The North Wind, by American author Alexandria Warwick, is the second work in the romantasy genre that this reviewer has ever read. It allows this reviewer to avoid being affected by too many other readers whose comments centre on how similar or different this book is to other titles in the genre.

The first book in the Four Winds series, The North Wind is a standalone story “inspired by Beauty and the Beast and the myth of Hades and Persephone” as described by the publisher. It is interesting that literary tropes like these may serve as points of reference, making it easier for publishers and authors to connect with readers.. But tropes can be and often are the first criterion for assessing a book's performance.

For example, the story's first-person narrator Wren is a reminder of Katniss in The Hunger Games, a huntress who volunteers to take her sister's place. In this case, Wren is to be sacrificed to the North Wind, also known as the Frost King and bringer of winter. Her blood will be used to sustain the Shade, the barrier that protects her hometown from the icy Deadlands.

Thanks to the author's rich and vivid descriptions, the Deadlands is a fascinating place. The rivers Les and Mnemenos, the brothers Sleep and Death, the judgement of the dead, the City of Gods and the towns of Neumovos and Makarios – not to mention the darkwalkers – these give new meanings to the notion of eternality.

Meanwhile, Boreas is more of a traditional character, like the handsome, arrogant, broody, antisocial, often misunderstood yet ultimately immortalised Mr Darcy that is the favourite of all (female) readers. With his characterisation entirely done through the eyes of Wren, the author ensures that Boreas captures readers' hearts in the story's enemies-to-lovers process.

In contrast, Wren is presented with all of her virtues and flaws, her fervent motives and hidden agendas, and her triumphs and failures. This allows readers to judge her, and makes one wonder whether her portrayal as a strong female character would be any different if the story were written from Boreas's or a third person's perspective.

With that said, Wren is feisty and stubborn, and while she is loyal and fearless, she is also broken and deeply insecure. Her evolution and redemption is subtly handled, and gives emphasis to other factors that contribute to her relationship with Boreas. It is a relationship where both parties are able to find their lost selves in their discovery of each other.

The North Wind achieves a healthy balance between romance and fantasy and a refreshing re-imagination of myths and fairy tale. This reviewer looks forward to reading the other books in the series.

I do love a good fantasy and this one had me hooked from the start. This is fantasy, there is romance and it is inspired by the Beauty and the Beast which had me intrigued. Wren of Edgewood has lost her parents and is looking after her sister in a harsh fantasy world. But how does she protect her from the North Wind?

This is a book that oozes atmosphere, the descriptiveness is wonderful and the writing draws you in. This book took me on a journey of which I felt a part of, each paged turned brought me something new and exciting. I loved every aspect of this book and story. And although a slow burn it builds well and kept my interest so I was never bored and never wanted to skip anything.

A great read and I look forward to seeing what comes next. Highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster (Australia) for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

I couldn't even finish it. I feel like it had all the tropes at the start of the book but at the same time moved very slowly. I feel like the author wanted to give an air of mystery but what we got was an air of annoyance. I never disliked an FMC so much in my life, and the MMC just didn't cut it. it was bleh!

I had a love/hate relationship with Wren, I felt bad for her for how her parents expected her to always look after her twin sister Elora. Wren did so a lot of veey questionable stuff but considering how she grew up it's kind of understandable. Elora was just plain selfish and a spoilt brat. Boreas honestly came across as being autistic but had a heart of gold and I loved how he came out of his shell slowly.

THIS BOOK. One of my new favourites, this story kept me enraptured from the start to the finish. It's a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, with some Hades crossover.

There are some similarities with another popular series, but it pushed through those and paved its own path. The story is excellent, and I really liked Wren. The romance is spot on, although I am a big fan of slow burn. Also the 'only one bed' trope gets me EVERY TIME without fail.

Absolutely loved it, and I am very eager to read the next one!

