Week 51 Reviews: Summerfall, Winterspell, Homecoming

From Goodreads:

In this captivating novella, prequel to the upcoming Winterspell, Claire Legrand weaves a story of magic, political intrigue, and forbidden love.

Rinka is a faery, passionate and powerful, determined to maintain the tenuous peace between faeries and humans.

Alban Somerhart is a human, a reluctant king trapped in an arranged marriage, desperate to prevent war.

Their love could save the kingdom of Cane—or shatter it forever.

This entrancing tale sets the stage for the rise of a wicked queen, and the journey of a lifetime for a human girl named Clara... 

From Goodreads:

After her mother is brutally murdered, seventeen-year-old Clara Stole is determined to find out what happened to her. Her father, a powerful man with little integrity, is a notorious New York City gang lord in the syndicate-turned-empire called Concordia. And he isn't much help.

But there is something even darker than Concordia's corruption brewing under the surface of the city, something full of vengeance and magic, like the stories Clara's godfather used to tell her when she was a little girl. Then her father is abducted and her little sister's life is threatened, and Clara accidentally frees Nicholas from a statue that has been his prison for years. Nicholas is the rightful prince of Cane, a wintry kingdom that exists beyond the city Clara has known her whole life.

When Nicholas and Clara journey together to Cane to retrieve her father, Clara encounters Anise, the queen of the faeries, who has ousted the royal family in favor of her own totalitarian, anti-human regime. Clara finds that this new world is not as foreign as she feared, but time is running out for her family, and there is only so much magic can do...

From Goodreads:

A brief epilogue to Claire Legrand's YA Nutcracker re-telling, Winterspell. Available for free download at Claire's website.

My Review:
I loved reading these books! I love Claire Legrand's writing, and this was another really great series! And that it's a retelling of the Nutcracker, was really great! I've never consumed the original (it's originally a ballet, right?) but I had a great time with it!

Reading Summerfall was a little sad. Because it takes place before Winterspell, we know things won't go well, because there's a full length book set after it. I loved their story, even though it wouldn't have the happiest of endings.

This world with the faeries was really interesting, and when you add the politics of a kingdom with a royal family that got ousted by an evil queen, well, there was some really interesting stuff going on, and I had a great time reading these stories! 

Clara was a fantastic character, and she goes through a lot in her book. Then there's Nicholas, who should've had an idyllic life, but hasn't. I really enjoyed them together, and I'm really glad that we got Homecoming, it's what I always want, just a little bit more of happiness for the characters! 

Loved reading these stories, and I can't wait to read more by Claire Legrand! 

Author: Claire Legrand 
Series: Winterspell #0.5, 1, 1.5
Read: December 20th, 20th, 20th, 2022
Source: Ebook.bike, Online 
Reason Why: Love her writing and it sounded really great, and they're Retelling Reading Challenge 2022 Books and Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2022 Books, and Homecoming is a End of Series 2022 Book!
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Claire Legrand
Published: August 26th 2014, September 30th 2014, December 29th 2014

Summerfall:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars

Winterspell:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars

Homecoming:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars