Winterfrost Market by Jenny Sandiford - Book Review

Series: Tales of Midwinter Haven #1

Publication Date: 24th Oct 2024 

Genre: Cozy Fantasy Romance 

3.5 Stars 

One Liner: Sweet enough but needs more

The Winterfrost Market is famous for its Midwinter celebrations. Elsie, her sister, and their mother set up their cozy traveling tea house in the town. However, Elsie’s mom goes north to Midwinter Haven for some rare spices. The place is filled with fae, vampires, witches, elves, and other magical creatures, deemed dangerous by humans. When she doesn’t return, Elsie worries and decides to search for her. She hires a grumpy tracker to take her northward. 

Kit isn’t really a tracker but he sure knows his way to Midwinter Haven. However, he has his own reasons for letting Elsie accompany him. As a few secrets come out, Elsie and Kit may have to decide what they want, while trying to find more about her mother. 

The story comes in Elsie and Kit’s third-person POVs.

My Thoughts: 

Well, cozy fantasies are a thing now, and the cover is adorable. Naturally, I had to grab this one. Though the stakes seem a bit high, the overall vibe is cozy and easy. 

The premise is great. We have intrigue, adventure, danger, royals, magic, and whatnot! However, there isn’t enough detail to make the setting come alive as it should. 

I appreciate the inclusion of a map at the beginning. It was helpful. But a map doesn’t negate the need for better world-building. While we get basic details, the writing relies on the assumption that readers would know what it means. This may not work for everyone. 

The dual POV certainly helps since we get both backstories in parallel. However, many elements are missing. It’s all surface-level, so there isn’t enough emotion to fully connect with the characters' feelings or to support their actions. 

The pacing is great. However, this is an advantage and disadvantage. The story flows fast, which keeps the tempo steady. Yet, we don’t have the time to immerse into the setting or empathize with the varied emotions the characters feel. 

Though the book is the first in the series and a standalone, it needed to be longer and more detailed. (It still is standalone but with missing elements).

It’s a bit of insta-love if we consider the timeline. Since the banter isn’t great, the ‘love’ aspect doesn’t really shine. The lack of steam (this is a clean romance) works in its favor.

The side characters are quite cool. I hope they’ll be more fleshed out (along with the world-building) in the coming books. Taking time with the descriptions and dialogues might be helpful. 

To summarize, Winterfrost Market is a decent and enjoyable read if you want something light and magical. It should be a good palate cleanser between heavy reads. Can pretty much finish the book in a single sitting. 

Thank you, NetGalley, Velikor Publishing, and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, for eARC. 

#NetGalley #WinterfrostMarket