I enjoyed this story more than expected and am looking forward to seeing whats next. I loved the FMC interactions, her motivations and how much she grew. There were a few moments where I thought the plot would go a certain way but took a surprisingly different turn - really refreshing. The world building was wonderful, I could really imagine the Gray, the village and the castle clearly which kept me grounded in the story.

My only criticism is that this book shouldn't be labeled with anything "Beauty & the Beast" - very little is similar to the traditional tale or the Disney version so it's a little misleading, especially if you go into the story thinking you'll get a retelling.

3.5 ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the review copy. I got this on NetGalley the week it was released and just never picked it up but I’ve finally gotten around to reading it.

Wren has had a difficult life ensuring her sister’s survival in their home of Edgewood which is in eternal winter. To maintain the Shade, the North Wind comes to choose his new bride for her mortal blood. When he sets his sights on Wren’s sister, she’ll sacrifice anything to protect her.

This is a combination retelling of Beauty and the Beast & Hades and Persephone This one was on the slower side but I still enjoyed figuring things out with the main character. I found both MCs a little frustrating as they had terrible communication. I am a bit confused about how the next book could possibly follow the character that I believe it’s meant to be about but I guess we’ll see.

"I would do it all over again, give it all up, if only to spend another day in your company."

A bit of a slow burn in the beginning but by around 70% is when it really hits its stride. Fantasy with a heavy dollop of romance. Romantasy.

The main F character, Wren, is not always appealing but she grew on me. The North Wind, aka Boreas, is the standard dark, grumpy, standoffish character that you eventually love. Although a forced marriage, you wanted them to get together, to find each other. Together they are stronger and they need to be to fight the impending war.

I enjoyed this overall but just a tad slow in some parts in the beginning. I enjoyed the world building and will definitely read the next one in the series.

A solid enemies-to-lovers fantasy read! I loved the characters and the development of their relationship. The slow burn was a SLOW. BURN. so if you like that, this book is for you. The world-building was fascinating and I can't wait to find out more about the world in future books. I loved Zephyrus and I'm excited to read his book next!

I loved everything about this book, the characters the story the world building I cannot wait for the next one.

Actual rating is 3.5 stars

I can see what the author was trying to do and they almost get there, but it just didn't quite hit the mark for me. There was some really interesting worldbuilding in some parts and others got glossed over. Both main characters were deeply flawed which I actually liked and there is some serious relationship development but Wren had some really stupid decisions which I struggled with.

Not sure whether I will go back in for book 2...maybe after I have let this one settle for a while.

Overall this was a good enough read.
The haters-to-lovers vibe was written well for the most part.
However, the storyline was a little choppy and sometimes boring enough for me to stop reading for a few days. Particularly the ending.
I probably won’t bother reading future books in this series.

Loved the slow burn, the world building and how immersed you feel inside the world. I am looking forward to future books!

“The sky foretells a coming tragedy.”

I’m going to admit, this was a tough one to start for me. I considered putting it aside at 3%. But after some encouragement from a fellow reader, I persevered. And I am so glad I did! Once I got into the meat of the story, I couldn’t stop reading and read the remainder in less than 24 hours!

The push and pull of Wren and Boreas’ relationship, the way they bickered and fought from the beginning was a highlight. There was battles, and tension, love, and of course spice! Thoroughly enjoyable once I got going.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

The enchanting setting and captivating premise drew me in from the start. Warwick's world-building is rich and immersive, making the story feel like a winter wonderland filled with magic and mystery.
However, while I enjoyed the adventure and the unique characters, there were moments where the pacing felt a bit uneven. Still, it's a solid read for fantasy lovers looking for a fresh, mystical tale.

What you’ll find in The North Wind:
Slow burn
Only one bed
Hate to love / captor-captive relationship
Beauty & the Beast/Hades and Persephone retelling

Quotes I Love:
- “Dramatic is for the unimaginative.”
- “One bed for two people who cannot stand the sight of each other. The gods must hate me.”
- “The king may have the emotional capacity of a twig, but I can’t deny the grace of his movements.”

