I will keep this short and to the point.

There was grooming, forced love, and spice.
I was grossed out by the guardian/love relationship between the FMC and one of the MMC’s.

This was an audiobook that I listened to and I wouldn’t have finished it if it was a hardcopy. The audio, narrated by great voice actors, was still cringeworthy because of the storyline and how things played out.

It was predictable and took from other books that are already out there.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #DreamscapeMedia for a copy of this #ARC to review. These are my honest opinions and reviews about it.

#TheFrostboundQueen

i received an advance audiobook for this book through netgalley, generally dreamscapes media audiobooks does not disappoint and this title is no exception.
this is a true romantasy with immersive world building, twists, surprises and spice that had me clutching my pearls. the characters have a fair amount of depth that have me looking forward to future installments of this series.

I listened to the audiobook and had an absolute blast. The story was fast paced, politically charged, and very character driven which I loved. The world of the Covenant is built up just enough to immerse you in the story and propel the plot forward, but will not overwhelm anyone who is not looking for a high fantasy world.

There was definitely more spice than I was expecting. Being a fantasy romance, the focus of this book is definitely the romance and spice. If you enjoy spice in your fantasy romance books then I think you will love The Frostbound Queen. I absolutely loved the MMF romance in here because it's always interesting when a love triangle turns out to be a love triad.

Regarding the audiobook medium specifically, the narrators did a great job with voicing the characters and really brought Liria, Ronan and Sigurn to life. The listening experience was incredibly immersive.

3.5 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley, Dreamscape Media and Amy Pennza for sending me the audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars

While I typically enjoy books of this nature, I've been experiencing a bit of a reading slump lately, which affected my overall experience with this one. Although I didn't love it, I still found it enjoyable. In my opinion, it could benefit from having a bit more depth and oomph. Nonetheless, I found it to be an entertaining and steamy read overall. I look forward to revisiting it once I'm out of my slump and updating my rating accordingly.

If you're a fan of steamy romantasy with MMF, MM, and MFM then this is for you!

***Thank you to NetGalley, Amy Pennza, and Dreamscape Media for graciously sending me the audiobook to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.***

Thank you @netgalley and @dreamscapemedia for a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I went into this book with little information about the plot. Hardly ever do I fully read the descriptions of books, going just enough to peak my interest without causing preconceived thoughts. With that in mind, I did enjoy this book, but for some reason I kept expecting more. As the book goes on and gives you information, you’re going to get an idea in your head about what the title means. The title has very little to do with the actual plot and that ended up being a slight disappointment.

I thought this book was going to give us a love triangle and instead we get a Throuple with MM scenes. This isn’t really my cup of tea and I’m not singing the book for it, but I did find it interesting how they navigated the polyamory.


My biggest issue with the book is who Ronan was to Lira. He started out as her Guardian when she was 12 and now that she is 22, he begins to pursue her romantically. Yes, the author does make a big deal in Ronan’s chapters about how he never looked at her that way until now, but it comes across very “groomy”. Especially when you take into account that Lira had a crush on him growing up, and eventually thinks about him during more private moments. Granted they are immortal elves, but it just felt like an odd decision.

The narrators of the audiobook were really good and I’m not sure if it’s an editing issue but there were a few times when it felt as if sentences or paragraphs were missing. It felt like the story jumped a few times where the dialogue didn’t quite line up.

This book was decent and I enjoyed the plot lines.

This one started off really good! I was intrigued and instantly pulled in. I loved the spicy and enjoyed the characters. The storyline was pretty good. This is my first book by this author. The three narrators did a great job. The only issue I had was the same descriptions were used throughout the book—especially in the spicy scenes. It made the listening a little bland at times. Overall, I would probably listen to another book by this author and likely the next one in the series. Huge thanks to Dreamscape and Netgalley for allowing me to listen and review this book.

I went into this book blind and was not disappointed. I loved the three narrators for the book. It really leant to the enjoyment of the book more. I am new to Amy Pennza, but I can see why she's so popular and a USA Today Bestselling Author.

