Review: Winterspell

Author: Claire Legrand
Date of Publication: September 30 2014
Pages: 464
Source: Library

New York City, 1899. Clara Stole, the mayor's ever-proper daughter, leads a double life. Since her mother's murder, she has secretly trained in self-defense with the mysterious Drosselmeyer.

Then, on Christmas Eve, disaster strikes.

Her home is destroyed, her father abducted--by beings distinctly not human. To find him, Clara journeys to the war-ravaged land of Cane. Her only companion is the dethroned prince Nicholas, bound by a wicked curse. If they're to survive, Clara has no choice but to trust him, but his haunted eyes burn with secrets--and a need she can't define. With the dangerous, seductive faery queen Anise hunting them, Clara soon realizes she won't leave Cane unscathed--if she leaves at all.


Inspired by The Nutcracker, Winterspell is a dark, timeless fairy tale about love and war, longing and loneliness, and a girl who must learn to live without fear.

Review:

GAH the most major book hangover persisted after I finished Winterspell! I chose Winterspell became known to me after it was picked for Cover Wars. I don't know if this was one of Mari's covers or my covers, but it was a book that seemed to convey the right mood to me. And, after a quick Goodreads rating test, I was it had a 3.75, which is pretty decent.

I didn't read the synopsis for Winterspell. I went into the story knowing it was about the Nutcracker, a story I know mostly from that Barbie special movie, and this allowed me to be relatively familiar with the premise without feeling the urge to compare the retelling too strongly. But first, let me set the mood for this review.

You see, some books work for me, and some books don't. This book most certainly worked, and I admit, I really like this book and it's hard to formulate thoughts beyond this excitement. But I'll try anyway.

I think Winterspell's greatest strength is Clara. Clara goes through some phenomenal character growth. This is totally a coming of age story because Clara grows up, slowly, with some steps backwards, but surely. She starts as a girl that is trapped in her life. Clara's situation is harsh. Her mother died, her father is a pawn to some very important people, and Clara is helpless. She is desperate to look for a way out that does not involve sacrificing herself for her family and I think Legrand sets up Clara as a trapped girl extremely well. This makes Clara's impulsive decision to foray into the world of Cane a little more realistic.

Clara is a fascinating character to study psychologically. She represses all of her fears and is constantly berating herself for not being the kind of girl she 'should' be. She internalizes external expectations. The sad part is that her environment is toxic, and so Clara is constantly being told she is helpless, she is a pawn, she is of no use. She does rebel against it. Clara's visits to Godfather are her version of rebellion and she learns how to fight and sneak. But in the beginning of Winterspell, Clara's character and her predicament are the focus.

I don't mind this sort of storytelling because Legrand is creating a foundation for Clara's character. The reader understands Clara, and from there we see Clara's changes.

What was particularly interesting to me is that a lot of the development is in concerning Clara's sexuality and owning her body. Women, especially historically, have often lacked control over their own bodies and I loved that Legrand tackled this subject so well. Clara starts as a girl scandalized by her own desires and her body does not completely belong to her. She does not want to allow men to do what they want with her but again, she feels helpless, like this is all she can do, and all she is worth. Clara grows spectacularly from this and although this journey of self-exploration could be quite dark, and I would say there is definitely a trigger warning for certain passages, I loved that this undercurrent existed.

Winterspell is dark story that picks up speed. I loved the details and the world building was always strong. I think all this can be explained by good writing. Claire Legrand set the story up beautifully, and I suppose while the plot wasn't moving at a breakneck pace, it was great because it had all the necessary details without dragging. Everything was well developed, and I thought the story was quite compelling. The only part that I think could have been better was climax and the final showdown, which went a little too fast for me considering the insanely good buildup. I ended up being so fascinated by the characters in Winterspell that the plot was almost eclipsed by my curiosity for the characters. I liked that every character had their own personal struggle and moral questions always fascinate me.

And, okay, I loved the magic parts. The magic was kickass. The legends and the price of the magic, as well as the details were so fascinating to me. I can't say more on that, except that I absolutely adored the villain's characterization too.

So, maybe I've done a poor, rambly job of expressing my delight for Winterspell, but I seriously enjoyed it. I remember starting it at 10, thinking I would read just a few hours, and then reading on until 3 am and finishing it the next morning. Winterspell has it, that addictive quality that all my favourite books possess. I know this by the horrible book hangover I experienced after Winterspell where all I wanted was to read another book exactly like Winterspell. Guys, read this book. It is so deliciously divine.