Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    A Breath of Frost
    Unavailable
    A Breath of Frost
    Unavailable
    A Breath of Frost
    Ebook472 pages6 hours

    A Breath of Frost

    By Alyxandra Harvey

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    In 1814, three cousins-Gretchen, Emma, and Penelope-discover their family lineage of witchcraft when a binding spell is broken, allowing their individual magical powers to manifest. Now, beyond the manicured gardens and ballrooms of Regency London, an alluring underworld available only to those with power is revealed to the cousins. By claiming their power, the three cousins have accidentally opened the gates to the underworld. Now ghouls, hellhounds-and most terrifying of all, the spirits of dark witches known as the Greymalkin Sisters-are hunting and killing young debutante witches for their powers. And, somehow, Emma is connected to the murders…because she keeps finding the bodies. Can the cousins seal the gates before another witch is killed…or even worse, before their new gifts are stripped away?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBloomsbury Publishing
    Release dateJan 7, 2014
    ISBN9780802734457
    Unavailable
    A Breath of Frost
    Author

    Alyxandra Harvey

    Alyxandra Harvey lives in a stone Victorian house in Ontario, Canada, with a few resident ghosts who are allowed to stay as long they keep company manners. She also lives with assorted dogs (at least one corgi) and her husband. She likes vanilla tea, tattoos, and books. She is sometimes fueled by literary rage. She is the author of the Drake Chronicles, Haunting Violet, the Witches of London Trilogy, and Red.

    Read more from Alyxandra Harvey

    Related to A Breath of Frost

    Related ebooks

    Children's Love & Romance For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      A Lost Prayer

      Feb 2, 2023

      A Lost Prayer
      10 min read

    • Article

      The Witch Finders

      Jul 16, 2020

      Beth pulled her cloak tightly around her. It was the very last day of October and the air was damp and chill. Dead autumn leaves lay in deep piles in the woods and smoke curled into the night air from her cottage. Not far to go now. She bent her head

      4 min read

    • Article

      Read ! Read!

      Aug 14, 2022

      A chicken called Clara has been telling lies about the ducks of Little Dismal, and the ducks are furious. After an embarrassing talent night, the poetic duck Rita sees a chance to restore her damaged reputation – revenge against Clara. Rita’s mission

      1 min read

    • Article

      Quotients

      May 7, 2020

      Quotients
      8 min read

    • Article

      Cricket League

      Jan 1, 2022

      It was an unusual birthday. Colorful banners blanketed the backyard. Kids chased each other through the grass. Adults talked. It all went downhill from there. My little sister was turning five. On her birthday cake, painted in frosting, was a fat, pi

      7 min read

    • Article

      Summer Reading Special

      Dec 28, 2023

      The distinctive depth of characterisation shines in this tightly knitted story of therapist Nick and retired solicitor wife Zoe, as they decide to view a deconsecrated Victorian church which is for sale. It’s “even more picturesque than it looked onl

      11 min read

    • Article

      One Look Back

      Jun 1, 2023

      One Look Back
      20 min read

    • Article

      Summer Reading Special

      Dec 28, 2023

      Summer Reading Special
      11 min read

    • Article

      On The Shelf

      Jan 4, 2021

      On The Shelf
      2 min read

    • Article

      The Governess

      Dec 30, 2020

      The Governess
      10 min read

    • Article

      The Governess

      Dec 27, 2020

      The Governess
      10 min read

    • Article

      Books

      Feb 16, 2024

      Books
      4 min read

    • Article

      The Symmetry Of Ruby Margot

      Feb 6, 2020

      The Symmetry Of Ruby Margot
      10 min read

    • Article

      Science Fiction And Fantasy

      Jan 5, 2022

      AJ Elwood Titan Books 2021 Pb, 365pp, £8.99, ISBN 9781789096859 We have three wonderfully fortean concepts to start with. We all know that fairies, even if they might sometimes be pretty, delicate little winged creatures, are rarely benign, and in AJ