I didn't know what to expect, but the synopsis definitely had me hooked. This is definitely a fast burn, why choose, romantasy. We follow Liria as she is thrust into navigating becoming a Queen. Of course, it wouldn't be a journey if there wasn't twists and betrayals. We also are introduced to the other two male MCs. I do have to note that this is a MMF romantasy. It is definitely up there in spice, but it was also written in a way that the lot still continued to move forward. Each of the characters face their own inner demons, and we, the readers are able to see this through the different POVs. There's so many amazing tropes that are packed into this book. I hope that this continues on in the series and further develop; world building, politics, intricate relationships, maybe a novella??

Thank you NetGalley, Amy Pennza, and Dreamscape Media for this amazing ALC in exchange for my opinion.

Not sure what to say about this book. It was just okay. I didn't really connect with the characters - everything sort of just felt flat. I was not vibing with the spicy scenes either. They just were written very matter-of-fact like. I don't need flowery writing but I do need more than a straightforward play by play description.

To be honest, all I know is that Liria's parents die and her guardian, Ronan, tries to take her crown from her. Then she falls in love with Sigurn. There is a MM and MMF element to this book and I've read those before but didn't really enjoy this one. Sorry to say Amy Pennza is no Sierra Simone. I lost interest about 75% in to the book and forced myself to finish.

This one wasn't my cup of tea.

4.5 stars rounded up. The Frostbound Queen is a fast-burn, why-choose, spicy, fantasy romance. I thoroughly enjoyed this book that is basically elf smut with plot! There were so many tropes crammed into this novel: age-gap, father's best friend, guardian, why-choose, one-bed, forbidden romance, virgin FMC, and others I don't want to spoil. I did find the virgin FMC with an age-gap romance with her guardian to be a bit creepy personally, and a bit of a tired narrative. Aside from that I really enjoyed the dynamics between the three main characters and seeing those grow, change, and evolve throughout the book. There were definitely a few twists I didn't see coming either. Sigurn is my favourite of the trio. The world is interesting, and is just detailed enough to make it feel real. There could have been a bit more world building, but I'm sure that would have compromised the character development and spice, so I'm more than happy with the way it was written. The spice starts earlier in the book that I would have expected and it just keeps getting spicier. And that epilogue! What a way to end the book! Probably the best epilogue I've read this year.

This is the first audiobook I've listened to with 3 narrators and they all did a great job. Mollie Stark nailed Lyria and she put so much work into developing unique voices for each of the characters. I'd love to listen to more books narrated by her. Both male narrators did a good job as well, though they both seemed to voice Lyria with somewhat different personalities and personality than Mollie narrated her, so I did find that brought me out of the story a few times for a moment or two. Otherwise, loved the triple narration and each voice actor breathing life into their respective characters.

If you enjoy spicy romantasy with an interesting world then this book is absolutely for you.

This audiobook gave me a major ick factor. The FMC is essentially raised by a 200 year old MMC from the time she is 11, and suddenly at 21, he is seriously into her. It felt like he had been grooming her, and although many stories depict a young FMC and seriously old MMC, for him to have known her since she was a little girl seriously grossed me out. I couldn't finish it - DNF.

I... Did... Not... Read between the lines in the summary! 🤣
This is SPICYYYY.. I loved it, completely unexpected but I loved it! 🤣

Publisher's summary
Keep the cold. I’ve always understood my duty. As heir to the Winter Court, I must be ready to take my father’s place and keep the realm safe under a blanket of frost. But my father never taught me how to protect my people. That role has fallen to his best friend, Ronan, who agreed to serve as my guardian after my father grew ill. Charming and dangerous, Ronan hasn’t let illegitimacy or family tragedy stop his rise to power. A master of the elements, he’s a faithful ally.
Until my father dies.
Pushed from the throne, I run to the one place Ronan won’t venture. Crossing into the human lands will weaken my magic, but I need new allies. I find one in Sigurn Brighthelm, the dark-eyed rebel Prince of Nordlinga. Sigurn is no stranger to power. But as I discover too late, he’s no stranger to Ronan, either.
Now I’m caught between two men with conflicting desires. As battle lines are drawn and secrets are revealed, I’m determined to claim my crown. My freedom—and my kingdom—hang in the balance. But as passions heat up, I’m not sure the ice I’ve built around my heart can endure.
Because ice doesn’t always thaw. Sometimes, it shatters.

Thanks to NetGalley & Dreamscape Media for the ALC of this book!

The Frostbound Queen
By: Amy Pennza
Narrated by: Benjamin D. Walker, Ellis Evans, Mollie Stark
Series: Realms of the Covenant, Book 1
Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
Release date: 08-13-24
Publisher: Dreamscape Media

The storyline of this was interesting enough that I wanted to know what would happen next, and the spice kept me listening after that. I will say that Amy Pennza clearly writes some super spicy MMF fantasy! I definitely loved the way the polyamory was woven into the storyline and that it wasn’t just a love triangle but a why-choose.

However, I got the ick about the fact that Ronan basically raised Liria. Even though they are elves and don’t get together until she is an adult, it still just was not a detail that I could get past. Especially because he kept bringing it up?! WHY?!

If you don’t mind a ward/guardian romance, I would recommend it based on spice alone, but for me personally, that trope knocked this book down to 3 stars for me.

As I got to listen to the audiobook of it, I will add that the narrators (all three of them) did a great job. I especially loved the narrator for Sigurn! 😮‍💨
Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the advance listening copy of the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I was expecting a story full of betrayal, anger, and a quest for revenge, and instead, I got some miscommunication with a side of insta-love and smut that eventually replaced the plot. It started well, but I lost interest halfway through, and once the smut replaced the plot I had to force myself to continue reading.

Here is what happens *mild spoilers in the next few paragraphs*:

Princess Liria’s parents went into a sorrow-sleep that is not uncommon for elves after they go through a horrible event. At 11, she is left under the care of Ronan, her father’s best friend. He will act as her guardian and help raise her until her father comes out of his catatonic state.

Ten years later, Liria’s grown up and she realizes one day that she is attracted to Ronan and might even love him. Ronan, who has been distant up until then decides to tell Liria how he is obsessed and in love with her, and that they should marry.

After her parents die, Liria learns that Ronan plans to steal her birthright and become King. Liria runs away and into the arms of dashing human King Sigurn. Lyria decides to seduce Sigurn so he will help her in return, but she also realizes that she can’t resist him and is developing feelings for him after having spent only a handful of hours with him.

Liria finds out that the big betrayal (you know, the one that was promising angst and thirst for revenge) was in fact only good old miscommunication. She decides to forgive Ronan because she loves him and he loves her, so they are going to marry and live happily ever after.

Liria is also in love with Sigurn (hello insta-love), but thankfully, they can all live happily ever after in a throuple that feels forced. The plot takes the backseat for a while and there is smut and more smut until the characters remember that they need to defeat the big bad guys trying to invade Sigurn’s castle before they can have their happily ever after, which they do without much trouble.

The end.
End of mild spoiler.

The world-building is interesting, and I would have loved to know more about the other courts and their politics. I had to download the Kindle so I could look at the map because it was hard to picture the layout of the land. This book is the first of the series, but it reads as a standalone, and the next book will follow new characters, so hopefully, those who will read the next book will be able to discover more about the world-building and politics.

Besides the insta-love and lack of angst, anger, and revenge that would have made the plot much more interesting, the characters were all bland and lacked depth. I couldn’t connect to any of them and didn’t care about what happened to them or their love life. Lyria was a good main character I guess, but nothing was amazing about her. Ronan and Sigurn were unidimensional and I didn’t care about them at all. The fact that Ronan has been a father figure to Liria since she was 11 also made it hard for me to get invested in their romance and enjoy the spicier moments between them.

