Um excuse me? This book was so freaking good. I really love a Hades and Persephone retelling and when I saw that this has acotar vibes I knew I was going to devour it. It was a really great fantasy. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

This is a slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers romantasy set in an absorbing fantasy world. I found Wren's character a little difficult to relate to at first, but she softened over the course of the story. Would love to see more of the excellent world building.

i picked this one up and ended up reading this in two sittings - this was SO much fun! i love a good hades x persephone retelling and i LOVED the beauty and the beast inspiration that shone through!

the characters really grew on me the more i kept reading, i loved seeing the different relationships change throughout and watching the characters grow together! wren was a really interesting fmc to follow, and i really enjoyed her character development and watching her slowly come to terms with everything happening.

overall i thought it was a fab introduction to the series, it was very easy to read and fall into and i loved so many of the tropes! think slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers, only one bed and arranged marriage 🤭 the north wind is the first book in a series of inter-connected standalones and i’m so excited to carry on with this lush world in the west wind!

I have wanted to read The North Wind ever since it was first indie release and, honestly, I have no idea why I put it off this long. I adored Wren and Boreas’ relationship and am fascinated by this world. The audiobook was fantastic. It was hard to put down.

For the last 300 years, Edgewood has been trapped in an endless winter. The town is located close to the Shade – a magical barrier – that protects the city from the Deadlands. The 300 years of winter has left the town struggling to survive. Wren is used to suffering. Since the death of her parents, she is now responsible for keeping herself and her twin, Elora, alive. She has risked her life and is left scared, all in the name of keeping her sister safe and protected. The time has rolled around again for the North Wind to claim his bride, which is the price Edgewood pays for his protection from the Deadlands. Wren’s heart breaks when the North Wind sets his eyes on Elora. In that moment, Wren’s need to protect Elora will lead to the ultimate sacrifice – she will pretend to be Elora and take her place as the North Wind’s bride. Wren is brought to the Deadlands to live with her new husband, a god who is said to be as cold as the season he rules over.

I adore Wren’s character growth. She starts as a woman who has been forced into a protector role. She is the eldest twin, and her parents have instilled in her that she needs to look after her sister, Elora. In the wake of her parent’s death, she clings to things role as she struggles with her grief. She really throws herself into this role. At the start, she fixates on getting home and killing Boreas. She blames Boreas for the winter, and the deadwalkers are what killed her parents. I adored watching her settle into her new life and figure out who she was outside of being Elora’s protector. The way Boreas helps her discover her sense of self and helps her realise that she is entitled to be loved and cared for just melted my heart. Wren is brash, impulsive and must deal with the consequences of her actions, which I love to see.

The way Wren’s alcoholism is depicted feels quite honest and has been handled respectfully. It’s clear that at first, Wren doesn’t realise that she even has a drinking problem. But there are little things like she has wine bottles hidden in her room and always has a flask on her. I also enjoyed the way Wren’s rehabbing was handled. You can feel her struggle and need to drink. I love that she gains a support system to help her manage her addiction.

If you love a reserved, slightly grumpy hero, Boreas is the man – whoops sorry God – for you. At first, he seems like this arrogant immortal, but we slowly learn that maybe he hasn’t had many interactions with other people and is awkward in social settings. He is direct and likes to get to the point, which makes sense when his whole job is sorting through people’s lives to understand who they are and, therefore, determine which afterlife they are entitled to. My heart broke learning about his tense history with his brother, Zephyrus, and what happened with his wife. I get why he doesn’t trust people.

The romance is a super slow burn. Wren constantly tries to find a way to kill Boreas, and he gets mad at her for constantly lying and disrespecting boundaries. The pair of them are closed off and are struggling with grief. I adore watching them slowly thaw and open up to each other as they learn they lean on someone. And realise that they don’t have to deal with everything alone. We do have a handful of steamy scenes. There are a lot of false starts to the steam as they keep getting interrupted, which adds to the tension! The epilogue was pure perfection. I adore seeing Wren and Boreas’ HEA.

