Kiss of Frost
(Mythos Academy, #2)
By: Jennifer Estep
Publisher: K-Teen
Published: Nov. 29, 2011
Genre: Fantasy/Mythology YA
Rating:

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I’m Gwen Frost, a second-year warrior-in-training at Mythos Acad­emy, and I have no idea how I’m going to sur­vive the rest of the semes­ter. One day, I’m get­ting schooled in sword­play by the guy who broke my heart—the drop-dead gor­geous Logan who slays me every time. Then, an invis­i­ble archer in the Library of Antiq­ui­ties decides to use me for tar­get prac­tice. And now, I find out that some­one at the acad­emy is really a Reaper bad guy who wants me dead. I’m afraid if I don’t learn how to live by the sword—with Logan’s help—I just might die by the sword…

In the second installment of Mythos Academy we pick up shortly after Touch of Frost left off. The kids are getting ready to go to the yearly winter festival at a ski lodge and Gwen is convinced that there is another Reaper after her. Of course, going to the fesitval doesn’t really help matters. The Reaper has seemed to follow her and has pulled a bunch of tricks in order to kill her. However, Gwen’s learned a trick of her own to help her survive.

I was really hoping that once the the first book was out of the way and the ball was rolling that this one would start off with a bang, but that’s not the case. The author does a lot of reviewing about not only what took place in the last book, but about the characters themselves and the world that she created. I found myself skimming over a bit of the book to get to the story. Maybe if I hadn’t jumped from the first book straight to this one, the reviewing of everything wouldn’t have bothered me as much but I felt like I was reading the first in a series all over again.

I liked that the author added in more characters to the forefront. We get more interaction with Logan’s Spartan friends. They actually start training Gwen with weapons and self-defense. Plus there is a change of scenery since the students go away for the annual Winter Carnival at a ski lodge. And there is a potential new love interest for Gwen, who just might help her get her mind off of Logan and the fact that he’s moving on with another girl.

But… it felt very much like Frostbite to me. I know in my last review I said fans of Vampire Academy would enjoy this and they would. There are similarities between the two books that almost feel like it’s a re-telling of the story with a few variations mixed in.

I really enjoy the mythology in this story. I like the characters and the world that the author has created. I even like that it reminds me of VA since that is my favorite series. I will definitely continue with the series.

“Since coming to Mythos, I’d almost been run through with a sword and mauled to death by a killer kitty cat. Dirty looks didn’t faze me anymore.”

Previous reviews from Mythos Academy
Touch of Frost

Born at Midnight
(Shadow Falls, #1)
By: C.C. Hunter
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Publisher: March 29, 2011
Genre: Paranormal YA
Rating:

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One night Kylie Galen finds herself at the wrong party, with the wrong people, and it changes her life forever. Her mother ships her off to Shadow Falls—a camp for troubled teens, and within hours of arriving, it becomes painfully clear that her fellow campers aren’t just “troubled.” Here at Shadow Falls, vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, witches and fairies train side by side—learning to harness their powers, control their magic and live in the normal world.

Kylie’s never felt normal, but surely she doesn’t belong here with a bunch of paranormal freaks either. Or does she? They insist Kylie is one of them, and that she was brought here for a reason. As if life wasn’t complicated enough, enter Derek and Lucas. Derek’s a half-fae who’s determined to be her boyfriend, and Lucas is a smokin’ hot werewolf with whom Kylie shares a secret past. Both Derek and Lucas couldn’t be more different, but they both have a powerful hold on her heart.

Even though Kylie feels deeply uncertain about everything, one thing is becoming painfully clear—Shadow Falls is exactly where she belongs…

Kylie is sent to a summer camp after being arrested. She thinks it’s a camp for troubled teens but it doesn’t take her long to realize that that is not the case at all. This is a summer camp for supernaturals and even though she doesn’t think she belongs there, her night terrors and the “stalker” that no one else sees are proof that she’s right where she needs to be.

I liked that even though this story focuses on Kylie, we get background information on a handful of other characters as well. So I found myself getting attached to more than just the main character. She has two quirky roommates, one is a vampire, and the other is a witch who seems to have a pet toad, but is later revealed as a spell gone wrong on a sleazy man. There’s a cute guy who instantly takes an interest in Kylie and a bad boy who is of course also interested in her. However, I feel like he gets first dibs since he’s a neighbor from her childhood. Yes, this has the makings of your typical eye-rolling love triangle but I really enjoyed it.

I’m a huge fan of the title and series name. Too many times the series is named after the first book. However, the title comes from the fact that all supernaturals are born at midnight and Shadow Falls is the name of the camp where Kylie realizes that she’s not who she thought she was and will ultimately come into the supernatural that she’s meant to be.

And can I just take a second to applaud the author for not turning this book into a clique teen story. There is no “popular girl” who makes Kylie’s life hell. There really aren’t any cliques either. I liked that all the kids were there to not only learn about who they are but to get to know about other supes as well.

I’m most definitely going to be keeping up with this series. We still don’t know what Kylie is but I have a feeling that we will find out in the next book.

“I personally think the downside of being able to change into anything is the fear that you don’t know who you really are.”