Catch a Chill with NORTH OF NEED

snOWmEN Winter

NORTH OF NEED

Hearts of the Anemoi #1

by Laura Kaye

Kindle File Size: 803 KB

Publisher: Entangled Publishing (October 29, 2011)

Paperback: 326 pages
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC (May 15, 2012)

Sold by: Amazon Digital Services

Disclosure: Blogger Purchase

Her tears called a powerful snow god to life, but only her love can grant the humanity he craves...
Desperate to escape agonizing memories of Christmas past, twenty-nine-year-old widow Megan Snow builds a snow family outside the mountain cabin she once shared with her husband, realizing too late that she's recreated the very thing she'll never have.

Called to life by Megan's tears, snow god Owen Winters appears unconscious on her doorstep in the midst of a raging blizzard. As she nurses him to health, Owen finds unexpected solace in her company and unimagined pleasure in the warmth of her body, and vows to win her heart for a chance at humanity.
Megan is drawn to Owen's mismatched eyes, otherworldly masculinity, and enthusiasm for the littlest things. But this Christmas miracle comes with an expiration--before the snow melts and the temperature rises, Megan must let go of her widow's grief and learn to trust love again, or she'll lose Owen forever.
www.laurakayeauthor.com  (cover graphic as well)

Laura writes sex so well you may feel you just had it after reading several passages in NORTH OF NEED.  The sex in the book isn't crude, it is caring. Being good in bed is absolutely necessary to be a romance hero. This is a modern fairy tale for adults about a woman who gets what, or who, she needs but, of course in the way of fairy tales, doesn't recognize it until it is nearly too late.

Owen and Megan are developed; maybe cast a bit to type. Megan is  grief and guilty feelings. Until she finds Owen we don't know much else about her.  Owen is everything you would want a snow god to be; he is the fun you had as a child making snow angels, the fun you forget once you've grown up. But he is very much a man, a very sexy man, whose heart will literally melt for you.

Laura also doesn't get caught up in the  physics of godhood. It's another realm and beyond our concept of corporeality and incorporeality.

Laura's books are always well-edited, use grammar and punctuation properly and she employs an economy of words.  It's not that she isn't descriptive—she is just not overly descriptive. For example, the characters' clothes are not described in detail unless it is germane to the story. NORTH OF NEED isn't a complex read and the emotional content is usually relatable, only veering slightly into the overheated emotions of the romance genre. What would it be like to be a young widow faced with love after meeting a new person under such weird circumstances, as Megan meets Owen?

Aurora Borealis observed in Norway on 2006-10-28. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

And, in going into a fantasy series, she doesn't use unpronounceable names. Those she does bestow on her characters are recognizable to anyone with a modicum of of education. For example, the Supreme God of Winter is Boreas, obviously derived from the Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis.

This book is fun, shows good research, steers into the ecology of the planet, and even has a little suspense. It would be absorbing on a plane flight and great on the beach. And, I collect snowmen as a concession to the holiday season, so I wouldn't mind having an Owen to set up on the shelf.

NORTH OF NEED reminded me that seeing the Aurora Borealis is  on my bucket list.  Have you ever seen them or is it on your list?

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