Reviewed by Sarina
TITLE: The Winter Prince
AUTHOR: R. Cooper
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 147 pages
RELEASE DATE: February 24, 2016
BLURB:
His heart stolen by a powerful pari’s magic, a young prince’s veins slowly fill with ice. That is what the stories say. Three years have passed since, and all efforts to save Kisin have failed. He won’t survive another winter. To save the prince’s life, Razin, the court wizard and Kisin’s childhood friend, plans to seek out the pari. But unbeknownst to Razin, Kisin’s heart was never stolen; he gave it freely to escape the pain of impossible love—his love for Razin.
Razin won’t accept Kisin’s fate, for reasons obvious to anyone who knows anything of love. Kisin agrees to the desperate quest, out of duty and a need to protect Razin. But it isn’t long before Razin realizes saving his prince will require more than simply retrieving his heart. Razin will have to convince him to want it.
REVIEW:
Unable to deal with the love he feels for his best friend, Prince Kisin gave his heart away in order to free himself from the pain. Three years later he is slowly turning to ice; it is fairly well known that he will not survive the upcoming winter unless something is done. Determined to see that his friend survives, Razin, the court’s wizard in all but name, decides to go after the Pari that has taken Kisin’s heart. He may not have Kisin’s love, but he’ll be damned if he lets go of Kisin’s life.
This…was just fantastic! I really needed a good dose of fantasy and this book has satisfied the craving in an amazing way. While the quest seemed fairly straightforward, things become more complicated as Razin and Kisin get closer to finding the Pari. Monsters, a Princess in a tower and the truth of why Kisin lost his heart all added to the story. I found it interesting to watch as Razin painstakingly worked his way through the stories and non-answers from Kisin as to why his heart was really gone; it was also interesting to note that while Kisin didn’t have a heart, he began showing signs of getting it back as the two traveled on.
The characters were unique and each new encounter added to the complexity of the overall story. I cried at one point near the end, I’m not going to lie. I found it emotional and heartbreaking and I just hurt for the situation Kisin and Razin had found themselves in. I hate that I cried but still give serious kudos to the author for eliciting that from me, as well as for the size of the smile I had when a solution was presented. I wish I’d been able to see the reactions when the Prince returned home but I’m more than happy with the ending I got and as I was presented with a big fat happily ever after, I’m more than content.
RATING:
BUY LINKS:
Love the look of this. Off to buy.