I love the Deadlands setting. Boreas and his brother have been banished from the God City as a warning as they helped overthrow the previous gods. There is a Greek Myth vibe to this world, which I love. Also, I love how Alexandria has twisted it to fit her world. I am so excited to see more from the world. Also, I cannot wait to meet the South and East winds. So far, they have only been mentioned in passing. It will be interesting to see if the other books have a fairytale vibe to them like The North Wind, and if so, cannot wait to see which fairytales they would be inspired by.

If you loved the winter atmosphere and Morozko from Katherine Arden’s The Winternight Trilogy but wanted more of a romance and love a Hades and Persephone retelling, The North Wind is for you! I am so excited to read the sequel, The West Wind, which is Zephyrus’ book. Since he was the villain of this story, I am interested to learn more about him.

Thanks to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster Australia and the author for the chance to read this book.

This is the first book in the Four Winds series and OMG I am hooked! I loved this take on beauty and the beast with some Gods thrown in. It was enthralling from the get-go, and I just could not put it down!! There was deception, mystery, lust, and war, so it was never boring.
I am looking forward to reading the rest of the books.

Im a sucker for a retelling especially when it's Hades and Persephone, throw in Beauty and the Beast and sure I'll give it a go. I struggled to get into the story, the writing style didn't quite mesh with me and the main female character I just couldn't get behind. I like the premise and that kept me reading til the end. I could see how this will appeal to some readers it just unfortunately wasn't for me.

The book has themes/vibes simular to A Court of Thorns, The Hunger Games, and The Undertaking of Hart & Mercy and I enjoyed the writing style of the book and the descriptive detail or the harsh winter conditions. I wanted to love it more, but found it hard to see The North Wind as the main love interest for at least half of the book due to how he acts towards wren in the earlier chapters. That being said it is a beauty and the beast re telling so it made sense for it to be that way. I still enjoyed the storytelling, mystery, and gods powers, plus found it to be a page turner that I looked forward to reading each night.

Great, action packed, yet slow burn story with a fierce female lead, intrigue and adventure.

Loved the beginning and the weaving of the FMC journey throughout the book and the obstacles she faces.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for honest review.

Okay it took me a min to start this and I’m gutted I waited so long! This is so beautifully written! I love Wrens attitude and personality I feel it really adds to the depth of this story! Especially having two MCs that are both not trusting and shady!! Can NOT wait for the next one!!

This was a really enjoyable romantasy and definitely was a page turner! The romance was satisfying and the world was really interesting however I was left confused at times with the plot and I felt like there were a few things that weren’t explained enough. This is perfect for fans of Beauty and the beast/ Hades and Persephone retellings!

I really enjoyed this book, loved the characters and the growth that they go through. I found the world building incredible, it was super easy to imagine and I found it fascinating and I can’t wait to learn more about it as the books go on!
The only reason it wasn’t a 5 star was that I found the pacing a little off in some bits but overall loved it!

I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. It had a good combination of battle and adventure, personal struggles, MC interactions and romance. The world building wasn't the greatest. No, it wasn't super original. Yes, some things irked me. But, it was supposed to have Beauty & the Beast vibes, and it did, so I enjoyed it for what it was. 

I would probably pick up the next book in the series to see where that goes. Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for letting me read and review this one.

This book wasn't for me. I read it, hoping I would start enjoying it, but it never happened. I found Wren to be very unlikeable, she makes a lot of ignorant decisions and seems to put hard/abrasive for hardly any reason. The premise of the book was good, but the execution just wasn't there. It feels like it's trying to be ACOTAR but replacing fae for gods.

I don't like leaving harsh reviews, but this book was a real disappointment.

This is a strong fantasy novel that reads like a stand-alone, although it’s framed in a way that could well mean it’s part of a longer series. It’s an enjoyable read, with strong characters and enough new ideas to spark a reader’s interest.

Wren and her twin Elora live in Edgewood. As the name suggests, the small, impoverished town sits on the edge of the Gray. The Gray is an area of devastation, slowly encroaching across the land. Where it spreads, an endless winter settles in. The land and its’ people are slowly starving.

The winter is sent at the behest of the North Wind, a brutal and uncaring God. At irregular intervals, Edgewood sacrifices one of its’ women to the North Wind, but it seems to make little difference to the winter creeping across the land.