      4 min read

    • Article

      Great Read

      May 18, 2022

      Great Read
      5 min read

    • Article

      Christmas Books Guide

      Nov 30, 2022

      This is Fiona McIntosh’s first novel set entirely in Australia. Her heroine, Fleur, is just eight when she is already helping her adoptive undertaker parents prepare bodies. Mother Mae knows their only daughter is capable of running the Port Adelaide

      10 min read

    • Article

      Reading Corner

      Aug 20, 2023

      Reading Corner
      3 min read

    • Article

      Books Of The Month

      Jan 21, 2022

      by Nikki May “Wahala” means, loosely, trouble, and there’s plenty of it in this entertaining debut. Friends since university, where they bonded over their mixed Nigerian and British heritage, Ronke, Boo and Simi live in London, where they pivot betwe

      2 min read

    • Article

      Book Club

      Jul 16, 2020

      Book Club
      4 min read

    • Article

      Horror Begins At Home: The Haunting New Chapter In Domestic Noir

      Oct 29, 2022

      When Dee walks through the front door in Catriona Ward’s recent thriller The Last House on Needless Street, readers of gothic fiction find themselves in a familiar place. The house is “an underworld; a deep cave where lonely shafts of light fall on s

      4 min read

    • Article

      Frost FAIR

      Jan 18, 2023

      Frost FAIR
      11 min read

    • Article

      Book Club

      Nov 9, 2023

      Book Club
      5 min read

    • Article

      Books That Hook

      Jul 3, 2020

      Books That Hook
      3 min read

    • Article

      MYSTERY & SUSPENSE

      Feb 17, 2023

      By JOANNA NADIN Mantle It’s 1988 and 17-year-old Jason wants more from life than small-town poverty in Cornwall and an abusive drunk for a father. When a group of posh 20-somethings come to stay for a beach holiday, he gets a glimpse of his dream li

