Winter's Captive

YA fantasy has always been my favorite. However, the past few months, I'd been in a slump. I struggled getting through anything fantasy...

Until this book.

I loved Winter's Captive! The world Robin and Elle have created is so enrapturing. The story immediately starts off with the disappearance of Princess Charlotte's fiance on the morning of their wedding day, which caught my attention. There is a perfect balance of descriptions and quick pace. It isn't bogged down by the world-building, but the authors still pull the reader into this rich, beautiful kingdom.

Princess Charlotte, or Charlie, isn't content sitting around while the armies search for Prince Oliver. Instead, she and her best friend Isla disguise themselves with men's armor to follow after the other soldiers. They overheard important information they need to get to Finn and Logan, her brother and Oliver's brother respectively, and they don't trust anyone to do so.

After an attack on the soldiers, Logan goes off to find Oliver on his own. Charlie and Oliver's two kingdoms have been on the brink of returning to war their whole lives. The peace depends on their wedding. More than that, though, their betrothal might have been arranged when they were born, but they are friends and love each other. So, once again, Charlie refuses to just wait around; she follows after Logan and, together, they face thieves, the harsh winter weather, and their dislike of each other while searching for Oliver.

Any time the main female character goes against the norm of how their society functions to fight for someone or something, I'm in. Charlie's determination and need to not only find Oliver but stop the impending war is admirable. Also, because I'm me, I love her relationship with Logan. They bicker nonstop, but you can tell there's more beneath the surface of what we're seeing. The fact that they used to be friends until he "hated" her makes me think there were some feelings there that he knew he couldn't act on. Maybe that's just me being hopeful.

In short, I absolutely loved this book. It broke me out of my slump, and I cannot wait to jump into the next book!