreas and wouldn't let anyone push her around. She stands her ground and fights for what she believes is right. Boreas may have though all mortals the same, but not with her. Characters are developed quickly and how they care for one another grows with them. The storyline moves quickly as we learn more about the world and those who live in it. Not everyone and everything is as it seems, so it is a page turning journey to see where things lead.

I tried. As a huge Beauty and the Beast lover, as well as an ACOTAR fan—this should've worked. At 12% I’m just uninterested, and honestly, feeling some second-hand embarrassment at how elements from B&tB and ACOTAR are forced into each scene.

Wren as an FMC is an overused and poorly executed tough-girl trope that just comes across as immature and entitled 🤷🏻‍♀️

I liked the romance elements--who can resist a Beauty and the Beast or a gruff-and-taciturn/brash-and-spirited romance?--but the fantasy elements fell a bit short.

Although based on Beauty and the Beast and the Hades and Persephone myth, the story had some refreshing elements. Wren, for instance, is not the pure and sweet Beauty/Persephone of yore; she is an alcoholic who fights, hunts, and plots to protect her twin sister from becomes a sacrifice to the North Wind (aka The Frost King, aka Boreas). In sneakily swapping places with her sister, she believes she's going to her death--and she's going to fight the Frost King every step of the way. As it turns out, her fate may be worse than death: she is to be married to the North Wind, whose unrelenting winter destroyed her family and community.

Meanwhile, Boreas may not have ended up with the bride he thought he was getting, but he slowly but surely begins to thaw towards his spirited new wife. Will she be able to give up her hatred and fear of him in order to perhaps have a life together?

All of this is happening against the background of a somewhat confusing plot featuring The Shade (a wall between the worlds of the living and the dead), darkwalkers (souls whose inability to give up their lives upon death end up becoming corrupted spirits who consume the living), Zephyrus (brother of Boreas and god of the West Wind), and a tragedy in Boreas's past. The plot probably would have worked with a bit more care in setting up the fantasy elements. The ending also moved too quickly in resolving some of the conflicts. [Spoiler warning and text added here in other online reviews.]

I did enjoy it, and while there were several areas of plot, setting, and characterization that seemed underdeveloped, the romance picked up steam as the book went on and more than made up for some vague or confusing parts.

#tropes

🔥 slow-burn
🖤 dark romance
🛏️ one bed
🫶🏼 enemies to lovers
🐍 mythology
💍 forced marriage

I loved this book. I love how our author gave me both my favorites, beauty & the beast and Hades & Persephone in this book and gave us the greatest dark romantasy adventure! This is book #1 of The Four Winds series. I loved Wrens character and she was well developed and tough.

We watch her plan how to stop the winter in their wake. Our Frost King—Boreas is handsome and very dark and mysterious. Their chemistry build is perfect and when the spice between them kicks in (this is a slowburn), it is spicn’! This book was a favorite of mine and I cannot wait for book 2 of this series, delicious!

Thank you @netgalley, @sagapress and the author of this book for an opportunity to review this e-ARC.

I really like beauty and the beast retelling books. But unfortunately this one wasn’t for me. I almost put it down and just went on. But I ended up finishing it. Sorry to say I just didn’t feel this one

I just didn't like it.

I live for Beauty & the Beast retellings, where my favorite is McKinley's Beauty. This didn't hold any charm for me. It felt cold and I didn't like how rash Wren was. Every time I wanted to like her or I felt Warwick was building up to something, it just didn't hit for me.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC. The above is my honest critique. I wish I had been more into this, because it really did promise everything I generally love.

The North Wind by Alexandria is a friends- to- lovers, Beauty, and the Beast, slow burn, Romantasy. Starts off a bit underwhelming in the love, and the action departments as the story unveils quite slowly. The plot could also benefit from some more solid world building, but overall, the story held my attention .

Thank you NetGalley and Saga Press, for a copy of The North Wind by Alexandria Warwick in exchange for an honest review.

I love the concept of this book/series, the wind gods specifically. I also love a Beauty and the Beast retelling!! I liked Wren's overall story; specifically that she wasn't particularly special, just brave and impulse. By the end of the book, I felt that I missed a bigger emotional pull in some way. All the ingredients were there, but it had a hard time pulling me in fully. I was caught off guard by the alcoholism theme that dominated the first half of the book. It wasn't "bad" in my opinion (it is not a trigger in any way for me) but was unexpected and not something that added value to the story for me. So that could have likely played a factor. All said and done, I was entertained by this read and am looking forward to book 2!

