Frostblood by Elly Blake

Title: Frostblood

Author: Elly Blake

Pages: 384

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Format: E-book

My Rating: 4/5 stars

“I offered my hand to the fire.”

Goodreads synopsis:

“Seventeen-year-old Ruby is a fireblood who must hide her powers of heat and flame from the cruel frostblood ruling class that wants to destroy all that are left of her kind. So when her mother is killed for protecting her and rebel frostbloods demand her help to kill their rampaging king, she agrees. But Ruby’s powers are unpredictable, and she’s not sure she’s willing to let the rebels and an infuriating (yet irresistible) young man called Arcus use her as their weapon. 

All she wants is revenge, but before they can take action, Ruby is captured and forced to take part in the king’s tournaments that pit fireblood prisoners against frostblood champions. Now she has only one chance to destroy the maniacal ruler who has taken everything from her and from the icy young man she has come to love. 

Fast-paced and compelling, Frostblood is the first in a page-turning new young adult three-book series about a world where flame and ice are mortal enemies—but together create a power that could change everything.” 

My review:

I received this e-arc from NetGalley which I am thankful for. This does not affect my review in any way. Also thank you to Anisha for allowing me to use her photo for my feature image <3.

I adored reading this book, and I’m not sure why, but it was surprising that I loved it as much as I do. I love the concept of people having fire or frost/ice running through their veins, giving them powers to control the elements. Although, I am slightly confused as to whether or not there are also mundane people, who have no powers, living among them. Because the village Ruby comes from couldn’t defend themselves from Frostbloods.

I adored the relationship Ruby and Arcus formed. Fire and ice do not mix well together, but I SHIP THEM SO BAD. Honestly, everytime they were talking or arguing or anything, I just smiled or laughed. That’s how much fun they are to read about. Ruby is a strong, bad-tempered character who is also vulnerable, making her more realistic. Let’s face it. Why would you want to read about a heroine who has no fear? Arcus is ice cold and extremely secretive, everything about him hidden under a hood. But I still love him. He is gentle and kind, but also stubborn and mean (in a teasing way). Their relationship is just the best.

I love the Frostblood monks, well most of them, for taking in Ruby and looking after her and training her. They’re patient and kind, unlike someone *side glances towards Arcus* I kind of felt sorry for the Frostblood king, King Rasmus. You must read the book to find out why.

There was definitely a lot of suspense because Ruby is basically hunted for being a Firebloood. You don’t know who to trust or whether she was going to die at particular moments. Her powers were also wild and you couldn’t know if she was going to hurt someone she loved.

There were a lot of curses and legends and myths incorporated in this, something I love. There are legends about the child of darkness and child of light. The moment one of the monk told Ruby about it, I knew which child she was. It’s kind of obvious too. The Minax is a darkness, a curse. And I really want to read more about it. Hopefully it appears in the second book.

I have to say that the world building, I felt, wasn’t very strong. But that didn’t stop me from enjoying the story since the plot was strong. There was motive behind the characters, thus causing their paths to intertwine. THE LAST FEW PARAGRAPHS HAS ME NERVOUS ABOUT THE NEXT FEW BOOKS.

Overall, I enjoyed Frostblood and adored the characters. I can’t wait for the next book (Fireblood) to come out. I don’t know if I can wait a whole year. I need more of Ruby and Arcus and I want to know more about the Minax. Dark creatures appeal to me, don’t judge.