      3 min read

    • Article

      My Mother’s Stalker

      Jan 16, 2024

      My Mother’s Stalker
      24 min read

    Reviews for A Breath of Frost

    4/5

    35 ratings6 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: In a slightly confusing but beautifully written novel, mystery and romance plays out behind the covers. I thought it was rather enjoyable and had no troubles getting through it.Opening Sentence: Breaking into a dead woman’s house was easy because she rarely complained.The Review:Emma, recent debutante, at the beginning of the book has little more worries than finding a husband . . . if you don’t count her mother’s going practically mad and the handsome man she can’t seem to ignore knowing secrets he is annoyingly clinging to. But when Emma and her cousins realize they are witches and have been released from a spell, murders start to spring up and Emma is the prime suspect.I enjoyed the characters in this book. Not only are they all different and unique, but they are described so perfectly that you can picture each in your mind without difficulty. When I think Emma, I think reddish hair and a white debutante dress. Each of them has a familiar also (an animal formed of their magic), that fit their personalities perfectly- except for Penelope. Hers was a spider, which I can’t really imagine her particularity close with. Emma’s being a deer? Sure. An evil warlock’s being a snake? Yup. Penelope and spiders, not so much.Let’s talk more about the stuff I liked. I had no problem with the writing style in this novel, which I found refreshing because I haven’t heard anything like it before. I also liked the romances: Emma’s, her mother’s, and everyone else’s. Though Penelope’s isn’t gone into much detail, that one was cute as well. Emma and Cormac really do fit well and this particular author is one of those writers that find a way to make you really feel what the character is feeling through just words.There is also, regrettably, things I didn’t like as much. The top one would be how confused I was at points. I just didn’t get certain things, couldn’t process them as fast as the author expected the reader to before loading them with more explanations. If this was a mystery it didn’t feel much like it. Although it had the typical traits of one (clues, murders, etc.) often I felt that the main plotline was pushed far enough to the side that I forgot about it altogether until it was mentioned again. And for the most part, by then I didn’t remember any little detail I had learned previously that was important in the current scene. I don’t know, sometimes the bigger picture didn’t seem so large with all the little things happening.Another annoyance: the Order. They’re supposed to be so scary and important, but the main character bypasses them so much it makes them seem weak. I like me an antagonist who seems more powerful. The Sisters, they have serious evil points, on the other hand. Their creepy, morbid looks along with Lark’s sad backstory make for a wild ride.To sum up, A Breath of Frost was a good read. I would recommend this especially to fans of fantasy or the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. Fabulous description and amazing, hilarious characters. Check it out!Notable Scene:Theodora spat on the floor. Mrs. Peabody sighed. “Time for your medicine.” She slid the spoon into Theodora’s mouth before she could move, holding her mouth and nose firmly clasped until she swallowed. Mrs. Peabody patted her hand. “There, puppet. All better.”“Gold is good, silver’s better.” She drifted off, her head falling forward as the laudanum took effect. “The lion stalks the maiden fair when the bear leaves his lair.” She smiled. “But where the hunter goes, only the serpent knows.”FTC Advisory: Walker Children’s/Bloomsbury provided me with a copy of A Breath of Frost. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
    • 5/5
      By unknowingly unlocking their magical abilities, the girls have not only opened an entire, previously unknown, world, full of magic, spells and creatures, but put themselves in danger as well.Now they have so much more to worry about than simply navigating parties and society as debutantes. Hiding in the library (Gretchen), looking for the most suitable dance partner (Penelope) and staying out of sight (Emma) isn't going to be the easiest way to get by any more. Not with the bodies of dead girls appearing, ones that Emma keeps finding. And dangerous warlock sisters , thought to be gone, now back and wreaking havoc.If they can keep themselves safe, if Emma can figure out the forever hot and cold actions of Cormac, then maybe they can figure out their new-found magic . . . and the murders.The Drake Chronicles series, Stolen Away and Haunting Violet have made it pretty clear that I love Alyxandra Harvey's storytelling but A Breath of Frost was really something else. That same spark, humor and wit that I love from her characters was definitely present once again. While it was Regency London and the plot seemed to hold true (while involving witchcraft), the characters - the female characters, especially - had that little extra something separating them from the status quo.The girls aren't so different that they seem modern day or out of place, but they also have a bit more audacity, maybe more mettle than one might expect. It makes them and the story superb.Emma, Penelope and Gretchen are not Lucy and Solange from Harvey's Drake Chronicles series but that strong friendship, that almost sisterly bond that was done so well in that series is present with the cousins here. It's different as they are different characters in a different setting, situation but the love, the fierceness of their will to protect each other is there. It's a bond I hope to see grow over the series.Much of the novel focuses on Emma and her story - with her mother, with Cormac and with her magic. We learn a lot about her in this first book, some things that are easier to see coming than others. It will definitely be interesting to see how each of the things that happened, that she uncovered affects her, the other characters and the story down the road.The glimpses we got into the other girls lives very much left me wanting to know more about them - and wondering if we'll find out even a third as many secrets as we did with Emma. (Penelope's character and what we saw with her has me especially intrigued.)Cormac and his sisters are kind of a fantastic addition to the story. His sisters were not a big part of the story but I loved the little bits that they were in it and hope that was not all we will see of them.As for the plot, it's kind of really great. With witches, warlocks, society, societies, madcaps, gargoyles, enchantments, and familiars all with family drama, school, possible mean girls and confusing boys, A Breath of Frost has it all. Alyxandra Harvey weaves a brilliant tale, told at a great pace that connects readers with all of the characters and the (slightly modified?) Regency London world they're living in. You'll love not only where things end up but how it got there -- all while eagerly waiting to see where they things go next.My review is really long already but it needs to end with this: Alyxandra Harvey's books? <3(e-arc received from publisher through NetGalley)
    • 3/5
      A Breath of Frost is the first book in Alyxandra Harvey’s The Lovegrove Legacy trilogy. Set in the early 1800′s, it features three debutante cousins, Emma, Gretchen and Penelope, who discover their secret family legacy, and open the gates to the Underworld, after Emma accidentally breaks a keepsake given to her by her mother. As murderous witches and hellish beasts threaten the magical community, the girls must embrace their legacy to end the deadly chaos.While each of the cousins is involved in this story, the focus of this first book is on Emma. It is she who stumbles across murdered classmates, she who the Order targets, and she who must solve her mother’s riddles to banish the terrifying Greymalkin sisters. I liked Emma, who is not complex but not stereotypical either. Though all three girls seem to be rather casual in their acceptance of their new world order, I’m grateful not to have to endure lady like fainting and fluttering. There is romance for Emma as well with Cormac Fairfax, a young man without magic but who works for the Order and is determined to protect her.I enjoyed the world building, Harvey establishes the novel well blending the historical with the supernatural. There is some contemporary interpretation of historical detail, like language and behaviour, which purists may be peevish about but didn’t really bother me. Witches are amongst my favourite paranormal elements and I liked the variety of magics Harvey created including spells, charms and innate abilities.I do think the novel was overwritten though and could have been pruned by at least 50 pages without detracting from the atmosphere, plot or characters. There was some scene repetition and the pace was a little uneven, but there was also some good action and a couple of twists.I have to admit I wasn’t really expecting much from A Breath of Frost, I didn’t think much of a previous book I had read by the author, but I am glad I gave this a chance because despite its flaws it is overall an entertaining and engaging read.
    • 5/5
      I won this book and agreed to give it an honest review. In 1814 London. Three cousins, Emma, Gretchen, and Penelope learned their family lineage is witchcraft when a binding spell is broken. This allowed the cousins their individual powers to burst through at a Regent ball, and by the cousins opening their powers, they accidentally open the gates of the underworld. Now the Greymalkin sisters are killing innocent debutantes for their power and Emma is blamed!
    • 4/5
      Readers that love witches and young adult books have an engaging read in store for them with A Breath of Frost. Discovering family secrets and a heritage long kept hidden, these three young cousins have so much in store for them, some of which (like what I did there? hehe) romance, gargoyles, madcaps, silly debutantes, dashing young men, balls and oh my a finishing school for witches.

