Winter's Light by M.J. Hearle

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Pan Macmillan

Pages: 432pgs

The Story

Blake is gone.

He sacrificed himself to save Winter, leaving her along, unprotected . . . hunted.

An ancient enemy is rising, but Winter is no longer the innocent girl who was fated to die at Pilgrim's Lament. She will not wait to be saved. She will do what she must to survive, even accept an unsavoury alliance with those who destroyed her love.

In the gathering darkness, the enemy of an enemy is not always a friend, and Winter must find the strength to stand alone and fight for the one she loves. For she is the key to unlocking the secrets beyond the veil of shadows.

And she is Blake's only hope.

The Review

A big thanks to Pan Macmillan Australia for sending me a review copy of this book!

WINTER'S LIGHT is the much anticipated sequel to M.J. Hearle's debut YA paranormal novel Winter's Shadow, a book that I loved wholeheartedly last year. In this new sequel, this time around Winter is mourning over the loss of Blake, a Demori whom had sacrificed his life in order to save hers. But then something strange occurs after Blake's suppose destruction . . . Winter begins having visions of Blake and she's soon convinced that he is still alive, and out there somewhere in the Deadlands and in order to retrieve him, she must use her newfound abilities to track him down and get some answers about her destiny. But when two Demori attack her in her own territory, Winter finds the unlikely alliance and companionship in Sam, a boy who is one of the Bane and one who is partially responsible for Blake's demise, and together they seek out a complicated journey of the impossible and may possibly be able to bring back Blake once and for all. Or is he truly gone forever?

Winter, the main character, still shines as the main heroine and her strength only ignites throughout this novel. She has really grew into her own this girl. After all, she's determined more than ever before in this sequel to get her one true love back to her and I admire all of the difficult decisions she has to make in order to get Blake. Trust me here, there's plenty of difficulties that she has to experience. Sam on the other hand, was a great supporting character to aid Winter in her quest, and I appreciated that Hearle developed his character a little bit more than I expected him to because I well . . . I kind of adored him. Sam. More so in this book than the first, since I learned about that unknown compassionate side to him. But the only disappointing factor in regards to the characters was the missing part of my heart - that being our boy Blake. There was nothing of him. It was like that bush that runs across that dusty old lane with the wind whispering in the distance. Where was Blake in this novel? I surely deserved some Blake after reading pages upon pages . . . surely I deserved an appearance by him? Hmph. I guess not.

In regards to the storyline, I really enjoyed it. It may have been slowly-paced for most of the time in the book but I still enjoyed it. Although, as much as I hate to say it and as much as I hate to write these words down in this book review, but personally for me I found this sequel didn't live up to the hype I was hoping for since I adored the first book and everything in it. Maybe it was due to the lack of Blake or maybe it was because of the storyline itself where I was often confused by certain events that occured half-way through the book, but when it comes down to it . . . I'm still looking forward to the third installment in the series because the end of the novel made me long for more of this story and I can't wait to see if Blake will finally come back to me as he's rightfully made to come back to Winter . . . I just miss him. A lot.

Overall, with the stakes much higher than ever before and with many sacrifices awaiting Winter, WINTER'S LIGHT will certainly take you on a journey of self-discovery, mystery, and what it means to fight for what you love most in the world. Both well-written, entertaining, and fascinating, if you loved the first book Winter's Shadow then there's no doubt in my mind whatsoever that you're going to love this sequel too!

The Rating

3/5 stars

Winter's Shadow by M.J. Hearle

Release Date: 1st June, 2011

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia

Pages: 432pgs

The Story

Blake Duchamp . . .

He's all that Winter Adam can think of. Ever since their fateful meeting at Pilgrim's Lament. Ever since he looked at her with those emerald eyes. Ever since he saved her life.

But Blake isn't all that he seems. There is a strangeness about him, something dark and otherworldly. Something dangerous. In his attic is a secret he would kill to defend, but Winter seems to have a special ability to make him forget his duty. And he is her only protection against the darkness.

The only problem is, to protect Winter, Blake must risk exposing her to an even greater danger. Himself.

The Review

I was a bit reluctant in reading this book because of the cliches within its summary storyline. You know how it goes . . . Girl meets boy. Boy hides secret. Girl is determined to find out that secret. But then the secret is found out and trouble follows. Then the boy tries to stay away from girl for no good reason. But then the girl can't seem to stay away from that boy. So then the boy decides he needs to save the girl. And well . . . I guess you get the point from here. So when my mother bought this book for me on a whim and thought I might be interested in giving it a go, I read it and surprisingly . . . I kind of loved it. A lot in fact.

Winter Adams is a teenage girl whose life has recently changed after the death of her parents, but nothing is stranger than her mere encounter with Blake Duchamp. But unlike most boys she knows, this mysterious but handsome stranger, Blake, hides a very dark secret and despite his attempts in staying away from Winter, he can't seem to do it and so comes many dire consequences in them spending time together.

First of all, I love the name Winter. And secondly, wow what an amazing concept. WINTER'S SHADOW is such an interesting, unique and a dark Gothic-like storyline and it surprised me in many ways that I thought weren't possible. Some may say the story was predictable - and in some cases yes it was at times - but it's not about predictably here, it's about the creativeness and development which I found M.J. Hearle did an amazing job at. The story itself ran very smoothly across three perspectives that the story was told in - Winter's, Blake's and Madeleine's - and with the novel set up against the backdrop of an abandoned house, hidden amongst the mountains and trees, I'm quite glad to have had the opportunity to read this novel and I wished I didn't doubt it.

Blake on the other hand was my favourite character in the book. As well as Winter of course. Their interactions with one another didn't distract me from the initial storyline - not even the quickly-formed romance shared between the two of them. But once you learn the secrets of Blake and even Winter's, it was an interesting turn point for the book and I loved every moment of it. Unfortunately I won't give anything away because I want you all to go out and pick this book up, and to enjoy it for yourself. But be warned there is a cliffhanger - what book doesn't have one - and I have to say there's was nothing predictable about it, so it'll be interesting how the author writes out the sequel . . . there are so many directions he could go in.

Overall I thought WINTER'S SHADOW was a fantastic debut novel for M.J. Hearle. With a new and refreshing storyline, and with mystical beings entangled into the threads of this paranormal read, readers will thoroughly enjoy this book as much as I did and I'll be looking forward to the next book in this YA series.

The Rating

4/5 stars