Thank you netgalley, Alexandria Warwick and Saga press for this eARC.

A Beauty & The Beast AND Hades & Persephone mashup retelling? What is not to love? I often make side quests from my usual horror for some fantasy and I’m so glad I did! Thank you so much to Saga Press & NetGalley for this ARC!

I always had a soft spot for Had and Persephone myth so I was super excited to read this retelling! The writing felt like a warm hug while reading. The characters are complex and easy to root for. They also had a well written character development. The romance was swoonworthy and spicy is the most perfect way.
And lastly i found the world building and the magic system so interesting and cool. And i'm excited to read more.

This book reminded me a lot of what an ACOTR fan-fiction would be like. It had stereotype-typical tropes such as enemies to lovers, a female heroine who doesn't think that she's beautiful but the male main character does, only one room, etc. The book was decently written but not one of my favorite fantasy novels by any means.

My biggest turn-off from the book was the heroine. I did not find Wren to be all that likable. She felt fairly flat and one-dimensional for most of the time with her strongest emotion being angry. To me, it felt like that was all that she was. And Boreas felt like a grumpy old man. In a way, their relationship dynamics reminded me of Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy. She kept trying to get him to loosen up but he didn't want to.

The ending felt a bit rushed and I would have enjoyed more development in the backstory of Boreas and his brother,

I think some people would greatly enjoy this book, especially avid fantasy readers, and most likely rate it 4 or 5 stars, but it wasn't my cup of tea.

Wanted to love this! I’m a sucker for Beauty and the Beast retellings and this was rumored to be that plus a Hades and Persephone vibe! I thought the story was ok. I didn’t connect with the characters like I wanted to. The hate to love trope was something I enjoyed, as well as the world building and spice. The beginning definitely gave me ACOTAR vibes!

This feels very “A Court of Thorns and Roses.” I stopped after chapter 2, but I’d imagine the target audience will be a solid 3-4 stars, 5 for the right readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Saga Press for the ARC.

#TheNorthWind #NetGalley

I had so much fun reading The North Wind and need to read more from Alexandria Warwick. This book reminded me of Sarah Maas and Robin LaFevers (with some Edith Pattou mixed in) with strong, imperfect heroines, dark immortals, and folklore. The depth and heartbreak that is suffered when you realized the relationships you had are not what you thought is captured in the North Wind, but the realization and personal growth that comes from it only makes you stronger.

This was a fantastic surprise to read! The North Wind encompasses so many elements I love in fantasy romances, and delivers it all in a way that feels fresh and invigorating to read. I came to greatly love our leads and I’m excited to see this world further expanded. 4.5✨

Wren was a wonderfully flawed heroine. While some may see her as unlikeable, I never did. I understood her, I felt her uncertainty and frustration. I appreciated how she was flawed, very much so. She portrayed a very assured, strong, impenetrable veneer, but she’s incredibly vulnerable, insecure, and untethered beneath it. Reluctant for help, but in desperate need of it. She had to learn it’s okay to let others in, it’s okay to make mistakes, it’s okay to make changes in our lives that may hurt at first but are ultimately to our own betterment. Wren undergoes a transformation within this tale, and I so admired her courage as she faced it.

Then we have Boreas, our male lead and love interest. I found him a remarkably intriguing figure, whose past I was eager to dive into it. He’s grieving and he’s stubborn in believing he can only be one thing. Just as Wren blossoms, so does Boreas. I loved learning who was beneath the North Wind facade.

While I loved the slow burn, I do wish there was more romance at the end. Wren and Boreas were a perfectly imperfect pair together, and I absolutely felt their chemistry— but I would have enjoyed seeing more on page romance, given that this is a standalone.

Many of the plot points feel like retreads of other reads, you’ll find Wren who shares similarities with the likes of Feyre Archeron and Katniss Everdeen. There are moments within this romantasy that have been done before. Yet, for me, what matters is how it was delivered. Yes, it’s a familiar plate being served, but it doesn’t arrive stale. On the contrary, I was enthralled by all its flavor. I was dazzled by this book and so very happy to read it. And while much may seem familiar, this narrative pushes against a common resolution at the heart of human/immortal love stories. How their happily ever after is delivered doesn’t come in the frequent packaging I’m used to, rather it presents another route for a specific character’s future— one I wholly embraced. It made such beautiful sense.

Thank you NetGalley and Saga Press for providing me an arc in exchange for an honest review.