Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep
Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep, is a fun introductory novel into the world of Mythos Academy. The main character Gwendolyn Frost is a gypsy teenager sent to a school specializing in training those with magical abilities such as Valkyries, Spartans, Vikings, Amazons, Gypsies, and other warriors. The book did stay away from witches, vampires, and werewolves, which made it a refreshing take on Young Adult fantasy.
It is Gwen’s first year at Mythos Academy and she tries to find her place in a new mythological world she knows little about. It is a typical high school with popular mean girls, band geeks, and jocks but they are descendents of mythical warriors and have magical abilities.
Gwen has the ability to touch people and objects and know their history and the feelings associated with them. This comes in handy after the most popular girl in school is murdered and a powerful magical object, the Bowl of Tears, is stolen at the Academy. Gwen is compelled to solve the mystery of what happened because of the recent loss of her mother, a police detective. Her mother was killed while helping the innocent and Gwen feels the same drive.
As she discovers more about the murder, she also learns more about the mythologies of her world and her role in them. She ends up literally bumping into a bad boy Spartan Logan on numerous occasions and Daphne, a Valkyrie, teams up with Gwen to find the killer and thief on campus. Gwen starts out as an average girl, an outsider and ends up a hero.
I did not include many spoilers, because they are important to the plot and would make reading Touch of Frost less enjoyable! Did I enjoy the book? Well,…..it is written for young adults. I had to release my inner teenager and embrace this world. May I add, I am SO glad that I am not a teenager anymore! I personally don’t like seeing bad boys glamorized, dear Logan really likes to count his female conquests on campus. Gwen is a great heroine who learns about her powers and uses them for good. I let my two teenage daughters read the book and they both gave it two thumbs up, so I guess that is what counts! I will continue to read Jennifer Estep‘s adult novels and my girls will continue to read the Mythos Academy novels.
Reviewed by Jules
