The North Wind

Starred review from March 18, 2024
Pairing an ice-cold god in exile with an alcoholic heroine possessed of a minor martyr complex, Warwick (the North series) weaves a heart-pounding, pulse-racing fantasy romance that draws from “Beauty and the Beast.” Following her parents’ death, Wren of Edgewood has devoted her life to protecting her twin sister, Elora, happily sacrificing so that her sister can thrive in the cold wasteland that their homeland—once called the Green, now called the Gray—has become. So when the North Wind, Boreas, descends on Edgewood for his once-every-few-decades ritual of claiming a young woman as his captive, and sets his sights on Elora, Wren demands that he take her instead. Boreas, an exiled god, rules over the Deadlands that border the Gray, separated from the mortal world by a barrier called the shade—and now he’s got a rather feisty sacrifice to care for. Wren doesn’t make life easy for anyone, least of all herself. With the boundaries of the Deadlands fast fading and the residents of the North Wind’s true kingdom in peril, time is short for the pair to figure out how to save their world—and each other. Their enemies-to-lovers romance feels wholly earned, with just enough spice to keep the sparks flying, and the worldbuilding is fresh and distinctive, even with the clear fairy tale influence. Romantasy fans will swoon for this.

April 15, 2024
The Shade, a magical shield between the Deadlands and the rest of the world, is weakening, and a devastating winter has taken over the town of Edgewood. Orphaned twins Elora and Wren are barely surviving thanks only to Wren's mercenary instincts. When the immortal Lord Boreas demands a human sacrifice to keep the Shade intact, Elora is chosen. Taking her sister's place, Wren discovers that only her blood is needed, not her death, and life with the handsome immortal is very different from anything she could have imagined--he's demanding, arrogant, and high-handed, yes, but also clever, funny, and surprisingly thoughtful. Over time their relationship deepens, but family feuds and the instability of the Shade loom large, threatening to pull the two apart and ultimately destroy the world. While the novel leans heavily into the ""she's not like other girls"" trope, fans of enemies-to-lovers romantasy will still find much to enjoy in Warwick's series starter. The prose is lush and atmospheric, Wren is a capable heroine full of chutzpah and snark, and the conclusion is satisfying without becoming saccharine.

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