I quite enjoyed this one. I was mostly indifferent to Emma but her story is compelling. I just liked the world that this was set in. I tend to enjoy witch books and this one is no different. It reminds me a lot of the stuff I used to read a lot when I was a teen. It just had this 2000-2010 era YA vibe that I enjoyed.

I thought the story was well done, the book started slow but picked up enough to want to keep reading. I love that it's a story of witches, mystery, and love but mostly love of family and friends.

"I don't like that term," another student frowned at her. "We shouldn't call one another names."

This is a sweet little book.

Okay, so maybe the fact that debutants are being killed, their bodies unnaturally frozen, with Emma finding them, isn't so sweet, but this is about girl power. Not in the sense of girls going out in tight leather and kicking butt. Nope. This is girl power, in the sense of friendship - and girls being great regardless of if they prefer embroidery or sword fighting.

Try this truncated conversation:

"He called me fat." (Penelope)
"Think how embarrassed he'll be when I wrap his smalls around his fat head." (Emma in response.)
"I hope he wakes up swollen like a balloon." (Gretchen in response.)

Sadly, it's not often that I come across a book with girls that are so tightly knit as these three cousins are. That just makes it all the more awesome when I do. These girls would do anything for each other and the other girls at the academy are pretty awesome too. Sure, you've got the typical 'mean girl' - but even she seems mild compared to the way girls like this usually behave. I can't help but think that this book is about friendship first and foremost.

"I can't let you risk yourself for me," she murmured.
He narrowed his eyes. "And if I said those words to you?"
She wrinkled her nose. "I'd kick you," she admitted.
"And as I can't kick you," he returned, brushing his mouth along the side of her neck until she shivered, "I'll have to get my vengeance another way."

There's romance in this book. At first I was like 'noooooo' - but then I got to deal with Cormac a little more. I got to listen to him talking to Emma. He's not what he first appears. I thought he was a typical jerkass/badboy young man for the girls to swoon over. Instead, he is a character with depth and conviction and he's not pushing Emma away (well, originally trying to anyway) for no good reason - and it doesn't take him long to realize there's really no reason to push her way. Interestingly enough, he never proclaims that he's doing it all for her. And I really don't think he was.

"Why should you imagine I would think less of you because of something you have no control over?"

I gotta admit, I love Emma and Cormac together. While the other two cousins dot get romance in this book, the second in the series is Gretchen's story and I imagine the third will be Penelope's.

As I tell you have much I love the characters, are you wondering about the plot. Yeah, so was I to be honest. If the plot would have been a bit tighter, I think this would have probably gotten five stars from me. As it was, just that little bit was missing. The mystery was somewhat obvious after a certain point. I tried to not think about it much, but during one conversation I went 'oh no - please tell me I'm wrong'. Yeah… About that. I wasn't. So, if you're wanting a deep mystery you might be a bit disappointed.

I recommend this book highly if you want a character rather than plot driven story - rather, don't mind a story whose plot is a little weak - and/or want to read about a solid friendship between three girls and a sweet romance.

(Originally posted on my blog: http://pagesofstarlight.blogspot.com/)

This was a fun trilogy. I ended up reading the whole thing.

Good book. Quality read. I will be checking the next book in the series out when it is released.

A lot of fun, but there was something kind of breathless about it after a slow start. It felt messy and choppy. Plus I get annoyed by things like someone in London having a cardinal as a familiar, even though the familiars seemed more like spirit animals. The world building was a bit incoherent as well (that being one example). I sound very negative, but I did enjoy reading this. It had a lot of energy and potential; I wish it had been a bit better.

Gretchen, Emma and Penelope have grown up privileged. They discover during their debutante year that they are descended from a long line of witches and as they begin to come into their powers a dangerous conspiracy comes to life and they are stuck trying to decide who to trust. To make matters worse, debutante witches are being killed for their powers and somehow Emma is connected to the murders. Why does she keep finding the bodies? Can the girls discover why their gifts were hidden from them for so long? Will they be able to find the killer before one of them is attacked?

A Breath of Frost is the first book in the new Lovegrove Legacy series. The story takes place during a time when girls are quickly married off to the men of their father’s choosing and love either follows or it doesn’t. Harvey pulls the reader into this historical time and creates a world that is believable yet fantastical. As the reader tries to determine who can be trusted and who should be hated, they quickly learn that the lines are blurry and not easily deciphered. There are a couple of story lines that the reader must keep straight, but this does not make the experience confusing in the least. I recommend this book to those who love historical fantasies and I will be adding her other books to my “to read” shelf.

This book was slow getting started. The plot intrigued me, but I had a hard time connecting with the main character, and it seemed like we were jumping POV within the same scene. Some of the setting was also not well explained, but the parts I did understand of the magic and the world and the mystery to be unraveled I enjoyed.

I really enjoyed this book. It was definitely a lot of fluff, not superbly written (geared, I felt toward a younger set), and yet it was hard for me to put down.

I enjoyed the world that was created, it was something recognizable so there wasn't much need for overly descriptive exposition because it was a point in space and time that many people know and/or have read before just with additional features. There are little bits of the world that gave it depth in its otherworldliness-how to appease gargoyles and what they did/meant for the city, the details of the Greymalkin Sisters, and even the villain had depth and reason behind the madness.

The three girls were a great example of the true bonds of friendship. Although they each had their own personalities, they also sort of formed a single entity when together because of how close they were and their similarities and history. Their banter is quick and fun, although it seemed a little overkill sometimes-the constant expression of different personalities and interests. Although there was a bit of expected roles in the three girls. Typically in trilogies, you have three token personalities and those were here, I felt that it was more well done than others that I have read.

I really liked Cormac, as a guy and as a hero. He was adorable and honorable and, well, he was just great. Very swoon-worthy as people say. I loved that he found himself liking Emma (in the past) and then made a resolution to stay away from her, for reasons that she doesn't even know about until after her actions result in major drama for the witching world, and yet he is unable to keep away because he finds himself needing and wanting to protect her (sometimes even from herself). I like that he is able to overlook a lot of things (antlers, for example) and still see what drew him to Emma. I also like that although there was definite chemistry, the book was not resolved with a perfectly clear cut status of their relationship and he continued acting as he had at the beginning of the book. He was charming and was able to keep up with the wit of the girls as well as putting up with their distrust of him.

I liked that Emma did so much for herself although [[SPOLIER]] it's sad that she still lost her mother in the end. She is a solid character but nothing really super right or wrong. I liked her and she did deal with her issues with determination and perseverance. She was never the girl to back down from a fight because she took responsibility for what she did (on accident).

I do wonder how long the series (or maybe a spinoff) will last-will we see all of Cormac's sisters? I don't know if I could keep track of all of them, I barely did in just one book. But also why did he have to have so many if not for something in the future. The other thing that keeps getting me is that somehow, this book still remains me longest read of the year. It certainly didn't feel like a long book although there were some scenes that probably could have been removed without impacting the storyline.

3.5
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