In a village of the frozen north, a child is born possessed by a strange and alien spirit, only to be cast out by her tribe and taken in by the mysterious winter witches of Irrisen, a land locked in permanent magical winter. Farther south, a young mapmaker with a penchant for forgery discovers that his sham treasure maps have begun striking gold.
This is the story of Ellasif, a barbarian shield maiden who will stop at nothing to recover her missing sister, and Declan, the ne’er-do-well young spellcaster-turned-forger who wants only to prove himself to the woman he loves. Together they’ll face monsters, magic, and the fury of Ellasif’s own cold-hearted warriors in their quest to rescue the lost child. Yet when they finally reach the ice-walled city of Whitethrone, where trolls hold court and wolves roam the streets as men, will it be too late to save the girl from the forces of darkness?
From New York Times best seller Elaine Cunningham comes a fantastic new adventure of swords and sorcery, set in the award-winning world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
A classic tale of the hero setting out to rescue the fair maiden in distress. This book earns a PG MPAA rating from me. I would not think twice about giving it to a Jr. High reader. This book has a very strong female lead and a clueless male lead. There is definitely a "Coming of Age" theme to the book. I was impressed with how magic was described in the book. It holds true to the RPG ruleset of Pathfinder without requiring that you know the rules or how they work. It was a fun read. I would rate this as a Teen+ book, highly enjoyable to all ages above 13.
I did enjoy this book overall, but I have to say, to date, it was my least favorite of all currently published. Don't get me wrong, it was enjoyable, it just didn't grab me the way its predecessor did, and I've enjoyed each successive book more as well.
There were two specific parts that I really enjoyed, though. First, the beginning takes place in Korvosa, and having played Curse of the Crimson Throne, I felt like I was going back home. I had visited these places before, and I could see them again. Even the Shingle Runner feat from the player's guide made an appearance.
The other part was the special version of magic Declan was able to perform with his art. I really liked how things were brought into reality, and it reminded me of an episode of Eerie Indiana and a magic pencil when I was a kid. Very cool.
As I said, overall I enjoyed it, and the book was well-written, but the lack of draw brought it down to 4 stars.
I enjoyed Winter Witch quite a bit. If people were to ask me to give them a list a recommended books to read, Winter Witch would not likely be on it, as it’s hardly an example of great literature. However, if they were to ask me whether Winter Witch is worth reading, I would say yes, as it is thoroughly entertaining. It’s a bit slow early in the book (after an attention-grabbing prologue), but soon develops and gets moving. By the end of the book, it had become one of those books that I simply don’t want to put down because I need to know what happens next. The resolution is particularly elegant. It’s not what you’re expecting when the story starts, but it works because it’s true to the characters and doesn’t happen just because the plot says it should.
Winter Witch follows the story of two main characters. Ellasif is a shield maiden from a small village in the Lands of the Linnorm Kings near the border with Irrisen. Declan is a young Korvosan wizard, who really doesn’t want to be a wizard anymore, and would prefer to be a cartographer. These are the only two point-of-view characters, and the character whose perspective we get alternates with each chapter. Neither is a particularly complex character—Ellasif is a fairly typical Viking barbarian and Declan is a young man uncertain of his place in the world—but they are well-written and sympathetic. Their actions are always believable and not simply dictated by the necessity of plot. Elaine Cunningham has a talent for creating vivid characters without being overly wordy.
Elaine Cunningham provides us with more literary gold with this story. I found it to be so hard to put down that I read nearly the entire book in one sitting. I loved the unique quality of the wizard and the house drake that accompanies him.
This book is really more about the journey than the resolution, which is good, because honestly, I found the end a bit disappointing. There are only a couple of main characters in this story: Declan, the cartographer, and Elasif, the warrior. Declan is likable enough, but his barbarian cohort is an annoying caricature. My favorite character in the book was a relatively minor one with fewer lines than I had wished, Declan’s witty, reluctant pseudodragon familiar. The novel is interesting, but by the end feels a bit pointless. As a fan of Irrisen and Ulfen both I had hoped and expected it to focus on those cultures far more than it did, which was mildly irritating. The combat scenes and social interaction are both written fluidly and clearly. This book is an enjoyable read, though not one of the stronger Pathfinder Tales.
(I ripped into another book in the line and so thought I ought to share my positive thoughts on other Tales entries).
Another good entry in the line, this book set (and maintained) a nice pace, with well-drawn characters (some more than others) and an interesting-enough twist on the "Go save the princess" quest. Declan the reluctant wizard was a little on the bland side, but Ellasif was very well done and Skywing was fun without going full-on Jar-Jar. The prologue is some of the most engaging fantasy writing I've read in a while and later scenes at the cannibal tent in the woods were especially vivid.
I'm a little torn on the novel's "grounding" in the Pathfinder world. At times it felt a little like a story from "generic Viking land" plugged into Golarion, but that may be simply because we haven't had much in the way of detail about Irrisen and the Lands of the Linnorm Kings so far (something I hope changes sooner than later - I really like both settings). On the other hand, I thought the novel did a fine job fleshing out the the Varisians, Nolanders and Linnorm villagers.
I've not read much of Elaine's work in the past (putting a drow on the cover is a good way to get me to pass) but I'd definitely pick up anything she does for Pathfinder in the future.
This is a story about Ellasif a Ulfen Shield Maiden(think Vikings) who is on a quest to travel to the lands of the Winter Witches of Irrisen a country keep in a permanent state of winter by the witches. While Delcan a former wizard turned map maker is also traveling to Irrisen to rescue his girl friend who was capture by the winter witches. Together they travel north with a band of Varisian's (think Gypsies), until they return to Ellasif home country. There several of her former comrades join them, after Ellasif herself is taken. There is many twists and turns in the story with a fairly major plot twist near the end. Delcan has a special magical ability that works with his map making talents. While both of our hero's go off for the sake of love, they find a bit more of it along the way. There is also a Skywing a little dragon not much bigger than a house cat that follow Delcan along, most think he is Delcan's familiar but Skywing see's things a bit differently.
Now I liked the book, while it is based on the game Pathfinder. You don't need any knowledge of the game to understand or follow the book. While most fans of the game will follow along there is a few things that go beyond the game, such as Delcan's magical ability with maps. For none fans of the game there is enough information provided and maps to pretty easily follow and understand the world they are traveling in and what they are up against. It is a good book but not a great book, I think the pacing could have been a little bit better. Ellasif is a strong female lead, Delcan is a ok character, Skywing is great and I also like the main villain in the story. So I am giving this a 3.5 star review. Good read if you are looking for a little light fantasy.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters were complex, the pace built up nicely as the book went on, and it really gave a good feel for Golarion. I'm not one to read the same book over and over, but I would definitely give this one a second read. Can't wait for the next one!
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