What’s it all about?:
In a thrilling fantasy that’s equal parts Prison Break and Frozen, Valor attempts the impossible—breaking her sister out of prison.
When Valor is arrested, she couldn’t be happier. Demidova’s prison for criminal children is exactly where she wants to be. Valor’s sister Sasha is already serving a life sentence for stealing from the royal family and Valor is going to help her escape . . . from the inside.
Never mind that no one has escaped in three hundred years. Valor has a plan and resources most could only dream about. But she didn’t count on having to outsmart both the guards and her fellow prisoners. If Valor’s plan is to succeed, she’ll need to make unlikely allies. And if the plan fails, she and Sasha could end up with fates worse than prison.
This fresh and exciting middle-grade debut effortlessly melds an unforgettable protagonist, a breathless plot, and stunning world-building—and is impossible to put down. An unforgettable story of sisterhood, valour and rebellion, Prisoner of Ice and Snow will fire you up and melt your heart all at once. Perfect for fans of Katherine Rundell, Piers Torday and Cathryn Constable.
What did I think?:
First of all, thank you so much to Faye who invited me to be part of this blog tour and to Bloomsbury Children’s Books for providing me with a free copy of Prisoner Of Ice And Snow in exchange for an honest review. As soon as Faye emailed with the synopsis of this book, of course I knew I had to have it straight away. This middle grade fiction and epic fantasy/adventure story was a joy to read with strong characterisation, a compelling plot and a beautiful message of sisterhood that I really appreciated. Basically, anything that is compared to “a cross between Prison Break and Frozen,” is bound to make me want to read it!
Prisoner Of Ice And Snow is set in the cold and wintry climate of Demidova (a land comparable perhaps to Russia) and when we meet our heroine Valor she is attempting to shoot a member of the royal family with her crossbow. However, there is method to her madness. Her twin sister Sasha was recently accused of stealing a precious and hugely important music box that was meant form part of a peace treaty with the neighbouring land, Magadanskya. Sasha has been given a life sentence in the notorious prison, Tyur’ma and now, after her attempt on Prince Anatol’s life, Valor will now join her, which of course was her grand plan all along. You see, Valor has a brilliant plan for them both to escape (even though nobody has actually managed to escape in three hundred years) and she is so determined and devoted to her sister that she might just pull it off.
There was so much in this book to love, I’m not quite sure where to start. The nods to Russia were wonderful and was one of the things that attracted me to the book in the first place but the best thing about the novel for me personally would have to be the character of Valor and her relationship with her sister, Sasha. Valor is one of the bravest fictional females I’ve come across in recent times and I had nothing but admiration and excitement for her tenacity, sheer ruthlessness and self belief that she would manage to free both herself and Sasha. There are a lot of terrible things that happen to the children in Tyur’ma and what amazed me about Valor is that even though she had some hideous and horrific experiences, not once did she think about giving up. Her love and protectiveness for Sasha never wavered, even at the toughest of times and it occasionally brought tears to my eyes as I was reminded of my close relationship with my own sister. Not only do we have Valor and Sasha but we have a multitude of other fascinating characters that I instantly adored, including street urchin Felixs, Valor’s cellmate Katia and the intriguing Prince Anatol. Combined with an action-packed plot that leaves you scarce able to draw breath I am incredibly excited to see where Valor and Sasha’s story will take them next – especially after THAT ending.
Would I recommend it?:
But of course!
Star rating (out of 5):
AUTHOR INFORMATION
Ruth Lauren lives in the West Midlands in England with her family and a lot of cats. She likes chocolate, walking in the woods, cheese, orchids, going to the movies, and reading as many books as she can. She’s been a teacher and worked in lots of different offices, but she likes writing best. Prisoner of Ice and Snow is her debut novel.
Website: https://www.ruthlauren.com/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ruth__lauren
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/ruth_lauren
Thank you once again to Bloomsbury Children’s Books for inviting me to take part in this blog tour, I’ve had a great time doing it. Prisoner Of Ice And Snow was published on 7th September 2017 and is available from all good book retailers now. Why not check out some of the other stops on the tour?
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35382914-prisoner-of-ice-and-snow
Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1408872757
