Touch of Frost, by Jennifer Estep
After her mother died, Gwen Frost is forced to attend Mythos Academy, a school for warrior youth – Amazons, Spartans, Valkyries, and many more – straight out of legends and myths. But Gwen has her own unique brand of magic. Descended from Gypsies, Gwen has the ability to see the history of an object when she touches it. This comes in handy when hired by her peers to find stuff for them, for a small fee of course. But until Gwen stumbles across the dead body of a classmate, she truly had no idea how dangerous attending Mythos Academy could be.
Gwen is a fantastic character, easy to like and sympathize with. She is jaded because of her mother’s death, and feels like an outcast in her school full of warriors as she is the lone Gypsy. But as she slowly begins to make friends at her new school, Gwen begins to soften to those she had stereotyped. Estep’s Mythos Academy has the feel of Rick Riordan’s popular Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, yet with older teens and set primarily on the academy grounds. This is high praise, as the Percy Jackson series is a favorite of mine. And the Mythos Academy soon grew to a similar level of mystery and awe in my eyes.
This is the first in Estep’s new young adult series. As a fan of her other fantasy novels, I had high expectations. And I was still blown away. Hooked from the start, I couldn’t put this riveting series debut. Full of mystery, adventure, drama, and a bit of romance – fantasy fans of all ages will enjoy this exciting story. With a surprising and climactic ending, readers will be left eagerly awaiting the next installment. There is an incredible amount of potential for this series. I can’t to see where it goes. Don’t miss this one.
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Touch of Frost releases from Kensington Teen on July 1, 2011.
I think I could use some scifi books from now on.