Wren finds herself carried away as the North Wind’s sacrifice. She intends to escape before she dies, and to find a way to end the winter. But things don’t go as she planned, and she slowly begins to realise that her understanding of the situation has been poor and incomplete.

If you’ve read a lot of fantasy – or even a little – you’ll probably see traces here of other novels, TV shows, and legends. I saw those, but felt that they were only a jumping off point. There’s a fair bit of originality here, and I was left with the satisfying feeling of having read a new story.

Wren is a character who grows a lot during the course of the story, not only finding her strengths but coming to a fuller recognition of her own faults and weaknesses. Both were equally important to this story, and she ends a highly sympathetic character who feels very real.

Similarly, the North Wind is gradually revealed to be more than the simple monster that Wren initially believes him to be. This gradual revelation is one of the strongest elements of the novel, given that it slowly changes our perspective not only on him, but also on events past and present. His character is absolutely crucial to the success of the novel.

Despite the fantastical elements, I found this a very believable story. Characters behaved in ways that were credible, and both the world and the small part of it that Wren and the North Wind inhabit were strongly drawn. It was easy to suspend my disbelief and become drawn in.

The plot is interesting too, though in retrospect it’s truly the characters that stand out more than the plot.

This was a good reading experience: well written and absorbing, with elements I wasn’t expecting.

I really enjoyed this book! It was a great fantasty world with a good plot and character development. Looking forward to the next one in the series

Thanks to Netgalley, Simon & Schuster and Alexandria Warwick for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved The North Wind. It had everything I love in a good fantasy. Suspense, humour, romance and action.
I really liked the storyline. The characters were interesting and complex, with amazing chemistry.
Wren was a great leading lady. She was strong, determined, funny and charismatic. Boreas was the perfect match for her.

I thoroughly enjoyed it. I couldn't put it down, I read it in a day. I will be waiting very impatiently for the next book in this fabulous series.

I highly recommend. 4 stars from me. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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

Rating: 3.5/5

- NA fantasy
- Forced marriage
- Hate to love
- One bed (and one horse)
- Slow burn
- Single POV

The North Wind didn’t quite meet my expectations. I only started getting into the book about the last 20 per cent or so.

Now, Wren is what I expect in a fantasy FMC – strong-willed, determined, and a little bit sassy. A socially awkward god spending his days sentencing people to different deaths, I have to admit that Boreas wasn’t really a memorable MMC until the end.

I think the burn was just *too* slow, and there weren't enough gripping (tender or tension-filled) moments between the two of them leading up to it that made me believe in their romance, if that makes sense.

This love confession didn't match what I read, but I still adored it: "You are the most important person in my life. 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, topple empires, and alter time, all for the promise of an eternity spent by your side."

I also have come to expect more twists and turns in a fantasy book, and unfortunately, this was just lacking in that instance.

4 1/2 ⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Tropes; enemies to lovers, one bed, arranged marriage; he falls first

I loved this book! Boreas is the cold and cruel, frost king and North wind. Wren a skilled hunter, trying to survive the harsh never ending winter and providing for her twin sister.
I don’t want to say too much to spoil it apart from buy it and read it now!

I adored Wren standing up for herself and the hard conversation between Wren and her sister. Watching Wren struggle with her addiction and her new place in the world tore on my heart strings.

Boreas backstory made him all the more endearing, however typically morally grey male.

Greatly anticipating the next instalment- The West Wind!

Thank you for allowing me to review this title.
Unfortunately, it just wasn’t for me.
I felt like it was just another Hades and Persephone retelling, and I didn’t really find too much different from others.
It felt a bit dull, and uninspired to me.
Thanks once again for allowing me to review this title, I hope to work together again in the future.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this Beaty and the Beast retelling. I was immediately drawn into the world, and though it was a slow burn, I loved how the relationship between Wren and Boreas was written. The world was well written, with the descriptions helping to really imagine what things looked like and how scents, integral to the story at times, would smell.

I will be eagerly awaiting more from Alexandria Warwick and can't wait to read what happens next in the series.