Frostfire (Kanin Chronicles, #1)

by Amanda Hocking

Frostfire by Amanda Hocking is the stunning first installment in a tale of love, betrayal and the need to belong, the Kanin Chronicles.

Will she give up her dream to follow her heart?

Bryn Aven is determined to gain status amongst the Kanin, the most powerful of the hidden tribes. But as a half-blood, winning respect is a huge challenge. Bryn's almost-human community distrusts people, and those from other tribes are almost as suspect.

She has just one goal to get ahead: to join the elite guard protecting the Kanin royal family. And Bryn's vowed that nothing will stand in her way, not even a forbidden romance with her boss, Ridley Dresden.

But her plans are put on hold when fallen hero Konstantin starts acting dangerously. Bryn loved him once, but now he's kidnapping Kanin children - stealing them from hidden placements within human families. She's sent to help stop him, but will she lose her heart in the process?

• ISBN10: 1250066085
• ISBN13: 9781250066084
• Publish Date: 6 January 2015
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 30 June 2021
• Imprint: St. Martin's Griffin
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[readingwithwrin]

“Remember my name. Because I'm going to be the one who kills you.”


When I first started this book I was a little worried because the protagonist was very in crush with a guy who really seemed too good to be true in my opinion. This quickly changed due to horrible events that happened, but it really made the story better and also showed, why she did certain things as the story went on.

One thing I really really liked was how Bryn was a strong person, but she was also flawed. She had a temper and got upset and didn't deal with people in the best way sometimes. She never wanted to be the life of the party and instead was content to just be on the sidelines watching. I don't think that is a flaw, but it is rather uncommon with a female lead character, who is younger.
She is very independent and wanted to get to where she was all on her own without her father's help.
I also really liked how she had such a good friendship with two other female trackers who were both very different, but also all complimented each other's personalities.

One thing I did find a little confusing was all of the troll kingdoms and how they all worked. I'm not sure if I just missed something or if it will be better explained in the next book.

The fight scenes between Bryn and Konstantin were very easy to imagine happen and seemed somewhat realistic for a change which was also nice. Hocking did an amazing job of describing them so you could imagine them as if they were really happening right in front of you.

This book is so action-packed with adventure, and fighting that it was very entertaining from the beginning. There is a slight love interest, but I have a feeling it's going to be a slow-burning one for a while. I can't wait to be able to start the second one very soon!

See more reviews like this on my blog

[tweetybugshouse]

First of all i have to say that i picked this book up and the rest of the series cause the cover are just so stunning. I almost wish they go back and redo the covers for the tyrlle series so they be just as pretty on my book shelf.

Now this is a spin off to the Tyrlle series and i have to say that while you probably be okay if you just dived in with this series you feel more rooted if you read the other series first. I like that we get another glimpse into the workings of the tyrlle world. The Kanin kingdome is very different from what we seen of this world and you really get a sense of why the different tribes do not interact with each other.

As always you are left with unanswered questions that drag you into the next book which i hope to pick up and read here shortly it waiting on my shelf saying you got to read more. A great start to a spin off that is sure to leave me wanting another spin off to this spin off.

[angelarenea9]

This review is posted on Reading with AngelaRenea

What a refreshing and exciting beginning to a series!

I had this on my to read list for a while but didn't start it until I saw the upcoming 3rd book and gave it a chance. I don't see a lot of books about trolls so this was very exciting. I also found that this book barely fell into the young adult category and was more of a fantasy book. Not that I dislike YA, obviously, but it was a nice change of pace.

The world building in this book was very well scattered into the plot of the novel. I generally love this part the best so it was nice to see it in bits through the whole book. I also liked the way that Bryn is very much an adult, but obviously newly one. She has a job, an apartment, and her own life, but she seems to be new to it all. I am glad it was not the same old 17 year old lives with parents who for some reason let her do really dangerous stuff.

The intricate political and racial complexities were also very interesting. I really enjoyed hearing about them, who can speak with who and to what degree and who can live with who and where. I think that it speaks to a lot of different situations in today's world.

I will defiantly be reading the next few books in this series!

[Kelly]

http://www.divabooknerd.com/2015/05/frostfire-by-amanda-hocking.html
Having not previously read the original series, the Trylle Trilogy, I was pleasantly surprised by Frostfire, a spin off series focused on another Kingdom within the same world. The Kanin are a kingdom of trolls, ruled by royalty where the offspring of the wealthy are now being brought home. Bryn is a Tracker, having worked her way through adversity to maintain her place within the King's domain, despite her status as an outsider. She's strong willed and sassy, never taking no for an answer and wants nothing more than to earn her place in the King's royal guard. But for now, she works as a Tracker, bringing home the Changelings as they come of age. But when retrieving her latest charge, she comes face to face with Konstantin, a man she once adored from afar. She still remembers the attack, saving her father's life the night Konstantin became a wanted man and fled the Kanin kingdom.

