Review: Frostborn by Lou Anders

Read (August 12 - 23, 2014)

Book: Frostborn (Thrones and Bones #1) by Lou Anders
Publication Date: August 5, 2014
Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 352
Genre/s: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Source: Publisher via Netgalley

Meet Karn. He is destined to take over the family farm in Norrøngard. His only problem? He’d rather be playing the board game Thrones and Bones.

Enter Thianna. Half human, half frost giantess. She’s too tall to blend in with other humans but too short to be taken seriously as a giant.

When family intrigues force Karn and Thianna to flee into the wilderness, they have to keep their sense of humor and their wits about them. But survival can be challenging when you’re being chased by a 1,500-year-old dragon, Helltoppr the undead warrior and his undead minions, an evil uncle, wyverns, and an assortment of trolls and giants. — (source)

Karn is the son of a hauld and will one day inherit his father's farm. Owning a farm means responsibilities and Karn is not exactly jumping up and down at this prospect. Also, it's absolutely not as exciting as playing his treasured Thrones and Bones set and maybe traveling the world someday. Thianna is a half-giantess bullied by giants because of her ungiant-like height and skills. No matter how hard she proves herself, it's never enough for these discriminating giants to accept her as one of their own.

One is from Norrøngard, where the humans reside and one is from Ymiria, the frozen land of the giants. Little do they know that their fates are about to intertwine as both of them go on a quest to protect and to save those they hold dear.

Karn and Thianna are likeable. Naive but resourceful and clever when needed. They both started on a separate adventure but the two of them would eventually team up when they met along the way. They are definitely stronger and more productive when together. They have their own set of strengths and what the other lack, the other fulfills.

Anders' storytelling is really clever at parts. As a more mature reader than, say, to whom this book is intended for, I appreciated how parallels were drawn together in the narrative. I am not sure if this is intended so it would appeal to older readers or it's just Anders' writing style. Either way, it's remarkably done. Light and rollicking, Frostborn would ultimately charm its younger readers. Special shoutout to the dragons and wyverns, which are fantastically added and provided sassiness that Thianna and Karn sometimes lack. Frostborn being a tad predictable is quite problematic for me though and it definitely needs work in that department.

Frostborn, at its core, is a story about two young people who felt misplaced in their own world.  Despite it having shortcomings, it is a sensitive coming-of-age adventure that will surely find its niche with the Middle Grade fantasy lovers. This is a kind of series that will only get stronger with each installment, as we spend more time with these characters and explore their Viking-inspired world further.

Cupid's Verdict:

3 Cupids

A copy was provided by the publisher at no cost in exchange for an honest review.