DNF @ 12.5%

I wanted to read this but I just can’t get into this relationship dynamic. 200 year old elf takes on the guardianship of the 11 year old daughter of his best friend. Then 10 years later they’re love interests? Leaves a super icky feeling in my belly.

I would’ve been perfectly fine with their age gap if they had met (or at least only bonded) when she was an adult.


Imma sit this one out.

The Frostbound Queen is a fast-paced, spicy fantasy romance with a “why-choose” twist. I had a great time reading this book, which blends elf smut with an actual plot! The story is packed with tropes—age gap, father’s best friend, guardian, one bed, forbidden romance, virgin FMC, and many more that I won’t spoil. Personally, I found the age-gap romance with the virgin FMC and her guardian a bit unsettling and a somewhat overused narrative. That aside, I really enjoyed the evolving dynamics between the three main characters. Watching their relationships grow and change was one of the highlights, and there wer in e some unexpected twists that caught me by surprise. Sigurn ended up being my favorite of the trio. The world-building is intriguing and detailed enough to feel immersive, though I would have liked just a bit more depth. However, I understand that adding too much might have taken away from the character development and the spice, so I’m content with how it’s balanced. The heat kicks off earlier than expected, and the intensity just keeps building. And that epilogue! What a perfect ending—it’s definitely one of the best I’ve read all year!

Thank you for granting me an arc copy of this book. I looooved the book. Such a good mmf and romantacy! I love forward to the next book in this series

I listened to a couple hours of this audiobook but had to DNF it. I liked both narrators a lot, the story just wasn't for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the audiobook ARC!

*The Frostbound Queen* by Amy Pennza is a captivating fantasy novel that weaves a tale of magic, intrigue, and resilience. Set in a richly imagined world, the story follows the journey of a young queen who must navigate the treacherous landscape of political power and betrayal, all while coming to terms with her own identity and abilities.

Pennza’s writing is both lyrical and immersive, drawing readers into a realm filled with vivid imagery and intricate details. The world-building is exceptional, creating a backdrop that feels both enchanting and perilous. The characters are well-developed, each with their own motivations and complexities, making their struggles and triumphs all the more engaging.

The pacing of the novel is expertly managed, balancing moments of intense action with quieter, introspective scenes that allow for character development and emotional depth. The themes of love, sacrifice, and the quest for self-acceptance resonate throughout the narrative, making it not just a tale of adventure, but also a profound exploration of what it means to lead and to love.

Overall, *The Frostbound Queen* is a beautifully crafted fantasy that will appeal to fans of the genre and beyond. Amy Pennza delivers a compelling story filled with heart and magic, making it a must-read for anyone looking to lose themselves in an enchanting world of adventure and discovery.

This is a good book. It kept me entertained . I liked the story and I enjoyed the narration.


I do recommend this one

Spicy, sweet, and undeniably savory! Very excited to see what else this series has to offer! Mollie Stark continued to steal the show with her unbelievable performance.

I cannot put into words how much I adored this book, nor how I went a little feral for it.

The audiobook had the best voice cast possible and it really made the listening experience infinitely better. The voices perfectly matched the characters, I’m convinced they really were them.

If you adore ‘House of the Dragon’ and shipped Daemon and Rhaenyra in the first few episodes, this book is for you. I could say more but I won’t because you all need to go read, or listen, to this book yourselves. You won’t regret it.

I am not against spice, I enjoy it when there is a plot and spice. However when the spice takes over and the story is pushed aside.....I lose interest. The idea for the story sounded good, but I wanted more details and more info into the realms and courts.

2 Stars

This book was not for me. The spice was spicy and happened so fast i had whiplash. Also the language used during said spice was contemporary while the book was not set in current times. It just didn't match the rest of the book. I think I would of liked the story without all the over the top spice. Of course this is just my opinion.

Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this audio book.

