The Coldest Girl in Coldtown

4.5 Stars!
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown was a really interesting and fascinating novel.
I really love Holly Black's style of writing and the different worlds she creates for her stories.
I liked Tana's bravery and Gavriel's mysteriousness and even his craziness!
This was a great read and I think if your looking for something different, this would be it!

This was my first book by Holly Black and it won't be my last. Loved It. This book was creative, fun, and I flew through it. Nice change of pace and loved the characters and Holly Black's style. I pre-ordered The Darkest Part of the Forrest on Amazon after reading The Coldest Girl in Coldtown. I'm sad that it is a standalone, but happy I was able to read it. It will be a favorite of mine in 2015 and I've already recommended and borrowed out my copy to friends who also enjoyed it.

I've seen this book in my library for about a year and I kept passing by it because it didn't seem interesting. I saw so many good reviews though on booktube, I finally decided to read this. The world Holly Black creates is very fascinating and the way she portrays the story is amazing. I love the characters she has created and the story has the right amount of romance and action. That is all for the non-spoiler part of this review because I literally cannot talk about this book without spoiling.

THIS PART CONTAINS SPOILERS. IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THIS, DO NOT CONTINUE!!!

So when Tana first introduced Aiden, I had a deep hatred for him. In all honesty, he seemed like a douche and I couldn't understand why she was ever with him. I mean, he would kiss others in front of her and tried to get her to kiss another guy in front of him and I just cannot fathom why she stayed with him. I did however appreciate that Holly Black made him bisexual because you don't find a lot of popular guy bisexuals in fiction. He later became a pretty alright character and I appreciated that he stopped trying to rekindle a relationship that was never meant to work.
Now getting to the actual world Holly Black created. I was amazed by the amount of detail she put into world building. She gives so many specifics on how people become vampires and how the situation has escalated throughout the years giving rise to the Coldtowns. She also points out the flaws in the system which is so rare, even in the real world, which was really refreshing. I always have a deep appreciation for authors who can create an entire world with such detail. She gave us so much information about this world I honestly feel like it is real, like I found myself at night while I was reading this book paranoid at the thought that vampires might come busting into my room at anytime.
Gavriel. Jesus... that boy or should I say man. He's such a mysterious character and I love it. The cryptic sayings he has really gives an air to him that I love. It also helps that he appears to be pretty hot. While he is pretty crazy at times, I think that is what makes him such a great character.
Right off the bat I knew Midnight and Winter were crazy. They might have thought they had everything thought out but they obviously didn't, hence their deaths.
Now don't hate me. But I kept drawing parallels with this story and "The Vampire Diaries" (the tv show obviously because I refuse to recognize the books as cannon." Like Gavriel and his brother were like Damon and Stefan and the girl was kinda like Katherine. As I was reading this book, I pictured Gavriel as Damon because of the craziness yet little bit of humanity he has. Is it just me... who sees the parallels?...
Back to the story, the chemistry and relationship between Tana and Gavriel was just so great. Tana comes to love this crazy guy even after she knows all the bad he has done because she realizes no one is perfect. When they first kissed against that wall, I found myself squealing with joy because their chemistry made me so happy. And later when he comforted her at Lucien's mansion and later when she is chained up, I really appreciated how love can cause a monster to be tamed.

I have to say that the moment I say that a novel by Holly Black was up for review, I was thrilled and I jumped at like I am sure many other people did. Because, who wouldn't want to read it? Plus it's about vampires and who doesn't want to read about vampires? This book holds a little bit of a twist on how people embraced or ran away from vampire when they first made their presence known. Places called "coldtowns" opened up everywhere and people that lived in these towns were free game essentially for vampires to feed off of. Many come because they seek the glamorous life of the vampires and eternal beauty that comes along with it. The premise of this novel seems pretty realistic to me. The characters bring to life this world perfectly, proving that not everyone wants to be a vampire and not every monster is as bad as you think they are. There are secrets, lies, betrayals, and twists that caught me off guard. You'll see that love and friendships develop in even the odds of places and the darkest of circumstances. I have fallen in love with this story and I am sure you will too!