Absolutely devoured this one. It was different to anything I have read before but I found myself not wanting to put it down!

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley, thank you for the opportunity to review this book.

The North Wind by Alexandria Warwick is a fantasy romance inspired by Beauty and the Beast and the myths of Hades and Persephone, which made for what I thought was a rather engaging and emotional journey through this book.

It's written in first person and follows Wren a young woman who has taken on the responsibility to provide and protect her twin sister Elora, after the passing of their parents. We are constantly told that Elora is the most gentile, most beautiful woman in Edgewood and deserves everything and a happy life because she has the best prospects and was the parent's favourite. Wren is nothing but a brutish, snarky ugly woman who lives to see her sister happy and fulfilled, even if it is to the detriment of herself.

For centuries her hometown of Edgewood has been battered by a horrific never-ending winter whilst the shade, a magical barrier that protects her town from the land of the dead, weakens and begins allowing dangerous creatures who feed on the souls of the living through into the land of the living. The only way that the Shade can be strengthened is when The North Wind comes and takes a mortal woman every few decades to sacrifice to the Shade. It just so happens that The North Wind has set his eyes on Elora, but Wren will do anything to stop that from happening.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, the vibes are very much more of the Beauty and the Beast variety than that of Hades and Persephone. The Hades part was clear, but the only part I felt related to the story of Hades and Persephone was that The North Wind takes a woman back to his lands every few decades.
It is singular POV - written from the perspective of Wren, which at times can feel a bit bristly as Wren initially is not the most enjoyable character. She is convinced that her only purpose in life is to serve and prop up her twin sister and the repetitive self-loathing comments and general ire for her existence can be a bit challenging to get through. It does improve over time and it was just really nice to see Wren build up some respect for herself over time.
There were parts of this book that elicited tears from me because I felt so much empathy for Wren and related to how she was feeling in those moments, with the hurt and realisations she made for her journey in healing. Then there were other parts where I just got so irritated with her because it felt like she was just doing things to spite herself.
I did finish the book with more questions that I hope will be answered in future books. Like, a more in-depth explanation of how the shade came to be, when was it discovered that mortal women could strengthen the shade? I'd love to see more information about each of the four winds and how and why they are the way they are, what are their motivations behind what they do. I'm sure all of these will be answered in future books or even novellas, so I look forward to what comes next for The Four Winds series.

If you are looking for a very solid enemies-to-lovers, Beauty and the Beast retelling, this one is for you. I loved the world and the slow burn between Wren and Boreas is dazzling. I will be reading the second book.

In this captivating fantasy, Wren of Edgewood faces the brutal reality of survival in a land cursed with an endless winter. With her parents gone, she must protect her sister and herself as the magical barrier, the Shade, weakens, threatening their home's safety. Legends tell of the North Wind, an immortal whose marriage to a mortal woman can restore the Shade’s strength. When the North Wind chooses Wren’s sister as his bride, Wren is willing to sacrifice herself to save her. Determined and resilient, Wren embarks on a perilous journey, prepared to defy the North Wind and fight for her family's survival.

This story, unfortunately didn’t grip me as much as I would have liked and felt the pacing was a little slow, especially towards the beginning.

I have conflicted feelings about both of the main characters. Wren is stubborn and spirited and The Frost King (aka The North Wind & Boreas) is stoic and impassive at the start but as we learn more about them, we definitely see more of their personalities. There were just some decisions throughout the story that just seemed a bit off and didn’t make sense for the characters.

The slow burn and chemistry built between the characters was done well and it helped carry the story along. I also found the world interesting, from the different brothers and their territories (although I do wish we had of gotten more but perhaps that will come in later books) and the members of the staff and Neumovos and how they came to be.

There were definitely a couple of times while reading this I could’ve put it down and DNF’ed but I was intrigued with how the story was going to be played out. The writing was good but the plot, at a few times let it down.