While navigating her newly realised feeling for boss Ridley, she's determined to lure Konstantin to his capture and this time, it's personal. But Konstantin isn't working alone. In a cruel twist of fate, it isn't Konstantin that Bryn should fear, as he toys with her emotions and she finds herself torn between Ridley and the mystery that is Konstantin. I loved the intensity, the banter between Ridley and Bryn and her determination to overcome adversity and become an elite guard. Bryn idled between sassy and fierce, often hiding her emotions and choosing a cold facade.

There's aren't your average trolls. The first installment in the Kanin Chronicles is a quick and entertaining read. Not having read the original series, I was able to easily follow the storyline and politics between the different communities that comprise the troll kingdoms. I really enjoyed it. For not only fans of the original series, but those who enjoy a character based fantasy, focused on suspense and politics.

[liz089]

Want to read more reviews from me ? Visit my blog Freyja Eats Books!

Review
So I just finished Frostfire and I liked it. I did not looooove it, but it was entertaining and made me what to know more about it. I read the Trylle series as well, and I liked that it continued in the same world with some of the same characters. Only this time it centres the Kanin instead of the Trylle. Which made it refreshing and new in some ways, but old and familiar in other ways. I liked that combination.

The only downside was that after reading so many books it is hard to remember everything that happened in the previous series haha. I read the Trylle series about 3 years ago, and I do remember some parts.. but most of it is long gone. It made me want to read the Trylle series again.. but well, I have so many books I still have to read that this has not much priority.
Plus that I am also trying re-reading the Hush Hush series.. so that is enough for now !

So the Kanin is a different kind of trolls then the Trylle. It has the same basics, it has a king and a queen, followed by the markis’ and the marksinna’s. But instead of just trackers, they also have the Hodrogen or something like that. They are the Elite Guard of the kingdom. And were the Trylle keeps the human changelings, the Kanin do not. Which makes them more.. elite and self-centred in some ways.. They are more about keeping the Kanin pure.. Which sucks for our main character, it being that she is only half Kanin (and half Skojare). So she is kind of an outcast because of that.

I really liked the main character, Bryn. She is just the kind of woman I love. Strong and independent. She wants to do everything on her own and does not need the help of others. She might be a little hard-headed, but that made me like her even more. I dislike it when a main character depends too much on others, like describing women are weak and need help to accomplish even the most simple tasks. Bryn was absolutely strong and wanted to do things on her own. Loved that. And because of her heritage she has to work extra hard to accomplish the things she wants. She really fights for herself and what she wants to be in the future.

Because of that she can be kind of harsh sometimes.. On herself and others as well.. And on the whole romance thing. I really liked our main love interest Ridley.. He is cute and sexy, but he really seems to appreciate Bryn for who she is. The only problem being that he is her boss and that is a big no-no.
And I kind of have the feeling that Konstantin could become something more as well in the next books, but well we have to wait for that.

Oh ! Which reminds me, how awesome of Amanda Hocking that the other two books of this series are being published this year !!

So the plot itself.. While trying to get an high priority changeling back, he almost gets kidnapped before her own eyes and she has to run away with him. And not by just anyone, but by the guy that almost killed her father a couple years back. So this becomes quite the issue back in Kanin kingdom, and especially when it happens again. So they’re issuing to get more changelings back sooner than planned to keep them out of their hands. Apart from Konstantin and an troll from another kingdom, they do not know what is going on and what the big picture behind all of this is. And when the queen of the Skojare disappears, it gets even more complicated. Bryn is send to Storvatten (the main capital of the Skojare kingdom) to help searching for the queen together with Ridley. Some trolls from the Trylle are also invited to help, among them Tove (he sounded sooo familiar.. but I can’t remember him!!) but they get really weird vibes from the rulers of the Skojare. Some stuff happens, Konstantin is captured and escapes (together with some big bad wanted figure from the Kanin) and well.. the book ended somewhere around that..

So the book ended completely open... What is going on ?? This book has given some clues, but mostly a lot of questions !! What happened to the queen? What is going on with the kidnapping of changelings? What is the big picture behind it all? And will Bryn come together with Ridley, or will someone else come into view? I’ll have to wait..

One of the things that I did miss though was.. well.. the feeling.. I liked to book, I liked the main character, but I missed the passion.. I had no trouble putting this book down and I even read some other books before I finished it. So even though I did like it, it missed some of the chemistry that made it spark.. But who knows, the first book is maybe more of an introduction into this new kingdom.. and will the next book have more fire in it.. We shall see.

Rating
I would like to give it a solid 4 Freyja’s. She did good with this book, build it up nicely and left me wanting for more. But like I said, I missed the chemistry. I liked the plot, it has a lot of action and things happening. I went from one event to the other, and even though some explanations were necessary to introduce us all back into the world of the trolls, the introductions were brief and short. She did not give too much information, but just the most important facts.
Still.. I for one can’t wait for the next instalment of the Kanin Chronicles, because I have a lot of questions I want answers to !!