I always worry about whether I will like a main character because that is almost a make or break for me. If I don't like a character then it makes it hard to want to read the book but I really loved Tana from this book. She remains true to herself throughout the course of the novel and that is a rare thing to see in books now-a-days. Most characters flipflop continually and never make a steady choice that they are willing to stick to, especially if there is a horrible outcome but Tana holds her head up high and lets whatever happens happen. Of course, I still faced the frustration with her when she didn't make the choices I want her to but that is part of her appeal because she doesn't change for anyone. She is loyal to those that she loves, which is undeniably admirable, and never gives up until the best outcome happens. She is a strong female character and I adore her for it.

Aiden, oh Aiden, how many bad choices can you make? All of the information you collect about this ex-boyfriend certainly doesn't make you his biggest fan. I learned a lot about how he once was and by the end, I got to see how much he has truly grown throughout the novel which is a ton. He went from the crappy ex who I would've left to die at the hands of vampires to the boy that you want to be happy and silently cheer for despite your original opinion of him. I definitely came to admire him for his choices by the time I shut the book but who knows whether he was the crappy guy he once was or whether it had been a front. Love this guy but no... he didn't seem like the best choice for the lovely main character.

There always has to be a secretive, brooding type that has to be absolutely gorgeous and the main character just can't seem to get over his good looks. Well, to a certain extent that was Gavriel, who is an attractive, nay, beautiful vampire that captures a lot of the typical ideals of being an immortal without going crazy. Tana, despite her best instincts, cannot keep away from the guy that is everything everyone hates. He's a vampire. She knows that she should stay away but even I will admit that I wouldn't keep away from someone like him. He's too awesome. As the story continues though, you realize that you don't really know who Gavriel actually is. The secrets surface at what can either be the most opportune moment or the worst moment possible. He really comes into himself near the end of the book, proving that he could quite possibly be insane in every sense of the word. Yet, he is so attractive and wonderful!

I wish I could talk about more characters and some more of the plot but you really just need to check it out. It is such an amazing book that it deserves your attention, trust me.

**This book was received from the publisher via NetGalley. None of the review was influenced by the author or the publisher. This is a completely original review. The thoughts and feelings of the reviewer are entirely her own and have no ties to the publisher.**

Let's be honest, I am a nightmare for a reader. I am so picky when it comes to books, it's a miracle I even have favorites. But I am truly the pickiest when it comes to vampire literature ever since taking a class on the matter two years ago. We had to read Polidori, LeFanu, Stoker, Rice and Gomez and I've been even more of a nightmare on any supernatural story featuring the undead that comes my way ever since. So, color me surprised when I read "The Coldest Girl In Coldtown" by Holly Black and knew from chapter 1 onwards that I was in love. Rest assured, this book is awesomeness incarnated, and something I would love to analyze more closely for a college thesis any day.
“Coldest Girl“ is told from various perspectives of the story’s main characters, and I absolutely adored it. It made for great tension and surprise while reading, and definitely raised attention anew every time a different perspective aside from Tana’s opened a chapter. Tana is the main character and point of view here though, and, unlike too many female protagonists of the genre, I never found her or her decisions annoying or weak in any capacity. The way she’s introduced was something new and oddly “normal“, and the way the supernatural was then incorporated made for a great start to the story all-together. Everything reminded me a lot of a Anne Rice novel, only more interesting considering the book’s target age group (because let’s be honest, Armand didn’t really do it for me in the long run as a storyteller quite frankly because he was old and a man). I loved that this vampire story featured Tana as the main connection to the story rather than say her badass and dangerous love interest Gavriel, who really could’ve been taken straight from Interview with a Vampire. But because Tana took the reins in the journey (she’s NO damsel in distress like too many female characters in the genre, she’s badass in her own right, but she’s real), it made for something I could relate to on a new level and which made “Coldest Girl“ so exciting to delve into. Also, Gavriel was fun to get to know, because he’s NOT a romanticized version of a vampire, he’s mad to the core and I loved it.
The world Black has created for the setting is also greatly captivating and felt surprisingly unique, with the ideas of Coldtowns and the media aspects in the story. I loved how the modern media played a great part in this vampiric version of ours. It made for great entertainment for the characters, as well as for the reader.
A must-mention is that oh my God, does this book have the BEST kissing scene I have ever read. It was scorching, and I loved it and probably reread it ten times before continuing with the novel. So yeah, be prepared. Tana is awesome, and she gets more awesome by the end of the book and she’s pretty much my favourite vamp lit heroine in all the books I’ve read so far.