The Ice Swan- Book Review

The Ice Swan by J'nell Ciesielski

Genre: Historical Romance, Russia  
4 Stars

The Great War has wreaked havoc in Russia as the Bolsheviks swore to get rid of the aristocrats from the land. Svetlana escapes to Paris with her younger sister and mother in an attempt to stay alive. Life is tough for the princess as she has to come to terms with the lack of food and proper accommodations. Her mother’s aristocratic extravagance seems to be causing more harm.

Wynn MacCallan is a Marquis, the second son of a Scotland Duke, and a surgeon working long hours treating the war patients and making giant leaps in the medical world.

Wynn and Svetlana don’t have a smooth start. The situation is grim, and the ice princess needs no one to help. But life doesn’t work according to her wishes. Svetlana gets into a marriage of convenience with Wynn when he offers a way out of the mounting troubles.

The Great War appears to have ended but is the threat really gone, or are the Bolsheviks still crossing borders to hunt Svetlana and her family? Can the couple find love for each other and save their marriage and lives?

The Ice Swan is an apt title for the book. We see Svetlana as the ice princess who is not easily charmed by anyone. Even as she feels a connection with Wynn, she keeps him at a distance.

The book is 400 pages long and takes quite some time to finish. The beginning is a bit slow (expected, though), but it picks up a moderate pace afterward.

The first half of the book takes place in Paris, where Wynn meets Svetlana, her family, and Leonard’s powerful father. The second half moves to Scotland as the princess tries to adapt to her new life and takes more interest in social causes.

From being a bored princess to become a responsible and capable duchess, Svetlana’s progress seems steady enough. Her relationship with Wynn is another matter, though. The second half focuses on their marriage, and things do get a little predictable from here.

We know things will happen, and the couple will have to go apart before they can confess their love and unite again. Luckily, the pace picks up at this stage, and the author doesn’t throw in too many twists. Wynn is a steadfast character and remains so for most of the book.

The epilogue neatly ties up all knots and eases the wrinkles to give us a happy ever after. As other reviewers have mentioned, I’d love to see two side characters from the book have their own books and (love interests). They are rather cute and heartwarming people with good intentions. Not revealing the names, but will say that they are both males.

Overall, The Ice Swan is a good book with elements of war, history, and romance. The elements have been balanced well, so the book makes a good read.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Thomas Nelson.

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