A Winter’s Promise

By Christelle Dabos & Hildegarde Serle

A Winter’s Promise - Christelle Dabos & Hildegarde Serle
  • Release Date: 2018-09-25
  • Genre: Fantasy for Young Adults
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 108 Ratings

Description

Amazon Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Book of 2018

One of Entertainment Weekly's 10 Best YA Books of 2018

One of Publishers Weekly's Best YA Book of the Year

A National Indie Bestseller

Longlisted for Irish YA prize Great Reads Award

Lose yourself in the fantastic world of the arks and in the company of unforgettable characters in this French runaway hit, Christelle Dabos’ The Mirror Visitor quartet.

Plain-spoken, headstrong Ophelia cares little about appearances. Her ability to read the past of objects is unmatched in all of Anima and, what’s more, she possesses the ability to travel through mirrors, a skill passed down to her from previous generations. Her idyllic life is disrupted, however, when she is promised in marriage to Thorn, a taciturn and influential member of a distant clan. Ophelia must leave all she knows behind and follow her fiancé to Citaceleste, the capital of a cold, icy ark known as the Pole, where danger lurks around every corner and nobody can be trusted. There, in the presence of her inscrutable future husband, Ophelia slowly realizes that she is a pawn in a political game that will have far-reaching ramifications not only for her but for her entire world.

The World of the Arks

Long ago, following a cataclysm called the Rupture, the world was shattered into many floating celestial islands, now known as arks. Over each, the spirit of an omnipotent and immortal ancestor abides. The inhabitants of these arks each possess a unique power. Ophelia, with her ability to read the pasts of objects, must navigate this fantastic, disjointed, perilous world using her trademark tenacity and quiet strength.

An unforgettable heroine, a rich and bountiful universe, intrigue and suspense: A Winter’s Promise is perfect for readers of Margaret Rogerson’s An Enchantment of Ravens, Melissa Albert’s The Hazel Wood, V.E. Schwab’s “Shades of Magic” series, Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone, Kenneth Oppel’s “Airborne” series, and N.K. Jemisin “Broken Earth” series.

Extract:

I think we could have all lived happily, in a way, God, me and the others, if it weren’t for that accursed book. It disgusted me. I knew what bound me to it in the most sickening of ways, but the horror of that particular knowledge came later, much later. I didn’t understand straight away, I was too ignorant.

Reviews

  • My favorite series. Ever.

    5
    By 0lyivya
    Better than Harry Potter - a complex but compréhensible world - intricate characters and plot.
  • 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

    5
    By ChelShayLee
    Slow burn pride & prejudice meets dystopian steampunk like post apocalyptic world.
  • Fantastic series!!

    5
    By Nikki232323
    I honestly don’t know where to start. The world-building, the character development and arcs, all of it is original and compelling. The entire series avoids falling into the same tropes and plots that so many fantasy/Sci-fi series succumb to. I loved each book more than the last.
  • A Beautiful and Original Fantasy!

    5
    By BooksieB
    This book is such a lovely introduction to an amazing series. The description really doesn’t do the book justice. The relationships between characters are captivating, the world-building and magic system if very cool yet not overly complicated. I definitely get Studio Ghibli vibes. I was hesitant to read it at first, but it is now my all-time favorite series! This entire first book is kind of a setup for the rest of the series, so if you like really fast-paced books, this might not be for you. Overall, I think this book would really appeal to readers who care more about characters and getting immersed in a world than those who want big explosive moments. The characters are absolutely amazing and there is a sense of mystery and curiosity throughout the book. Please read this book!
  • Absolutely magnificent!!

    5
    By Syd773
    I read it in one day completely disregarding the studying I had to do for an exam.