      These girls discover they are witches after one accidentally breaks the binding spell that her mother placed on all three of them. Unbeknownst to them there was an entire secret society and world hidden from normal folk and that they now have to adapt to. In learning their heritage they also need to learn to control their powers that come with it. They are decidedly behind the power curve, and no one seems to let them forget it and yet combined with the force of their personalities and a whole lot of moxy they don't let that stop them from kicking butt and taking names.

      You can expect a lot of interesting magic - I really enjoyed the different forms of animals that the magic familiar of each person took. I thought it was a nice way to integrate the typical witches familiar. The use of spell ingredients is always fun for me, so you'll see plenty of mention of that throughout the book. The smells of things are described rather well and I believe always helps pull you into a story more.

      Oh yes, I already mentioned the finishing school yes? I think many young girls often dream of how interesting life might be at a boarding school I know I always did, and still do. It was very neat to so one just for female witches.

      There was no shortage of things to enjoy about A Breath of Frost. Things start fast and keep a nice steady pace. I adored Harvey's writing style, even though I was quite confused for the first 35 - 40% as to why the heck these "Keepers" were after Emma. While the book does feature all three cousins, Emma is most definitely the focus of the story. She is the main perspective, the other perspectives that are included are of course Penelope and Gretchen but we also get to see things a few times from one of the romantic interests, Cormac (and another minor character Moira). I have to say, in the beginning there wasn't a very strong difference to me between Penny and Gretchen so I would get them confused a bit but ultimately that straightened itself out as things went on.

      For the time period it was in there were of course some definite veering from 'acceptable' behavior. That being a considerable amount of kissing for a story that takes place in 1814 with unmarried debutantes *wink* I find this is often the case in historical fantasy books, not the kissing but the veering of the characters towards decidedly modern behavioral patterns. That sort of thing doesn't bother me at all but I imagine it could pickle a few people. I say just roll with it, it works.

      The style of things leaves the reader just as confused in the first half of the book as Emma is and you slowly learn and uncover things right along with her. She has so many mysteries that she wants to solve that you wonder if she's really going to be able to figure it all out by the end because by then you as the reader I'm sure already have.

      I seriously enjoyed the starter of this new series and look forward to reading more about these cousins. I'm really hoping that each future book will focus on each of the cousins in turn so we can get to know the others just as well as we did Emma.

      If you love, YA, witches, magic, romance and historical settings with some definite tweaking then definitely pick up A Break of Frost.
    • 4/5
      I love teen witch books, ok! Even more so if they have great female friendships and take place in Regency England.