In this why choose romance we follow three POVs, Liria, Sigurn, and Ronan. Liria and Ronan are Winter Court elves and Sigurn is the Prince of a human nation. Many centuries before there was a covenant line that split the elven and human worlds preventing magic from entering the elvish side and humans from entering the elvish side. There are always loopholes. Ronan is 200+ years old and is entrusted to raise Liria from the age of 11 on and to train her to be queen. Though nothing romantic happens until Liria turns 21 that's still creepy. Liria meets Sigurn when she is running from a boar. She crosses the covenant and now they are in love. BUT WAIT Sigurn and Ronan know each other as well and they are also in Love, and Liria and Ronan are in love. Everything happens instantly. From a story with a promising plot, we turn into a story about sex, with some plot. I don't mind spicy books, but I prefer a book with spice vs. a spicy book. I would rather it be plot-focused than spice-focused. This one, once it gets there is spice focused. If you like instalove, ward/mentor romance, and MMF romance then this one is for you. Also, I found the emotional connection was more there between our two MMCs than between the MMC and FMC, Liria was just kind of there.

The narrator for this book was phenomenal. This book kept me on my toes and the edge of my seat the whole time!

The graphic sexual content in this book should be clearly marked/advertised as explicit. Did not finish reading this. Also, a man raising a girl from the time she was 11, and then becoming a love interest is grooming. Disgusting.

This story had great inspiration but felt like it fell a little short. I wanted to like the FMC but she felt immature and hard to root for.

The Frostbound Queen started off strong but lost me when the plot got drowned in spice and insta-love.

Liria’s guardian, Ronan, who raised her, suddenly confesses his love, which felt pretty uncomfortable given their history. She then runs to King Sigurn, and in no time, they’re in a love triangle that turns into a throuple. The characters were flat, and the romance felt forced. The world-building had potential, but it wasn’t explored much, and the focus on smut took away from the story.

If you’re into heavy spice and insta-love, this might be your thing, but it wasn’t for me.

Holy smokes! Books like this are the reason I love going in blind! What a ride this was! And spicyyyyyy 🔥 Whew! I'll now be finding this authors backlist and devouring it!

The Frostbound Queen by Amy Pennza
Narrated by Benjamin D. Walker; Ellis Evans; Mollie Stark

First of all, what a narration.... I loved it, a lot many times I had goosebumps while listening to this audiobook... All the three narrators has done a good job but I will specifically mention that I loved female narration the most... she did male voices really good. So many many thanks to dreamscape media and Netgalley for the amazing audiobook ARC in exchange of an honest review.

Now coming to the story, I didn't expect the level of smut this book had. It started off really good. I was quite intrigued with the whole scenario where the queen is dying and king is so sorrowful that he wouldn't pay any attention to his only living child - Princess Lyria or even to his kingdom... Ronan, king's best friend takes over the kingdom as well as princess as his ward. There's no inappropriate relations here as Lyria is adult but yet the relationship between Ronan and Lyria felt like grooming.

Then enters the human King Sigurn, at the start it made sense that Sigurn was attracted to Lyria but it felt off on Lyria's part. And from there the story became unidimensional . The plot almost diminished as we get page long descriptions of sexual tension, actual sex scenes and complexity of their love triangle. I would have loved more world building, the bond, the magic it wasn't explained at all. Some readers might find it a big turn-off. For me too it was to an extent but I did enjoy their trio...

Another thing that was not to my liking was Insta love or love at first sight. It just doesn't sit well with me . The character development isn't done well, they are pretty flat and after the sex scenes they mostly care about each other and nothing else. They are mostly reduced to their sexuality. MMF felt forced, I was trying to understand how it is possible on the emotional level and I'm still clueless.

Overall it was enjoyable and from the overall story it was a stand-alone book as the end was done like "happily ever after" way...

Thank you again Netgalley and dreamscape media for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️


It took longer for me to jive with the book. A slow start but once it gets going I devoured the rest. It’s a forbidden why choose romance. Strong willed FMC. A bit of enemies to lovers.

I enjoyed this one - a new author for me. I was happy to listen to this audio ARC - it was a fun one. There was a strong story line, a strong romance and character development that I really enjoyed. I love the book cover. There were a lot in this book: forbidden romance, age-gap, one bed and elves. This is a book cover I would 100% buy without knowing what the book is about. Thank you to Netgalley, and the publishers for this audioARC in exchange for my honest opinion

A very spicy mmf romantasy. Enjoyable & the spice certainly spiced. Not a plot heavy book. Most of the conflict could’ve been solved with communication between the 3 mc’s, but it made for good drama. There’s a bit of political intrigue and short bouts of clashing over thrones, but it’s such a small part of the plot. I liked the narrators, they did a good job portraying their characters, but Ronin’s sounded too young for a man over 200 years old, he still did a great job.