A Winter's Promise

By: Christelle Dabos

Narrated by: Emma Fenney

Plain-spoken, headstrong Ophelia cares little about appearances. Her ability to read the past of objects is unmatched in all of Anima, and, what’s more, she possesses the ability to travel through mirrors, a skill passed down to her from previous generations. Her idyllic life is disrupted, however, when she is promised in marriage to Thorn, a taciturn and influential member of a distant clan.

She must leave all she knows behind and follow her fiancé to Citaceleste, the capital of a cold, icy ark known as the Pole, where danger lurks around every corner and nobody can be trusted. There, in the presence of her inscrutable future husband, she slowly realizes that she is a pawn in a political game that will have far-reaching ramifications not only for her but for her entire world.

©2019 Dreamscape Media, LLC (P)2019 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Critic reviews

“Dabos’s darkly enchanting debut, a French bestseller, employs vibrant characters, inventive worldbuilding, and a sophisticated plot that will dazzle readers.” (Publishers Weekly)

welllll

idk. interested enough to keep going but feeling a bit like it's a job. we shall see with the next one

nice!

I like the writing and story a lot, and the reader did a good job with the emotion and voices. I wish she had chosen a different accent for the people from the Pole though; a posh English accent doesn't match the description of "harsh accent" from the book. I thinks Russian or Norwegian accent would have fit much better.
I will for sure listen to the next book!

Couldn't stop listening

Loved it, the magic world is original and the narrator was amazing. The main characters aren't your usual heros that you have to like, but you actually learn to care for.

Good slow character driven story

It’s slow and simmering as it’s the beginning of a series but the characters are fanciful and well developed. It takes you into another world and I like the FMC and even the MMC. The editing of the audiobook is terrible (they leave in outtakes) but that takes nothing away from the robust performance of the narrator. If not for her, the recording would be 2 stars.

the narrator was excellent

however, and i realize that she is young, but by god does ophelia complain a lot. it was grating enough to the point that i had to take a break from the book. it got a little better towards the end of the book or at least the last 2 hours of it, but i definitely hope that she grows up a little more by the next book.

Amazing Series

Couldn’t stop listening!!! The narrator is fantastic! This book series is addicting! Cant wait for the 4th one to come out in English! Cant recommend enough!

Poor editing

The ONLY reason this is not a perfect review is that there seems to be no editing. Sometimes the narrator will stumble or something and stop and then start again from the beginning of the sentence. It makes me so sad because I LOVE her narration! Her voice is beautiful, she utilizes accents marvelously, and different voices on top of that. Seriously astounding.

The story is *chef’s kiss*! I’ve never read such a complex world building story. This first book is honestly so much about culture shock, but hints a larger stories to come! I only wish it was easier to describe so I c oils get more people to read it. Unfortunately, due to the aforementioned complexity, it’s not possible. That being said, I wouldn’t change a thing. It’s perfect. Love love LOVE.

The originality was undeniable.

This book… this series was incredible. A truly unique story line that keeps you guessing. I throughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to everyone. The best series I’ve read in a long while. Dabos is a genius.

Dark Fantasy

Took awhile to get into it but now I'm addicted! Very well written and read.

Very Much like Howls Moving castle

The book takes a relatively calm pace, the illusions and foreshadowing really captivate the narrative and Ophelies journey into Clairedelune society! All the characters are very well written and the a story is a great introduction to the world.