#Blog Tour #The North Wind (The Four Winds ) by Alexandria Warwick #New Adult Fantasy #Romance @Xpresso Book Tours

The North Wind
Alexandria Warwick
(The Four Winds, #1)
Publication date: January 13th 2022
Genres: Fantasy, New Adult, Romance

Lush. Dark. Romantic. Introducing a newly reimagined tale written in the vein of Beauty and the Beast and Hades and Persephone.

Long before civilization, there were the gods. And before the gods, there was the earth, the celestial bodies, and air given flesh. They are the Anemoi—the Four Winds—and they have been banished to the four corners of the world.

Wren of Edgewood is no stranger to suffering. Her parents are gone. Survival is all she knows. For three hundred years, the land known as the Gray has been encased in ice, surrounded by a great barrier called the Shade, which protects the townsfolk from the Deadlands beyond.

But day by day, the Shade weakens.

Only one thing can stop the Shade’s fall: a mortal woman taken captive across the barrier, bound in wedlock to the dark god who reigns over the Deadlands. He is the North Wind, the Frost King, an immortal whose heart is said to be as frigid as the land he rules.

And the time has come for the Frost King to choose his bride.

The North Wind is a standalone, enemies-to-lovers fantasy romance, the first in a series sprinkled with Greek lore. Perfect for fans of Jennifer L. Armentrout, Laura Thalassa, and Scarlett St. Clair.

Goodreads / Amazon

Author Bio:

Alexandria Warwick is the #1 fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender. She is the author of The Demon Race and the North series.

Website / Goodreads / Newsletter / Instagram

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My thoughts:
My first time reading Alexandria Warwick and I'm really glad to have discovered this talented author! The North Wind is an original new adult fantasy inspired by Beauty and the Beast as well as the Hades and Persephone myth. Well, Wren, the protagonist of the North Windis much more strong-willed, outspoken, and feisty than the traditionally meek Persephone, and this is exactly what I loved about this charcter.

Twenty three year old Wren and her twin sister Elora lost their parents to starvation in their tiny village of Edgewood. Wren was forced to learn to hunt and steal to make sure she and her much softer sister survive the crual and harsh world they live in. Once in a few decades King Boreas, the North Wind, leaves his citadel in the deadlands and crosses the Shade boundary that separates the world of dead and living and comes to Edgewood to pick his human bride. Wren would do anything to save her sister and that includes deceiving the North Wind and taking Elora's place. Wren finds out that the Shade and the protection it offers is weakening and the bestway to assuage it is to feed it human blood, made stronger by the wedding vows given by an immortal. Boreas may be reserved and broody, and sorely lacking conversation skills, but he is hardly the monster Wren imagined him to be, despite  his power to judge and punish human souls for their violent actions in life.

This is the third re-telling of the Hades and Persephone myth I've read in a couple months (the other two were Neon Gods and Light Destroyer) and I must say I liked this Hades most of all. Bit by bit we get to know our characters, their history and their disposition, and  the romantic tension grows in a suspenseful slow-slow burn. If you love the hate-to-love trope, you will appreciate the development of Boreas and Wren's relationship. The book is a bit on a lengthy side, so if you can't wait to get to the spicy scenes, you'll have to be patient. Don't worry, they'll be worth your wait.

Overall, I liked the dark and atmospheric world- building and the flawed nature of the protagonists (Wren is battling her alcoholism in quite a realistic way). The book was also engaging and original. I would recommend it to anyone who loves Beauty and the Beast retellings intertwined with some elements of Greek mythology, new adult fantasy and the enemies-to-lovers trope.

Thank you to Giselle fro XBT, the publisher and the author for the review copy, provided in exchange for an honest opinion.