At least, the smut is good and spicy, but while some scenes were smooth and flowed well with the story, others felt a little forced. It’s as if the author absolutely wanted to add those spicy moments to the plot, even if it didn’t 100% fit with the relationship development. The insta-love between Lyria and Sigurn was the main issue, but the sudden admission of romantic feelings between Sigurn and Ronan was not the best way to make me care about them for sure.

The Frostbound Queen is a lot of spice with a side of royal political elvish and human drama. Ronan is Princess Liria's guardian after her parents effectively orphan her despite still being alive. There is some icky sexual tension very early on. Ronan being her guardian and knowing her since she was born, her guardian since age 11 is just unnecessary. They are elves. She could be in her 30s when he took over guardianship and still be considered relatively young with the length of their lives being much longer than humans.
Sigurn is a another romantic interest of both Liria and Ronan, but it's complicated. At the same time, Sigurn manages to be a bit boring somehow despite all he has going on. When we first meet him, his King father is unwell, his mother is not loyal to anyone but herself, and he's standing on the brink of another civil war after only just having won the last one. Yet his instalust with Liria because she's pretty and sassy feels cheap. His actions, while explained, still feel like they don't make sense, like he's trying to fit the plot instead of making his own choices.
This book has multiple, lengthy, extremely spicy scenes. Read this book if you are looking for a fantasy romance very heavy on the romance. Pennza clearly knows how to write spice very well.
I listened to the audiobook, and to their credit, all three narrators in this shifting POV story did a great job distinctly bringing their characters voice especially Mollie Stark.
Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for this ARC!

Dnf at 34 percent. I gave it a fair chance but I can't get behind the power dynamics here. He's having sex with her and is in love with her even though he raised her as a foster daughter of sorts. I just can't do it.

This audiobook was so well done! I honestly thought I was requesting a different book with frost in the title, but yay for happy accidents!

I don’t think the fantasy plot was particularly well developed or super easy to follow in this book, but I don’t think that’s the main goal. The relationships were built very well and the spice was amazing!

Narrators did a fantastic job, especially during explicit scenes. They did not overact to the point where it was cringy which can be an issue sometimes. Would definitely recommend!

When I first jumped into this adventure I thought I knew exactly what I was in for. Boy, was I wrong. This is not your normal fae royalty fantasy, it is so much more.

The narration was fantastic!
Highly recommend!

I listened to the audiobook and the narrators were great. I DNF due to guardian and ward relationship, it creeped me out. However I did love the author’s writing style and I will look for other books by her!

Going into this book I didn't know much about it. I soon realized it was an MMF. I think this author did a great job with the relationship between the FMC and each of the MMCs. I think this book might have helped by having a flashback or 2 of the 2 MMC so we learn more about how they fell in love. We are kinda just told they loved each other for the last 10 years and there wasn't much of a backstory with it. Having these scenes I think would add to the book as a whole. One other major issue I had was I didn't like that her guardian was one of her love interests. He has known her since she was a child, and it gives off grooming vibes. When they get together he is all over her saying he always loved her and it was a little bit creepy. The sex scenes were fantastic. She did an amazing job writing these scenes.

As for the review of the audiobook itself, I think all the narrators did a fantastic job with the audio. There seemed to be some quality issues with the person who voices Sigurn at times. It isn't as clear as the other narrators.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Dreamscape Media for the audioARC in return for an honest review.

Unfortunately, this one wasn’t for me! I can see where this might be a home run for some, but I felt stuck between a book that you read for the smut factor and a burgeoning plot that just couldn’t grow with the amount of time spent in the bedroom. It was a weird limbo I just couldn’t keep waisting time in.
This is a MMF situation and that is just fine with me, but the scenes felt awkward and forced. The dialogue was a bit cringy and unrealistic to the situation this throuple found themselves in. I just wasn’t able to stand behind any of the character and root for them. While, in the beginning, the storyline was intriguing and pulled me into the story about a fae winter princess whose parents are stuck in a weird state of stasis, who is then raised by a handsome warrior badass who she later has a “daddy” hot relationship with, it just fell flat and lost all wind in its sails.
Like I said, this may be a home run for some, but this one just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Maybe a few regrets!!!!