Prisoner of Ice and Snow (Prisoner of Ice and Snow)

by Ruth Lauren

Valor is under arrest for the attempted murder of the crown prince. Her parents are outcasts from the royal court, her sister is banished for theft of a national treasure, and now Valor has been sentenced to life imprisonment at Demidova, a prison built from stone and ice.

But that’s exactly where she wants to be. For her sister was sent there too, and Valor embarks on an epic plan to break her out from the inside.

No one has escaped from Demidova in over three hundred years, and if Valor is to succeed she will need all of her strength, courage and love. If the plan fails, she faces a chilling fate worse than any prison ...

An unforgettable story of sisterhood, valour and rebellion, Prisoner of Ice and Snow will fire you up and melt your heart all at once. Perfect for fans of Katherine Rundell, Piers Torday and Cathryn Constable.

• ISBN10: 1408872757
• ISBN13: 9781408872758
• Publish Date: 7 September 2017 (first published 4 April 2017)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 3 August 2022
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
• Imprint: Bloomsbury Childrens Books
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 288
• Language: English

Reviews

[tweetybugshouse]

The story starts out with our main character Valor just after her sister has been arrested for stealing a price jewelry box. We are plunged right into the midst of the action and are pulled along as Valor works a crafty plan to free her sister from a prison no one has escaped in over 300 years. Their are echo of frozen in the amount of sisterly love Valor shows for her dear younger sister Sasha. Their not a whole lot of world building that is set up the story moves along a great pace so that the main audience that the story is meant for does not get bogged down in the details and is very easily drawn to turn the next page to see where the action goes. I am intrigued and wonder if we get more story as the main objective is achieved it not quite where i thought the story was going to go. Thanks to Bloomsbury for the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book.

[Leah]

Prisoner of Ice and Snow is Ruth Lauren’s fantasy, middle grade debut and it’s sure to be a bestseller. I genuinely loved this book so hard. Like, if I ever happen to find myself in prison (because I’ve snapped, working in retail, and killed all the customers), it wouldn’t be Michael Schofield that I’d be ringing to break me out. Nuh-uh, he’s been replaced. By Valor. Who is Valor, you ask? Well, she’s the thirteen-year-old heroine of Prisoner of Ice and Snow who gets sent to prison on purpose – and not just by robbing a bank, Schofield-style, nope, Valor decides to assassinate Prince Anatol! That actually sounds more dramatic than it is, as she only *attempts* to assassinate him; he was in no danger. The girl has more arrow skills that Katniss and Oliver Queen put together. And it’s all in an attempt to save her twin sister, Sasha. All together now, “Awwww.”

I absolutely loved Prisoner of Ice and Snow, it’s set in the world of Demidova, and it seems to come across quite Russian, with the names and the biting, unrelenting cold that seems to be the norm and y’know the whole ice and snow thing. It wasn’t really about the world, though, even though it was written fantastically well; this book is just about one sister willing to do anything to free her sister, it’s as simple as that and that’s what made this book even more fantastic. Valor’s sole mission was Sasha, right from the very off and everything she does – getting thrown in prison in the first place, memorising maps of routes out, making friends to help aid their escape, it’s all about getting Sasha away and clearing her name, proving that she didn’t steal the musical box which was why she was in the prison to begin with.

Despite the relatively simple plot: go to prison, break sister out of prison, live happily ever after, etc, the book is just chock full of emotion. I remember seeing I had 53 minutes to go in the book, just as a big thing was about to happen and I was like, “No, it’s too early”. I was just so worried for Valor, for Sasha, for Feliks, for Katia. I was suspicious of Prince Anatol and what he wanted from Valor and I was suspicion of the Warden who creeped the living daylights out of me. I never felt secure whilst reading the book, I always felt like I wanted to look over my shoulder, because Valor was trying to do something no one had done ever, or for well over 300 years, and I was so anxious reading every single page.

I absolutely loved this book so much. It had my heart from the very start, and any sister willing to do what Valor does for Sasha makes me just want to weep for her bravery, her heart, her warmth, everything about her made me so proud to be reading her story. The whole plot of the book was fantastic and Ruth Lauren has written such an amazing book, I genuinely enjoyed every page, despite the anxiety practically rolling off me in waves, in fear. I am in desperate need of a sequel, and the ending of Prisoner of Ice and Snow very much left the door open for a potential sequel, should Ruth Lauren feel the need (PLEASE RUTH LAUREN FEEL THE NEED!!!!!!!). If not, it did end well, don’t get me wrong, but I am itching for more from the world of Demidova, in particular with Valor and Sasha. And even Feliks! My little heart adored Feliks!