Embers in the Snow A Vampire Fantasy Romance

Anna Carven — 2023

They're marrying me off to a monster. I always knew the day would come. I just didn't think it would be so soon. I'm betrothed. I'd always imagined my future husband would be some minor lord who would only value me for the fact that I would bear him heirs. I never thought father would go to the capital and seek an audience with Emperor Valdon Duthriss himself. What unholy deal did he make that I, a mere baron's daughter, ended up betrothed to that man? The son. Corvan Duthriss. War hero. Commander. Fallen. They say the war in the Northlands changed him. Alongside his armies, he fought dark magic in the mountains. It transformed him. They say he's changed beyond recognition. That he refuses to show his face in the capital because he can no longer walk under the sun. He's also the emperor's firstborn. The once-heir to the Rahavan Empire. And it's unheard of for a baron's daughter like me to marry into the powerful Duthriss family. They're shipping me off before winter's end. To the cold, forbidding north. To the Cursed Archduke of Tyron. I'll go. I have no choice. There's too much at stake. I can only pray that Corvan Duthriss isn't as terrible as the rumors make him out to be.

Reviews

Lover of Romance @addictedtoromance

Aug 23, 2024

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review. Also my tags may have spoilers in them so be forewarned before checking out full review.

Book Evaluation:

Plot: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️

World Building:🌎🌎🌎🌎

Cover:📔📔📔📔

Hero: 🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻

Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️

Intimacy Level: 🔥🔥🔥🔥

Relationship Building: 💒💒💒💒

Heart & Feels:💞💞💞💞

Witty/Banter/Reaction of Laughter: 😂😂😂

Page Turner Level:📖📖📖📖

Ending:🧧🧧🧧🧧🧧

Overall View: ✨✨✨✨

First Impressions

Embers in the Snow was a really fun fantasy romance. Its been a while since I have read a good fantasy, and while this wasn't perfect, it was solid, plot well done and had some unique elements to it that really made it work. The trope of the story is what really had me going for this book because it had one of my favorite tropes in it. I was really drawn into so many aspects of this story. The world building was highly unique and I loved the whole vampire/naturistic witch pairing that we have that ended up being fated mates ironically.

First Line

Something must be afoot, because I've been summoned.

The Main Protagonists

The Hero: Corvan Duthriss

The Heroine: Finley

What I Loved

Embers in the Snow had a beginning that really set the tone of the story. I found the character growth to be beyond captivating. The way that Corvan and Finley connect from the beginning was intriguing and you can sense their bond very quickly. They both embrace what they feel for each other and don't fight it too hard. The focus of consent is pretty highly focused. What brings these two together was endearing but what really did it for me is seeing what they become in the second half of the story. There is a strong sense of team work in this one and you really get the impression that they will fight for each other no matter what it takes. The connection with the heroine being a forest like witch was beyond fascinating. We see all the development in her character in discovering her heritage and its really beautiful how the hero stands by her through it all and only encourages her to embrace that side of herself. I absolutely adored how protective the hero was for Finley, but also was her true companion and the moments between Corvan and Finley's mother was pretty awesome. I love how she saw the goodness in Corvan, even though he saw only the monster inside him.

What I Struggled With

There were a few things that I had a hard time with this one. The first is being the length of this book. It really isn't the type of fantasy that needed to be longer than 300-400 pages. It felt too dragged out in moments. There was also too many modernisms in this one. For a fantasy, some of the modern dialogue only showed how immature the world building is for a fantasy. It felt like the author was writing some type of futuristic contemporary instead of an actual epic fantasy romance world. Also the clothing described in the story is not what you would expect for a high fantasy world in any way. There were some aspects that just didn't fit with the world the author crafted and it ended up being more confusing and detracting the enjoyment of the story.

Overall View

Embers in the Snow was a enjoyable fascinating romance that brought some wonderful elements of a arranged marriage trope to blend in beautiful with a fantasy world. Eager to see what else this author has crafted.

Favorite Quote(s)

He takes from me. He takes, and brings the wild magic in me to heel. The branches and vines slowly unfurl, releasing me, but I don’t fall. I’m in his arms. And he’s kissing me, holding me. Knowing me. I let go, but I don’t fall.

Book Details (also in my shelves)

Sub Genre: Epic Fantasy Romance

Character Types: Witch Heroine, Vampire Hero, Alpha Male

Themes: Beauty and Beast retelling, Modern Sensibilities, Magical, Heart/Emotional Touching

Tropes: Opposites Attract, Arranged Marriage

Book Perspective

Duo POV

Relationship Conflict vs Plot Conflict

Plot Conflict

If you like these authors, I recommend This Book

Lola Glass

Laura Thalassa

Zoey Draven

Steam/Spice Explanations

Steamin' up the room -the sexual content is more explicit in the language and tone, heavier amount of sexual scenes.